The control room and passenger areas on the Graf Zeppelin were both located within the airship’s 98′ long gondola.
Gondola of LZ-127 Graf Zeppelin.
As seen in the deckplan included in this 1934 brochure, the ship’s control room was located at the very bow of the gondola, just ahead of the chart room, radio room, and kitchen.
Deckplan of Graf Zeppelin's Gondola.
The Control Room, Chart Room, and Radio Room
The control room contained rudder and elevator control wheels, gas and water ballast release controls, engine telegraphs, and flight and navigation instruments.
Graf Zeppelin Control Room
Graf Zeppelin Control Room
Chart Room of Graf Zeppelin
Radio Room of Graf Zeppelin
The Kitchen
Across from the radio room was a small kitchen containing electric burners and ovens, an electric water heater, a refrigeration unit, and compact storage and preparation areas. Obviously, no open flames were allowed on the hydrogen-filled airship.
Kitchen of Graf Zeppelin
The Passenger Lounge and Dining Room
Aft of the kitchen was a combination lounge/dining room, approximately 16′ square, which was the only public passenger space aboard the ship.
Lounge and Dining Area on Graf Zeppelin
While the surroundings were luxurious, they were also unheated, and during the winter months, or when the ship flew over the North Atlantic, or during the flight over Siberia as part of the 1929 Round-the-World flight, passengers often spent much of their time wrapped in heavy winter coats or covered by layers of blankets while ice crystals formed on the windows.
As frequent passenger Lady Grace Drummond Hay described it:
We have a million cubic feet of gas but no heat. . . . Merciless cold driving through the canvas walls of this flying tent. … I have visualized myself gracefully draped over a saloon window ledge romantically viewing the moonlit sky. The men . . . have reminded each other not to forget evening jackets and boiled shirts in their baggage. We have drawn ourselves lovely pictures of dining elegantly in mid-air with Commodore Eckener at the head of a flower-decked table . . . but . . . leather coats, woollies and furs will be our evening dress. Hot soup and steaming stew more welcome than cold caviar and chicken salad.
Lady Grace Drummond-Hay aboard Graf Zeppelin
Lounge and Dining Area on Graf Zeppelin
Dinner on the Graf Zeppelin
The Passenger Cabins
Accommodation for the ship’s twenty passengers was provided in ten small cabins, containing upper and lower berths similar to those aboard a railroad sleeping car, and which could be arranged for daytime or nighttime use. Like the rest of the ship, the cabins were unheated. The cabins were located on a narrow corridor, at the end of which were separate washrooms for men and women.
Steward making up berth
Passenger Cabin of Graf Zeppelin
Passenger Cabin aboard LZ-127 during the Day
Passenger Corridor on Graf Zeppelin
Passenger Cabin aboard LZ-127 at Night
Women's Washroom on Graf Zeppelin