Location of the Mitte area in Berlin

Mitte, literally meaning "the middle" and being a contraction of Stadtmitte (city centre), contains the historical heart of Berlin and represents in many ways the real centre of the city. It is here that you will find the vast majority of the most popular sights.

"Mitte" can refer both to a larger district (Bezirk) and its smaller borough (Ortsteil), which was a separate district until 2001 when the administrative division of Berlin changed. This guide focuses on the smaller Ortsteil Mitte and the Ortsteil Tiergarten, both of which belong to Bezirk Mitte.

Tiergarten is the borough extending northwest from the Zoologischer Garten train station, taking its name from the large park that covers most of its area, which in turn takes its name from the world's oldest zoo in its southern end, close to the train station. On the outskirts of the park there are many little neighbourhoods of varying characters, detached from each other by the park.

For other Ortsteile contained within the present-day Bezirk Mitte see Berlin/City West (Moabit and Hansaviertel) and Berlin/East Central (Wedding and Gesundbrunnen).

The border between the Ortsteile Mitte and Tiergarten runs right across the Potsdamer Platz, and most of the buildings and institutions described here are actually in Tiergarten, but for the sake of making this guide more useful are described along with the others which fall in Mitte proper. For points of interest lying further West, see Berlin/City West.

Understand

Administrative division

Before the reunification of Germany, Mitte was a district of East Berlin and the place where the Berlin Wall was most prominent, running right through the historic fabric of the city. Following reunification, the old administrative division was kept for a decade, and the Mitte's borders were unchanged, but it merged with neighbouring districts of former West Berlin, Tiergarten and Wedding.

In 2001, Mitte, Tiergarten and Wedding were merged into a new district, called Bezirk Mitte. The former districts became localities (Ortsteile) of the Bezirk Mitte. This may lead to confusion, as both the Ortsteil and Bezirk are referred to as "Mitte" in the common parlance. Most Berliners would refer to "Mitte" as the Ortsteil and former district, which is smaller and more cohesive. Location touting hotels and restaurants may however advertise their location within "Berlin-Mitte" instead of the Ortsteil.

This guide oversteps the boundaries of the Ortsteil Mitte and includes Ortsteil Tiergarten as well.

Areas of Mitte

The old district Mitte as covered in this guide can be divided into several neighborhoods:

• Unter den Linden — the main boulevard, from Museum Island to Brandenburg Gate, crossing the main shopping street, Friedrichstraße, half-way along.
• Museumsinsel (Museum Island) and Lustgarten (the square in front of the Altes Museum and adjacent to the Berlin Cathedral).
• Nikolaiviertel — a quarter near Alexanderplatz which comes close to old town style, but built by the East German government.
• Spandauer Vorstadt with Scheunenviertel — The Spandauer Vorstadt is located north of the River Spree and the Hackescher Markt. It is bordered on the north by the east-west course of the Torstraße, on the east by Karl-Liebknecht-Straße and by the northern part of Friedrichstraße to the west. The eastern part of the area takes its name Scheunenviertel (the "Barn Quarter") from the move in 1672 by the Great Elector of all the hay barns out of the fire-prone city centre. In the late 19th century, the area became a refuge for Jews fleeing persecution and pogroms in Russia and Poland. By then it was the centre of Jewish life in Berlin.
• Potsdamer Platz — the area around the completely razed Potsdamer Platz became no man's land between East and West Berlin and remained an empty strip of land until the 1990s, when it was rebuilt as a large project including striking highrises of concrete and steel, mixing offices and commercial space.
• Spreebogen/Regierungsviertel — "Spreebogen" means "the bow of the river Spree" and in Berlin generally refers to a particular one, where the Spree meets the Berlin-Spandau Canal. The area around it houses the German federal government's institutions on the south (or left) bank, called Regierungsviertel ("government district"), while directly opposite it you will find Berlin's all-new central train station Hauptbahnhof.

Get in

Mitte regained its position as the main point of entry to Berlin in June 2006 with the opening of the new central station (1 Hauptbahnhof), a giant palace of glass and steel, which is at the border of Mitte and Moabit. Almost all short- and long-haul trains arrive and depart from this station. Hauptbahnhof is also served by a Straßenbahn (tram) line and by the S-Bahn as well as the subway line U5. Other main public transport stations are Friedrichstraße and Alexanderplatz.

S-Bahn station Hackescher Markt

By S- and U-Bahn

U55 Kanzler U-Bahn Looking at an old network plan of the U-Bahn you might be wondering who ever had the idea of the three-station, 1.8-km stub that is U55. Well, truth be told, an extension of the U5 from its endpoint at Alexanderplatz all the way to Tegel airport had been a part of the grandiose "200-km plan" for the Berlin U-Bahn developed back in the 1950s by West Berlin, irrespective of the inner Berlin border running just a little west of Alexanderplatz. Naturally, partition made construction impossible until reunification, but when the wall fell, the plans were dusted off, and an extension towards the new main station was deemed a good idea. As construction was underway on the main station, it was decided to build "from the outside in", and by the time main station opened just in time for the 2006 soccer World Cup, two stations had been built. Berlin had by then run out of money and wanted to stop construction, but the federal government made very clear that such stoppage would lead to the funds having to be returned, something which Berlin could afford even less. So construction continued for a third station, and the new line entered into service in 2009 in part to fulfil this funding requirement. Although the intention had never been to build a new line, it was decided to sign it U55 instead of U5 to avoid confusion. The line serves the Bundestag, and was apparently approved on the urging of chancellor Helmut Kohl (in office 1982-1998), thus giving it the nickname "Kanzler U-Bahn". Operation is something of a challenge as the line remains unconnected to the rest of the network. The trains had to be lowered through a hole dug for that purpose, and have to be removed in a similar way for major repairs. The original 1950s plan of an U-Bahn all the way to Tegel were never officially scrapped; the plans for closing Tegel airport and the extension of the Tram from Hauptbahnhof towards Turmstraße (which had been planned as a stop of the U5 extension) have made this increasingly questionable. U55 was quietly withdrawn from service during the Covid-19 pandemic and the long-planned U5 extension finally opened in December 2020, even though the new station "Museumsinsel" was not finished until summer 2021.

Mitte is served by many S- and U-Bahn lines. The  S1 ,  S2  and  S25  go from north (Oranienburg and Gesundbrunnen) to south (Potsdamer Platz and Schöneberg), the Stadtbahn (city S-Bahn, line 5, 7, and 75) goes from west (Charlottenburg) to east (Friedrichshain). They cross at Friedrichstraße. U-Bahn line  U2  connects Mitte with Charlottenburg (west) and Prenzlauer Berg (northeast), the U-Bahn lines  U6  and  U8  go north to Wedding and south to Kreuzberg and Neukölln.  U5  was finally extended all the way to Hauptahnhof in December 2020 although the station Museumsinsel will be passed without stopping for the time being - an opening date was tentatively set for summer 2021 during the December 2020 opening celebrations of the U5 extension.

The most important stations are:

• 2 S+U Alexanderplatz. The main connecting station; old centre of East Berlin, now about to experience a major revival.  
• 3 S+U Friedrichstraße. For Friedrichstraße, Unter den Linden and as a connecting station.  
• 4 S+U Brandenburger Tor . For Unter den Linden, Brandenburger Tor and Reichstag. U55 is the only U-Bahn line serving it, but an extension of U5 is expected to open in 2020.  
• 5 S Hackescher Markt. For the lively area at the end of Oranienburgerstraße. Do not miss the Hackesche Höfe which is about 20 connected backyards  
• 6 U Rosenthaler Platz. This station is a main gateway for accessing the northern Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg districts.  
• 7 Stadtmitte  U2    / 8 Französische Straße  U6    — For Gendarmenmarkt and Friedrichstraße.
• 9 Klosterstraße. Served by  U2  For Nikolaiviertel and Klosterviertel.  
• 10 S+U Potsdamer Platz. For Potsdamer Platz and Kulturforum (the philharmonic, some museums).  
• 11 S Tiergarten. For the Tiergarten park, the flea market on the Straße des 17th Juni and the Siegessäule (Victory column).  
• 12 S+U Gesundbrunnen. The main station of Wedding, one of several long distance stations in Berlin and the missing "Nordkreuz" in the Ostkreuz, Westkreuz, Südkreuz naming scheme.  

By tram (Straßenbahn)

The Berlin Tram used to be limited to East Berlin from the 1960s until shortly after reunification, but these days a "Tram Reconquista" is slowly but surely connecting parts of the old west to the network. Hauptbahnhof is now served by several tram lines and the red-red-green (leftist/centre-left) coalition in power as of 2021 has made a public commitment to more tram construction in West Berlin.

By bus

One of the best, and most cost-effective, ways of exploring Berlin is riding one of Berlin's over 400 double-decker buses. You can enjoy great views, especially if you get to sit in the front, at just the cost of a bus ticket. There are two lines especially developed with tourists in mind - the 100 and 200 - as well as some MetroBus lines (replacing the tram system dismantled in West Berlin), both of which are generally operated using double-decker buses.

• line 100 (see route map) goes from Alexanderplatz through Unter den Linden, through the Regierungsviertel and then further through the Tiergartenpark to the Zoologischer Garten train station in the former West Berlin
• line 200 (see route map) starts in Prenzlauer Berg in East Berlin, then goes via Alexanderplatz and Unter den Linden following line 100, but then turns south and drives through Leipziger Platz, Potsdamer Platz and the Kulturforum ultimately taking you to Zoologischer Garten train station over a slightly different route
• line M48 also starts at Alexanderplatz, but goes along Leipziger Straße (convenient for Checkpoint Charlie), Potsdamer Platz, Kulturforum and the into Schöneberg in West Berlin
• line M85 takes you from the Hauptbahnhof through the Regierungsviertel, along the Brandenburg Gate and the Holocaust Memorial into Potsdamer Platz, Kulturforum and ends up in Schöneberg as well.

The buses generally operate every 10 minutes and you may rely on their punctuality except for extreme rush hours, but there are diversions due to the frequent construction works in Berlin. Check the current Fahrplan at bvg.de, the bus stops and on the bus. There is a good chance all important notices will be posted in English just as well. These buses do not operate in the night (a separate, different night buses network does) and that there is no guarantee, just a very high chance, that you will get to ride a double-decker bus.

The cost of a day pass on all forms of Berlin transit within zones A and B (including the Tegel airport) is €7 (full tariff as of October 2019), which is less than most "hop-on" bus tours on offer and gives you much more flexibility and better access due to the multitude of lines and stops. The downside is that some lines get pretty crowded in rush hours, and no buses are open-top.

