17 Best Places to Run in Berlin, Curated by Berliners
While blogging on Berlin & Around may be my top hobby, running is a close second. (I actually came up with this article idea on one of my jogs.) So I reached out to the Berlin expat community to discover their favourite routes. And that’s how this list of the 17 best places to run in Berlin was born. Take a look!
Best Places to Run in Berlin (Alphabetically by District)
Charlottenburg
1. Schloss Charlottenburg to Witzleben and from there on to Halensee via Kudamm (about a 14-15 km stretch). This is, indeed, a beautiful route that encompasses many of West Berlin’s most scenic streets and gardens. Recommended by Tatiana (@tanushshka on Instagram).
2. The hills on the northern end of Grunewald are great (up to Teufelsberg and Drachenberg). Recommendation by Steve, who organizes guided running tours.
Friedrichshain
3. Straulauer Halbinsel definitely qualifies as a Berlin insider tip. The tiny peninsula belongs to Friedrichshain (jetting out between the Spree and Rummelsburg Lake) but hardly looks like “typical” Friedrichshain. The 12th century fishing village was swallowed into Berlin, but still today offers a haven of greenery away from the pulsating city (Recommended by Mathieu).
Grunewald
4. Grunewald, suggested by Joonas deserves a spot of its own. The forest makes up 3000 hectares and is the largest green space in Berlin. As you can imagine, the forest is interlaced with walking trails of all difficulties and inclines. For more details, check out these 11 running trails in Grunewald.
Köpenick
5. Volkspark Wuhlheide is a great option for people living a bit further East. This is another expansive forested area with a mix of paved roads and dirt or sandy paths. With plenty of trails to choose from, you can often go for a run without seeing any other human beings. This is one of my favourite places to run, so I was very happy to see it was recommended by an anonymous Berlin expat!
Kreuzberg
6. Volkspark Hasenheide. Kreuzberg dwellers can also escape the concrete for a little while in this park. In fact, Hasenheide is a parkrun hub. Every weekend, you can take part in a free 5 km run and track your progress in a friendly, international atmosphere. (On hold right now due to Corona). Thank you, Helen, for the tip!
Lichterfelde
7. Otto Lilienthal Park offers another leafy run option along the Spree. You can also cross one of the bridges to Schlosspark Lichterfelde, which houses the elegant Gutshaus Lichterfelde, built in the late 1700s.
Karlshorst
8. Karlshorst Race Track. This is a run you can connect to your Wuhlheide visit if you aren’t ready to stop. As you may know from my blog post on Berlin’s under the radar historical sites, the Karlshorst race track has been around since 1895. In the morning, you can run around the track’s perimeter and neighbouring stables. This is one of my favourite routes and I would say the horses are out 9 times out of 10.
Marzahn-Hellersdorf
9. Kaulsdorfer Seen. Head to this nature reserve for a lovely run between or around two lakes, bordered on one side by a network of small gardens. These lakes in Berlin’s eastern suburb are also popular spots for locals to go swimming, with plenty of alcoves where you can cool off after your run. But do be advised, there is an FKK Strand (nude beach) at the northernmost end of Habermannsee.
Mitte
10. Another Berliner expat mentioned the possibility of running beside the water from Westhafen to Invalidenfriedhof and Hauptbahnhof. Here, you can decide if you want to venture towards Friedrichstraße and Hackescher Markt or head towards Bellevue.
Pankow
11. If you choose to run around Weißer See (recommended by Bhavana) you can also easily combine a jog and a swim. The Weißer See is a natural lake bordered by fine sand.
Schöneberg
12. Rudolph-Wilde Park provides Schöneberg city dwellers with plenty of space to run or relax. Kristian recommends the route from Rathaus Schöneberg (where JFK made his famous “Ich bin ein Berliner” speech) to Kalischerstraße on the other side of the park.
Steglitz
13. Pedro (@krone.ig on Instagram) recommends running along Schorlemerallee, which leads to Franz-Grothe Weg. If you turn right at the end and keep going you’ll end up in Grunewald in about 10 minutes.
Tempelhof
14. Of course, a classic run is around Tempelhofer Feld, as pointed out by Sam, who owns the web design and development agency, Design It Please.
Treptow
15. Running through Treptower Park came highly recommended by Hector (on Instagram as @henryrip. You can venture along the riverside paths and stop to refuel at the small, historical bistro on Insel Der Jugend.
Wedding
16. As Manon put it, what makes Berlin special is that every neighborhood has a Grünfläche, lake or outdoorsy option for a good run. Her go-to route is Plötzensee combined with Volkspark Rehberge.
17. Volkspark Rehberge seems to be a popular option amongst Berliners! Another expat was kind enough to share her running route with us, which includes the park, as well as a canal-long stretch:
According to you, where are the best places to run in Berlin?
I’d love to add your suggestions to the list! If you have any further recommendations on the best places to run in Berlin, let me know in the comments!
Save these running routes for later!
This was such a clever post! I am not from Berlin, nor have I ever been there, but I do love to run! Berlin looks beautiful, and when I go there, I will definitely be checking out Grunewald and Steglitz. Those look stunning to be running through. Living in California, we really don’t have much like that!
I had never thought to include my favorite places to run while on vacation. I love this angle. And maybe someday I’ll be able to actually do this in Germany.
Another entry for Schöneberg: The northern end of Park am Gleisdreieck (the bit also known as Schöneberger Wiese) has a great running track around its perimeter. The track is paved with rubbery-surfaced tiles so they give good grip in the wet and are more forgiving on the legs/feet than tarmac. The park can get busy at certain times of day, especially in good weather, so be prepared to have to weave around among the usual mix of cyclists, dog walkers, kids on scooters, rollerbladers, etc. It’s quiet at night though and most of the route is well-lit, apart from the southern end under the railway bridges. The beer at the Brlo brewery (has loads of outdoor seating) is fantastic, if you want something refreshing to drink afterwards! I ride my bike over from Mitte and do 5K runs there pretty regularly.
Mitte isn’t very good for running, in my experience. Too stoppy/starty because of all the junctions, and too much pedestrian dodging required.
I can recommend the weekly 5K Parkrun at Volkspark Hasenheide, having done it a few times before and after COVID meant it had to be suspended. Attractive place to run. Quite a challenging route because of the hill you climb around the midpoint. Friendly organisers as well.