Berlin - to DO
If you have not done the tourist sights of Berlin, then you must. There is so much variety in what you will find and see, and always worth researching as new exhibitions, galleries and art studios pop up all the time.
Here you will find the sights of the classic tourist route. Put on your walking shoes to explore, and make sure to stop for a beer or a Glühwein or Berliner Beer.
Below you have the tourist sights, shopping and spa recommendations.
Tourist Sights
Brandenburg Gate
The Brandenburg Gate is the most iconic symbol of Berlin, and even Germany for that matter. It is an 18th-century neoclassical monument that dates back to 1788. It was badly damaged in the Second World War, stood as a symbol of the Cold War in No Mans Land, and was refurbished in 2000. Today it is one of the must see sights of Berlin, and night or day, you'll be able to enjoy The Brandenburg Gate with many other tourists.
The TV Tower
The Fernsehturm TV Tower was built between 1965 and 1969 in Alexanderplatz. Bar and restaurant at the top, as well as amazing views over Berlin. Built by the GDR It was intended as both a symbol of communist power and of Berlin. It remains the latter today, as it is easily visible from many areas of Berlin
#ThatTowerAgain
The Reichstag
The Reichstag has quite a history, from its origins in 1984, being nearly destroyed in the Second World War, and being redesigned by Norman Foster in 1995 to become the unified German Parliament Building. The roof terrace and dome of the Reichstag Building can be visited by members of the public, and offers spectacular views of Berlin’s sights.
Holocaust Memorial
The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe in the centre of Berlin is the German Holocaust Memorial honouring and remembering the up to six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Located between the Brandenburg Gate and Potsdamer Platz, the Memorial consists of the Field of Stelae. This thought provoking memorial has an exhibition underneath to educate.
Tiergarten
The central district of Tiergarten is known for the huge park of the same name, home to the Berlin zoo, the Victory Column with its winged statue and the lively, lakeside Café am Neuen See. To the south, galleries and designer shops around Potsdamer Strasse attract art lovers and in-the-know visitors. Bordering Potsdamer Platz, the Kulturforum includes several State Museums and the Berlin Philharmonic concert hall.
Topographie of Terror
Between 1933 and 1945, the central institutions of Nazi persecution and terror – the Secret State Police Office with its own “house prison,” the leadership of the SS and, during the Second World War, the Reich Security Main Office – were located on the present-day grounds of the “Topography of Terror” that are next to the Martin Gropius Building and close to Potsdamer Platz.
Berlin Wall Memorial
The Berlin Wall Memorial is the central memorial site of German division, located in the middle of the capital. Situated at the historic site on Bernauer Strasse, it extends along 1.4 kilometers of the former border strip. The memorial contains the last piece of Berlin Wall with the preserved grounds behind it and is thus able to convey an impression of how the border fortifications developed until the end of the 1980s.
East Side Gallery
The East Side Gallery is an international memorial for freedom. It is a 1316 m long section of the Berlin Wall located near the centre of Berlin on Mühlenstraße in Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg. The actual border at this point was the river Spree. The gallery is located on the so-called "hinterland mauer", which closed the border to West Berlin.
Memorial Church
The Gedächtniskirche or Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church is the symbolic centre of West Berlin, an anti-war memorial to peace and reconciliation. Following allied bombing during WWII, the original west Tower has remained standing as a ruin and is hauntingly named the "hollow tooth" as it is literally an empty husk.
Charlottenburg Palace
The palace was built at the end of the 17th century and was greatly expanded during the 18th century. It includes much lavish internal decoration in baroque and rococo styles. A large formal garden surrounded by woodland was added behind the palace, including a belvedere, a mausoleum, a theatre and a pavilion. The palace with its gardens are a major tourist attraction.
The River Spree
Walking along the Spree is well worth making the time for, as it winds throughout Berlin, and you will find much to see. From Museum Island, lots of beautiful architecture, cute bars and restaurants, a few open air theatres and a Jazz open air dance floor complete with live band and Glitter Ball. A river boat tour is a good way to see a lot of this...
