Unforgettable Summer Adventures in Saxony: Family Fun in Dresden and Beyond

Explore the best summer activities in Saxony, including strawberry picking, family-friendly farms, hiking in Sächsische Schweiz, and exciting festivals in Dresden. Perfect for family fun!

Introduction

Summer in Saxony is a magical time, brimming with activities that promise an unforgettable season. Whether you’re visiting Dresden for the first time or returning for more adventures, this guide will help you maximize your trip with family-friendly experiences. Discover the best summer activities in Saxony, from exploring local lakes to enjoying vibrant markets and exciting festivals.

Enjoying the Lakes

When the temperature soars above 30°C, there’s no better way to cool off than by visiting one of the region’s stunning lakes. Here are some top picks for a refreshing day out:

• Naturbad Mockritz
• Freibad Badesee Kiesgrube Coswig
• Talsperre Malter
• Senftenberg
• Waldbad Langebrück

Dive into these beautiful lakes and enjoy the perfect family-friendly activities in Saxony, ensuring a refreshing summer escape in Dresden and beyond.

Strawberry Picking

Berry season is a fantastic time to pick your own strawberries. Bring your boxes and head to farms like Obstbau Robert Rüdiger or Erlebnisplantage Moritzburg. Enjoy a café visit or a strawberry ice cream while the kids have fun at the playgrounds provided by the farms! Strawberry picking near Dresden offers a delightful experience for families looking for outdoor activities in Saxony.

Family-Friendly Farms

Discovering local farms is a wonderful way to see animals and enjoy the outdoors. Many farms also offer playgrounds for children. Our top recommendations include:

• Child and Youth Farm Hoyerswerda
• Child and Youth Farm Nickern e.V.
• Biomarkt Vorwerk Podemus Farm Shop

These farms often have volunteering programs and stores selling local products, making them perfect for a family day out in Saxony.

Hiking Adventures

Saxony boasts incredible hiking trails, especially in the Sächsische Schweiz. Platforms like Komoot offer numerous trails to explore. You don’t need to hike long distances to experience the beauty of nature and spot wildlife, making it a memorable outing for the whole family. Hiking in Sächsische Schweiz is one of the top things to do in Dresden with kids.

Exciting Events

Summer is festival season! Here are some events not to miss:

• BRN and Neighborhood Festivals: Many neighborhoods, such as Pieschen with the Sankt Pieschen festival and Neustadt with the BRN, host their own festivals. More info at BRN Dresden.
• Elblangfest: Follow the river to embrace music, crafting, and activities for children. More details at Elbhangfest.
• Canaletto Jazz Festival and Stadtfest: Enjoy jazz music as musicians perform on a boat parade, with tunes echoing throughout the city center. This is also the city festival of Dresden, featuring concerts, activities for kids, and displays by city services like police and firefighters. More information at Canaletto Fest.

Sightseeing

For a more relaxed pace, consider sightseeing in cities like Leipzig and Radebeul. In Radebeul, you can stroll through the city center and along the Elbe, enjoying waffles or ice cream. Continue your walk to meet goats, cows, and horses, which you can feed with food provided at their gate! Sightseeing in Saxony provides endless opportunities for family fun and exploration.

Vibrant Markets

Saturday mornings are perfect for exploring local flea markets. The main market along the Elbe in Dresden (Carolabrücke, south side) is a must-visit, along with various smaller markets and kids’ markets throughout the city. Check out flohmarkt-sachsen.de and kinderflohmarkt.com for more details. Vibrant markets in Saxony offer a unique shopping experience and a chance to find local treasures.

Plan Your Trip with BingerVoyages

If you’re looking for personalized travel planning and tips for your summer adventure in Saxony, feel free to reach out! You can contact me on Instagram at BingerVoyages. I’m here to help you organize the perfect family trip and ensure you experience the best that Saxony has to offer.

What do with kids on a cold and rainy day in Dresden

Often on Facebook, young parents ask “What can we do with the kids when the weather is bad” ?
Of course, there will be always someone saying “There is no bad weather, only bad clothing”.
True, but sometimes you still want to take your kids outside of home and still be cozy somewhere indoors. Specifically, when the children are 5 years old and below.

