Sanssouci Park Tour: A Guide to its Gardens, Palaces and Other Landmarks

The beautiful Sanssouci Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is full of historical palaces, statues and gardens. A visit to the park is an absolute must for any visitor to Potsdam! On this walking tour, I’ll bring its stories, landmarks and even its legends to life as you stroll from the Obelisk, near the Great Fountain, and past numerous monuments to the Church of Peace, where many of the Hohenzollern Kings are buried.

On this hour-long tour, you’ll find out why Frederic II, also known as Frederic the Great, loved this place so much that he built himself the intimate Sanssouci Palace, and spent most of his time there. You’ll also hear how Peter Lenné, one of the world’s best-known garden architects, transformed the park some 100 years after Frederic. I’ll show you Holländischer Garten (Dutch Garden), Nordischer Garten (Nordic Garden), Sicilian Garden and Marlygarten (Marly Garden). Along the way, you’ll see:

• Neptune Grotto, a monument filled with thousands of crystals and shells
• The Grave of Frederick the Great, where you’ll find out why there are potatoes on his grave
• Orangery Palace, that was built for Frederic William IV who loved Sanssouci Park almost as much as his grand-uncle
• Apollo the Archer, one of artist Ernst Moritz Geyger’s most famous statues
• Chinese House in Sanssouci Park where you’ll hear why the statues surrounding the teahouse don’t look Chinese

You’ll also have an opportunity to:

• Learn why Frederic the Great was almost executed by his father, Frederic the Soldier King
• Take some amazing pictures of the park and its landmarks, including Sanssouci Palace which is also known as Little Versailles and Prussian Versailles
• Find out why Frederic the Great was buried next to his dogs
• Visit the Historic Mill of Sanssouci, a working mill with a beautiful view
• See undecipherable hieroglyphics and fake ruins from Sanssouci’s Courtyard Castle
• Marvel at over 130,000 plants and flowers including fig trees, a vineyard, and the last tree from the Royal Nursery
• See an original Venetian mosaic from the early 13th century

So take a deep breath and allow the beauty and serenity of the park to wash over you on this hour-long stroll through the gardens that Frederick the Great loved so much.