See

Dorotheenstadt/Unter den Linden

Unter den Linden and Mitte as seen from Berliner Dom

The Brandenburg Gate

• 1 Brandenburg Gate (Brandenburger Tor), Pariser Platz. 24/7. The only surviving Berlin city gate and a potent symbol of the city. This is the point where Straße des 17. Juni becomes Unter den Linden. The gate was designed by Carl Gotthard Langhans in 1791 and was intended to resemble the Acropolis in Athens. The Brandenburg Gate now symbolizes reunification, after dividing East and West Berlin for decades. This is the site of Reagan's "Mr. Gorbachev open this gate, Mr. Gorbachev tear down this wall" speech. Free. (updated Aug 2018)
• 2 Pariser Platz. 24/7. The large square in front of the Brandenburg Gate contains the French and American embassies, the rebuilt Hotel Adlon, and the new building of the Academy of Arts. Free. (updated Aug 2018)
• 3 Russische Botschaft (Russian Embassy), Unter den Linden 55-65. A vast wedding cake of a building, built between 1949-1951 in the best Stalinist style and meant to symbolize the dominance of the Soviet Union in East German affairs before 1989.  
• 4 KunstHalle (Former Deutsche Guggenheim), Unter den Linden 13-15 (U-Bahn: U6 to Französische Straße), ☏ +49 30 20 20 930, fax: +49 30 20 20 9320, db.kunsthalle@db.com. 10:00–20:00. This former German Guggenheim branch is run entirely by Deutsche Bank since 2013. Compared to the Guggenheims in New York, Bilbao and Venice, it is a relatively small exhibition place. It usually hosts a temporary exhibition and is free on Monday, with a free guided tour starting at 16:00. Since the place is small and the name "Guggenheim" a very famous one, the place is often very crowded. €4, free on Mondays. 
• 5 Neue Wache (New Guardhouse), Unter den Linden 4. Erected in 1818 to a classically-inspired design by Karl Friedrich Schinkel as a guardhouse for the imperial palace, since 1993 this compact building has housed a small, but extremely powerful war cenotaph, the Central Memorial of the Federal Republic of Germany, continuing its use under East German rule as the primary "Memorial to the Victims of Fascism and Militarism". The interior of the Doric column-fronted building is intentionally empty, but for a small but moving sculpture by Käthe Kollwitz depicting a mother cradling a dead child. The statue is positioned beneath a round hole in the ceiling, exposing the figures to the rain and snow.  
• 6 The Bebelplatz (formerly Opernplatz). Nazi Propaganda Minister Josef Goebbels made Bebelplatz (then called Opernplatz) infamous on 10 May 1933, when he used the square across from Humboldt University to burn 20,000 books by "immoral" authors of whom the Nazis did not approve. Their list included Thomas and Heinrich Mann, Arnold Zweig, Kurt Tucholsky and Sigmund Freud. Today a monument is the reminder, though it blames Nazi students for the episode. When entering the square it's easy to miss the monument. Look dead centre: the monument is underground. A piece of plexiglass allows the viewer to look underground into a large, white room, filled with entirely empty, blank white bookcases. The room is large enough to hold the 20,000 books that were burnt. The absence of books reminds the viewer just what was lost here: ideas. But the event did reveal things to come, as ethnically Jewish author and philosopher Heinrich Heine, whose books were burned, let one of his characters say in an 1821 play: "This was only the foreplay. Where they burn books, they will also burn people." He was correct.  
• 7 Deutsches Historisches Museum (German Historical Museum), Unter den Linden 2 (U-Bahn: Französische Straße, Hausvogteiplatz or Friedrichstraße. Bus: 100, 200 und TXL (Staatsoper stop)), ☏ +49 30 203040, fax: +49 30 20304-543. 10:00–18:00. German historical museum covering everything from pre-history up to the present day. One can spend many, many hours here! The building from 1695/1730 was the Zeughaus (Arsenal) until 1876. €8, concession €4, under-18s free.  
• 8 Friedrichswerdersche Kirche (Friedrichswerder Church), Werderscher Markt 1. Nice church near Unter den Linden/Museum Island, finished in 1830 by Schinkel in English Neogothic style. Nice exhibition inside (neoclassical statues and an exhibition about Schinkel's life and work upstairs). It is scheduled to re-open on 27 Oct 2020. Free. (updated Oct 2020)
• 9 St.-Hedwigs-Kathedrale (St. Hedwig's Cathedral). A domed church at Bebelplatz/Unter den Linden, the oldest (mid-18th century) and one of the biggest Catholic churches in Berlin. Interior was redesigned in a modern style in the 1950s, but there are still many treasure chambers in the basement. (updated Oct 2020)
• 10 Tränenpalast (Palace of Tears), Reichstagsufer 17 (just north of Friedrichstraße station) (S Friedrichstraße, U6 Friedrichstraße, U2 Stadtmitte), ☏ +49 30 4677 779 11. Tu–F 09:00–19:00, Sa Su 10:00–18:00. Millions of visitors leaving East Berlin by train said tearful goodbyes to their friends and relatives from the East at this former border checkpoint. Hardly a year after the wall came down, the building was turned into a nightclub until it was forced to close in 2006. It re-opened as a museum in September 2011 and now houses a permanent exhibition that brings the absurd normality of everyday life in the divided city back to life. Free.  

Friedrichstadt

Concert hall on the Gendarmenmarkt square

Deutscher Dom on Gendarmenmarkt - German Bundestag's historical exhibition

• Gendarmenmarkt (U6 Französische Str., U2+U6 Stadtmitte, U2 Hausvogteiplatz). The Gendarmenmarkt is a square in the Friedrichstadt with the Konzerthaus (concert hall) and in front of the statue of Germany's poet Friedrich Schiller, the Neue Kirche (New church) and the Französischer Dom (French cathedrals). 
  • 11 Neue Kirche (Deutscher Dom), ☏ +49 30 229 1760. Tu–Su 10:00–18:00. Berlin’s Deutscher Dom on the magnificent Gendarmenmarkt square is not to be confused with the Berliner Dom. It was built in 1708. Since 1992 a German Parliament exhibition can be seen here entitled “Paths, Loosing Track and Detours” or the development of parliamentary democracy in Germany – ways and roundabouts. No religious services are held here. Free.  
  • 12 Französischer Dom (French Cathedral), Gendarmenmarkt 5. Tu–Su 12:00–17:00. The French cathedral houses the Hugenottenmuseum. It represents the ongoing influence on Berlin by the Huguenots who emigrated from France after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. Crown Prince Friedrich William encouraged them to settle here because most of them were skilled workers or otherwise useful to the kingdom. One memorable artwork, in room nine of the museum, pictures Crown Princess Dorothea exclaiming "But he's a refugee!" upon being presented a very valuable set of jewels by Pierre Fromery. The generally agreed-upon view of refugees as poor, without resources let alone diamonds, was blown apart by the talented French Protestants forced to leave their country due to religion. One of the most notable effects of having such a large French population was their influence on the infamous Berlin dialect. Berlinerisch words such as Kinkerlitzchen (from French "quincaillerie" - kitchen equipment) and Muckefuck (from French "mocca faux" - artificial coffee, though that etymology is not universally accepted) are unique to the area. The Französischen Dom (cathedral) itself was built to resemble the main church of the Huguenots in Charenton, France, destroyed in 1688. It has housed the museum since 1929. Closed till 2019 €2. (updated Aug 2018)
• 13 Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (Denkmal für die ermordeten Juden Europas), Ebertstraße 20, ☏ +49 20 26 39 43 36, fax: +49 20 26 39 43 21, besucherservice@stiftung-denkmal.de. Memorial open 24 hours, information centre Tu–Su 10:00–19:00. A vast Holocaust memorial designed by the American architect Peter Eisenman. Opened in the spring of 2005, this gigantic abstract artwork covering an entire block near the Brandenburg Gate, including an underground information centre with extensive details on the Holocaust and the people who died during it. The blocks start out at ground level on the outer edges of the memorial, and then grow taller towards the middle, where the ground also slopes downwards. Entry to the information centre is free although priority is given to prebooked groups so there may be a short queue. Free. (updated May 2017)
• 14 Museum für Kommunikation (Museum for Communication), Leipziger Straße 16, corner of Mauerstraße, ☏ +49 30 202 94 0, fax: +49 30 202 94 111, mk.berlin@mspt.de. Tu 09:00–20:00, W–F 09:00–17:00, Sa Su 10:00–18:00. The former Imperial General Post Office, now Museum for telecommunication and post with many interesting historical objects. €4, concession €2, under-18s free.  
• 15 Memorial to Homosexuals Persecuted Under Nazism (Denkmal für verfolgte Homosexuelle), Off Ebertstraße in the Tiergarten, across from the Memorial for the Murdered Jews of Europe. A cuboid made of concrete. On the front side of the cuboid is a window, through which visitors can see a short film of two kissing men. The video will be changed every two years and will also show kissing lesbians. (updated Jul 2017)

Museumsinsel

Museumsinsel Based on plans of the famous architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel in 1822 and starting with construction from 1830 onwards, the island in the river Spree was developed as a Museum island by the Prussian kings. There are five museums today on that island that mainly focus on archaeology and art of the 19th century. After the reunification, all museums were restored (or are being restored still) and brought back to life. The Museumsinsel (Museum Island) has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The latest U5 expansion also includes an U-Bahn stop called Museumsinsel. – Area ticket Museum Island: €18, red. €9, young people up to the age of 18 free. – 3-day-museums-pass (55 museums): €24, red. €12 The museums have attracted controversy in the 21st century as many museum pieces were looted from their places of origin in the course of various imperialist wars in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Consequently some of the countries where the objects were found demand the antiquities be returned to their countries of origin.

Pergamon Altar in Pergamon Museum,
closed from 2014 Sep 28th until 2020

• 16 Pergamon Museum (Museumsinsel, new visitor entrance: Bodestraße 1-3. Das Panorama is in another building at Am Kupfergraben across the river.). F–W 10:00–18:00, Th 10:00–20:00. There are three huge collections housed within this grand building: the Collection of Classical Antiquities, the Museum of Near Eastern Antiquities and the Museum of Islamic Art. The Pergamon Museum was the last museum built on Museumsinsel (Museum Island) and was intended to house the great acquisitions brought to Germany by archaeologists of the eighteenth and nineteenth century. The museum's best-known attraction is the Pergamonsaal. The Pergamon Altar (165 BC), from the eponymous Asia Minor city-state, is three stories high and served as the entrance gate to an entire complex. It is astounding both because of its size and extremely precise detail, especially in a frieze which shows the gods battling giants. The entire room is the same colour as the building's stone, making the details on the frieze section stand out even more. Facing the stairs, on the left hand side of the room there is a small-scale model of the altar which allows the viewer to see where the frieze segments would have been mounted. A 1:300 scale model of Pergamon city is on the right side of the room. The monumental market door of Milet has just been restored.
  Every first Sunday of the month, many museums in Berlin are free of charge. Sometimes a reservation is necessary in advance. For more information, see Museums Sonntag Booking.
  Since 2018 there is also a huge 360° panorama of Pergamon in another museum building, which is included in the Pergamon-only ticket. Admission: €19, discounted: €9.50, children under age of 18 free. (updated Jan 2020)
  • Part of the Antikensammlung (Collection of Classical Antiquities) — The most spectacular part of which is the reconstructed façade of the great altar of Pergamon. There is also the perhaps even greater Ish-Tar gate of Babylon, from centuries BC, which is reconstructed together with a stretch of the procession way.
  • Vorderasiatisches Museum (Museum of the Ancient Near East)
  • Museum für Islamische Kunst (Museum of Islamic Art) with the façade from Mshatta and the Aleppo Room.
• 17 Neues Museum, Museumsinsel. F–W 10:00–18:00, Th 10:00–20:00. Admission: €12, discounted: €6, children under age of 18 free.  
  • 18 Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection (Ägyptisches Museum und Papyrussammlung). Exhibits include the Egyptian and Prehistory and Early History collections. It houses the famous bust of Nefertiti (the legality of its acquisition is still contested by the Egyptian state which is trying to get it back, so you might want to hurry to see it there).  
  • 19 Museum für Vor- und Frühgeschichte (Museum of Pre- and Early History). Museum for Pre- And Early History with objects from the Collection of Classical Antiquities in the Neues Museum.  

Old National Gallery on the Museum Island

• 20 Altes Museum, Museumsinsel, Am Lustgarten. The main floor houses the antiquities collection in an ongoing exhibit called "Neue Antike im Alten Museum" (New Antiquities in the Old Museum). Directly through the front door, entering from the Lustgarten (Pleasure Garden, now under reconstruction), there is a domed rotunda with red and white cameos, Greek-style, with statues of the gods. To reach the Hildesheim silver collection, go to the back of the rotunda, turn left, walk through the long gallery and turn left into a small room at the end. Admission: €10, discounted: €5, children under age of 18 free.  
• 21 Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery), Museumsinsel, Bodestraße 1-3, ☏ +49 30 2090 5801, fax: +49 30 2090 5802, ang@smb.spk-berlin.de. Specializes in 19th-century painting and sculpture; Monet, Manet, Cézanne, C. David Friedrich and other important 18th- and 19th-century artists are well-represented. Admission: €10, discounted: €5, children under age of 18 free.  

Bode Museum with the Monbijoubrücke

• 22NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE Bode-Museum, Museumsinsel, Monbijoustr. 3 (S-Bahn: Oranienburger Str.: S1, S2, S25 or Hackescher Markt S5, S7, S75). F–W 10:00–18:00, Th 10:00–20:00. The museum’s treasures include the sculpture collection with works of art from the middle ages to the 18th century. The Bode museum is best known for its Byzantine art collection and the coin cabinet. Admission: €10, discounted: €5, children under age of 18 free.  

Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral)

• 23 Berliner Dom (Berlin Cathedral), Am Lustgarten (Bus: 100, 200, U-Bahn: U2, U5, or U8 to Alexanderplatz. S-Bahn: S5, S7, or S75 to Hackescher Markt), ☏ +49 20 2026-9136, info@berlinerdom.de. M-Sa 09:00–20:00, Su and holidays 12:00–20:00. The city's Protestant cathedral and the burial place of the Prussian kings. You can climb to the top and get a view of the city. €7, concessions €5.  

Stadtschloss (Berlin Palace) – Humboldt Forum

• 24 Stadtschloss – Humboldt Forum (Berlin City Palace). Started in the 15th century and finished in the mid-18th century, the baroque palace was the residence of electors, kings and emperors until 1918, when it became a museum. The palace was badly damaged during World War II and later razed in 1950, replaced by the GDR with a modernist Palast der Republik. The Palast was in turn gradually dismantled at the turn of the century, as it was discovered to contain asbestos and its former function of housing the GDR parliament became obsolete. Berlin has started in June 2013 construction on a new version of its historic Stadtschloss. The building opened with a delay in 2021. Among the Berlin museums this is perhaps the most controversial due to reconstruction of a monarchist palace being seen as a questionable political statement and due to the fact that many of the exhibits were sourced from German colonies under ethically questionable circumstances leading to demands to return some or all of them to their places of origin.  

Alexanderplatz and Alt-Berlin

The Fernsehturm

The square used to host a cattle market (Ochsenplatz). It was named after the Russian Tsar Alexander I when he visited in 1805. It rose to prominence in the 19th century following the construction of a railway and gradually became the eastern focal point of Berlin. The bustling area around the square was immortalized by Alfred Döblin in a monumental novel Berlin Alexanderplatz (1929). The novel has been adapted into film twice, with the newer adaptation the 1980 Rainer Werner Fassbinder 14-hour behemoth being the better known by far.

The Alexanderplatz area was largely destroyed during the Second World War and redeveloped by socialist city planners as the new centre of East Berlin. The vast expanses of open spaces and large, imposing examples of modern architecture provide for a very different feel than the part of Mitte located across the Spree. Incidentally, the areas directly southwest of modern-day Alexanderplatz were the places where the city of Berlin originates from (Alt-Berlin), and many remains of that can be found interspersed between the modern architecture of the quarter.

Two of the highest buildings in Berlin, the Fernsehturm and the Park Inn hotel, dominate today's Alexanderplatz, while historic buildings such as the Rotes Rathaus, Marienkirche and the Nikolaiviertel flank its sides.

• 25 Fernsehturm (Television tower), Panoramastraße 1A (S-Bahn and U-Bahn Alexanderplatz), ☏ +49 30 24 75 75 37. Mar–Oct 09:00–00:00, Nov–Feb 10:00–00:00. At 368 metres, the Fernsehturm is Berlin's tallest and indeed EU's second-tallest building, complected between 1965 and 1969. The main function of the building is television broadcasting, but the shiny sphere atop the tower houses a viewing platform, a restaurant and a Berlin Tourist Information point. The viewing platform sits 203 metres above ground, affording views of as much as 42 km away and featuring a bar. Given how flat Berlin is, it's not a very interesting view however and the state of the glass means that you can't get good photos either. The Sphere restaurant at 207 metres rotates at a speed of one full spin per 30 minutes. There are two lifts from the base to the platform and cafe, taking 40 seconds to reach the top, as well as a 986-step staircase. The Fernsehturm is not accessible to wheelchair users.
  Not all of the Berliners liked the tower and the overall composition of the Alexanderplatz afforded by the socialist city planners. East German T.V. tried to establish the nickname "Telespargel" ("television asparagus") which however doesn't seem to have caught on. During certain times of day, sunlight reflecting from the top caused a large cross-shaped light to shine down on the city. Called the Rache des Papstes (Pope's revenge) by nominally atheist East Berliners, the light-cross was an ironic result of socialist architecture. Rumour has it the architect was deprived of more than his next commission after that fiasco. At night, the Fernsehturm sometimes appears to be shooting light beams from the tower section, giving the impression it's a Death Star à la Star Wars. €13, children €8.50 (if prebooked, slightly more walk up). Discount with voucher from other attractions. (updated Aug 2020)
• 26 Weltzeituhr (Urania World Clock), Alexanderplatz (U-Bahn & S-Bahn: Alexanderplatz). Built in 1969, this 16-ton, communist-era clock is one of Berlin's main meeting points. Each of its 24 sides corresponds to one of Earth's 24 time zones and it has the names of some of the world's most important cities written on it.  
• 27 Neptunbrunnen. A bronze fountain by Reinhold Begas. It was erected in 1891 as a present from the city of Berlin to the Kaiser. Neptune, trident in hand, presides over the square supported by sea-nymphs with webbed feet carrying him on a seashell. Denizens of the deep (a seal, an alligator, snakes and turtles, among others) spray water at him in homage while languishing mermaids pour water into the fountain, clutching sea-nets overflowing with marine bounty.  

• 

  Rotes Rathaus

  28 Rotes Rathaus (Red City Hall). The town hall of Berlin is known as such because it is made of red brick, not due to its former political persuasion. There are nice Prussian rooms inside, which are worth a look.  
• 29 Marienkirche (St. Mary's Church), Karl-Liebknecht-Straße (next to the Fernsehturm). Gothic church, the second oldest (built in late 13th century) of the historical centre of Berlin. It's the highest church tower of Berlin (about 90 m), but seems rather small beneath the gigantic TV tower. The church tower was built in the late 18th century by Carl Gotthard Langhans, the architect of the Brandenburg Gate.  
• 30 DomAquarée, Karl-Liebknecht Straße (In the Radisson BLU hotel). The twin buildings of the complex house the Radisson Hotel and the Sea Life Centre. In the Radisson lobby you can have a quick glance at the famous Aquadom, the world's biggest cylindrical aquarium with a built-in elevator. There is no entrance fee for watching, but for taking a trip with the elevator you have to pay the entrance fee for the whole Sea Life Centre. The cylindrical aquarium exploded in December 2022, and the Sea Life Centre is temporarily closed..  

Church of St. Nicholas

• 31 Nikolaikirche (St. Nicholas Church), Nikolaikirchplatz, ☏ +49 30 24 002-162. daily 10:00–18:00. Berlin's oldest church (1230) is a 3-nave hall church. It is in the centre of an area destroyed by bombs in the war which was then turned into a faux "old town" by the East German authorities called Nikolaiviertel. The area is more a hodge-podge of relocated buildings than an authentic reproduction, and the newly-built 1988 apartments that attempt to "harmonize" with the older buildings are embarrassing. The church is one of the only structures that was renovated rather than rebuilt. It is best known for a sandstone sculpture called the Spandauer Madonna (1290), but there are other interesting pieces here. When the church was destroyed in 1938 and rebuilt in the 1970s, the communist officials intended to use it as a museum, which did not open until 1987. The museum includes sacred textiles and religious sculpture from the fourteenth to the sixteenth centuries. The Nikolaikirche is the showplace of the Nikolaiviertel, which isn't saying much. €5.  
• 32 Zille Museum, Propststraße 11, ☏ +49 30 246 32 502. A museum in Nikolaiviertel dedicated to the Berliner artist Heinrich Zille. 
• 33 Hanfmuseum (Hemp Museum), Mühlendamm 5 (Bus M48, Station 'Nikolaiviertel', everything else near Alexanderplatz), ☏ +49 30 242 48 27, info@hanfmuseum.de. Tu–F 10:00–20:00, Sa Su 12:00–20:00, M closed. It is the only hemp museum in Germany; you can see the history of hemp, the culture and use of it. You can see hemp grow. There is a cafe downstairs, with an open WiFi access. Everything going on here is legal - including the hemp growing under artificial light (a low THC strain grown with a special permit) - but they do not refrain from political commentary on the legal situation of cannabis in their exhibits. €4.50, concession €3.  
• 34 DDR Museum, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 1 (across from Berliner Dom on the banks of River Spree), ☏ +49 30 847 123 73-1, +49 30 847 123 73-0, fax: +49 30 847 123 73-9, post@ddr-museum.de. Su–F 10:00–20:00, Sa 10:00–22:00. A museum dedicated to everyday life in communist East Germany. The museum has very relaxed rules and you are allowed to touch and examine almost every object, which adds greatly to the experience. €7, concession €4.  
• 35 Volkspark am Weinberg (Weinbergspark) (U-Bahn: U-Bahn: U8 Rosenthaler Platz, Tram: 12,M8 Brunnenstr./Invalidenstr., M1 Rosenthaler Platz). This sloping public park is very popular among locals for sunbathing, relaxing, having a picnic or playing the guitar.  
• 36 Park Inn (Panorama Terasse). 10:00–18:00. Small terrace on the top of the Park Inn, publicly accessible. Take the elevator to the 40th floor, and follow the signs up the stairs. Pay the attendant who also serves beer and coffee. Great views of the Fernsehturm. In the summer, consider base jumping off the roof with Jochen Schweizer. It is often closed in bad/windy weather, so look for a notice posted near the elevator that the terrace is closed. €4.  

Spreebogen and Regierungsviertel

Reichstag or Bundestag? You may be confused to find the large building with the glass dome referred to by two different names. Reichstag (short for Reichstagsgebäude, Reichstag building) refers to the building itself, while Bundestag is the name of the legislative body that meets there – the German parliament. In everyday speech, Germans don't always make that distinction and sometimes refer to the building as Bundestag (even the U-Bahn stop is called that), but never the other way around: the last people to refer to the parliament as Reichstag were the Nazis. As a visitor, feel free to use both terms for the building, you will be understood.

Outside of the Reichstag Dome

House of the Cultures of the World

• 37 Regierungsviertel/Spreebogen. The area to the north of Tiergarten, along the bow of the river Spree (Spreebogen), is home to the German federal institutions such as the parliament (Bundestag, in the historic Reichstag building) and the federal government, as well as the new central train station (Hauptbahnhof) across the river.  
• 38 Reichstagsgebäude (Reichstag building), Platz der Republik 1 (Bundestag), ☏ +49 30 227 0. 8:00-24:00. This imposing building houses the Federal German Parliament or "Bundestag" and was completed in 1894 to meet the need of the newly-unified German Empire of the Kaisers for a larger parliamentary building. The Reichstag was intended to resemble a Renaissance palace, and its architect, Paul Wallot, dedicated the building to the German people. The massive inscription in front still reads: "Dem Deutschen Volke" - 'For the German people'. The Nazi leader Adolf Hitler exploited the fire which gutted the Reichstag building in 1933 by blaming the Communists for the arson and for attempted revolution. There is good evidence to suggest, however, that his followers were actually responsible and that this was a manufactured crisis. The iconic photo symbolizing the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany shows a Soviet soldier planting the Soviet flag on top of the building and there are to this day graffiti left by Soviet soldiers on some walls of the Reichstag which were deliberately preserved by the new Germany as a memento of the war. It's perhaps the only national parliament to have traces left by a foreign army deliberately preserved. When German reunification became a reality, the new republic was proclaimed here at midnight on 2 October 1990. The Reichstag has undergone considerable restoration and alteration, including the addition of a spectacular glass dome designed by the British architect Norman Foster. The Reichstag building is well-known in the art world thanks to Paris-based Bulgarian artist Christo's mammoth 'Wrapped Reichstag' project in 1995. The entire building was swathed in silver cloth for two weeks that summer. You can visit the glass dome or a parliamentary debate on your own or follow along on a guided tour through the building. Free, but pre-booking via their website (phone registration is not possible) is required, sometimes weeks in advance. It's also possible to reserve a remaining spot in a small building across Scheidemannstraße. Bring valid ID. (updated May 2017)
• 39 Bundeskanzleramt (Federal Chancellery), Willy-Brandt-Straße 1, ☏ +49 30 182722720. The building houses the personal offices of the Chancellor and the Chancellery staff. The Berlin Chancellery is one of the largest government headquarters buildings in the world. By comparison, the new Chancellery building is ten times the size of the White House. A semi official Chancellor's apartment is on the top floor of the building. The 200-m², two-room flat has thus far only been occupied by Gerhard Schröder; current Chancellor Angela Merkel prefers to live in her private apartment in Berlin. It is usually not possible to visit the building, but on occasion there are tours, usually around August. The building was deliberately designed in a way to symbolize the German constitutional system - it's in the line of sight of the Bundestag and lower in height, symbolizing the role of parliament in controlling government and "the people's house" being the higher power in the relationship between the two. Or at least that's the idea. (updated May 2017)
• 40 Kongresshalle – Haus der Kulturen der Welt (House of the Cultures of the World), John-Foster-Dulles-Allee. W–M 11:00–19:00. Germany's national centre for contemporary non-European art. The house is a leading centre for the contemporary arts and a venue for projects breaking through artistic boundaries. This architectural landmark was an American contribution to the international building exhibition INTERBAU 1957 as an embodiment of the free exchange of ideas. Colloquially called Schwangere Auster (Pregnant Oyster). Around €8 depending on exhibit.  
• 41 (BMM), Charitéplatz 1, ☏ +49 30 450536156, bmm@charite.de. Tu Th F Su 10:00-17:00; W Sa 10:00-19:00 (closed probably until October 2021). Interesting exhibition charting the development of European hospitals from the 14th century to the present day. €9, concession €4. (updated Nov 2019)

