Sommerbad Berlin-Neukölln

The Sommerbad Neukölln, often called the Columbiabad, is a popular open-air swimming pool in Berlin’s Neukölln district. It sits beside the former Tempelhof Field aerodrome, a vast open space that once hosted flights. The city of Berlin owns the pool, while the Berliner Bäder-Betriebe run it day to day. Bruno Grimmek, an architect and city building director, designed the pool in 1950 and 1951 with funds from the Marshall Plan. Ernst Reuter, Berlin’s mayor at the time, opened it in 1951 as the first outdoor pool in West Berlin. Parts of the original layout remain, including the sports pool, diving tower, main pool, spectator stands and sun terraces. The pool offers a 50-metre swimmer’s pool, a multi-purpose pool with a shallow end, a diving tower with platforms up to ten metres high, and a long water slide. The slide stretches eighty-three metres, making it Berlin’s longest. There is also a toddler pool, a large lawn with sixty trees of different kinds, changing cabins, toilets and a snack bar at the entrance. The diving tower closed in 2023 after failing safety checks. Despite occasional disturbances, many visitors and staff describe the pool as a lively, multicultural place where people from many backgrounds mix. Visitors find a broad lawn for sunbathing, shaded spots under the trees and clear water in the main pools. The snack bar serves drinks and light meals near the entrance. The pool’s history is visible in the curved slide that replaced the original pair, and in the sun terraces that still bear the marks of mid-century design. Around the pool, the flat ground of the former airfield stretches away, giving a sense of space. The pool remains a well-used spot in summer, drawing people from across Berlin to swim, relax and meet.