The Gartenschau in Kaiserslautern is a treat for adults and kids alike. From the beautiful flower displays and natural wonders of the park, to the abundant dinosaur statues and massive playground space for kids of all ages. This park is a wonderful place for a family to spend a beautiful spring day.
I found the Gartenschau by happenstance looking for a recommended dino park for my kids. This one was much closer, an hour and twenty-minute drive for us from Bad Homburg, and approximately an hour drive from Wiesbaden. I purchased my tickets online the day before. There was plenty of availability for a Saturday for the four of us. I purchased a family ticket for €19, this included 2 adults and their children. The website creates a ticket with a QR code for each person attending, thus asks for the information for each person in your party. You will receive an email with a link for each ticket so you have the option to print or show digitally.
Lego Display
The main Gartenschau area is accessed by a walkway over a road, but on the side of the entrance is the gift shop, restrooms, and Lego display. My kids LOVED the Lego display. We've never been to a Legoland or anything similar, so we found these lego displays to be wonderful. It was a small space, but filled with Lego builds of many amazing German sights. There were German villages, the Frankfurt Haupbahnhof, the cathedral in Köln, Buckingham Palace, a Star Wars room, the pyramids of Egypt, the wild west and more! Both of my kids were shrieking all the way through the building with each new sight. They went through the building a couple of times, seeing more each time.
DINO-DREAM
The dinosaurs were the next uproar of excitement from my kids. My 10 and 4-year old are big fans of Dino Dana on AmazonPrime, so getting to see these creatures up close was a dream for them. The dinosaurs were all over the park, and had information plaques in German and English. My 10-year old doesn't love reading, but enjoyed reading about each of the dinosaurs as we walked through. Some of the dinosaurs were behind wire barriers to keep people from touching and climbing on them, but many were right next to the walkway unobscured. My kids were fascinated by their size and getting to touch and explore their unique physiques. There was one that was even covered in fur.
The Playgrounds
The playgrounds were in the main space near most of the dinosaurs. We were here at least an hour just after arriving. There were so many different play spaces for children of all ages. The playground also featured a small water play area. I'm sure in the summer, and without COVID, this water area is swarmed with kids. Even with the cold my kids enjoyed watching the water flow through the different metal devices.
Don't Forget to Visit the Top
Although the dinosaurs and playgrounds were the highlight for my children, that was just a small portion of the park. These areas were to the left of the entrance bridge, but there is a huge space to explore on the top of the hill over the dinosaur and flower displays. This is accessed to the right of the entrance bridge. We were able to tear the kids away to explore after a bathroom break. It's a nice meandering walk with a small uphill climb and a few steep sets of stairs. At the top of the stairs was a trail in both directions. It's all connected to the same space, so either way will bring you to the main area. From the top was a breathtaking view of Kaiserslautern. There was a small natural amphitheater type of space covered with grass and having a few steps. It's a perfect space to have a picnic while taking in the views of Kaiserslautern. There were also several large sandpits for kids to play and dig up buried fossils. This area offered picnic tables for places to sit and eat close to the kids' play spaces. Our favorite aspect of this above area was the natural worship space made entirely of vines. There was also a lovely gated garden with more private picnic space, a small yin-yang, and a rhododendron garden with a playhouse for kids.
The Gardens
The gardens and flower displays were beautiful. Not quite like the incredible displays at Blühendes Barock in Ludwigsburg, but impressive all the same. Coming from Arizona, these gardens and all the brilliant flowers are a dream come true for me.
Additional Features
The park also has a skate park, a miniature golf course, and a man carving large wood sculptures. Aside from the noise, my kids were fascinated by the wood carving. The mini-golf course was sadly closed, COVID, but the skate park was open and abundant with kids on skateboards and scooters. One more thing to note, the bathrooms by the entrance were wonderful. I am a germaphobe so bathrooms are torture for me. I avoid public restrooms like the plaque, but could not the day we went. I was shocked. They were clean, they smelled like wonderful spring flowers, and no more than four people were allowed in at a time.
If you go to the Gartenschau, plan for an entire day. Had we would known, we would have brought our wagon for scooters, skateboards, a picnic, and everything we needed to spend the day. We will be back for sure, as the Gartenschau runs from April 1st through October 31st. For more information and to purchase tickets, https://www.gartenschau-kl.de
