Chorin Monastery, chapel concerts, the guided park tour and Amtssee Lake give a stay in Chorin a clear cultural and waterside focus. When planning, it is important to decide whether your main interest is the monastery’s history and architecture or whether you would also like to make time for swimming. The train connection and approximate walking time from the station provide a practical first point of reference.
Getting to Chorin Monastery
The RE3 train line serves Chorin station directly from Berlin Central Station, Potsdamer Platz and Gesundbrunnen, as well as from the direction of AngermĂĽnde. From there, a signposted footpath leads to Chorin Monastery in about 25 minutes. Check the train connection for your travel date and allow for the walk when planning your arrival.
Monastery history, exhibition and music
Chorin Cistercian Monastery was founded in 1273. The permanent exhibition explores the construction of the brick monastery and medieval monastic life in the context of regional history, up to the dissolution of the monastery in 1542. This takes visitors from the building itself to the history of its monastic economy. In Barnim, Chorin Monastery is a key example of North German Brick Gothic. The exhibition design may change.
Since 1992, the monastery has hosted an annual series of chamber music concerts in the chapel. The repertoire spans sacred and secular music from the Middle Ages to the modern era; individual programmes vary. If you would like to plan your stay around a concert, check the programme for your chosen dates. Contemporary art is presented in the Infirmarium, the monks’ former hospital and guesthouse. Specific exhibition themes may change.
Guided park tour and Amtssee Lake
The guided park tour lasts about 90 minutes. It follows an outdoor route past the remains of the former monastery mill, along the west façade of the monastery and on beside the Nettelgraben to Amtssee Lake; it ends at the cemetery. Its focus is therefore the outdoor grounds and a clearly defined route, while the permanent exhibition explores the building and monastic economy. Check the booking arrangements and path conditions for your visit.
Swimming is permitted in Amtssee Lake, which is designated as a bathing area in Chorin and has a maximum depth of 6.5 metres. Check local conditions before swimming.
Chorin and the wider Barnim region
Visitors looking beyond Chorin to the Barnim region will find other distinct activities. Cycling is a visitor activity in Barnim district, whose network of cycle routes totals 610 kilometres. For specific tours, check the latest route information. The 143-kilometre “Around the Schorfheide” circular hiking trail passes through Barnim Nature Park. Boat trips are offered on Lake Werbellin, and canoe tours are possible on the Finow Canal. The Finow Canal is Germany’s oldest artificial waterway still open to navigation. This means you can consider Chorin’s local focus on the monastery and Amtssee Lake separately from the wider cycling and water-based activities in Barnim, depending on your travel interests.
Discover more destinations
Discover more destinations: Serwest, Lunow-Stolzenhagen, Schorfheide, AlthĂĽttendorf, Friedrichswalde, Werneuchen, Biesenthal, Oderberg.
Return to the main travel overview: Barnim.
