Berlin is the capital of Germany and one of the most multicultural cities in Europe. I visited the city in august 2019 and I fell in love with it in only four days. Berlin is a mix of art, history, museums, world food and a lot of nightlife and friendly people. Indeed, i’ve never seen so many museums as I saw in Berlin.
In other words, you should stay there for more than one week to visit everything. The thing i’ve liked most in the city is the contrast between an old city and a new one. For example, half of the city was destroyed during the war and was rebuilt only a couple of decades ago.
THE BEST OF BERLIN
REICHSTAG
Reichstag building is the home of the German parliament.You can book tickets to go to the rooftop through the official website. From the rooftop, you have a stunning view from the city. Therefore, I suggest you the visit at sunset. After that you can relax in the green spot in front of the building.
BRANDENBURGER TOR
This Berlin iconic symbol is beautiful. Especially it is a good spot to take pictures at sunset or sunrise. It’s located in the middle of Reichstag building, Holocaust Memorial and one of the entrancy of Tiergarten park. Once, the Brandenburger Tor was a symbol of division between East and Ovest. Consequently, if you look down on the street, you can find signs where the wall was.
HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL
Jewish Memorials are widespread. Certainly, the Holocaust Memorial, in the center of the city, is the most famous memorial in Berlin. A quiet place which seems like a labyrinth. Free access with the possibility to buy the audioguide. Another important memorial is the Jewish Museum which recalls centuries of German Jewish history. From above, the museum looks like a broken Star of David. In addition, Weissense Jewish cemetry is the largest in Europe.
TIERGARTEN PARK
The Tiergarten park is huge and one of the world’s largest. So, walking through the park it’s going to take you a lot of time. It’s certainly perfect for picnics, joggings, cycling and so on. Also, there many monuments and quiet places to relax. The Berlin zoo is the main attraction within the park. It’s located in the opposite part of Brandenburger Tor. The zoo is a good activity if you are traveling with children and also, the aquarium is close to it. Unfortunately, you need two different tickets to access both of them.
MUSEUM ISLAND
I’ve never seen so many museums like in Berlin. Museum Island is a part of the city where many museums are located next to each other. In this area, the most famous museums are the Pergamonmuseum and the Neues Museum. Above all, just outside of this museum, there is a green spot with the Berlin Dom in front of it where you can relax.
If you are interested to see as many museums as you can, I suggest you buy the museum pass Berlin or the Berlin Pass free on GetYourGuide. Moreover, my favorite Berlin museums are DDR museum, Pergamonmuseum, Deutsches Historisches Museum and the Wall Museum East Side Gallery.
POTSDAMER PLATZ AND ALEXANDER PLATZ
Alexander Platz and Potsdamer Platz represent the main Berlin squares. The first one is next to Museum Island and the Berlin Dom. Everything around seems old. Instead, Potsdamer Platz is one of the newest parts of Berlin, rebuilt after the war. The shopping mall, many restaurants, cinemas, theatres and more at Potsdamer Platz.
EAST SIDE GALLERY
The East Side Gallery is an open-air mural strip. It represents a memorial of what happened before and after the fall of the Wall. Walking next to the wall is one of those feeling you never forget. The wall, once grey with barbed wire, today is covered with a lot of street art and graffiti. My favorite one is the kiss between Soviet and GDR leaders as a meaning of respect between the countries. At the end of the wall, do not forget to visit the Wall Museum East side gallery.
BOAT TOUR
Doing a boat tour in Berlin is highly recommend it. The tour starts in the East Side gallery and finishes next to Museum Island. This tour is available only from May to the end of August and you can pick the one hour or two hours and a half choice. We did the longest journey and, even if it was august, the weather wasn’t great.
On the boat, you can order drinks and food. There was a guide but unfortunately, the guy was speaking only german. I really enjoyed the trip because I could see the contrast between East and Ovest Berlin and I had all of the time to take pictures and inform myself about the buildings around.
SCHLOSS CHARLOTTENBURG
This Prussian palace is located a bit far away from the center of the city but close to Tegel Airport. To get there you need to take the underground, a bus or, as I did, the lime service of Berlin (it was really fun!). The visit to the palace can take you almost half of your day. Before the visit starts, you can leave your staff in a locked room.
Thanks to the audio guide, I learned many things about the royal Hohenzollern family that had lived there: it was very interesting! From the inside, there are many beautiful rooms, from the outside a nice green park, a mausoleum and more.