Museum Island
Museum Island is one of the most beautiful parts of Berlin, located in the middle of the Spree. The Museums occupy the entire northern half of this island and has many significant museums based here. On a sunny day stroll around the island, and on a rainy day head inside.
Jewish Museum
The Jewish Museum Berlin is set with one of the most exciting pieces of contemporary architecture found in Berlin, a zigzag-like museum. Permanent exhibitions at the museum are dedicated to the history and life of German Jews. My favourite is 'Fallen Leaves' one of the symbolic spaces on the ground level with more than 10,000 faces with open mouths, cut from heavy round iron plates, covering the floor of the ground floor void.
Tempelhof Airport
The former Tempelhof airport is now a public park. Tempelhof Airport was built at the beginning of the 1920’s and closed in 2008. Famous for the Berlin Airlift during the Cold War, Berlin reclaimed the 386 hectares open space with one of the world's largest buildings in a central location for public use. Today the area has a cycling, skating and jogging trail, BBQ area, a dog-walking field and an enormous picnic area.
Teufelsberg
Teufelsberg is a man-made hill in Berlin in the Grunewald locality of former West Berlin. It was home to a Listening Station during the Cold War, and it is this building that is worth a visit. Check the times you can visit and allow a half day, but it is easy to reach. You will be rewarded with a fascinating graffiti gallery in this iconic abandoned building, views of Berlin and a beer in the recently added bar.
Spreepark
Overgrown remains of a defunct family attraction that occasionally offers guided tours and seasonally themed events. For urban explorers it's worth a visit to see what remains before it is closed permanently.
Käthe Kollwitz Museum
Four decades after the death of Käthe Kollwitz a permanent home for a major part of her complete works has been set up in the town where Käthe Kollwitz lived and worked for more than fifty years.
The Käthe-Kollwitz-Museum Berlin is located in the former first private home built 1871 in Fasanenstraße. Destroyed during the 2nd World War and rebuilt in the 1990's.
Berlin Tourist Map
Berlin - to shop
KaDeWe - KaDeWe is Berlins largest department store, well worth a visit if your up for a shop. Food court on the top floor is worth a visit - www.kadewe.de/en/
Bikini Berlin - Concept Shopping mall right behind the memorial church. Containing locally produced items as well as more independent goods - www.bikiniberlin.de/en/home/
Mitte - The area of Mitte is one of the best areas to mooch around to shop, combined with cool eateries and plenty of people watching. The main hipster area of Berlin
Berlin - to Spa
Hotel de Rome - Incredible spa with pool and sauna, and a very comprehensive service menu - www.roccofortehotels.com
Cowshed - As part of the Soho House group, this is exactly as you would expect. Services only, no actual spa - www.cowshedonline.com/spa
Titanic - The spa of the 5 star Titanic Hotel is very good, with a turkish hamam, sauna, steam, ice fountain and more - www.titanic.com
Liquidrom - A unique but very cool experience in a building built to look like a circus tent - www.liquidrom-berlin.de
berlin - to read
Two Brothers by Ben Elton - One of my favourite books of all time. Fiction woven around the history and facts of World War 2 continuing up to the recent past - a real page turner as well as an education
March Violets by Philip Kerr - The first of the award winning Bernie Gunther novels set in Berlin, 1936
After the Wall by Jana Hensel - Confessions from an East German Childhood and the life that came next. I read this book when I lived n Berlin for the summer of 2011, and it is a fascinating read that gives you an insight into the life of the Jana
Berlin - to watch
Victoria - One Girl, One City, One Night, One Take. A German film following Victoria for a night out in Berlin that she will never forget, and the entire movie is shot in 1 take
Hanna - Watched this movie in 2011 when I was in Berlin, and there are famous scenes shot in Spree Park, the abandoned DDR theme park that inspired me to visit the place before the urban explorers completely destroyed the place
Atomic Blonde - Recent movie set in Berlin days before the fall of the wall in 1989, and a fantastic soundtrack
BERLIN - OTHERS
Helmut Newton Foundation - Fashion photographer Helmut Newtons permenant home - www.helmutnewton.com
König Gallery in Kreuzberg - Love this place and normally some very cool exhibitions on - www.koeniggalerie.com