Gartenschau lures with displays, flowers, activities

Story and photos by Petra Lessoing
86th Airlift Wing Public Affairs
Several renowned buildings, such as the Empire State Building, Eiffel Tower and Tower Bridge in London, can be seen at the Lego exhibition at the Kaiserslautern Gartenschau.
Several renowned buildings, such as the Empire State Building, Eiffel Tower and Tower Bridge in London, can be seen at the Lego exhibition at the Kaiserslautern Gartenschau.

The Gartenschau Kaiserslautern, also known as dinosaur park, is open again from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. The motto for flowers to be seen is “Sky Blue to Sunset Red.”

The Gartenschau features various gardens to include a rose garden, cactus garden, rhododendron garden, bible garden and dance garden on an area of 54 acres.

Every month, new flower exhibitions will display how exceptional flowers are in the flower hall.
In addition to enjoying the horticultural show, visitors will be able to admire special exhibitions, activities, entertainment and dinosaurs through Oct. 31.

“Last year we welcomed about 520,000 visitors,” said David Lyle, chief of iKL, a nonprofit social integration enterprise in charge of Gartenschau Kaiserslautern.

“Besides being a leisure park where people have fun, it’s our goal to give disabled people a job at the Gartenschau and integrate them into our society. Thus, the park is also a social project,” Lyle said.

This year, the newly setup Lego exhibition showcases renowned buildings such as the Capitol in Washington, the Empire State Building in New York, the Tower Bridge in London and the Federal Parliament in Berlin, in addition to local buildings like Kaiserslautern City hall.

Other Gartenschau attractions include the dinosaur models, several playgrounds with sliding tower, a pirates ship, play equipment, a skate rink, a soccer field, a beach volleyball field and the adventure miniature golf course in Neumuehlepark.
On Kaiserberg hill is an area to relax with a bare footpath consisting of 10 stations inviting visitors for meditation. The outdoor willow church on Kaiserberg hill offers worship services at 11 a.m. Sundays as well as wedding and christening ceremonies.

“With a total of about 100 special events including musical performances, children’s programs, family fests, markets and guided tours, we want to lure visitors,” Lyle said. “Highlight will be the annual summer night fest with an extraordinary light show and fireworks.”

The next special event on April 30 and May 1 will be the medieval market with more than 30 stands and a camp where vendors will present clothes, jewelry, leather goods and culinary specialties from medieval times.

The big children’s fest will be June 12, the French garden party July 8 and the Italian party Aug. 12.
Daily admission times are 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Fridays, and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays and during German school breaks.

Families enjoy walking amongst the dinosaurs while gardeners take care of the spring flowers.
Families enjoy walking amongst the dinosaurs while gardeners take care of the spring flowers.

Daily tickets cost €7 for adults and €3 for children. The family ticket costs €17. Children up to 6 years old are free.
The family season tickets for at least two adults and all own children costs €45. The price for singles is €35 for the season. Customers of the Kaiserslautern City Works, SWK, get reduced prices. The Gartenschau ticket is also valid for the Japanese Garden, which is down the road on Lauterstrasse/Am Abendsberg.

For more information, visit www.gartenschau-kl.de, www.facebook.de/gartenschau.kl, or call 0631-71007-00.