If that is your case here are my tips on where to go and what to do within Dresden.

1. At home : bake and craft
   Being cozy is also the perfect time to think about eating a chocolate cake or to actually cook a nice dinner and the kids can help too. It’s great to spend a quality time together and learn new skills.
   If you want to explore creativity, crafting is great too: painting, cut and paste, draw, color, it can be anything really. Your child will feel so proud that he had made something nice and to be put on display.
   
   
2. Walk around inside the mall
   But what if it is Sunday ? I don’t want to buy anything!
   Wait a second and read further.
   You can find indoors playgrounds, and stores that offers a small playing area like the LegoStore or Ravensburger.
   Of course thoses places are closed on Sundays. The mall remain open to do some windows shopping or enjoy whatever exhibition is currently happening.
   
   
3. Sip a (caffeine) drink
   Is this really kids friendly? If you enjoy it, your kids can do too. Besides, some cafés offer a kid corner.
   Here are the most famous ones:
   • Mutzelhaus, 01099 Dresden
   • Nibs Cacao, 01099 Dresden
   • Café Story, 01309 Dresden
   • Aposto, 01067 Dresden
   • Restaurant Alberthafen, 01067 Dresden
   • Luisenhof, 01324 Dresden
     
     
4. Go for a swim
   The main swimming pool, Georg-Arnhold-Bad, is always enjoyable to go with the kids. You can also end the rainy day with an ice cream. Because why not!
   Another one that family recommend, a little bit further away is in Freital: Freizeitzentrum “Hains”.
   Completely outside Dresden but it is worth the trip is what we call with the kids the Pinguins swimming pool: Pinguin Bad in Lübbennau / Spreewald.
   
   
5. Discover a museum
   Some museums are very nice for kids, younger and older.
   Here are my recommendations :
   • Verkehrmuseum
   • Hygiene museum
   • Technische Sammlungen
   • Lügenmuseum
     
     
6. Get away at the library
   No matter if you have access to the main library or a smaller one, a trip there during a cold day is always worth it. You can spend hours there reading books, to find new games to play, or new CD to listen to. They can also offer books in different languages.
   

Hopefully these are enough idea not to get bored in Dresden during a cold rainy day. Enjoy !

Where is best to visit to help the animal’s wellness ?

When you live in different countries, even within the EU, you can see few law changes. Sometimes, it is shocking, sometimes it would make more sense if those countries would align with one another.

Animal welfare is one of them.

In Belgium, there are a lot of law to preserve their wellness. Circus with animals are forbidden. When you have horses, they need between 1 000 to 2 500 m2 for each one of them. Animal parks like Grotte de Han also need to follow a similar law for their game. Belgian zoos have nowadays stricter rules as well.

Czech Republic also banned animals in circus.

While in Germany, it doesn’t look like there is any rules about it. When walking in the nature, we see horses in such a small field, when they can’t even run.

Circus with animals are also allowed, and people keep on buying tickets to see them…

As a family, we enjoy more visiting animal parks than zoo for this reason. Also, in Sachsen Germany, animals look much happier in Leipzig Zoo. Dresden Zoo is not to recommend.

How is it in your country ?

Is anyone aware of a petition or anything to make it an European law ?

Sources

https://magasinsaveve.be/Conseils/Detail/animaux/cheval/habitat-d-un-cheval/legislation-regles-et-conseils-pour-la-construction-d-une-ecurie/77cac

https://www.thebulletin.be/belgium-bans-wild-animals-circuses

https://www.livekindly.co/czech-republic-moves-to-ban-all-wild-animal-circuses/

Parental leave in Germany

Parental leave in Germany is amazing. Here I will tell you more about it and everything you can do during that period.

First of all, as soon as you get pregnant and if you are feeling unwell about anything: work, stress, fatigue…go to your gynecologist and ask for a sick note. That way, if the pain persists, you can request one until birth. In any case, you will get 6 weeks off before birth.

That is if you are employed, and it is better to get pregnant after working 1 year in Germany and to still have a contract when the time comes.

If you are unemployed, you start getting the motherhood benefits 6 weeks after birth.The amount you earn is based on how much you earned the last year. There is a minimum amount of 300 euros and a maximum of 1800 euros.