Tiergarten

Siegessäule on Großer Stern

Elephant Gate Zoological Garden

• 42 Aquarium, Budapester Straße 32, ☏ +49 30 254010. 09:00-18:00. The largest aquarium in Germany with over 9000 animals that are presented on three storeys in a historic building. Aquarium Berlin is found on the premises of the Zoo, but can also be visited separately. One of the best places on a rainy day with children. Adult €15.50, student €10.50, family ticket €41. (updated Aug 2018)
• 43 Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung, Klingelhöferstraße 14, ☏ +49 30 2540020. W-M 10:00-17:00. Closed for renovations; the temporary Bauhaus-Archiv is at Knesebeckstraße 1-2 in Charlottenburg. Building designed by Walter Gropius. Inside a museum, library, cafe and shop. Sa-M €7/€4; W-F €6/€3. (updated Oct 2019)
• 44 Bendlerblock, Stauffenbergstraße 13 - 14 (Entrance is through the commemorative courtyard), ☏ +49 30 26 99 50 00. M-W F O9:00-18:00, Th 09:00-20:00, Sa Su and holidays 10:00-18:00. The Bendlerblock building complex has long held ties to the German military, first serving as the offices of the Imperial German Navy and today housing the Berlin offices of the Ministry of Defense. It was here where, on 20 July 1944, Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg and other officers led a coup that sought to remove Hitler and the Nazis from power. They failed and were summarily executed in the courtyard, where a memorial stands for these men who are considered German heroes by many. Inside the building you'll find the German Resistance Memorial Center, a permanent exhibit dedicated to the July 20 plot and other individuals in the German resistance. Admission and guided tours are free of charge. (updated Jan 2016)
• 45 Berlin Musical Instrument Museum, Tiergartenstraße 1. Museum established in 1888, with a collection of 3,500 instruments. (updated Aug 2020)
• 46 Siegessäule (Victory Column), Großer Stern 1 / Straße des 17. Juni. Apr-Oct: M-F 09:30-18:30; Nov-Mar: 10:00–17:00. 30 minutes longer on weekends. Closed on December 24. Want to feel like one of the angels in Wim Wenders' classic film Der Himmel über Berlin (a.k.a. Wings of Desire)? Climb to the top of Gold-Else, as the statue of Victory on the top of the Victory Column is known. Just don't jump off if you're not actually an angel. Unfortunately there is no elevator, so be prepared for 285 steps to the platform at 50.7 m.
  
  Else was built to commemorate Prussian military prowess in the wars against Denmark (1864), Austria (1866) and France (1870-71), and moved to her present location by the Nazis. Five roads run into a traffic circle called Grosser Stern, in the centre of which is the Siegessäule. Else is visible from much of the city district known as Tiergarten. At the base of the statue are reliefs of war scenes representing the conflicts which this monument memorializes. The Allies forced Germany to take those panels down in 1945, but they were remounted in 1984 and 1987. It also served as a backdrop for a speech by then senator Obama in 2008, after his request to speak in front of Brandenburger Tor caused a political debate in Germany. €3, reduced €2.50 (only cash). (updated Jan 2020)
• 47 Schloss Bellevue (Bellevue Palace), Spreeweg 1, besucherdienst@bpra.bund.de (to ask for a tour). Official residence of the (largely ceremonial) President of Germany since 1994. Only Roman Herzog (president 1994-1999) actually lived here, his successors have preferred a quiet apartment on the outskirts of Berlin, but this is where the president will usually host guests and do public events. Guided tours are possible, but plan to book up to nine months ahead and be prepared for having to reschedule if the president decides to hold an event on short notice which preempts tours. Free.  
• 48 Soviet War Memorial (Sowjetisches Ehrenmal), Straße des 17. Juni 4. 24/7. One of three war memorials in Berlin erected by the Soviet Union to commemorate its war dead, particularly the 80,000 soldiers of the Soviet Armed Forces who died during the Battle of Berlin in April and May 1945. Contrary to popular belief, it has not been granted extraterritoriality even though it was guarded by Soviet troops throughout Berlin partition despite being in the British, not the Soviet, sector. It is however subject to a bilateral treaty between Germany and Russia that mandates Germany take care of the monument and keep it in a good state of repair. Free. (updated May 2017)
• 49 Zoological Garden (Zoologischer Garten), Hardenbergplatz 8 or Budapester Str., ☏ +49 30 25401 0, info@zoo-berlin.de. 09:00-18:30. The largest zoo in the world, both in terms of number of species (1500) and animal population (14,000). It is especially famous for its pandas. The Elephant Gate (Budapester Straße), one of the two entrances and next to the Aquarium, is a traditional photo stop for most visitors because of the architecture. €13, Zoo & Aquarium €20, students €10/€15, children 5-15 years €6.50/€10, family ticket: €35/€50, annual tickets available. (updated Mar 2018)

Spandauer Vorstadt

New Synagogue

• 50 Hackesche Höfe, Rosenthaler Straße 40. 09:00-20:00 (closed at night). The complex consists of eight interconnected courtyards. Plenty of designer boutiques can be found here. (updated Jun 2018)
• 51 Neue Synagoge (New Synagogue), Oranienburger Straße 28/30, ☏ +49 30 8802-8300, fax: +49 30 8802-8483. Built 1859-1866 this is one of the most architecturally stunning synagogues in Germany to survive both the Nazi era and the war. Museum: €3.50, Dome: €2.  
• 52 Old Jewish Cemetery (Alter Jüdischer Friedhof), Große Hamburger Straße. Considered the oldest Jewish cemetery in Berlin €9-12 for tours.  
• 53 Ramones Museum Berlin (Temporarily closed, check website for updates), Krausnickstraße 23 (off Oranienburger Straße), ☏ +49 30 75528890, mail@ramonesmuseum.com. Su–Th 12:00–20:00, F Sa 12:00–22:00. Pays tribute to the Punk band The Ramones. It displays more than 300 unique and original Ramones memorabilia. You can get a drink at cafe Mania inside the museum. DeeDee Ramone grew up in Berlin and the city is mentioned in several of their songs. €3.50.  

Potsdamer Platz and Kulturforum

Inside the Sony Center, near Potsdamer Platz

The Potsdamer Platz and the neighbouring Leipziger Platz were important squares in pre-war Berlin, but were almost entirely razed during the Second World War, and in the aftermath they became a strip of no man's land separating East and West Berlin. To bring together the disjointed city, a large-scale project was initiated after the German reunification to fill in the empty space with large, impressive and modern buildings, housing corporate headquarters, commercial and entertainment venues and upscale apartments. Around the turn of the 21st century, Potsdamer Platz was the biggest building site in Europe by some measures. Today, the Potsdamer Platz is a major draw for tourists and a lively hub of Berlin.

Leipziger Platz and Potsdamer Platz

Kurturforum: Kammermusiksaal

• 54 Kollhoff Tower, Potsdamer Platz 1, ☏ +49 30 25937080. 10:00–20:00. Includes the Panoramapunkt, the viewing terrace located 101 metres above ground, accessible by Europe's fastest elevator. €6.50, concession €5.  
• 55 Sony Center, Potsdamer Platz 1. With an impressive, circus-tent-like roof over its courtyard and remains of the pre-war Hotel Esplanade incorporated into the modern structure.  
• 56 Leipziger Platz. The octagonal square right east of Potsdamer Platz was recreated to resemble its pre-war layout, but the buildings are modern rather than historic replicas and much taller than their counterparts from before the war. There is a diverse mix of uses among the buildings, which include the Embassy of Canada.  

Immediately west of Potsdamer Platz begins the Kulturforum, an ensemble of buildings housing cultural institutions built on the outskirts of the former West Berlin, as most of the seats of former cultural institutions of Berlin remained in the East. The buildings of the Kulturforum represent the various bold styles of architecture of the 1950s and 1960s.

• 57 Kulturforum, Matthäikirchplatz, ☏ +49 171 6267864. A collection of most important and architecturally impressive cultural institutions, including many museums and galleries, that was built in West Berlin next to the wall separating it from the Berlin historic centre, which remained in the East along with the original cultural institutions of Berlin.  
• 58 Neue Staatsbibliothek - Haus Potsdamer Straße (Berlin State Library - House Potsdamer Straße), Potsdamer Straße 33, ☏ +49 30 266433888. Designed by Hans Scharoun.  
• 59 Gemäldegalerie (Old Master Paintings), Matthäikirchplatz (Stauffenbergstraße 40), ☏ +49 30-2662101, fax: +49 30-2662103. Tu W F 10:00–18:00, Th 10:00–20:00, Sa Su 11:00–18:00. The Gemäldegalerie contains an astounding array of paintings, including works by Rembrandt, Rubens, Botticelli, Raphael, Titian, Goya, Velasquez and Watteau. The collection contains works from the old Bodemuseum on Museumsinsel in the East, now closed, and the former Gemäldegalerie in Dahlem. Its strong points are German paintings of the 13-16th centuries, Netherlandish painting of the 15th and 16th centuries, Flemish paintings of the 17th century, and miniature paintings of the 16th-19th centuries. In the newer section of the museum, designed by architects Heinz Hilmer and Christoph Sattler, there is enough space to display 1,150 masterpieces in the main gallery and 350 in the studio gallery - of the almost 2,900 pieces in the European painting collections. Established in 1830, the newly built gallery from 1998 has about 7,000 sq m of exhibition space (a complete tour of the 72 rooms covers almost 2 km). €10, concession €5; Kulturforum all exhibitions: €12, concessions €6. (updated Aug 2018)
• 60 Kunstgewerbemuseum (Museum of Decorative Arts), Tiergartenstraße 6 (Visitor entrance from Matthäikirchplatz), ☏ +49 20 266 2902, fax: +49 20 266 2947. Tu-F 10:00-18:00, Sa Su 11:00-18:00. The oldest museum of its kind in Germany which, despite great losses during the World War II, still possesses one of the world's primary collections of European applied art. There are two sections to the collection: one located at the Kulturforum in Tiergarten, the other at Köpenick Palace.  
• 61 Kupferstichkabinettt (Museum of Prints and Drawings), Matthäikirchplatz. Tu–F 10:00–18:00, Sa Su 11:00–18:00. The largest collection of graphic art in Germany. €6, concession €3; Kulturforum all exhibitions: €16, concessions €8.  
• 62 Neue Nationalgalerie (New National Gallery), Potsdamer Straße 50. Tu W 10:00–18:00, Th 10:00–20:00 (from 16:00 free entrance), F–Su 10:00–18:00, M sed. Spectacular building by Mies van der Rohe contains its own collection and temporary exhibitions.  
• Documentation Centre for Displacement, Expulsion, Reconciliation, Stresemannstraße 90, 10963 Berlin (near S-Bahn station Anhalter Bahnhof), info@sfvv.de. Tu-Su 10:00-19:00. The Documentation Centre features exhibits, library and testimony archive about forced migration and expulsion of people in the 20th century. The main focus is on the fate of German refugees in the course of World War II, but that issue is presented in the context of the German attack on its neighbours in the war and the prior displacement and expulsion of other ethnic groups on the orders of the German government. The museum was controversial before it was even opened as it was championed by Erika Steinbach, a controversial right wing figure in the German expellee movement which is dominated by the political right. Steinbach and her idea of a "centre against expulsions" were particularly controversial in Poland, but the finished museum has seen no input from Steinbach and tries to strike a balance between portraying the suffering of expellees (German or otherwise) while also not ignoring the greater context and the fact that the expulsions were the direct result of German military aggression. Free (ticket needs to be booked in advance on website). (updated Aug 2022)

