Unspecified/General

A converted barge moored in the River Spree in the Treptow district of Berlin, the Badeschiff is one of the city's most distinctive summer attractions, an open-air swimming pool floating on the water itself, surrounded by a popular beach bar and sun decks. The name translates roughly as bathing ship, and the concept arose in the mid-2000s as an inventive response to the wish to swim safely in the heart of a city whose own river is not suitable for bathing: rather than swim in the Spree, visitors swim in clean pool water held within a vessel set in the river, so that bathers float, in effect, on the river while looking out across it to the surrounding cityscape. The pool is ringed by wooden decking strewn with sand, deckchairs and loungers, and a relaxed bar serves drinks and snacks, creating an urban beach atmosphere that has made it a favourite gathering place on warm days. The setting offers fine views of the river traffic and the industrial and regenerated banks, and the venue often continues into the evening, when it takes on the character of a lively bar and event space, sometimes hosting music and parties. In the colder months the pool area is sometimes enclosed and transformed for other uses. Primarily a warm-weather destination, the floating bath draws sun-seekers, swimmers and those after a drink by the water, and it welcomes visitors chiefly through the summer season of the calendar. The idea behind the floating pool is both practical and playful, answering the longing of city dwellers to swim and sunbathe near the water in the heart of an inland metropolis whose river is unsuited to bathing, and it has become a much-imitated symbol of the inventive, improvised spirit for which the city is known. Bathers in the pool look out over the river to the banks beyond, enjoying the curious sensation of swimming on the water while remaining safely within clean pool water, and the surrounding decks, strewn with sand and dotted with loungers, create a beach atmosphere far from any coast. As the day turns to evening the venue often shifts in mood, the relaxed bathing spot becoming a lively bar with music and a young, sociable crowd gathered by the water under the open sky. Its popularity peaks on warm summer days and balmy nights, when space can be at a premium, and although the concept has been adapted for the colder months in various ways over the years, the floating bath is above all a creature of the summer season, drawing those in search of sun, water and a relaxed riverside scene.

Type: Beach

Address: Eichenstrasse 4, Berlin, Germany

Opening Date: 01/01/2004