Christmas Lights in Berlin 2026

Christmas Garden Berlin turns the Botanical Garden in Dahlem into a ticketed Christmas light show from 18 November 2026 to 10 January 2027. This is its 10th anniversary edition, on a newly redesigned walking path: a loop of about 2 km that takes about two hours, past more than 30 light installations such as the Moonlight Meadow, the Avenue of Poetry, the Twinkling Firmament and a rainbow tree, and the immersive light show 'Through the sea of lights' on 3,000 m².

The garden is open from 16:20 to 21:00 from Sunday to Thursday, and until 22:00 on Fridays, Saturdays and from 18 December to 2 January; last admission is at 19:20, or 20:20 on the later evenings. It is closed on 23, 24 and 30 November, on 7, 24 and 31 December and on 4 and 5 January.

The S1 stops at Botanischer Garten, by the Unter den Eichen entrance, and buses 101 and X83 stop by the Königin-Luise-Straße entrance; there is no parking at the garden. Christmas Garden lies 9.6 km south-west of the city centre.

Photo (2024): Tropenhaus im Christmas Garden Berlin by EditEule (CC0)

The Christmas lights on Kurfürstendamm and Tauentzienstraße are Berlin's best-known street lights, with the trees of the two boulevards wrapped in strings of light. Plans for 2026 cover more than 4 km of Ku'damm and Tauentzienstraße; the switch-on date has not been announced yet.

In 2025 the lights were switched on on Tuesday 25 November and stayed on every day from sunset to 23:00 until 6 January, along the 4.5 km from Wittenbergplatz to Rathenauplatz in Halensee. They were paid for entirely by donations, through a crowdfunding campaign and sponsors.

The walking route on the map below follows the lights from Wittenbergplatz station, by the KaDeWe department store, past the Christmas Market at the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church and along Kurfürstendamm to Halensee station. More on the Christmas lights on Kurfürstendamm.

Photo (December 2024): Kurfürstendamm with its Christmas lights by Leonhard Lenz (CC0)

Weihnachten im Tierpark, Christmas at Tierpark Berlin, is a ticketed light trail through the zoo in Friedrichsfelde from 20 November 2026 to 9 January 2027, on a new walking trail for 2026. The loop is about 2 km long, with around 30 light installations, illuminated animal figures and a 320 m² ice rink you can skate on with your admission.

It is open from 16:40 to 21:00 from Sunday to Friday, and until 22:00 on Saturdays and on 25 and 26 December; last admission is at 19:20, or 20:20 on the later evenings. It closes on the same days as Christmas Garden: 23, 24 and 30 November, 7, 24 and 31 December and 4 and 5 January.

The entrance is at the Bärenschaufenster, and the U5 stops at Tierpark station, about 15 minutes from Alexanderplatz. The Tierpark lies 8.6 km east of the city centre.

Photo: Pelicans in front of Schloß Friedrichsfelde in the Tierpark by Rolf Dietrich Brecher (CC BY-SA 2.0)