Winter Magic in the Herrenhausen Gardens

On the most beautiful winter days, the perfectly straight hedges, the sweeping boxwood designs, and the elegant sculptures in the Baroque Herrenhäuser Gardens in Hanover are topped with white caps of snow. Ice crystals glisten in the sun on the reconstructed palace and on the whimsical, colorful grotto that French artist Niki de Saint Phalle designed specifically for the Great Garden. A stroll in the crisp, cold winter air is a highlight for all city and culture travelers visiting the capital of Lower Saxony. And to warm up, they can admire the plant worlds of Africa and the Americas in the impressive greenhouses at the Berggarten Botanical Garden, located right across the street.

© Sea Life

Orchids and Butterflies
The Mountain Garden in Herrenhausen features one of Europe’s largest orchid exhibitions: Against a backdrop of numerous tropical shrubs and trees, up to 800 orchids bloom here year-round in a fascinating variety of colors and shapes, filling the air with an enchanting fragrance. In other exhibition greenhouses, for example, man-sized cacti as well as Canarian and African plants grow, blooming magnificently in the winter. To mark the reopening of the renovated Tropical Greenhouse, the exhibition “Tropical Enchanters,” running from December 2, 2016, to January 29, 2017, will also feature around a thousand exotic butterflies. These delicate creatures can be observed on the flowers and at feeding stations. Visit www.hannover.de/herrenhausen for more information.

Aquariums in the Rainforest
A visit to Sea Life, the large aquarium in the Berggarten, is especially worthwhile for families: In a unique underwater world surrounded by tropical vegetation, visitors can get a close-up look at over 2,500 aquatic animals in 40 tanks and aquariums, including sea turtles, reef sharks, octopuses, seahorses, and rays. In the interactive touch tank, busy cleaner shrimp await visitors’ hands. Guided tours and jungle expeditions with a ranger are offered daily. And from an observation tower, you can experience the tropical rainforest beneath the glass dome up close.

© GOP Variety Theater

Winter Variety Show at the Orangerie
The historic Orangerie in Hannover-Herrenhausen is hosting the winter variety show “Machine de Cirque” through January 11, 2018. Machine de Cirque and the GOP Varieté Theaters present this Canadian masterpiece from the heart of Québec—a show that will delight both lovers of poetic moments and comedy fans who love to laugh out loud!
The world as we know it came to an end in the year 2000. But: No need to panic! Because in 2017, it’s back to standing ovations and sold-out shows when a lively, offbeat group with a clever and ingenious show concept completely turns the past, present, future, and everything else that comes their way upside down. In this surreal world, which resembles a spare-parts warehouse, the subtle characters reinvent everything around them in comical, euphoric, or even nostalgic ways—flying through the air on a spinning board or causing a show sensation with nothing more than a simple bath towel.