The giant dome and swimming pool of Tropical Islands, Germany, July 2026.
It started as a military airfield built by the Nazi Germans in 1938, after World War 2 it served the Soviet Red Army, then in the year 2000 a giant dome would have turned Brand-Briesen Airfield into the future of sustainable air cargo. But the giant airships — or zeppelins — that were thought of getting off deflated as soon as the beautiful plans could not meet modern economic requirements.
The Truman Show
This is the history of Tropical Islands, a swim paradise that gives Truman Show feelings. One can reach the horizon, and actually leave the place to step into the real word. The trees inside the dome are completely natural, and there are real life flamingos, turtles, and butterflies. Apart from that, the rest is technically fake. But for many, including me, Tropical Islands offers a joyful experience. Relax on a sandy beach, swim in chlorinated water, or climb dozens of metres/feet up in the air to slide down — while salsa and bachata music play in the background and children screams sometimes in the foreground.
Life guard in his watchtower.
The dome is massive!
One can go up in an air balloon inside the dome.
The world's largest hall
The dome of Tropical Islands is the world's largest free-bearing hall: 360 metres (1,181 feet) long, 220 metres (722 feet) wide and 106 metres (348 feet) high. It is large enough to e.g. fit the Eiffel Tower on its side. But that, nor the swimming paradise, was never the plan.
Sustainable cargo airships
It was Carl-Heinrich Freiherr von Gablenz, the grandson of the famous German aviation pioneer Carl August von Gablenz, that gave East Germany new hopes of a modern future. It was a few years after the German reunification when Carl-Heinrich presented his plan, in 1996, for sustainable cargo airships. A fleet of 260-metre (853 feet) long modern zeppelins was envisaged, starting with one CL-160 sailing from Brand-Briesen. The dome was build in 2000, but apart from a mini-zeppelin the real deal never materialised. With EUR 350 million already collected, Carl-Heinrich's company needed to more than double that to make things work. But this money never came and the zeppelin dream went bankrupt.
The giant air ship hangar turned into swimming paradise Tropical Islands, July 2026.
To give an idea of its size, notice the maintenance worker alpine climbing on the dome, July 2026.
In 2003 the Malaysian Tanjong company bought the real estate and just before Christmas 2004 the dome reopened as Tropical Islands Resort. For those that step inside the outside world can be forgotten, and if one wants to forget real life even more: there is bedding in tropical building remakes to make your experience even last longer.
Want to read more?
Freelancer Fanta Voogd wrote a comprehensive story on the history of the new zeppelin that never was, published in July 2026 by the online magazine Shell Venster (so far only in available Dutch, an English version is reportedly coming soon).
Inside Tropical Islands, July 2026.
