About BER to Tropical Islands
Tropical Islands is an indoor tropical water park and resort in a former airship hangar near Krausnick in Brandenburg, one of the largest free-standing halls in the world. Inside are a sandy beach, lagoons, a rainforest and saunas, with overnight options inside and outside the hall.
How long is the taxi ride from BER to Tropical Islands?
The car joins the A13 towards Dresden at the Schönefelder Kreuz and leaves it at the Staakow exit, from where signs lead about three kilometres through pine forest to the resort. Plan on 35 to 50 minutes. The A13 is rarely jammed in this section, although Friday afternoons at the start of Berlin school holidays and occasional roadworks along the A13 can add a quarter of an hour.
Why families choose the taxi over the train
By public transport you take a regional train to Brand (Niederlausitz) and continue by shuttle bus or on foot. That is fine for day visitors with a backpack. Families arriving from a flight, though, carry suitcases, a buggy, swimming gear and often tired children. With a pre-booked car you skip the change, the waiting on a rural platform and the last stretch with luggage. Book child seats or a baby seat together with the ride; our blog post on train, shuttle and taxi to Tropical Islands compares all options.
At the dome: where the car stops
The resort is signposted as Tropical-Islands-Allee in Krausnick. Cars for drop-off use the forecourt near the main entrance; the large car parks further out are for guests with their own cars. If you are staying overnight in one of the holiday homes, lodges or the campsite outside the hall, ask the resort before arrival where to check in and give that location when booking, because check-in may not be at the main entrance. Leaving with wet towels and sleepy children? Plastic bags for damp swimwear keep the car and your suitcases dry.
Practical checklist for a day or two in the tropics
- Luggage – the dome has lockers, but large suitcases are awkward inside; ask the resort about storage for your cases.
- Return trip – book the pickup from the dome entrance at a fixed time so you are not left waiting at the forecourt late in the evening.
- Flight the next day – BER is less than an hour away, a good reason to spend the last night of your trip at the resort.
- Prams – a folded buggy fits any boot; mention a large travel system when booking so there is room beside the suitcases.
- Group of friends – up to eight people with bags fit in an eight-seater.
Combining Tropical Islands with the Spreewald or Dresden
Tropical Islands sits on the same motorway as the Spreewald towns of Lübben and Lübbenau, and Dresden is around one and a half hours further south. Some visitors spend two nights in the dome and then continue to the punts of the Spreewald. Book each leg as a separate ride with its own pickup time.
When it gets busy
School holidays in Berlin and Brandenburg, rainy summer weekends and the weeks around Christmas are peak times inside the dome. On such days arrivals and departures concentrate in the morning and late afternoon, so the forecourt can be crowded. A drop-off slightly outside these peaks, around midday, is usually calmer. Land late in the evening and you will almost always find an empty forecourt, ready to start your first pool day rested the next morning.
