Schloss Köpenick

Schloss Köpenick stands on an island at the confluence of the Dahme and Spree rivers in the south-east of Berlin, a setting that has shaped its character for centuries. The palace was rebuilt in the Baroque style in the late seventeenth century under the direction of the Dutch architect Rutger van Langervelt, and it served as a residence for the Hohenzollern court before the electors moved to the grander quarters of the Berlin Palace. Today the building houses the Kunstgewerbemuseum, a branch of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin dedicated to decorative arts and design, with collections spanning silverware, furniture, and applied crafts from the Middle Ages through to the early twentieth century.

Visitors can explore the palace interiors with an entry ticket that gives access to the permanent collection across its richly appointed rooms. The surrounding waterways also make Schloss Köpenick a natural starting point for the five-hour boat tour through the Müggelberge, which takes in the forested lakes and channels of the Köpenick district by water.