IllustrationCome to the Rheinaue for a day of garden details, lake views and time to play.
Come to the Rheinaue for a day of garden details, lake views and time to play. Start with one part of the park. The lawns and gently shaped hills invite wandering; the Japanese Garden offers a smaller scene to enjoy slowly, with water, carefully placed stones and a thirteen-tiered pagoda.
Choose your side of the Rhine before setting out. The park covers 160 hectares: 125 on the left bank and 35 on the right. The Auensee, themed gardens and outings below are on the left-bank side. Visiting the Beuel section means a separate arrival or a deliberate river crossing.
At the lake, watch how the birds feed. Which dive right under, and which stay near the surface? Winter can bring an interesting mix of ducks. The bird suggestions here draw on winter 2023/24 records; today’s flock may be different. Bring binoculars and give the animals space. Be ready to snap and learn! Get the Snappit app to identify any nature species you find here.
The park opened for the Federal Garden Show on 27 April 1979. Gottfried and Anton Hansjakob helped transform agricultural land into a landscape connecting Bonn’s districts. Its rounded hills and curving shores were deliberately shaped. Japan contributed the garden designed by Akira Sato. Monument protection followed in 2017. Near the cascade, the Römerstraße displays casts of Roman gravestones and altars, rather than an excavated ancient street.
For a gentle first visit, enter from Petra-Kelly-Allee, explore the Japanese Garden when open, then visit the nearby Blindengarten and retrace your park paths to the entrance. This self-guided outing is unmeasured. Compare scents at the raised beds and explore the bronze fountain by touch, following the garden’s signs.
For a longer challenge, try Rheinische Turnerjugend’s O-Trail map and fourteen questions. Its published course is about 6 km from the entrance rondel to the former labyrinth site. Return on public paths to the entrance rondel; this additional return is unmeasured, so 6 km is not the complete distance. The organiser no longer checks the course, and the labyrinth has gone. Follow actual paths between checkpoints, never the straight map lines across lawns or water.
Add the climbing playground or a separately paid round at Die Rheinpiraten adventure golf, with eighteen holes and a shipwreck theme.
Flea markets normally run on the third Saturday from April to October; expect busy paths and limited parking. Check boat-hire availability separately, especially for 2027: the city is seeking a new operator for that period. In wet or icy weather, shorten the walk and take care near water.
The city identifies asphalt paths in the main areas as suitable for wheelchairs, rollators and pushchairs, with seating. Hills, bridges and garden interiors need separate consideration. An accessible toilet is available at the Parkrestaurant during opening hours. Ask Bonn-Information about the specific entrance or crossing you need. The old O-Trail’s broad accessibility description is not a current route inspection.
Pause beside the water and pick out the pagoda’s stacked tiers.
Explore a garden designed around scent and touch, including its bronze fountain.
Take a quiet birdwatching break beside the park’s 15-hectare lake.
Balance the gardens with climbing, slides or a picnic on the lawns.
Start by Petra-Kelly-Allee, visit the Japanese Garden when open and leave through the same gate. Continue on public paths to the nearby Blindengarten, then retrace your approach to the Petra-Kelly-Allee entrance.
Confirm the garden entrances and paths you need if step-free access is essential.
Start at S1, the entrance rondel by Ludwig-Erhard-Allee. Use the map and questions to find controls 1–14, then F1 at the former labyrinth site. Return on public park paths south-west towards the entrance rondel and S1, using the map for the final connection.
The organiser calls the old course pushchair-friendly and largely wheelchair-friendly, but it is no longer inspected. Confirm current access separately.
Pause on a public lake path. Each person describes one bird’s colours, shape and feeding movement. Compare notes and photographs before trying to name it.
Find stone, water and a tree in one Japanese Garden view. Photograph it from two permitted path positions and compare the composition.
Wild mallard, recorded in winter 2023/24. A breeding-plumage male has a green head and yellow bill. Compare birds from the lake path; not every park duck is a mallard.
Wild visitor recorded in winter 2023/24. Scan open water for diving ducks with a male’s black-and-white plumage and head tuft. A flock is not guaranteed.
Wild visitor recorded in winter 2023/24. Look among diving ducks for males with reddish heads, dark breasts and pale-grey bodies. Use binoculars from the path.
Wild winter visitor recorded in 2023/24. Include wigeon in your identification shortlist, then check a field guide against the birds present. It is not a guaranteed resident.
Wild, non-native nutria live around the lake, with numbers under active management. Watch from the path if one appears; never approach, touch or feed it.
Cultivated chives grow among the Blindengarten’s named herbs. Confirm the label and compare familiar kitchen plants. Leave harvesting and tasting out of the activity.
Cultivated garden roses, identified here only to genus. Compare flower shapes, colours and scents without picking blooms; the beds contain garden varieties.
Duck records date from winter 2023/24. Nutrias are wild and non-native; chives and roses are cultivated, with roses identified only to genus. Sightings and planting displays can change.
The Auensee was extensively restored in 2022. The work included removing sediment and introducing aquatic planting, a reminder that a park lake needs ongoing care.
The Parkrestaurant has refreshments and an accessible toilet during opening hours. Check individual operators before relying on other services.
Bonn-Information: +49 228 77 5000. Ask about your particular entrance, garden or bridge when discussing access.
Each card links to a full Explore page with photos, traits, and fun facts.
Start with the big picture, then zoom in to explore individual wildlife observations around this place.
Choose your entrance
Petra-Kelly-Allee suits the Japanese Garden; Ludwig-Erhard-Allee serves the main left-bank park. Save your starting point for the return.
Use public transport
Stadtbahn 66 serves Rheinaue; buses 610, 611 and 631 serve Rheinaue Hauptzugang. Check the current journey and any replacement services before leaving.
Budget for extras
Ordinary park entry is free. Golf, food, boat hire when operating and some events have separate charges or arrangements.
Bring binoculars
Add water, a snack and a charged phone. A photograph can help identify a bird after it has moved on.
Keep the water for wildlife
Swimming, private boats and entering the lake islands are prohibited. Do not feed waterbirds or nutrias.
Keep dogs under control
Use a lead on the park outing and follow the signs at any designated dog area.
Plan food simply
Picnic or check the Parkrestaurant’s hours. Barbecues are prohibited in themed gardens and playgrounds; read the city’s barbecue rules before bringing equipment.
Check long walks
Follow current notices and barriers. The nearly 45 km figure describes the whole path network, not one circuit.
Recent snaps will appear here as new observations are added.
Maryland, US
You might spot White-Tailed Deer and Eastern Gray Squirrel.
View guide →
District of Columbia, US
You might spot Eastern Gray Squirrel, Duck, and House Sparrow.
View guide →
Illinois, US
You might spot American Robin, Canada Goose, and House Sparrow.
View guide →
Virginia, US
You might spot Spotted Lanternfly and Northern Cardinal.
View guide →
Take the discovery with you
Identify the wildlife you spot, learn as you go, and keep a collection of the adventure.