Oranienburger Vorstadt

• 63 Berlin Wall Memorial (Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer), Bernauer Straße 119 (visitor centre) and 111 (documentation centre) (Bernauer Straße  U8 , Nordbahnhof  S1  S2  S25  or Tram M10 Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer. Follow the signs in the stations – wall is Mauer in German), ☏ +49 30 464-1030, fax: +49 30 460 69 740. Memorial grounds daily 08:00–22:00. Visitor Centre and Documentation Centre: Tu–Su 10:00–18:00, M closed. The memorial site stretches along the full 1.5-km length of Bernauer Straße. The listing marker points to the visitor centre. Various monuments can be found along the entire length of the street, documenting nearby escape attempts and tunnels; captions are in German and English. The documentation centre across the street on Bernauer Straße/Ackerstraße is excellent (although most of the documentation is in German). The viewing platform next to the documentation centre gives you a tiny hint of the true scale of the Wall and how terrifying the "no man's land" between the two sections of walls must have been. The monument (that you can see from the platform) is a complete section of 4th generation wall - both inside and outside sections, and you can peer through from the east side to see the remains of the electric fence and anti-tank devices in the death strip. It really helps you understand what an incredible feat it was to get from one side to the other -- and why so many died doing it. The memorial site is often missed by tourists but an absolute must for anyone interested in this part of the city's history. It's a memorial to those who died crossing, so you won't, fortunately, get the tackiness of the Checkpoint Charlie area; instead you will be left with a haunting feeling of what life with the wall may have been really like.
  Bernauer Straße is a street with a great deal of Wall history: it came to tragic prominence on August 13, 1961 when East German authorities closed the border and the street (with houses in the East but the street in the West). Border guards walled the doors and windows shut to keep Easterners from escaping by jumping out the window while Westerners (including police and fire brigades who brought life nets to help catch refugees) looked on in horror. The first recorded Wall-related death - the notorious Peter Fechter case (he bled to death in the "no-man's-land" with both sides unwilling or unable to help him) - was here, as was one of the famous tunnels and the famous photograph of the GDR border guard leaping over the barbed wire. Free; guided tour €3.50.  
• 64 Kapelle der Versöhnung (Chapel of Reconciliation) (on the grounds of the Memorial Center). This chapel was built on the site of a church built in 1894 which sat on the "death strip" and was thus blown up by the GDR authorities in 1985. The chapel is the site of occasional memorial services for victims of the wall. (updated Mar 2018)
• 65 Museum für Naturkunde (natural history museum), Invalidenstraße 43 (U-Bahn: U6 Naturkundemuseum, Tram: M6, M8, M10), ☏ +49 30 2093-8591. Tu–F 09:30–18:00, Sa Su 10:00–18:00. More than 30 million objects in the scientific collection and a fascinating exhibition in one of the most significant institutions of its kind in the world. Some parts still under construction. €5, concession €3.  

Private art galleries

As Berlin is a city of art, it is quite easy to find an art gallery on your way. They provide a nice opportunity to have a look at modern artists' work in a not so crowded environment for free. Some gallery streets in Mitte with more than about a dozen galleries are Auguststraße, Linienstraße, Torstraße, Brunnenstraße (all north of S-Bahn station Oranienburger Straße) and Zimmerstraße (U-Bahn station Kochstraße). A directory listing of all Mitte's art galleries can be found on Berolin Art.

• 66 Art Center Berlin Friedrichstraße, Friedrichstraße 134, ☏ +49 30 27879020. Four floors of exhibitions with a relatively good variety of genres and artists. A very nice oasis of calm from the busy Friedrichstraße.  
• 67 Galerie Eigen & Art, Auguststraße 26, ☏ +49 30 280 6605. One of the most famous German art galleries, home to the Neue Leipziger Schule (Neo Rauch et al.) 
• 68 loop—raum fur aktuelle kunst, Jägerstraße 5. Known for being the "incubator" of future famous Berlin artists. Primarily featuring sculpture video, and painting. 

Do

Theater

Germany is one of the countries in the world where there is strong political consensus that "high culture" ought to be available even to those of little means, so publicly subsidized theaters abound. Naturally those are especially plentiful in the capital and the most famous ones are almost all in Mitte. During the Weimar Republic Berlin was among the most innovative places in theater and many names still known to the average German in the 21st century were active in this theater scene. Some of their old stomping grounds survived the war or were rebuilt afterwards, so why not enjoy a Brecht piece the way Brecht wanted it staged at a theater Brecht worked at?

Admiralspalast in the Friedrichstraße

• 1 Admiralspalast (Admiral Palace), Friedrichstraße 101 (Train station Friedrichstraße), ☏ +49 30-2250 7000, +49 30 4799 7499.  
• 2 Berliner Ensemble (Theater am Schiffbauer Damm), Bertolt-Brecht-Platz 1 (Train station Friedrichstraße), ☏ +49 30 284-08-155, theaterkasse@berliner-ensemble.de. Contemporary theatre. The theater was founded by Bertolt Brecht after the war in what was then East Berlin.  
• 3 Chamäleon Theater Berlin, Rosenthaler Straße 40, ☏ +49 30 4000 5930. Located in the stunning Hackesche Höfe in the Berlin-Mitte quarter, the Chamaeleon Theatre offers exciting cross genre variety and music shows.  
• 4 Deutsches Theater (German Theatre), Schumannstraße 13a (U-Bahn Oranienburger Tor, Bus 147), ☏ +49 30 28441-221, +49 30 28441-225. Classical theater with impressive line up of actors and directors. Some events have English subtitles.  
• 5 Kabarett Theater Distel, Friedrichstraße 101, ☏ +49 30 20 44 704, fax: +49 30-20 81 555, distel@distel-berlin.de. Cabaret and comedy, political satire in German. Their home venue is in the Admiralspalast.  
• 6 Kunsthaus ACUD (Free arts centre), Veteranenstraße 21 (U-Bahn: U8 Rosenthaler Platz, Tram: M8,12 Brunnenstr./Invalidenstr.). The ACUD arts centre houses a theater, a gallery, two cinemas, a club, a concert venue, a bar and several artist's studios.  
• 7 Maxim Gorki Theater, Am Festungsgraben 2 (Tram „Am Kupfergraben“, Bus 100, 200, TXL „Staatsoper“), ☏ +49 30 20221-115 (box office), +49 30 20221-129 (visitor service), ticket@gorki.de. The smallest municipal theatre in Berlin. It was an important venue for contemporary theatre in the German Democratic Republic (GDR). Nowadays its program continues with its political critique. Next to productions of classics, it has a big focus on new and contemporary writing and productions. It aims at being open to anyone regardless of their background. Sometimes plays the 3 Pennys Opera by Brecht. (updated Jan 2018)
• 8 Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz (People's Theatre), Linienstraße 227 / Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz, ☏ +49 30 24065-5 (switchboard ), +49 30 24065-777 (customer service), info@volksbuehne-berlin.de. Sometimes controversial, modern theater.  

Opera and musicals

Revue theatre Friedrichstadt-Palast

Berlin State Opera house

Musical Theater am Potsdamer Platz

• 9 Friedrichstadt-Palast (Europe's Show Palace), Friedrichstraße 107 (U-Bahn Oranienburger Tor), ☏ +49 30 2326 2326, tickets@palast.berlin. Berlin's biggest show with over 100 artists on the biggest theater stage in the world. Tickets: €16.90-104.90.  
• 10 Komische Oper Berlin, Behrenstraße 55-57, ☏ +49 30 47997400. Founded in 1947 and at the forefront of modern opera. Their orchestra also performs regular concerts. Guided tours behind the scenes are offered. Each seat has subtitles where you can choose your language. (updated Jan 2018)
• 11 Staatsoper Unter den Linden (Berlin State Opera), Unter den Linden 7, ☏ +49 30 20354 555 (tickets), +49 30 20354 0 (general enquiries). The impressive building and royal history make the building alone worth a visit. The building reopened in December 2017 after extensive refurbishments and acoustic improvements. The general music director of the Staatsoper and its resident orchestra, Staatskapelle Berlin, is the conductor Daniel Barenboim.  
• 12 Theater am Potsdamer Platz, Marlene-Dietrich-Platz 1 (Train station Potsdamer Platz). Musicaltheater and Berlinale (Berlin International Film Festival).  

Concerts

• 13 Berliner Philharmonie, Herbert-von-Karajan-Str. 1 (Bus 200, M41: Philharmonie, or Bus M48, M85, N2: Varian-Fry-Str.), ☏ +49 30 254 88 999, kartenbuero@berliner-philharmoniker.de. The Berliner Philharmonie is a concert hall with 2,440 seats in Berlin-Tiergarten (constructed from 1960 to 1963 and designed by Hans Scharoun) and the home of the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. It is a famous building with outstanding musicians. Reservations are recommended, but cheaper tickets are usually available 2–4 hours before the concert if not sold out. Every Tuesday (September to June) at 13:00–14:00, there is a free lunch concert; come early. In the winter, late-night concerts (22:30 or 23:00) are a bargain and often have more avant-garde or unconventional formats. The Kammermusiksaal (Chamber Music Hall) was added later in 1984–1987 as a venue for smaller concerts with 1,180 seats. It is linked to the foyer of the Philharmonie. Both buildings are located in the Kulturforum area.  
• 14 Hochschule für Musik Hanns Eisler (HfM) (Berlin Academy of Music), Neuer Marstall, Schloßplatz 7, ☏ +49 30 688305700. The HfM offers many concerts by their students and other professional musicians. The concerts are held at various venues of the HfM, such as at Charlottenstr. 55, 10117 Berlin or at the address from this listing. Many concerts are free. (updated Jan 2018)
• 15 Konzerthaus Berlin (Concert House Berlin), Gendarmenmarkt (U2 Hausvogteiplatz or U6 Französische Straße), ☏ +49 30 203092 101 (tickets ), +49 30 203092 333 (general enquiries), fax: +49 30 203092 249, kontakt@konzerthaus.de.  

Cinema

• During summertime you can enjoy an open-air cinema in front of the Altes Museum, showing alternative movies (most of them in original language). It's very wise to buy tickets for the "Sommerkino" in the afternoon if you don't want to join a long queue at night with the chance of not getting a ticket.
• 16 Babylon, Rosa-Luxemburg-Str. 30, ☏ +49 30 2425969 (from 17:00). Great cinema with a large program of non-mainstream movies. They have a working cinema organ, which is also played every Saturday for free midnight screenings of silent movies. Movies are around €7-9; some movies are free. (updated Mar 2018)
• 17 CineStar IMAX im Sony Center, Potsdamer Straße 4, ☏ +49 30 260 66 400, imax@cinestar.de. The worldwide recognised theatre at Potsdamer Straße 
• 18 CineStar Original. The "CineStar Original" cinema located inside the Sony Center at the Potsdamer-Platz shows only movies in original version (e.g. in English, without subtitles). 
• 19 Filmtheater Hackesche Höfe, Rosenthaler Straße 40/41 (4th floor of the Hackesche Höfe (Hof 1); U Weinmeister Straße or U Hackescher Markt), ☏ +49 30 2834603. Very broad range of movies. 
• 20 Kino Central, Rosenthalerstraße 39 (near Hackesche Höfe; U Weinmeister Straße or U Hackescher Markt), ☏ +49 30 28599973. Repertory cinema located in an ex-squat. 

Spa

• 21 Adlon Day Spa. One of the best spas in town, next to the Brandenburg Gate in the Adlon Hotel. 
• 22 Club Olympus Spa & Fitness, Marlene-Dietrich-Platz 2, ☏ +49 30 2553 1234, berlin@hyatt.de. At the Grand Hyatt Berlin Hotel. 
• 23 Day Spa. In Riverside Hotel next to the Friedrichstadtpalast. 

