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11 trend sports...

... which you should definitely try out in Berlin!

Kite Landboarding at Tempelhofer Feld
Kite Landboarding at Tempelhofer Feld © visitBerlin, Foto: Dagmar Schwelle

Every year, when we walk through the park, we discover them anew: trend sports. A few of them have been established for many years and hardly change at all. However, new ones are added from year to year. The most exciting trend sports, which you should definitely try out this summer, we show you here.

Tip 1: SUP & SUP Yoga

Stand Up Paddling on the river Spree
Stand Up Paddling on the river Spree © nalani-supsurfing.com

If you fancy exploring the city’s waterways and getting some exercise at the same time, then why not try stand-up paddling, or SUP for short? You stand on a special surfboard and propel yourself on the water using a paddle. It improves your balance and is good for your stamina, coordination and concentration. You can try SUP on the various lakes in and around Berlin as well as on the river Spree.
The latest trend is to use your SUP board as a floating yoga mat. Various providers offer SUP yoga courses to help you find your inner and outer balance.

Further information about SUP

Tip 2: Bouldering

Climber in Boulderhall
Climber in Boulderhall © Getty Images, Foto: Hispanolistic

Bouldering – climbing without a rope up to a height from which you can still comfortably jump – has become an established part of the capital city’s sports scene. You can now find bouldering areas, both indoor and outdoor, in almost every borough of Berlin. 

Further information about bouldering

Tip 3: Crossminton

Shuttlecock on speedminton racket
© Helios8

Where better to play Crossminton than in Berlin? It’s where the game, a sort of mixture between tennis, squash and badminton, was invented. The best place to play Crossminton, for which you need rackets, special balls and possibly a boundary marking for the court, is in Berlin’s parks.

Further information about Crossminton

Tip 4: Disc golf

Discgolf
© GettyImages, Bild: SDAM

In disc golf, it’s not about getting the ball in a hole in the ground. Instead, the aim is to throw a frisbee into a basket from a fixed starting point. In Berlin there’s a permanent disc golf course at the Volkspark Rehberge in Wedding, and there’s also one at the Volkspark in Potsdam. But you can also play the game informally in any park – all you need is a frisbee and a bucket or basket as a target.

Further information about disc golf

Tip 5: Crossboccia®

Happy friends at the rooftop doing high five
© Getty Images, Foto: Martin Dimitrov

Would you like to liven up your tour through the urban jungle of Berlin with a game? Then get some Crossboccia® balls and you can play wherever you like. Crossboccia® revolutionises the traditional sport of boccie, taking it into urban terrain. Suitable for adults and children alike, playing with the small granule-filled balls will make your walk through Berlin even more exciting!

Further information about Crossboccia®

Tip 6: Kite landboarding

Tempelhofer Feld Berlin, recreational sport
Tempelhofer Feld Berlin, recreational sport © visitBerlin, Foto: Arthur F. Selbach

There’s no limit to the things you can do in Berlin, and one of them is to learn kite surfing. But how can that be possible when the nearest sea – the Baltic – is a good three hours’ drive away? Kite landboarding is the dry version of kite surfing, and that’s precisely what you can learn in the capital city. Companies such as Berliner Kiteschule and Kiteflow offer daily courses for different levels of expertise on the Tempelhofer Feld. Kite landboarding can be tried by anyone who is in good health, is at least eight years old and weighs more than 35 kilograms. Otherwise, just grab your boards and skates and try out one of our top tracks for inline skaters.

Further information about kite landboarding

Tip 7: Plogging

Waste pile and two girls doing plogging
© GettyImages, Bild: doble-d

Isn’t it annoying when you’re out jogging and almost trip over all the rubbish? Then join in with the eco-friendly running trend from Sweden – plogging – where you pick up litter along the way. By constantly stopping, bending down and standing up during your run, you not only build up your endurance but also exercise various trunk muscles while doing something good for the environment. Berlin now has a number of plogging groups, such as Moving Forward, who regularly collect litter in various parks. You can usually find out where and when the running groups meet via Facebook.

Further information about plogging

Tip 8: Yoga meets High Intensity Intervall Training – athletic flow

Doing Yoga
Doing Yoga © visitberlin, Foto: Philip Koschel

This sport is something for you if you somehow miss the action in yoga. Athletic Flow combines classic yoga movements with challenging HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) units that are guaranteed to make you sweat. The best of both worlds combined in one crisp workout. Best of all, you need nothing but a mat and the necessary motivation. Videos on the Internet will explain the basics of the sport. Whether outside in the park or at home, it's worth trying out.

More parks in Berlin

Tip 9: Calisthenics and HIT

Young sportsmen and sportswomen in outdoor sports
Calisthenics © Getty Images, Foto: Westend61

You may have already seen the “climbing frames” for adults in Berlin’s various parks. Calisthenics, the outdoor fitness trend from the USA, has long since made it to the capital. Originating in 1934 in Santa Monica, California, this is a street workout where you exercise using only your own weight. So all you need is comfortable clothes, something to drink and off you go to a calisthenics gym in one of Berlin's parks! Some facilities even offer HIT classes.

Further information about calisthenics

Tip 10: Wakeboard or Waterskiing

Surfer im Wellenwerk Berlin
© Wellenwerk, Foto: Julius Niehus

Want a little adrenaline rush? If you love sports in, or rather on the water and don't mind higher speeds, we recommend wakeboarding or water skiing. On one of the facilities in or around Berlin you strap one or two boards under your feet and off you go. At the beginning you will have a few crash landings, but soon you will see some success. Many water sports parks also offer courses that give you practical tips for the beginning. And when the sun is not shining, you can train on an artificial wave in the Wellenwerk.

Further information about waterskiing

Tip 11: Running groups

Group of people is running through the forest
Running group in the forest © Camera4

The easiest and most uncomplicated sport is probably still running, because you don't need anything else except comfortable clothes and your two legs.  Various running groups, such as the Midnight Runners, spice up the sport with loud music and ever-changing routes. When running with other people, please make sure that you have enough distance to each other.

We have also put together four running routes for you, where you can see a lot of the city:

running route Charlottenburg castle
running route Sightseeing City East
running route Sightseeing City West
running route Tiergarten