Schifffahrt in Potsdam

Who they are

Schifffahrt in Potsdam is the brand of Weisse Flotte Potsdam GmbH, Potsdam's "white fleet". Until 1994 the city's passenger boats depended on the municipal transport company; after reunification that service passed to a new company, and in 2000 it was bought and privatised by Jörg Winkler and Jan Lehmann. Since then they have renewed the fleet: they restored the historic steamer Gustav, from 1908, built the MS Belvedere in 2006, launched water taxis on the Havel in 2007, unveiled their flagship, the MS Sanssouci, in 2010 and in 2019 launched the MS Schwielowsee, which they present as Germany's first hybrid passenger ship. Today they have nine boats, about 120 employees and about 200,000 passengers a year, and also train apprentices.

Their boats leave from the Lange Brücke harbour, ten minutes' walk from the main station, where they have had a building with ticket offices and services since 2016 and the restaurant El Puerto.

What routes and seasons they cover

They sail on the Havel and the lakes around Potsdam, with about twenty landing stages, including Caputh Palace, Werder island, Wannsee in Berlin, the Pfaueninsel and Sacrow. The best-known trip is the tour of the palaces, an hour and a half, which passes Babelsberg, under the Glienicke Bridge and into the Jungfernsee; the grand tour of the islands takes about four hours. They also organise cruises with meals or music, at Advent and for New Year. The high season runs from spring to October, with daily departures; in winter there are only special trips and charters.

For groups and companies they hire out the boats with a tailor-made route on the Havel, towards Brandenburg and Berlin, and even on the Spree through the centre of Berlin. Group menus range from buffets from €36 per person to full dinners. The Sanssouci and the Schwielowsee are wheelchair accessible.

On board

On normal trips there are no assigned seats: you sit inside or outside wherever there is room. Groups of ten or more can reserve a table inside if they order food, and on some cruises with a menu a table reservation is compulsory when you buy. You may not consume your own food or drink; on many trips food and drink are on sale on board. Dogs travel free on a short lead, except on day excursions and those that include a meal. Bicycles pay a ticket and are allowed if there is room; pushchairs and wheelchairs go free, but you must give notice. People with a severe disability get €2 off on the regular lines.

How to buy and get there

You buy online, at the ticket office at Lange Brücke 6 (cash or card), at some sales points and hotels, or on board at intermediate stops, by card only. Boarding at the harbour starts 15 or 20 minutes before departure; at an intermediate stop you have to wait clearly visible on the landing stage for the boat to stop, and to get off you tell the crew. The website is in German and English and has a filter for trips with commentary in English; there is no offer in Spanish, and they do not publish their cancellation terms on those pages, so it is worth asking. For parking, the paid municipal car park Am Lustgartenwall is next to the harbour.