Hello Leipzig: Here’s how Tuesday, 1 September 2026, begins

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Just outside the city lies a historical treasure – in Borna, work on restoring it officially begins today. Care should be taken when travelling on the motorway to Dresden, and likewise when the little ones start school next year.  It’s not enough simply to turn up on the day of the Zuckertütenfest. Today, the city’s attention is focused on South America. And that’s situated directly north-west of the city centre.

Festive opening of Tierra del Fuego

Compared to the rest of the world, even Leipzig Zoo is rather small. But this ‘big world in miniature’ becomes a little more complete today. After more than five years of construction, one of the largest and most elaborate new attractions of recent years is opening: at 4 pm, visitors can enter the Feuerland adventure world for the first time.

The area, covering around 10,000 square metres, recreates a South American coastal and marine landscape and is described by the zoo itself as a ‘world first’. Among the most striking features is an underwater tunnel over 100 metres long, the most spectacular section of which is a twelve-metre-long, fully encircling 360-degree tube made of acrylic glass. Visitors can observe the animals there from virtually all angles whilst underwater.
The facility also includes a coastal aviary covering some 2,000 square metres, a wave machine, a tide pool serving as a learning pool for young animals, diving rocks, a rock-face viewing platform and a large LED screen. According to the zoo, the aquatic landscape contains a total of more than 5.5 million litres of water, with the central pool alone holding around five million litres (as reported by the LZ
).

Even before today’s opening, 40 Humboldt penguins, nine seals and eight sea pelicans had already moved into their new surroundings or begun settling in. In the long term, the Humboldt penguin colony alone is set to grow to more than 50 birds. The zoo states that the enclosure, designed to be as close to nature as possible and featuring swimming and resting areas as well as a flight aviary, covers an area of 5,500 square metres; the entire ‘Tierra del Fuego’ attraction covers around 10,000 square metres.

With the opening of Feuerland, Leipzig Zoo is completing the major expansion of its South America themed area, though the ‘Zoo of the Future’
masterplan – which has been underway for years – is not yet finished. The next phase will focus on the Asian Island Worlds. The two new large aviaries, ‘Amazonien’ and ‘Loriversum’, are already complete.

In autumn 2026, construction work will begin on Building Site 2, featuring enclosures for fossas, red dogs and eared pheasants. Further areas of the Asian themed world are then set to be developed. However, it has not yet been definitively confirmed when the individual future construction phases will open to visitors. There is, however, a target date for the overall project. According to the current timetable, the zoo aims to complete its transformation into a complex encompassing all continents by 2028. That year will mark the 150th anniversary of its founding. If you don’t want to wait in a long queue at the ticket office this afternoon, it’s best to book your ticket ONLINE HERE.

It’s the other way round to Dresden today

Motorists should expect restrictions today at the Leipzig-Nord junction on the A14. From 9 am to 4 pm, the slip road towards Dresden will be completely closed. This is due to road marking and signposting works. The A14 itself will remain open to traffic during this time: on the main carriageway, traffic will be channelled past the roadworks in two lanes.

The closure therefore affects only vehicles wishing to join the A14 towards Dresden at the Leipzig-Nord junction. A diversion has been put in place for these vehicles, which will initially require them to take a detour in the opposite direction. In a statement from the motorway authority, this is described as follows: “Vehicles wishing to join the motorway will be directed to turn round via the Schkeuditz junction.” Motorists must therefore first drive along the A14 towards Schkeuditz, turn round there and then drive back towards Dresden.

The slip road will reopen after 4 pm, but will be completely closed again on Wednesday 2 September from 9 am to 4 pm. In total, 14 hours of closure are therefore scheduled across both days.

Time to start thinking about school enrolment for 2027

For parents of children due to start school next year, digital enrolment at local primary schools in Leipzig has been available for the first time since 1 August. In-person enrolment, however, is only possible from today. The enrolment deadline is 15 September.

Several local primary schools have set their opening hours for this day as 8 am to 11.30 am and 1 pm to 6 pm. Further sessions are available on Thursday 3 September and Tuesday 8 September, from 8.00 am to 11.30 am and from 1.00 pm to 4.00 pm on both days, although specific times may vary depending on the school. It is therefore advisable to check the relevant school’s website for details.

There are differences compared to the local authority enrolment process for independent private schools. For example, the Evangelical School Centre will be accepting applications for the 2027/28 school year from 1 to 18 September 2026. The complete set of documents should be sent by post to the Evangelisches Schulzentrum, Schletterstraße 7, 04107 Leipzig.

The required documents include, amongst others, the enrolment form, birth certificate and proof of measles vaccination, as well as, specifically, a ‘confirmation of enrolment at a state school’. This means that parents may have already completed the necessary enrolment at a state school before the private school’s application process begins.

Important: Unlike state schools, private schools charge school fees; you should find out how much these are before applying. For example, from the 2026/2027 school year, the Evangelisches Schulzentrum Leipzig will charge 135 euros per month for the first child and 75 euros for the second child. The third and any further children are exempt from school fees.

More than just a coal trail

Regional history comes together just outside Leipzig: today, the new Documentation Centre for Regional and Economic History officially opens its doors in Borna. Following around two years of construction on the new building – designed as a “place of knowledge, remembrance and reflection” – this project is launching operations intended to function as an educational centre that goes far beyond the role of a traditional archive.

The district administration’s records office has already moved entirely into the new building, and the first part of the district archive’s holdings is now also housed there. In the run-up to this move, access to the district archive’s holdings and to building records had recently been severely restricted. The Leipzig District, the Saxon Economic Archive (Sächsisches Wirtschaftsarchiv e. V., SWA) and the DOKMitt e. V. support association are collaborating at the site.

Plans include programmes on regional and economic history, partnerships with schools, exhibitions and academic conferences. A particular focus will be on explaining the structural transformation resulting from the phase-out of coal. Together, the participating institutions hold several hundred thousand documents, photographs and technical records spanning up to 400 years of regional industrial history. The project is also expected to create 18 jobs and training places.

The scale of the project is also reflected in the investment figures: the district estimates the total cost at 17,683,955 euros; 95 per cent of this is funded by grants, primarily from the Free State of Saxony’s Investment Act for Coal-Mining Regions and the district’s own funds. The district council approved the construction project in March 2022, and the town of Borna granted planning permission in November 2023.

To mark the move into the new building, the district is inviting interested members of the public to visit the district archive’s premises. It is currently offering two dates for this: Wednesday 16 September 2026, from 2.00 pm to approximately 3.30 pm, and Friday 18 September 2026, from 9.00 am to approximately 10.30 am. The number of participants is limited to 15. Anyone interested can register by emailing kreisarchiv@lk-l.de. Further details regarding the visit will be provided once you have registered.