Luna Park, Berlin - History - Opening and Heyday

Opening and Heyday

On 14 May 1909 the gourmet August Aschinger together with the former chef at the Kempinski Hotel, Bernd Hoffmann, opened the terraces at Halensee, which were renamed that year Luna Park. It was a modern fairy-tale palace, with magnificent towers and a large staircase down to the lake.

The park attractions included all the typical fairground attractions of the time, like a water slide that ended in the lake. It had as a special feature a water chute, which the Berliners called the "tart aquarium" because the ladies in the newest bathing attire presented themselves to the sitting gentlemen on the rim.

Other attractions were a loose staircase (Shimmy-Treppe) with a fan at the end that hoisted the skirts of the ladies, as well as a mountain train or a hippodrome. Following the example of Coney Island in Brooklyn, New York, an amusement park was established, offering sensations, adventures, and dangers, as well as the illusion of the big wide world and the experience of the seemingly limitless possibilities of technology.

Luna Park offered anthropological shows ("Völkerschauen"); an early escalator; a large, nightly fireworks display; theater, revues, jazz, and cabaret; dance tournaments, and boxing matches. In 1926 the young Max Schmeling won his first title fight here. The restaurants had a capacity of 16,000 seats. There was a Bavarian-themed village where beer flowed in streams and the Luna Palace for more the lofty clientele. In its early years, the park counted 50,000 visitors a day and on weekends substantially more. As early as 1910, the millionth visitor was received.