Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH
Leipzig Region Awaits with New Family Attractions This Summer
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Leipzig Region Awaits with New Family Attractions This Summer
Leipzig, 7 July 2026. As the summer holidays across Europe kick off, families visiting the Leipzig Region will find plenty of attractions beyond the city: within an hour's drive, new rides, family parks and a soccer-golf course join steam-train rides and a family-certified Renaissance castle among the region's lakes, hiking and cycling trails and historic towns.
Idefix' Adventure Land at Belantis
At Belantis, the region's established theme park, a new zone built around Asterix, Obelix and Idefix is now open. It introduces four rides for children from age three, a large adventure playground, and regular meet-and-greets with the characters. The opening marks the first stage of a longer transformation: since its 2025 acquisition by the French operator Compagnie des Alpes, Belantis is being developed toward what the company positions as the first Parc Astérix outside France, with a full rebrand expected by 2030/31.
ArkaZien – An Enchanted World
Near Grimma, about 20 kilometres east of Leipzig, ArkaZien invites families with more than 20 themed play areas built into a natural, wooded landscape. For its first full season, Arkazien brings new additions for younger visitors, including a multi-level marble run and a puppet-making workshop where children dress their own wooden figures in felt. Existing favourites remain too: a warren-like "mine" with tunnels and a slide, rope bridges linking the play areas, and a rose garden for a quieter moment.
The unusual playground and climbing structures made from black locust wood, as well as natural stones from local quarries and other natural building materials, give the leisure park its distinctive appearance. The existing tree structures have been lovingly complemented with plants, colourful flowers and fragrant herbs. The wooden play areas are the work of Ziegler Spielplätze, a local company which has been designing playground equipment worldwide for over 35 years.
A New Soccer-Golf Course at Lake Markkleeberg
On 3 July, a new soccer-golf course opened on the grounds of Markkleeberg’s climbing park (Kletterpark). The 13-hole course combines football with golf rules: players aim to reach each hole in as few kicks as possible, navigating obstacles including boulders, sand bunkers and wooden barrels. Children from age four can take part, and rounds last around 90 minutes. The course adds to an existing lineup at Lake Markkleeberg that includes whitewater rafting and surfing at the canoe park, climbing and adventure golf.
Further afield on the A14 motorway between Leipzig and Dresden, Karls Erlebnis-Dorf ("experience village") in Döbeln, part of a German farm-attraction chain built around strawberry picking and family activities, offers free park entry alongside paid attractions and dining.
Steam Trains and Renaissance Castles
Two longer-established attractions round out the region's family offer. The Döllnitzbahn steam train “Wilder Robert” (Wild Robert), a narrow-gauge railway in service since the 1880s, runs daily diesel services between Oschatz and Mügeln, with a historic steam locomotive taking over on selected weekends through the season. In Torgau, Schloss Hartenfels – one of the best-preserved early Renaissance castles in Germany – is a certified family-friendly destination, with its bear moat and the panoramic Hausmannsturm tower among its most popular draws for younger visitors.
Outlook: A New Habitat at Leipzig Zoo
Another family highlight is on the way later this year: the opening of Feuerland (Fireland), a new penguin and sea lion habitat at Leipzig Zoo. Visitors will walk through an underwater tunnel to watch the animals swim past at close range, part of the zoo's wider South America exhibit. The opening marks a milestone in the zoo's 25-year "Zoo of the Future" masterplan, under which enclosures have been redesigned around the animals' natural habitats. Leipzig Zoo, which welcomed 1.66 million visitors in 2025, is widely regarded as one of Germany's leading zoos.
At a Glance
- Idefix' Adventure Land at Belantis Season runs 28 March to 1 November 2026. Tickets from €29. www.belantis.de
- ArkaZien (near Grimma) Open 1 April to 31 October, Tuesday to Sunday, 10 am – 6 pm (extended to 7 pm during the Saxon summer holidays). Adults €19, family ticket €62. www.arkazien.de
- Soccer-Golf at Lake Markkleeberg Open Tuesday and Thursday 10 am – 4 pm, Wednesday and Friday 12 – 7 pm, Saturday and Sunday 10 am – 7pm. From €7 for children, €10 for adults. www.kletterpark-markkleeberg.de/soccer-golf
- Karls Erlebnis-Dorf (Döbeln) Free park entry; a day pass (€11) covers most attractions. Strawberry picking from May until early October. www.karls.de/doebeln
- Döllnitzbahn steam train "Wilder Robert" (Oschatz) Daily diesel service, with a historic steam locomotive running on selected weekends. www.doellnitzbahn.de
- Hartenfels Castle (Torgau) April to October: daily except Tuesday, 10 am – 6 pm (November to March: Thursday to Monday 10 am – 4pm). Combined ticket €6 (reduced €5), free for children and young people up to 17. www.schloss-hartenfels.de
- Leipzig Zoo – Feuerland Feuerland (Fireland) opens later in 2026. Zoo open daily year-round: 9 am – 7 pm (May–September), 9 am – 6 pm (April and October), 9 am – 5 pm (November–March). Adults €23, family ticket €60. www.zoo-leipzig.de
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Leipzig Tourismus und Marketing GmbH • Grimmaischer Steinweg 8 • 04103 Leipzig • Germany CEO: Volker Bremer • Amtsgericht Leipzig [Leipzig District Court] • Registration number: HRB 123 48 • Vat number: DE 1845 16 233
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