Baby is there, and the 6 weeks are gone. Now have to decide who from the father or the mother will take the rest of the leave. The mother can either choose to take only for 12 months, or shared with the father and then you can get 14 months together. In that case, the amount you would earn in 14 months will be divided. In total, 14 months or 24, you will earn the same.

Here is an example of how you can share your parental leave:

Baby was born on January 1^st:

January	February	March	April	May	June	July	August	September	October	November	December
mama	mama	mama	mama	mama	mama	mama	Mama and papa	papa	papa	papa	papa

January	February
papa	/

In this case, the mother took 8 months, and the father took 6 months, which makes a total of 14 months.

It is also possible to work during the parental leave, you can choose for example to work part time instead of full time and to extend your leave.

The calculation can get complicated. Don’t hesitate to ask for help in a family organization. In Dresden, you can ask for advice at Kaleb or Awo.

After that period you can get unpaid leave until your child turns 8 years old, for a total of 3 years. This won’t create you any trouble for work.

During your maternity leave there are plenty of activities you can do with your baby:

• Family breakfast

• Parents meet up

• Yoga with baby

• After birth sport (Rückbildung)

• Swimming classes

• Breastfeeding support group

• Motherhood support group

Talk to AOK about what you can benefits when being a new mum. They have a lot to offer, for which they can cover or refund.

When you get back to work, you are allowed to get some nursing break to pump. In Sachsen, most of the women take part time jobs so they can take care of their small children / home.

Day care mostly starts at 1 years old, it is called KITA. Some of them starts at 2 years old. There are mostly opened from 7 to 5. Some of them can open even earlier or later. If you are looking for earlier care, then look into Tagesmutti/Tagespapa. Talk to Malwina Pieschen (in Dresden) about it, they can provide you a list of Tagesmutti/papa. Those have less opening hours than KITA’s. Hours from 8 am to 3 pm are common.

Those hours are another reason to have one parent working part time.

Germany is great for parental leave. The country really gives you the time to decide for yourself. You don’t have the pressure to go back to work and stop breastfeeding; no pressure to stay at home alone, your man can also stay with you; no pressure about figuring out breastfeeding : you can go to support groups and Diakonnissenkrankenhaus Dresden is great to help you with in a more professional approach. No matter what you choose it has to be your decision.

More information about maternity leave here https://www.simplegermany.com

Are PCR tests for small children mandatory to travel to India?

Please pay attention to the date of this article: written in September 22nd 2021. Regulations regarding covid and traveling can change quickly. Keep a look at the official website to find the latest update.

Planning the trip to India with small children and during the Covid pandemic is a pure hassle. We depart from Germany with Belgian passports. We first asked our airline company, Lufthansa, do our children need a PCR ?

“Kindly contact the corresponding embassy or consulate directly, as entry regulations are handled by authorities, not the airline. /Mac” So as requested, we contacted the Indian authorities, under the name of Delhi Airport on Twitter.

“Dear Maria, RT PCR test report is mandatory for all passengers irrespective of age and gender along with the self-declaration form. However, the RT PCR Test is conducted only for passengers above 5 years of age at Delhi Airport. For more details, visit (this website) For further information, kindly get in touch with the concerned airlines”

Of course, I had to insist. The website given don’t give any information for children. And then, how can I have a PCR test for my children, aged 3 years old and 3 months old ? The pediatrician said he can’t guarantee to do it. We asked a children clinic who also denied our request. At our departure airport, they say they would do it from 2 years old only…We were completely lost.

Delhi Airport came back to us: “Dear Marie, RT-PCR test for children below 5 years of age is not required at Delhi Airport. For any requirement by the airline, you are requested to get in touch with them. While filling the self declaration form, you can upload the child’s passport (under 5 years) in place of the RT-PCR report field.”

Okay, we now have our confirmation that, for India, we don’t need a PCR test for our children. In the meantime, I received more tweets of other mothers being concerned for their trip to India.

For a different matter, we were talking to the Indian embassy in Berlin, we took the opportunity to ask about PCR test on children. The embassy representative confirmed this matter is a chaos. Officially they do ask for all passengers to get tested, below 5 years old included but he admits to get many phone calls about this matter as Germany don’t allow testing before 5 years old either.

