The most famous children's farm in and around Berlin is located in the Kreuzberg district. This is the oldest institution of its kind in the city and is a must for you and your child. It was founded in 1981, when the Berlin Wall was still standing.
It was founded by local people who, with their children, built pens, outbuildings and other facilities for the animals on the farm. Mauerplatz is actually nestled in the courtyard of an average high-rise apartment building. It's an island of greenery and lovely creatures in the middle of civilisation. People and their children leave their homes, go to cafés and shops, stroll through galleries, cinemas and exhibitions, stopping off at the Mauerplatz Children's Farm along the way.
Berlin TV Tower (Berliner Fernsehturm), a popular tourist attraction, is 2.8 km away.
The strange location of the farm (in the heart of the city rather than in a green suburb) is due to the desire of Germans to introduce their children to the creatures with which their ancestors have long lived side by side. Unfortunately, today's children, raised mainly on games and social networks, don't always know what comes from where. So the Berliners want the next generation of young Berliners to remember what a sheep or a cow looks like and where milk comes from.
Today, many children of all ages come here to play with the animals and learn how to care for them. The motto of the Mauerplatz Children's Farm is "People need animals". This means that the main message that the farm workers want to convey to the children is that ponies, sheep, chickens, geese, ducks and other creatures are not just livestock for basic human needs, but also their friends.
It is important that, as well as learning about domestic animals, young visitors also learn about the intricacies of growing medicinal and edible plants in the adjoining farm garden. Every child can feed the farm animals with lettuce, cabbage or juicy carrots that their parents have brought from home.
It's important to remember that Mauerplatz is a private initiative of the organisers, so it's not funded by the city. If you bring a few euros as a voluntary donation, the people who work there will be very grateful.
