Niederfinow Boat Lift

The boat lift at Niederfinow, 60 km north-east of Berlin, conveys vessels between the River Oder and the Oder-Havel Canal. The first connection between the two waterways, completed in 1914, was a flight of four locks with passing places, between which boats were hauled by electric railway locomotives. In the 1920s traffic increased beyond the capacity of the locks, and the 60 m high steel boat lift was constructed between 1927 and 1934. The lift operates on the counterbalance principle, conveying vessels in a caisson 85 m long and 12 m wide.

The lift is visited by some 500,000 visitors a year, and facilities include a cafe, a shop, an hotel and an observation platform that provides views over the Oder valley and the Falkenberg and Liepe hills.

A new lift that will increase the capacity of the canal was authorised in 1997.