Other

• 24 BlueMax Theater, Marlene-Dietrich-Platz 4 (Quartier Potsdamer Platz). Home of the Blue Man Group. Used to house a IMAX cinema. Ticket: €68.44-80.94.  
• 25 Großer Tiergarten. Berlin's largest park. In the summer and on weekends you will see loads of families with their barbecues.  
• 26 Legoland Discovery Centre, Potsdamer Straße 4, ☏ +49 30 30 10 400, berlin@legolanddiscoverycentre.de. An educational attraction for children, featuring a LEGO replica of Berlin Adult and children: €18.  

Buy

Department stores and shopping centres

Galeries Lafayette, Friedrichstraße

• 1 Alexa Centre. A large shopping centre complex right off Alexanderplatz.  
• 2 Galeries Lafayette. The German dependance of the Paris-based French department store chain is a testament to Berlin's newfound role as a fashion hub, and with its unique modern architecture, a landmark of its own. It is all about fashion - the best labels and the latest trends.  
• 3 LP12 - Mall Of Berlin (U2 Potsdamer Platz or Mohrenstraße). The newest and the largest mall in Berlin with the well known fashion brands and a decent food court. (updated May 2015)
• 4 Potsdamer Platz Arkaden. A medium sized shopping mall with the usual variety of department stores and boutiques.  
• 5 Quartier 206. Next door to Galeries Lafayette is this upscale department store focusing on high-end fashion, with some cosmetics and personal care products to boot.  

Flea markets

• 6 Flea Market at Arkonaplatz, Arkonaplatz 1 (Prenzlauer Berg/Mitte). Su 10:00-17:00. 
• 7 Flea Market at Bode-Museum, Am Kupfergraben (Museumsinsel). Sa Su 11:00-17:00. 

Gifts and souvenirs

• ausberlin, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 9 (it's a bit hidden at the other side of Kaufhof near Alexanderplatz), ☏ +49 30 97005640. Alternative souvenirs (design, fashion and small stuff from Berlin designers and artists). 
• 8 Rausch – Chocolatiers am Gendarmenmarkt, Charlottenstraße 60 (U-Bahn Stadtmitte), ☏ +49 30-757 880, service@rausch.de. M-Sa 10:00-19:00, Su 12:00-19:00. The world's largest chocolaterie. 

Record shops

• 9 Kulturkaufhaus Dussmann, Friedrichstraße 90 (Train station Friedrichstraße), ☏ +49 30-2025 1111. M-F 09:00-00:00, Sa 09:00-23:30. The greatest books and musicshop in Berlin with English Bookshop  
• 10 Leila M, Rosa Luxemburg Str. 30 (inside Kino Babylon). M-F 12:00-22:00, Sa 13:00-20:00. A large selection of music on CD & vinyl: romantic songwriters, inspiring pop-music, minimal techno, contemporary electronica and so on. 
• 11 Rotation. Weinbergsweg 3 (Mitte). Offers a vast range of techno, house and electronica. Weekly news. Open M-Sa 12:00-20:00. 

Eat

Postdamer Platz and Friedrichstraße

Budget

• 1 Witty's Currywurst, Friedrichstraße 141, ☏ +49 30 20649767. Organic currywurst and fries. (updated May 2022)

• 2 Mishba, Friedrichstraße 98. Burritos (updated May 2022)

• 3 Pizzeria Marienkäfer, Marienstraße 18. (updated May 2022)

• 4 Johnny's Bar - Karibisches Restaurant, Gertrud-Kolmar-Straße 4. Caribbean (updated May 2022)

• 5 Curry at the Wall Berlin Mitte, Zimmerstraße 100. A Snack Bar (updated May 2022)

• 6 Stadtklause, Bernburger Str. 35. (updated May 2022)

• 7 Curry Wolf am Brandenburger Tor, Unter den Linden 77. (updated Mar 2023)

Mid-range

• 8 Weilands, Atrium Tower, Eichhornstraße 3 (S and U Potsdamer Platz, go down Alte Potsdamer Straße until you pass the Casino), ☏ +49 30-258 99 717. M-Su 10:00-21:30. Salads, soups and other healthy food next to the Casino at Potsdamer Platz. Big outdoor terrace in summer. from €5. 
• 9 Bombay, Friedrichstraße 106c, ☏ +49 30 28 48 49 53. Excellent Indian restaurant (updated Jul 2017)
• 10 Die Berliner Republik, ☏ +49 30 30872293. German restaurant (updated Oct 2015)
• 11 Ishin Japanese Deli, Mittelstraße 24 (S/U Friedrichstraße), ☏ +49 30 20674829. M-Sa 11:00-21:30, closed on Sundays and public holidays. The restaurant has the atmosphere of a busy waiting hall, but the facts that it is often crowded, that there are many Japanese customers and that they are the caterer of the Japanese Embassy speak for themselves. Sushi, salads, Don, and Cey-Ro. Free green tea. Happy hour W Sa all day until 16:00. They also have a branch near Checkpoint Charlie at Charlottenstraße. 
• 12 Midtown Grill, Ebertstraße 3, ☏ +49 30-22000 6415, restaurant@midtown-grill.de. Following the tradition of the old American steakhouses, at Midtown Grill you will find the best steaks in town. 
• 13 Ständige Vertretung (Permanent Mission), Schiffbauerdamm 8, ☏ +49 30 2823965, info@staev.de. daily 10:30-01:00. Ständige Vertretung stands for Permanent Mission. In times of the cold war the West-German Federal Republic and the East German Democratic Republic didn’t have regular embassies, but Permanent Missions in Bonn and East-Berlin. Nowadays Ständige Vertretung represents Rhenish food specialities and beer. Excellent tarte flambee (Flammekuchen). (updated Oct 2015)
• ALvis Restaurant, Albrechtstraße 8 ((U- und S-Bahn Friedrichstraße)), ☏ +49 30 30 886-560, kontakt@alvis-restaurant.de. daily 06:00-23:00. ALvis Restaurant offers culinarian highlights made out of regional products. 

Splurge

• 14 Brasserie Desbrosses, Potsdamer Platz 3, ☏ +49 30-33777 6340, brasserie@desbrosses.com. The liaison of old and new in the ambiance of an authentic French Brasserie works perfectly with the Brasserie Desbrosses. Here guests may enjoy French cuisine in a carefully restored and leger ambiance. 
• 15 Brasserie Ganymed, Schiffbauerdamm 5, ☏ +49 30-28599046. Good French cuisine direct at the terrace of the river and close to the theaters. (updated Oct 2015)
• 16 Brecht Keller, Chausseestr. 125, ☏ +49 30-2823843. Famous basement restaurant in former house of Brecht with Austrian inspired kitchen (receipts from Helene Weigel), reservations essential! 
• 17 Chi Sing Restaurant, Rosenthaler Str. 62, ☏ +49 30 4200 892 84. daily 12:00-24:00. Reservation are welcome! 
• 18 Grill Royal, Friedrichstr. 105b, ☏ +49 30 288 79 288. Best grill restaurant in town with divine steaks and fresh oysters. Reservation for every night is essential. 
• 19 Ma, Behrenstr. 72 (next to the Hotel Adlon), ☏ +49 30 3011 17 333. One Michelin star and 18 points from Gault Millau make this Asian inspired restaurant one of the best in Berlin. 

Hackescher Markt at the S-Bahnhof

Around Oranienburger Straße and Rosenthaler Platz

Budget

• 20 Chay Viet, Brunnenstraße 164 (U Bernauer Straße), ☏ +49 30 48494554. M-F 11:30-22:00, Su 13:00-22:00. Vegetarian Vietnamese family restaurant, many dishes are Vegan. mains from €6.90, lunch offer €5.90 incl. dessert. 
• 21 Cô Cô bánh mì deli, Rosenthalerstr. 2 (U Rosenthaler Platz), ☏ +49 30 24630595. M-Th 11:00-22:00, F Sa 11:00-23:00, Su 12:00-22:00. Baguette, the Vietnamese style. Fresh and very tasty. from €4. 
• 22 Dada Falafel, Linienstraße 132 (U Oranienburger Tor.), ☏ +49 30 27596927. 10:00-02:00. Tasty falafel and other mideastern food. Prepare for long queues. from €3 for a falafel sandwich. 
• 23 Curry 61, Oranienburger Str. 6. (updated May 2022)
• 24 Anna Koschke, Krausnickstraße 11. (updated May 2022)
• 25 Curry Mitte, Torstraße 122. (updated May 2022)
• 26 La Cantina, Torstraße 124. (updated May 2022)

Mid-range

• 27 Lucky Star, Friedrichstraße 127. As authentic as you can get in Berlin Chinese food wise. They also have "all you can eat hot pot" deal for €12.80/person (minimum 2 people, 2015), which even though it lacks some ingredients you would normally get in a hot pot in Beijing (more variety of mushrooms - here you just get champignons - tofu skin, etc), still tastes as it should taste. For the hot pot you can choose between clear pot, spicy pot, or split pot (clear/spicy) and they even provide majiang (peanut sauce) for dipping! (updated May 2022)
• 28 Amrit, Oranienburger Str. 45, ☏ +49 30 28884840. Indian restaurant. (updated Oct 2015)
• 29 Kopps, Linienstraße 94 (U Rosenthaler Platz), ☏ +49 30 432 097 75. M-F 12:00-open end, Sa Su 09:30-open end. Vegan restaurant with upmarket touch that specialises in rather typical German dishes like Roulade or Cordon Bleu that Vegans would normally not eat. Weekend brunch from 09:30 - 16:00. mains from €17.50. 
• 30 Papa Pane di Sorrento, Ackerstraße 23 (U Rosenthaler Platz), ☏ +49 30 28092701. M-F 12:00-open end, Sa Su 09:30-open end. Italian family restaurant where supposedly stars like Brad Pitt and Katie Holmes have been sighted. It has the decor of a waiting hall and is often crowded and slightly hectic, but the pizzas and the tiramisu are still worth it. pizzas from €8. 
• 31 Susuru, Rosa-Luxemburg-Straße 17, ☏ +49 30-211 1182, info@susuru.de. M-F 11:30-23:30. Stylish Japanese restaurant that specialises in udon dishes - Japanese noodles in a tasty soup. Be prepared to get a bit slurpy with your soup - it adds to the flavour! 
• 32 Vedis, Schönhauser Allee 142, ☏ +49 30 4485172, info@vedis.berlin. Vegan Indian restaurant. (updated Oct 2020)

Splurge

• 33 Kuchi, Gipsstr. 3, ☏ +49 30 28 38 66, mitte@kuchi.de. M-Sa 12:00-00:00, Su 18:00-00:00. Excellent sushi restaurant with a nice garden right in the centre of Mitte. 

Around Gendarmenmarkt

Lutter & Wegner at Gendarmenmarkt

Budget

• 34 Zen Asian Kitchen, Jägerstraße 67. (updated May 2022)
• 35 Imbiss Unter den Linden, Unter den Linden. It's a snack bar (updated May 2022)
• 36 Otito Vietnamese Food, Leipziger Str. 30. (updated May 2022)

Mid-range

• 37 Little Green Rabbit, Jägerstraße 27 (U Hausvogteiplatz or Französische Straße), ☏ +49 30 91464481. M-F 11:00-20:00. Tasty Soups and salads in a quiet side street of Gendarmenmarkt, mostly frequented by the office workers around. They don't accept cash. from €4. 
• 38 Good Time, Hausvogteiplatz 11 (U Hausvogteiplatz), ☏ +49 30 20074870. daily 12:00-00:00. Asian fusion food in a tasteful decor, also suitable for a business lunch. from €15, lunch offers from €12 including a starter. 

Splurge

• 39 Aigner. Haute cuisine mixed with influences from Berlin and Vienna (reservations essential). 
• 40 Borchardt, Französische Str. 47 (U Französische Straße), ☏ +49 30 81886262, borchardt@gastart.de. 11:30-24:00. Where the rich and famous go since 1895 - reservations and decent clothing recommended. Fin de siècle decor, attentive service. Famous for their Schnitzel. Their lunch offers start at €13. 
• 41 Fischers Fritz, Charlottenstraße 49, ☏ +49 30-2 33 63 63. Offers a Japanese breakfast in the Regent hotel. 
• 42NOT EXISTING LISTING IMAGE Lutter & Wegner, Charlottenstraße 56, ☏ +49 30-20 29 540. M–Su 11:00-03:00. Berlin cuisine in top style, since 1811. They offer their own sparkling, red and white wine selections. 

