Sommerkino im Tierpark Dessau

Films under the open sky between Bauhaus and park

When high summer reaches Dessau-Roßlau, one of the Bauhaus city's most beautiful summer traditions begins: the Sommerkino im Tierpark. Since its first edition in 2018, it has become a firm fixture in the district-free city's cultural calendar. For five weekends between early July and early August, the festival meadow in front of the classical mausoleum in Dessau Zoo is transformed into an open-air cinema hall with loungers, benches, and an atmosphere inspired by the park.

The location is the real experience: you sit in a zoo over 100 years old — today one of the city's green highlights — and watch a feature film as darkness slowly falls around you. Dogs are allowed if they behave quietly. You can bring your own blanket, or loungers are available. Food and drinks are available on site.

Programme mix of cinema highlights and classics

The Sommerkino team curates the programme week by week: current cinema highlights, German and international arthouse films, and occasionally a classic. Films start at dusk — around 9:30 p.m. in July, earlier later on. Admission from 7:30 p.m. each day, so you have time to find your seat, get snacks, and soak up the atmosphere.

Dessau-Roßlau between UNESCO and cultural landscape

Dessau-Roßlau is one of the three district-free cities in the state of Saxony-Anhalt and is a UNESCO World Heritage site twice over, with the Bauhaus and the Garden Kingdom of Dessau-Wörlitz. The Sommerkino is part of a summer culture that offers an astonishingly wide range, from Bauhaus festivals to Garden Kingdom concerts and Anhalt classical music. Anyone holidaying in the region and looking for a relaxed film evening will find one of the most charming formats in Central Germany here.