What should I visit in Berlin? Which are the most famous tourist attractions? Throughout this page, I will introduce to Berlin and help you plan your visit, whether it is a weekend break, Europe´s trip or just travelling from the comfort of your sofa. Do not miss Berlin’s rich cultural life!
Berlin’s Museum Island especially got my attention when I was planning this trip, this is an incredible opportunity to enjoy a gathering of five world-renowned museums. But above all, the character of the city of water stands out. Berlin has been formatted by the rivers Spree and Haver. And therefore shaped by its bridges and channels. Most visited bridges according to Tripadvisor are Oberbaumbrucke, Schlossbrucke, Moltkebrucke, Lutherbrucke, Jungfernbrucke, Friedrichbrucke and Monbijoubrucke.
I recommend you do not leave the city without visiting Postdam. Apart from the Sanssouci Palace of Frederick the Great, Potsdam has the Cecilienhof Palace, built by the Hohenzollerns (mix of different architectural styles). In this palace, the powers gained from the Second World War divided Europe. Interesting also the recognition made of the work of translators and interpreters.
And also in Potsdam and Berlin, the famous “bridge of spies”. Although there are metro stops where more prisoners were exchanged, Glienicker Bruecke is the most reproduced image of Berlin, the city of many bridges, and that even before the Spielberg film. The bridge connects Potsdam with Lake Wannsee with the wealthy bankers and industrialists’ neighborhood of rest, with stately villas and beach in Summer.
Berlin is big, it has a long history, urban planning has gradually been absorbing nearby towns such as Koepenick, Spandau and many more to turn them into districts. And for this reason, it does not have an urban center as defined as other European capitals. (Several friends of mine have complained about the difficulty of orientation for that reason).
Berlin is an aquatic city, with rivers and canals. Berliners boast that their “waterways” are connected to the five seas. That is why I would recommend if there are time and desire, a visit to Spandau.
Spandau has a beautiful citadel built by Italian engineers. Concerts and events are organized in Summer.
Near the citadel, you can see the operation of a lock. Navigable channels for the transport of goods.
Regarding films about Berlin, I should mention “The sky over Berlin” or “Wings of Desire” (Der Himmel über Berlin) by Wim Wenders. It develops before the Berlin metamorphosis. 1987 masterpiece of the moment, the stupendously accomplished city symphony, rises to poetry, surveys a walled city, looks upon its humans, within their dreams, descends to the circus and the bar-room and the fleeting refractions of winding thought. Bruno Ganz, an angel, falls in love with a trapeze artist (Wenders then-inamorata Solveig Dommartin) and decides he would rather be human, forsaking immortality for two beating hearts.” (New City Film)
How is Berlin?
- Capital and largest city of Germany both in size and number of inhabitants with 3,769,495 in the city and metropolitan: 6,144,600
- Located in the state of Brandenburg
- Place of artistic styles invention and home for 440 art galleries
- Leadership in science and research
- Cosmopolitan and affordable
- Center of the roaring Twenties, watch Babylon Berlin TV Series
- Fall of Berlin Wall in 1989 left the city with polycentric organization, City West of West Berlin and Alexanderplatz was the center of East Berlin formerly separated by this wall built up by the Soviet Union to control this sector. You can read more about Berlin´s history here
- A place for beer lovers and wild nightlife
- Famous modern landmarks
- Spree river festivals and open-air cinemas
- Flea Markets, for example, the one next to Tiergarten S-Bahn station at the weekends.
With oceanic climate and very cold winds during Winter, most people choose to travel to Berlin during late Spring or Summer. And unless you want as I did to take advantage of low season cheaper prices in transport and accommodation, and visit Christmas Markets, a wide offer of Museums, Exhibitions, or Events at any other season.
I am sharing my personal experience in Berlin in January 2012. Part of a trip to various European cities.
Berlin: a dynamic city where fun and culture is guaranteed
Getting here:
- Interrail: Berlin Night Train from Sweden or Poland
- Trains in Germany: Deutsch Bahn
- By road or plane
- Flixbus
Museumsinsel
One Island — Five Museums — One Ticket
Berlin’s Museum Island got my attention, this is an incredible opportunity to enjoy a gathering of five world-renowned museums. Apart from the bust of the Egyptian queen Nefertiti, you can visit the ancient Pergamon Altar and the great Ishtar Gate. In 1999, the Museum Island complex was registered as UNESCO World Heritage.
Free admission for visitors under 18 years. Regular admission is 18€, reduced 9€.
This island is located in the Spree river, in the Berlin Mitte area.
The five museums on Museum Island are:
- Pergamonmuseum (Pergamon Museum)
- Bode-Museum
- Neues Museum (New Museum)
- Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery)
- Altes Museum (Old Museum)
Neues Museum und Bode Museum
Pergamon Museum
Discover the rest of Berlin´s attractions:
Entrance to the Tiergarten Park
Berlin´s inner-city park, 210 green hectares to enjoy.
Memorials, gardens, and museums in the central green lung of Berlin near Berlin Mitte:
- Potsdamer Platz
- Government quarter
- Brandenburg Gate
- Reichstag Parliament building
- Memorial to the Sinti and Roma
- Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe
- Haus der Kulturen der Welt — arts venue and cultural centre
- Zoological Garden
Postdamer Platz
Big square and intersection in the center of the city with a nearby shopping center.
Brandenburg Gate
18th-century neoclassical monument in Berlin now a symbol of peace and union.
Reichstag
Former empire-building now symbol of democracy and home of the German parliament.
Holocaust Memorial
Open in 2005. It is a memorial to the Jewish victims of the Holocaust, produced by architect Peter Eisenman and engineer Buro Happold.
Berlin Cathedral
Located on Museum Island in the Mitte borough which construction was finished in 1905 to become Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg-Silesian Upper Lusatia.
Neue Synagogue
Eastern Moorish style Synagogue built from 1859 to 1866 on Oranienburger Straße.
East Side Gallery
Berlin´s urban art: graffitis and sculptures.
Alexanderplatz and East Berlin
Here you can have lots of fun and at its Christmas Market during winter and visit the Fernsehturm or Berlin TV Tower.
Memorial Church of Kaiser Wilhelm
Unfortunately, it was under renovation and fully covered as I show in the first picture. On the second you can see how it looks now.
West Berlin
Where to stay?
We stayed at ibis budget Berlin Alexanderplatz, any hotel of this chain is always a great option for budget travelers. Check all Accor Hotels in Berlin here.
“Berlin, the greatest cultural extravaganza that one could imagine.”
— David Bowie, Singer, 1970s
Tailor your holiday:
Other capitals:
*I want to thank my friends Pilar and Sonia for reading and making sure I do not forget to mention any important detail of this city they love and know so well.