Around Klosterstraße

Mid range

• 43 The Greens - Coffee & Plants, Am Krögel 2. Stylish café located in an old warehouse filled with plants, most of them for sale. (updated Aug 2022)
• 44 Zur letzten Instanz, Waisenstraße 14-16, ☏ +49 30 2425528. Often claimed to be Berlin's oldest restaurant. While there has been an establishment at the site since 1621, the current name dates back to 1924. What's more is that much of the original building was damaged in World War II and reconstructed in 1963 by the East German authorities to make it more "appealing to tourists". Still, Zur letzten Instanz serves excellent, albeit a bit price, German cuisine. In the backyard, there's a nice beer garden. (updated Aug 2022)

Drink

Cafés

Café Sankt Oberholz

• 1 Barcomi's Deli, Sophie-Gips-Höfe, 2. Hof, Sophienstr. 21 (S Hackescher Markt or U Weinmeisterstraße). M-Sa 09:00-21:00, Su 10:00-21:00. A deli with superb American cakes and cookies run by the American Cynthia Barcomi. Apple walnut caramel cake, Devil's Food cake, Lemon Meringue Pie, Triple Chocolate Cookies, they have it all. There are also bagels, salads and lasagna on the menu for the non sweet-tooths. You can try to repeat the wonder at home with her four recipe books. The also roast their own coffee which is excellent as well. Not so easy to find though - it is in a courtyard of a building situated roughly in the middle of the quiet Sophienstraße and there is only a small sign outside. Maybe look it up on Google Maps before visiting. The smaller original branch is situated at Bergmannstraße in Kreuzberg. 
• 2 The Barn, Augusstraße 58 (S Oranienburger Straße). 08:00–18:00. A small cafe that takes coffee very seriously. Or, to say it in their words: "Please be aware that we have certain preferences when serving a coffee the way we believe it tastes best." Children are not really welcome, there is only a restricted area for laptops. Good sandwiches. 
• 3 Café am Neuen See. A must-do during the day if the weather is nice. This cafe is more like an outdoor beergarden. Even though it's right in the middle of West Berlin, the "Café am Neuen See" is located in the middle of the Tiergarten next to a small lake. If you are a (romantic) couple, make sure to rent one of the rowboats and enjoy the silent and romantic scenery. The nicer the weather, the more packed this place gets. Don't even dream of a place to sit if it's one of the rare, warm Sundays. Beers are between €4-5, giant pizzas are €8-9. 
• 4 Café Fleury, Weinbergsweg 20 (S Rosenthaler Platz). M-F 08:00–20:00, Sa Su 10:00-20:00. Cute little French cafe near Weinbergspark. Excellent breakfast and tasty baguettes. Tends to be very crowded on weekends, be there when it opens if you want to have breakfast. If it is full, try the small sister Petit Fleury on the opposite side of the road. from €3. 
• 5 Cafe Solvey, Elisabethkirchstraße 1 (S Rosenthaler Platz), ☏ +49 30-67961222. Tu-F 12:00-18:00; Sa-Su 10:00-19:00. Lovely little vintage cafe. While drinks and cakes are decent, but not extraordinary for Mitte, the decor is really cute and it is very quiet. A good place to relax and read a magazine or book. from €3. 
• 6 Dachgartenrestaurant Käfer, Platz der Republik 1 (U Bundestag or S Brandenburger Tor), ☏ +49 30 22 62 99 0. Breakfast from 09:00-10:30 at the top of the Germany's parliament. You have to contact them in advance and need to show your ID, since the entrance is through the parliament building. 
• 7 Ebe Ano, Pohl Straße 52., ☏ +49 3047384590. An ethical cafe/restaurant with international flair. 
• 8 Kauf Dich Glücklich, Kastanienallee 54 (U-Bahn: U8 Rosenthaler Platz, Tram: M1,M8,12 Zionskirchplatz), ☏ +49 30 48623348. 10:00/11:00–20:00. The café with its iconic colored chairs on the terrace which at the same time is a shop for fashion and design. The venue which is so typical of the hipster-hedonist Kastanienallee neighborhood offers coffee, crêpes, waffles and housemade ice cream. 
• 9 Sankt Oberholz, Rosenthaler Straße 72a (S Rosenthaler Platz). daily 08:00-20:00. A very Mitte place directly at Rosenthaler Platz where the new digital boheme is at home and supposably new business ideas and startups are developed. Almost everybody has a laptop, conversations are rare. Goes by the nicknames "hipster hell" or "unofficial Apple store". They also offer coworking spaces. from €3. 
• 10 Strandbad Mitte, Kleine Hamburger Straße 16 (access through Augusstraße) (S Oranienburger Straße.), ☏ +49 30 24 62 89 63. Good breakfast and playground next to the restaurant. from €5. 
• Telecafé, Panoramastraße 1a (S and U Alexanderplatz), ☏ +49 30 242 33 33. Enjoy breakfast in front of a city view right at the top of the Fernsehturm. 
• 11 Zimt und Zucker, Schiffbauerdamm 12 (S/U Friedrichstraße (there is a direct access to Schiffsbauerdamm from the S Bahn track 5/7/75), ☏ +49 30 81010858. daily 09:30-21:00. A small and lively cafe in the style of the 20s. There is a terrace on the river in summer. Their German cheesecake (with Quark and therefore lighter than the American version) comes especially recommended. 

Bars

Weinerei Forum

• Belushi's, Rosa-Luxemburg-Straße 39-41, ☏ +49 30 8145 3960. 12:00 till late. A popular English speaking Europe-wide chain bar with one of largest range of live sports events. A very relaxed atmosphere with a 5-hour happy hour each night. Belongs to the large Beds and Bars company. Relatively low prices on food and drink. 
• 12 FC Magnet Bar, Veteranenstraße 26 (U-Bahn: U8 Rosenthaler Platz, Tram: M8,12 Brunnenstr./Invalidenstr.), ☏ +49 30 24352455, info@fcmagnetbar.de. 12:00–02:00. This retro-style bar with its orange waiting room seats is a popular and often crowded venue for watching all important football games on multiple large projection screens, for dancing and for playing kicker. 
• 13 Kumpelnest 3000, Lützowstraße 23 (U-Bahn: U1 Kurfürstenstr., Bus: M48,M85,N1,N2), ☏ +49 30 2616918, andy.nogger@t-online.de. 19:00-08:00. This tiny dive bar was founded in 1987 by an arts student and originally a venue where gay-lesbian, punk and postpunk guest mingled. While located in a otherwise emptied residential area with no further nightlife, alone the visual overexposure by its crazy decoration makes it worth a visit.  
• 14 Newton Bar, Charlottenstr. 57 (directly at Gendarmenmarkt), ☏ +49 30-20 61 29 90. Impressive bar that is the must hang-out place for the beautiful, the famous and the rich. Excellent cigar and whiskey selection. 
• 15 Reingold, Novalisstraße 11, ☏ +49 30 217 516 45. Lounge in a former locomotive construction hall (1930s style), mix of after work crowd and normal scene. 
• Riva, Dircksenstraße 142, ☏ +49 30 24 72 2688. Sa-Th 20:00-after 01:00, F 19:00-after 01:00. This stylish bar, named after Italian football star Luigi Riva, boasts a colorfully displayed curved ceiling painted in red, yellow, and purple squares. It's the perfect spot for grabbing one of the assortment of exotic martinis or champagne cocktails. 
• 16 Victoria Bar, Potsdamer Straße 102, ☏ +49 30-25 75 99 77. Comfortable bar with a huge variety of cocktails. 
• 17 Weinerei Forum, Fehrbelliner Str. 57 (U-Bahn: U8 Rosenthaler Platz, Tram: M1,M8,12 Zionskirchplatz), ☏ +49 30 4406983, info@weinerei.com. 10:00–00:00. This long-standing bohemian, retro-style venue offers vegetarian food by day and becomes a wine bar in the evening. 

Clubs

Tresor club

KitKatClub

Clärchens Ballhaus

• Cafe Moskau, Karl-Marx-Allee 34 (U-Schillingstraße (U5)). Every Sunday night there is the GMF, a mainly gay party. 
• Club der polnischen Versager, Ackerstraße 169. F & Sa 20:00-?. From Polish films to country music, everything to make our neighbours feel like home. 
• 18 Golden Gate, Schicklerstraße 4 (S-Bahn/U-Bahn: S3,S5,S7,S8,U8 Jannowitzbrücke, Bus: 248,N65 Alexanderstr.), ☏ +49 30 57704278, feedback@goldengate-berlin.de. 00:00-. Dirty and dark after hours techno club near to Jannowitzbrücke with two floors.  
• 19 Weekend Club, Alexanderstraße 7 (S-Bahn: Alexanderplatz, U-Bahn: U2,U5,U8 Alexanderplatz), ☏ +49 152 24293140, event@weekendclub.berlin. 23:00. The Weekend is a rooftop club on the historic Haus des Reisens high-rise building with a view over the Alexanderplatz and the Fernsehturm. The rooftop garden is on the 17th floor. The music played is hip hop, R'n'B, Afrobeats and Latin music.  
• 20 KitKatClub, Köpenicker Straße 76 (entry from Brückenstraße). The clubbing concept of the KitKatClub is mixing techno/electro/trance music with fetish parties. Nonstop party from Saturday night to Sunday evening. Be careful and open-minded, and respect the strict dresscode of fetish, latex, leather, kinky, and high style glamour.  
• 21 M-BIA, Dircksenstraße 123–124 (S-Bahn: Alexanderplatz, U-Bahn: U2,U5,U8 Alexanderplatz), ☏ +49 172 7582650, jens@m-bia.de. 23:00. Techno club below the arches of the S-Bahn with an industrial interior, changing decorations and techno and psytrance nights. 
• 22 OHM, Köpenicker Str. 70 (S-Bahn: S3,S5,S7,S75 Jannowitzbrücke, U-Bahn: U8 Heinrich-Heine-Straße, Bus: 165,265,N8,N65), resistance@ohmberlin.com. 22:00-. Techno club in the former battery room of the disused power plant which also hosts the Tresor and Kraftwerk venues. Has a very industrial ambience, ceramic tiles on the wall, a small dance floor, and a good sound system. 
• 23 Tresor, Köpenicker Str. 70 (S-Bahn: S3,S5,S7,S75 Jannowitzbrücke, U-Bahn: U8 Heinrich-Heine-Straße, Bus: 165,265,N8,N65). The history of this club dates back to 1990s and the start of techno/house scene in Berlin. The old venue in the vault space of the former Wertheim department store in Leipziger Strasse was closed in 2005, but Tresor reopened in May 2007 in a decommissioned power plant in the southeast of Berlin-Mitte.  
• 24 Clärchens Ballhaus, Auguststraße 24. Daily from 11:00 usually to 00:00 on weeknights, and around 04:00 on weekends); hot food 12:00-22:30, garden closes 23:00, dance starts 21:00. Traditional dance hall and restaurant established 1913. One of the few surviving Berlin ballrooms from the pre-WW1 era, featuring a hall of mirrors. Primarily known for its dance events (be it Disco, Swing, Salsa, Tango, Cha-Cha or "Schwoof", i.e. freestyle), it also hosts concerts, but you may as well just come for dinner or a drink. The venue has been a set for films like Inglourious Basterds and Stauffenberg. Entrance fee depending on event: usually free on weeknights, €5 on weekends. (updated Jul 2019)

Sleep

Accommodation in Mitte mostly caters for the backpacker or business traveller so the mid-range market is small. When you intend to travel for a trade fair, prices tend to rise fast but not as bad as in Frankfurt. During off-peak times, the splurge hotels offer substantial discounts that bring down the price to mid-range level (€120 per night is offered sometimes), so check carefully upfront for special offers.

