SchoolRallye: Flucht & Spionage an der Berliner Mauer

The puzzle tour starts in Weinbergspark at Rosenthaler Platz and ends after eleven stations at the Berlin Wall Memorial. It tells the story of the escape attempt of the GDR art dealer Siegfried Kath, and was developed with a historian and a history teacher. As a school trip activity in Berlin, it takes two hours and one smartphone per team.

SchoolRallye Escape & Espionage at the Berlin Wall: Puzzle Tour for School Classes

The rally begins in Weinbergspark at Rosenthaler Platz and leads for about one and a half kilometers to the Berlin Wall Memorial. Eleven stations are along the route, which was deliberately chosen to pass through quiet side streets. The pure walking time takes about twenty minutes; the remaining time is dedicated to the puzzles. In total, a class will be on the go for one and a half to two hours.

The story told is that of the art and antiques dealer Siegfried Kath, who, as a wealthy citizen of the GDR, wanted to go to the West. The tour was developed together with historian Christopher Nehring, who wrote Kath’s biography, and history teacher Stefan Schuch. The tasks incorporate real Stasi encryption methods, in addition to exercises in recognizing forged paintings.

Procedure and Organization of the Digital Scavenger Hunt in Berlin-Mitte

The class divides into teams of three to four young people, who start at one-minute intervals. The game is played in the browser on your own smartphone; an app is not necessary, and data usage remains under ten megabytes. For each booking, a fixed fifteen-minute start slot is reserved for one class. Participation costs from 9.50 Euros per young person; teachers participate free of charge.

The tour’s content is aligned with history curricula and can be played without prior knowledge. Teachers receive their own access to track the progress of all teams and, at the end, a prepared evaluation for the awards ceremony. The offer is recommended from the eighth grade, bookable in German and English. As a souvenir, each participant receives a reprinted West German passport at the end.