The gargantuan Aerium hangar was designed to hold zeppelins. Now it's a microcosm of rainforest and beaches where summer never ends.
The airship hangar in Krausnick, Germany, was constructed in 1938 for the Luftwaffe and later served as a Soviet air base. Standing at nearly 400 feet tall and 1,000 feet long, it was designed to hold the massive balloons for cargo and travel. In 2004, it reopened completely transformed as the ostentatious Tropical Islands Resort.
With artificial sunlight, year-round heating, and a sprawling sandy beach, it can fit 6,000 guests at a time. Sunsets are played on video screens for guests who decide to spend the night in a tent on the fake beach along the lapping, human-controlled waters, or lounge in one of the pristine cottages. Balloon rides soar above the installed tropical forest where birds fly free.
Some airship hangars have entirely new lives far from aviation. The defunct Aerium hangar in Brandenburg, Germany, is now the extravagant Tropical Islands Resort. Originally built in 1938 for the Luftwaffe at almost 400 feet high and over 1,000 feet long, the water park opened in 2004 with an indoor rainforest and artificially sunny beach that can host 6,000 guests at a time. Flamingos stroll around serene lagoons, and just over 40 miles from Berlin it feels like a surreal place of eternal seasons, open to all for the right price.
