Tempelhofer Feld

A former airport turned into the most Berlin park in Berlin. Tempelhof Airport, once one of Europe's busiest, closed in 2008 after the new BER airport was announced (which then took 14 years to actually open, but that is another story). Instead of developing the 386-hectare site into apartments and offices, Berliners voted in a 2014 referendum to keep it as open public space. The vote was not close. The city said no to money, and yes to runways.

Now people cycle, rollerblade, and kite-surf on actual runways, tend community gardens between taxiways, barbecue next to the old terminal building, and walk dogs on the grass that grows through cracks in the tarmac. The flat, open expanse is unlike any other urban park in Europe: you can see the entire Berlin skyline from the center of the field, with the TV Tower, Kreuzberg's Viktoriapark, and Neukolln's apartment blocks surrounding you on all sides.

The terminal building itself, one of the largest in Europe, was designed by Nazi architect Ernst Sagebiel in 1936 and served as an air force base during WWII. During the Berlin Blockade of 1948-49, Allied planes landed here every 90 seconds to supply West Berlin. The terminal is not regularly open to the public, but guided tours (EUR15, weekends, book ahead) explore the Nazi-era architecture, Cold War candy bomber history, and the underground tunnels.

Enter from the Oderstrasse gate on the Neukolln side for the least crowded start. The full runway loop is 6 km. Bring your own drinks and snacks because there are no kiosks inside the field. Gates close at sunset.