The Aquadome in Bad Wiessee no longer has a future. Because there were repeated complaints from visitors and ultimately the structural condition left something to be desired, the freshwater aquarium is closed.
Bad Wiessee
– “We didn’t make this decision easy for ourselves,” asserts Wiessee’s mayor Robert Kühn (SPD). Ultimately, however, the local council voted unanimously in a closed meeting to close the Aquadome, which opened in 2010: the death knell for a tourist attraction that has always been praised as the largest freshwater aquarium in Bavaria. But it also had to take a lot of criticism.
For years - including during the pandemic and even more so afterwards - the municipal administration has received many complaints about the walk-in aquarium, according to a press release from the town hall. The visitors complained about the “unclean” aquariums and the “unworthy” way they were kept. Our newspaper had also reported on such complaints.
Aquarium should depict “real” life in a mountain lake
The Tegernsee community and fishery have always emphasized that these arose out of ignorance. The impression of a lack of cleanliness arose because the pools were filled with sea water, which brings sediment with it. In addition, the Aquadome wanted to depict “real” life in an Upper Bavarian mountain lake, including the coexistence of predatory and prey fish. “This naturally led to incidents that some visitors were unable to explain,” the community said resignedly.
The concept of the Aquadome was difficult to convey to many visitors
The bitter conclusion from the municipality, fisheries and district of Upper Bavaria: The concept was apparently “too close to nature” for the tastes of many visitors; what was wanted these days was more artificial worlds à la Seaworld. According to the press release, the fisheries department of the Upper Bavaria district, which is responsible for supervision and advice, also advocated closing the aquarium: “Regardless of the structural condition of the Aquadome, we believe that the concept, which was quite innovative at the time, is no longer up to date.”
Fisheries no longer willing to take responsibility for the “tourist attraction”.
The Tegernsee fishery, which was responsible for on-site support and runs the attached bistro with great success, is quoted in the press release with drastic words: “We are no longer prepared to take responsibility for a 'tourism attraction' that is obviously more broken "The bistro itself is of course not affected by the closure; fishing boss Christoph von Preysing and his team can continue to let the champagne flow here.
According to the press release, the second reason for the final closure of the Aquadome was the structural condition of the aquariums. Due to the high level of condensation forming inside the aquarium area, the concrete foundations have now shown “not insignificant damage”. One expert even came to the conclusion “that the stability is no longer within a safe range”.
Future of the Aquadome building in Abwinkl still unclear
According to Kühn, it is still unclear what will happen to the component in which the five pools are located. “We are currently coordinating with the district and the fishery,” says the mayor when asked. There are many ideas, but nothing is ready to be decided at the moment. “The only thing that is certain is that we want to represent life in the lake in a modern way,” Kühn makes clear. Possibly also including the hatchery that is also located there. The original purpose of the building, which is owned by the municipality, should be retained.
The closure was agreed upon with everyone involved, including the Kreissparkasse Miesbach-Tegernsee, according to the press release. At the time, the financial institution had significantly supported the construction of the Aquadome under the aegis of Georg Bromme. It was also the Kreissparkasse that financed the bistro, added the Aquadome and left it to the community. The idea was to attract even more guests to Abwinkl. At least this concept worked.
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