Dorotheenstadt and Unter den Linden area

Splurge

• 1 Hotel Adlon, ☏ +49 30 2261-0, fax: +49 30 2261-2222, Adlon@Kempinski.com. Unter den Linden 77 (Pariser Platz, Unter den Linden), Located directly at the Brandenburg Gate and was rated the best hotel of Europe in 2006. 
• 2 Hotel de Rome (at Bebelplatz next to Unter Den Linden and the Museumsinsel). A very good bar and Italian restaurant. 
• 3 Maritim proArte hotel Berlin. 
• 4 Melia Berlin, Friedrichstraße 103 (next to U-/S-Bahn station Friedrichstraße), ☏ +49 30 20607900, melia.berlin@melia.com. Modern Spanish four star hotel, includes safe in room but no coffee making facilities and poor TV and air-conditioning . Good tapas bars and nice river views from breakfast. Good cold and hot breakfast options. (updated Oct 2015)
• 5 NH Berlin Friederichstraße. 
• 6 The Regent Berlin. Charlottenstraße 49. Former Four Seasons hotel now managed by the Taiwan-based Regent chain. Located next to Gendarmenmarkt near Unter Den Linden. 
• 7 The Westin Grand Berlin, Friedrichstraße 158-164 (at the corner of Friedrichstraße and Unter Den Linden), ☏ +49 30-20270. Five-star hotel provides newly decorated accommodations facing the famous boulevard. Pomp architecture of the GDR. 

Friedrichstadt/Leipziger Straße area

Budget

• 8 Motel One Berlin-Spittelmarkt. 

Mid-range

• Hotel Albrechtshof, Albrechtstraße 8 (U- und S-Bahn Friedrichstraße), ☏ +49 30 30886-0, albrechtshof@albrechtshof-hotels.de. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 11:00. €75. (updated Jan 2020)
• Hotel Allegra, Albrechtstraße 17 (U- und S-Bahn Friedrichstraße), ☏ +49 30 30886-0, allegra@albrechtshof-hotels.de. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 11:00. €65. (updated Jan 2020)
• Hotel Augustinenhof, Auguststraße 82 (S-Bahn Oranienburger Straße), ☏ +49 30 30886-0, augustinenhof@albrechtshof-hotels.de. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 11:00. Awarded with the 'barrier free' signet, this is a comfort plus not only for people with disabilities but also for seniors, families with prams and travellers with lots of luggage. €55. (updated Jan 2020)
• 9 Courtyard by Marriott Berlin City Centre. Axel Springer Straße 55, a two-minute walk to the subway and situated close to highlights. 

Splurge

• 10 Hilton Berlin, Mohrenstraße 30 (near Gendarmenmarkt), ☏ +49-30-202300, info.berlin@hilton.com. Mohrenstraße 30. (updated Oct 2020)
• 11 Mercure Hotel & Residenz Berlin Checkpoint Charlie. 
• 12 NH Berlin Mitte, Leipziger Straße 106-111. Renovated in 2008, this hotel offers 392 spacious bedrooms, meeting rooms and a spa. 

Alexanderplatz area

Budget

• 13 ibis Budget Berlin Alexanderplatz. 
• 14 ibis Styles Berlin Alexanderplatz. 
• 15 one80º Hostel Berlin, Otto-Braun-Straße 65 (Alexanderplatz), ☏ +49 30 280 4462 22, fax: +49 30 280 44 62 22, info@one80hostels.com. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 10:00. 6 minutes away from Alexanderplatz. from €13. 

Mid-range

• 16 Holiday Inn Berlin-Alexanderplatz, Theanolte-Bähnisch-Str. 2, ☏ +49 30 740 747 400, toll-free: +49 800 181 3656, info@hiberlincenter.com. 
• 17 H2 Hotel Berlin-Alexanderplatz. 
• 18 Mercure Berlin-Alexanderplatz. 
• 19 Park Inn by Radisson Hotel Berlin Alexanderplatz (Park Inn Berlin), Alexanderplatz 7, ☏ +49 30 2389-0, reservations@parkinn-berlin.com. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 12:00. Germany's tallest hotel at Alexanderplatz features unique views of Berlin. (updated Oct 2020)
• 20 Ramada Hotel Berlin-Alexanderplatz. 

Splurge

• 21 Hotel Indigo Berlin-Alexanderplatz, Bernhard-Weiss-Straße 5, ☏ +49 30 5050860, reservation.alexanderplatz@hotelindigoberlin.com. 
• 22 Radisson Blu Hotel, Berlin, Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 3, ☏ +49 30 238 280, info.berlin@radissonblu.com. The main attraction of the hotel was the AquaDom, the world's largest cylindrical aquarium containing one million litres of saltwater, until it exploded in December 2022. (updated Oct 2020)

Potsdamerplatz area

Budget

• Three Little Pigs Hostel, Stresemannstr 66 10963, ☏ +49 30 - 26 39 588 0, fax: +49 30 - 26 39 588 16, info@three-little-pigs.de. 

Splurge

• 23 Grand Hyatt Berlin, Marlene-Dietrich-Platz 2 (Potsdamer Platz), ☏ +49 30 2553 1234, berlin@hyatt.de. During the Berlinale film festival, this is the primary hotel to stay because most major attractions are within walking distance. 
• 24 The Mandala Hotel, Potsdamer Straße 3. Hotel on Potsdamer Platz, Kulturforum, Neue Nationalgalerie and the Philharmony. 
• 25 The Ritz-Carlton, Berlin, Potsdamer Platz 3. An unforgettable 5-star hotel. 

Luisenstadt area

Mid-range

• 26 Best Western Hotel Am Spittelmarkt. 
• 27 NH Berlin Kreuzberg, Heinrich-Heine-Platz 11, ☏ +49 30 278040, nhberlinkreuzberg@nh-hotels.com. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 12:00 (Sunday 17:00). €80-130. 
• 28 Novotel Berlin Mitte. The only hotel on Museumsinsel 
• 29 Park Plaza Wallstreet Berlin Mitte. 

Splurge

• 30 Art'otel Mitte, Wallstr. 70-73 (next to the Markisches Museum metro stop), ☏ +49 30 240620. A stylish hotel though with smallish rooms. Good breakfast, double-check that your reservation includes it. Helpful staff.  

North of Spree

Budget

• 31 Ballhaus Berlin Hostel (Mittes Backpacker Hostel), Chausseestr. 102 (U Naturkundemuseum), ☏ +49 30 28484471, info@ballhausberlinhostel.de. Check-in: 15:00, check-out: 11:00. Berlin’s oldest hostel is housed in a unique old brick building which also hosts Berlin’s oldest ballroom, and now also one of Berlin’s oldest pubs, the infamous Alt-Berlin. Carrying on the tradition of the ballroom downstairs, the hostel's themes range from the previous golden 20s to the upcoming 20s. From €21. (updated Jan 2017)
• 32 baxpax downtown Hostel Berlin, Ziegelstr. 29 (S-Bahn Friedrichstr.), ☏ +49 30 2787 4880, fax: +49 30 28 39 09 35, info@baxpax-downtown.de. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 11:00. Hip, stylish cross between youth hostel and hotel with a mixture of top level service and multi-cultural and cozy atmosphere. They have a nice bar, a roof top terrace with a pool and free wifi. From €15. 
• 33 The Circus Hostel, Weinbergsweg 1a (U-Bahn: Rosenthaler Platz), ☏ +49 30 2839 1433, fax: +49 30 2839 1484, info@circus-berlin.de. 2-bed rooms start at €28 per person, sleeping hall starts at €19. Not to be confused with the hotel of the same name across the street. 
• 34 EasyHotel, Rosenthaler Straße 69, enquiries@berlinhm.easyhotel.com. Very basic, cheap and clean: small room with tiny bath room. The nearest metro station is on Rosenthaler Platz. Double room €30/night. 
• 35 Gästehaus Berlin Mitte (former Gästehaus der Charité), Habersaathstraße 40a (Metro station Naturkundemuseum, S-Bahn Hauptbahnhof or Friedrichstraße Tram M6, M8), ☏ +49 30 992 968 820, fax: +49 30 992 968 849, info@gaestehaus-berlin-mitte.de. Check-in: 10:30, check-out: 10:00. Single room starts at €39, double room at €49 per room, dormitory at €19 per person. 
• 36 Heart of Gold Hostel Berlin, Johannisstr. 11 (U-Bahn: Oranienburger Tor, S-Bahn: Friedrichstraße/Oranienburger Straße), ☏ +49 30 2900 3300, fax: +49 30 290 44 717, bridge@heartofgold-hostel.de. Private rooms start at €20/person, big dorms start at €9. 
• 37 Helter Skelter Hostel Berlin (former Clubhouse Hostel), Kalkscheunenstr. 4-5 (U-Bahn: Oranienburger Tor, S-Bahn: Friedrichstraße), ☏ +49 30 280 44 997, fax: +49 30 290 44 717, info@helterskelterhostel.com. Double rooms start at €46/room, big dorms start at €13. 
• 38 St Christopher's Berlin (Berlin Hostel), 39-41 Rosa-Luxemburg-Straße, ☏ +49 30 8145 3960, fax: +49 30 8145 3960, berlin@st-christophers.co.uk. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 11:00. A new well maintained hostel with large public bar downstairs located in Mitte. Generally good security and friendly international staff. Part of a large independent hostel chain. €18 with breakfast. 
• 39 wombats City Hostel Berlin, Alte Schönhauser Str. 2 (near Hackesche Höfe in a trendy area), ☏ +49 30 8471028-0, office@wombats-berlin.de. Check-in: 14:00, check-out: 10:00. All rooms with shower and toilet; free WLAN, bar with happy hour etc. €17-60. 

Mid-range

• 40 Amano Auguststraße, Auguststraße 43 (U-Bahn: U8 Rosentaler Platz or Weinmeisterstr., Tram: M1), ☏ +49 30 8094150. This stylish hotel of the Amano chain is recommended for travellers who like extremely minimalist design. It has a nice rooftop bar and a fashionable cocktail bar with DJs. 
• 41 Best Western Hotel Berlin Mitte. 
• 42 Circus Hotel (U-Bahn: U8 Rosentaler Platz, Tram: M1), ☏ +49 30 20003939, info@circus-berlin.de. Rosenthalerstr. 1 - This stylish hotel is close to the Rosenthaler Platz U-Bahn, and is the more luxurious version of the Circus Hostel. Each room has an individual and colorful design. Breakfast included, free wifi, free laptops, DVDs, and iPods available to borrow. Reserve early and ask for an interior room if street noise bothers you at night, but some of the rooms on the street side have a magnificent view over Rosenthaler Platz. Exceptionally friendly service. 
• 43 ibis Styles Berlin Mitte. One of the four ibis Styles hotels in Berlin - make sure to put down the right address to avoid confusion. WiFi and breakfast included in all room prices as in all ibis Styles hotel. 
• 44 Mercure Hotel Berlin City. 
• 45 Ramada Berlin Mitte. 
• 46 TRYP Berlin Mitte. 

South of Tiergarten

Budget

• 47 Jugendgästehaus Berlin International, Kluckstr. 3, ☏ +49 30 261-1097, service@jugendherberge.de. Central location near Potsdam Square with quiet surroundings. Four-bed rooms start at €23.50 (depending on age), ten-person-dormitories start at €15, all overnights including breakfast and bedsheets. HI-Hostel-membership required, international guests may also pay €3.10 extra for an overnight membership. 

Mid-range

• 48 Hotel Berlin Berlin, Lützowplatz 17. A huge hotel occupying an entire block at the Lützowplatz, with many conference rooms and discounts for large parties and conventions. 
• 49 Pestana Berlin Tiergarten Hotel, info.berlin@pestana.com. Located next to the Tiergarten park and zoo, in a quiet corner between embassies. 

Splurge

• 50 Pullman Berlin Schweitzerhof (Sofitel Berlin Schweitzerhof), Budapester Straße 25, ☏ +49 30 26960, h5347@accor.com. The former Sofitel found a new lease of life as an ultra-modern Pullman. It is located in Budapester Straße, a relatively quiet upscale street running along the Zoologischer Garten. some distance away from U-Bahn or S-Bahn stations. The hotel is appointed in the beige/brown/ecru theme also found in other Pullmans in Germany.
  The rooms facing the zoo offer striking vistas, while the ones on the opposite side face a wall of an office building across the courtyard. Fortunately, there are small lobbies on every floor with views of the zoo and complimentary tea and coffee. All rooms offer a full range of modern comforts, including the possibility to link your devices to the room's audio/video systems. There is free mineral water in the rooms, but do note that the WiFi incurs extra charges over the room prices. €149.