Children's Festival at Domäne Dahlem

Domäne Dahlem - Farm and Museum in Southwest Berlin

Domäne Dahlem is one of Berlin's most unusual institutions: a fully functioning farm with pigs, cows, sheep, chickens, bees, and fields - right in the city, in the upscale Dahlem district of Steglitz-Zehlendorf. At the same time, Domäne Dahlem is an open-air museum for urban and rural agricultural history: the 16th-century manor house, the stables, the distillery building, and the farm garden are presented with museum educational approaches. It is operated by the Stiftung Domäne Dahlem - Landgut und Museum (Domäne Dahlem Foundation - Country Estate and Museum). Throughout the year, the grounds are open to schools, families, tourists, and researchers. Highlights on the event calendar include the Children's Festival in June, the Harvest Festival in autumn, and the Advent Market in December.

The Children's Festival - Two Days of Participation

The Children's Festival at Domäne Dahlem takes place every year in early June - in 2026 on Saturday, June 6th, and Sunday, June 7th, from 10 am to 6 pm each day. The concept is consistently participatory: children between 3 and 12 years old (with their families) experience the farm from the inside through hands-on stations where they actively participate rather than just observe. The stations change over the two days, ensuring that regular visitors can discover new activities.

Program Components

The festival program typically includes:

• Animal Stations: Experience animal care live (shearing sheep, feeding pigs, honey extraction), animal quiz, petting zoo
• Nature Workshops: Plant identification, farm garden tours, seed exchange, composting workshop
• Fire Brigade: The Berlin Volunteer Fire Brigade Dahlem is a regular guest with a fire engine, water spray wall, and fire safety workshops for children
• Creative Stations: Pot painting, plant art, face painting, crafting with natural materials
• Culture: Children's theatre, musical instrument demonstrations, storytelling readings
• Games: Historical farm games, sack races, stilt walking, children's reading corner
• Gastronomy: Food stalls (bratwurst, soup, pretzels, ice cream), honey from the farm, cakes from the Domäne bakery

Education Instead of a Funfair

Unlike a classic city children's festival with carousels and bouncy castles, Domäne Dahlem follows a museum education concept: children learn about farming, beekeeping, and organic cultivation through play and experience. The hands-on stations are led by museum educators, apprentices from the farm, and volunteers - allowing parents to relax at the food stalls while the children learn at the stations. Admission is kept intentionally low at €4.50 / reduced €2, children under 4 free, to reach families from all districts.