Then my man asked : “how do they do then ?” Of course, it is not the role of the embassy to follow up on families to know if they manage to travel or not. The representative did confirm that the question has been raised to higher authorities. It sounds like this problem was known for long and still we don’t have any clear answer.

We called again the Lufthansa line, and recorded the conversation. The customer care agent confirmed “Only the parents have to get tested, not the small children”

We heard from testimonies that some manage to board and some actually got denied boarding. To stay safe, and because we only wanted a smooth Travel, we also tested the kids and got their results along with ours.

For them, we went to the pediatrician. We asked again, this time directly the doctor. She could easily test both of our kids. The toddler got the check in throat and nose. The baby had it only in the throat while already crying. It went fast and smooth for both of them.

The trip went also very smooth, just showing all the documents when requested. Once we landed in Delhi, us, the parents had to get tested again. Because we already had a long journey, we asked to get priority and our request was granted. We peacefully, with 2 sleepy kids, met our family at the arrival gate.

Milk, Diapers, Dummies, the last details before your baby’s arrival

In this topic, your child has a lot to say, so do not prepare too much before birth, simply get the minimum and see how it goes.

Breastmilk or Formula ?

This is really up to you. You should definitely try breastfeeding to get the experience of it and get to know how it feels. Then if you want to keep on going and how long is your personal choice.

If breastfeeding, you will need to pump. If you have medical issues, you can get a pump for free from your gynecologist or pediatrician. If no medical issues, it is good to have one at home. Then I recommend you the Medela electronic pump. You can find them on EBAY. Your midwife will be able to help you along your breastfeeding journey.

There are single and double pumps. With the double one, it is nice to have a pump bra to help you remain hands free.

Then your midwife will teach you plenty of trick to keep the flow going. This include warm and cold packs and keep them near you even before birth. Those from Lansinoh are good and you can find them on Ebay.

Keep also a nipple cream handy, you’re definitely going to need this too. You can find a small pack at DM and bigger one at the pharmacy, or other mums are selling them on Ebay as well.

If for whatever reason you need to pump and to store the milk, you can actually freeze it in the appropriate bags. You will find those on Amazon, at the pharmacy or on Ebay.

If you are going for bottle feed and your child doesn’t have particular diet issues, go for APTAMIL PRE, and do not upgrade until the pediatrician tells you to do it or your child shows you it is not adapted any longer. Aptamil is also available in India, UK and Belgium. Gets also the proper bottles, NUK is not so bad, I saw lot of kids with those. We prefer Philip Avent with the Natural teats. Watch that each teat have different numbers/flow according to how old your child is. You will find more information here.

If you have any questions about feeding, best is to ask your midwife and pediatrician.

Diapers

For diapers, you can either use the papers one, like Pampers or the DM brand is also good.

Or (or more AND) you can use washable diapers (stoffwindeln). KinderAustausch is doing a workshop about it. If you go for this, get them from Ebay, it is cheaper. The brand of washable diapers I love is Juicy Bumple.

With the diapers you also need butt cream ( Wundschutzcreme ). As mentioned in my previous post, Wedela is a great brand for such produtcs.

Pacifier or not ?

Breastfed babies usually don’t take the pacifier, they just take the breast as much as they want. If you want to try it, best is after 1 month old. Try first different shapes, and see which one your baby like the most.

Both of our babies liked more round shape (Cherry). Sometimes you can also find those shapes at the pharmacy.

Collecting the first items for your baby

First of all, you need to decide if you want mostly new stuff or second hand. There are a lot of cheap possibilities to find clothes for the first year of life of your baby. It is really unnecessary to break your wallet for that.

For brand new you can go to H&M, C&A and DM. DM online has more relevant offers. H&M has a good mama section and baby section, C&A is great for the entire family.

Then here are the options for second hand.

Clothes size 50-74 from KALEB. If you need something specific, VINTED is good.

Or you can find it on ebay-kleinanzeigen

For expensive and big item you can also look to rent them at Klamottchen

Baby bed

Babies can basically sleep anywhere, either a separate cot, a basket, a kid bed, your bed…it is really up to you.

For us, our babies slept in a toddler bed with a gate. If you are breastfeeding it is not the best option, but it is best to teach them independence and for the long term.

I also like the travel cot with a zipper. The baby can craw in and out the crib. Usually there is a bassinet with it for smaller baby so you don’t need to bend your back all the time to pick him up.

You might need an extra mattress with this. If you want to go for it, ask us, we have the mattress.

You can also have a bed that you put right next to yours. In German it is called Beistellbett.

The Snüz pod looks very comfortable and nice. Wished I had it too ! Beistellbett are great for breastfeeding and for small bedrooms.

Those can be quite expensive to buy new so you can look at Klamottchen or Ebay to get them second hand.

Then, do not forget sleeping bags for your baby. It helps your baby to feel swaddle and to keep warm. Find several ones of several sizes. When you baby is small, he needs a shorter sleeping bag…To big brings more air and more cold. You can get them at KALEB or you can also just ask me.

Rocking your baby

You can use a swinging chair. Chicco has a nice model that you can use for long, it also go on sitting position which makes it more practical for teaching solid food.

With Miera we discovered the gymnastic ball, super practical for pregnancy pain and for rocking her. We all loves it. You can find that easily second hand on Ebay Kleinanzeigen.

Going out

To go out with your baby, you should choose a pram that answer your need: do you need it to fit in the car ? Wheels adjustable ?

For us we first had a very good pram with strong wheels (Teutonia). Very nice for talking walks. Our pram was very old. Now they make lighter Teutonia.

Then, we needed one to put it in the car. We already had the maxi cosi (some pram include the car seat).

If you need the full set (maxi cosi, pram, stroller) then you can look for ABC design.

If you want to bike with your baby, from when he can sit (6-9 months old), you can use a fahrradanhänger. You can detach it from the bike and use it as a buggy as well. Croozer is for this a very good brand. Decathlon also has some cheap ones, and still good quality.

You can also find those easily on Ebay or ask Klamottchen.

If you want to make sure you get the right model, you can take a look at them at a shop first and then find the same brand second hand.

If you need an extra sun shade, rain cover or buggy bag, you can find them at DM. AOK also provides you with a free diaper bag.

You can also take a carrier. It is great for newborn. KALEB and KinderAustausch can teach you how to wear it (tragesberatung).

One of my friends also told me about this carrier, I tried it and I like it a lot for newborns too!

Once the baby gets bigger, around 4 months old, then the Ergo baby is very nice, also because you can carry your baby on the back.

Even if the ad shows it, it is actually not good to wear your baby facing the street. He should always be facing you, or it can cause hips issues.

Toys-wise, soft toys and soft books are nice. You can also check at KALEB for them. Another place to find those for free is at KinderAustausch.

One of my favorite baby book is from the collection Touchy Feely from Usborne and favourite toy is the wooden disc tower and a soft rattle. The collection Lilliputiens is very nice for baby toys (and it is Belgian ;-), Sterntaler is also very cute for both clothes and toys.

Changing station

And what about changing ? I almost forgot about it!

For our first child we bought a second hand changing table that we then changed into a cupboard. Afterwards, it was only taking space so we simply removed it. For our second child, we put a mat on the bed and change her there, much easier ! We get the wipes and diapers from DM. For the first buy, get one small pack for about 3 kg like this one from Babylove, and once the baby is born you can adjust you need.

We also invested into washable diapers and these ones from Amazon are very good. If you have any questions about this, KinderAustausch is also doing a diaper workshop (windeln beratung).

The next blog post will be about feeding and pumping. Keep updated !

Guide for first time mother in Dresden

A friend of mine once asked me to blog about the mother tips I gathered with the birth of my first child. So here is the first post, the time during pregnancy and how to take care of yourself first. After all, once the baby is out, there won’t be much time for yourself anymore.

When you consider being a mum, consider also getting the best health insurance to cover your new needs. AOK is the best in Dresden for this. Talk to your AOK consultant about the benefits you can gets. It includes lot of free classes and extra refund.

Pregnancy test

You think you are pregnant ? Get a test from DM. If you are trying to get pregnant, you can also buy a pack of several tests.

Recommended test : Testa med Schwangerschaftstest Frühtest, 1 St Exist also with 2 tests included.

It is positive ? Start calling all the midwives you can find. You can start looking on this registry from Hebamme in Sachsen.

In Dresden, I recommend the Bühlau Praxis

You have your Gynecologist appointment, and your midwife, now you can relax a bit and take care of yourself. If you feel unwell do not hesitate to ask for a sick leave from your gynecologist.

Then, if you stay at home already, you can look for some activities to do. Most of them are financially covered.

AOK for instance or offers many pregnancy courses like YOGA and swimming classes.

You can also go for pregnancy massage.

You should also attend a birth preparation class, called in German Geburtsvorbereitung. It is organised in english at the Bühlau Praxis.

There will also be a lot of paperwork to do as well, to get to know more about it, contact KALEB Schwangershaft beratung.

Take the time to enjoy bath with some oil. Not all the oil are adapted for pregnancy, read the small lines on the back. The best brand for this (and many other mummy products) is Weleda.

Place of Birth

With your midwife, you will have to determine the place of birth.

Hospital ?

Home ?

Birth house (hebammespraxis) ?

For the hospital, Uniklinikum was perfect for us.

For the Birth House, Bühlau offers the service, and they are in contact with the nearest hospital if needed.

Baby before birth

Massage your bump, inside your legs, your breast every day with coconut oil to avoid stretch marks.

In the next few posts we will see about how to get ready for your baby and the first things you can do with him/her. If you have any other tips, feel free to share !

What to do for a weekend in Hamburg

As some of my blog post come from a question, one of my friends actually came to me to ask me, what is there to do to spend a nice weekend in Hamburg, Germany? Well, this post will spot some places you must see.

You should prepare your visit first, as not so many cafés have WiFi there. If you look for one though, I definitely recommend the Kaffeekontor, where you can steal the WiFi from the Compost apple store just next door.

If you arrive on Friday evening to leave on Sunday, you might want to start with a nice dinner and, one, or two, casual drink(s) at the Sternchanze neighborhood. You can stop at the Sofa pubs, there are two of them right in front of each other, both on a corner. Have more drinks, if you feel like it, don’t forget to order an Astra, the local beer. Don’t get wasted yet, the weekend is still coming up.

You can rent a bike, which if fun, or go by walk, but some of the spots to see during the daytime are far to go to by walk from the city center.

There is the Sint Michael’s church, where you can go on top if the weather is clear enough to have a nice view on the city. Take a walk also at the warehouse neighborhood, and stop by the Miniatur Wunderland museum. Take you time on the East side of the Aussenalster lake.

You should also go to Treppenviertel, a fishermen neighborhood that kept its authentic atmosphere.

Then, now, you can get wasted. Go to Reperbahn, stop at the Barbarabar, order a Mexicana. Don’t get disappointed by the taste Hamburg people have on alcohol, just look like you would belong there too. Locals use to say that you are virgin until you drink one of these shots. Now that you are most probably drunk, and dizzy, look up, and see those American lights that remind of Hollywood. Keep drinking; locals also have a good remedy against the hangover.

We are already Sunday. Go to the fish market, and get a fish burger. If you feel like it, you can also buy vegetables and fruits for cheap to bring them home. Look at some market gardener, how they shout and make their own show. Even if you don’t understand German, it is fun to watch. Get a walk along the riverside there too, if you haven’t done that yet. If you have time, take a ferry like you would take a bus, but on the river. It doesn’t ask to much effort, and it is nice to watch the city from there.

Now that you have experienced the best of Hamburg, it time to leave. Don’t drive if you still feel the alcohol in your blood. Germany has a good a bus transportation network to drive you around.

 

Hannover

People use to say that there is not so much to do in Hannover but actually there is. The city has a red line to guide tourists around. The most beautiful spot would be for me the city hall, which looks like a fairytale place. The lake is also nice to see. Apparently, Hannover is the greenest town of Germany. I went there during the wintertime, so I haven’t seen so much of it.

We were in Hannover to spend New Year’s Eve. Most of the German people call it Saint Sylvester actually. We were in a flat, playing pandemic and drinking alcohol. The only thing that might be typical for Hannover was the amount of people on the street turning on fireworks and rockets. Each corner had his group of persons so cars couldn’t run there anymore. It was so smoky outside that it looked like Bagdad. There, I had to turn on my first tiny firework.