Berlin recommendations

[Whatslovegottodowithit123]

Hello everyone!

I am off to Berlin at the end of next month and looking for places to go / where to eat / drink etc etc. I know there is Google which I will use but it’s always good to get more personal recommendations!

I’ve been once before but only for 2 nights and about 10 years ago. So far we have a walking tour booked and we want to go to the Jewish Museum.

Who are you going with?
We went last October with 2 pre-teens and had a fabulous time.
Highlights were a bike tour (we went with Fat Tire tours, based at the TV tower) and the hands on section of the Technikmuseum. We also enjoyed breakfast up the TV tower and booked to visit the Reichstag, which had lovely views and a free audio tour. We enjoyed Berlin Zoo too (my daughter wanted to go as it had featured in her German lessons at school!).

I am going with my mum. I am early 30s and she is mid 60s! The bike tour sounds fab!

Anyone else?

Go to Museum Island but book tickets so you're not queuing. And the Stasi museum (it's down a small street near Checkpoint Charlie). There are some small bars around there which are good.

For food we looked at small locally run places but the food is heavy on potatoes and pork.

Forgive the spellings I'm too lazy to check them!

Museum Island
Science Museum (not on Museum Island)
Sony Centre for a quick drink as it's cool
Berlinner Republik bar (by the river do thin pizza thingys (flamkucken??)
Brauhaus Mitte - lovely traditional pub really cosy
Segway tour was cool (sorry can't remember which one we used)

Lucky you, we loved it. We started with a bus tour from Alexanderplatz to get our bearings which was great. If you get fed up of the heavy meat and potatoes there are some great fish restaurants too.

i always recommend the Spionage Museum (spy museum) a lot of fun

From a Berlin-born and raised, visit Pfaueninsel (peacock island). It's beautiful and full of free-roaming peacocks.

Reichstag building your, make sure you book. It's free.

Jewish museum, incredible for the building alone.

Tour*

Jewish museum also is free.

I can't remember places we ate but I loved the city and can't wait to go back, enjoy! There was a great gallery display called The Wall I think, near Checkpoint Charlie. Really brought the experiences of people on each side of the divide to life.

Go to The Bellboy Bar for cocktails and jazz!

Life in the DDR museum - culture, shops, politics, sport. Sit in a recreated Tower block flat and watch TV. When the weather is better a boat trip down the Wansee under the bridge of spies is pretty cheap and relaxing.

S-Bahn to Potsdam for a walk around Parc Sansoucci. Wall exhibit up at Bernauer Strasse. Stasi HQ in Lichtenberg, and if you can stomach it, a tour of Hohenschonhausen Prison.

Book ahead for the Riechstag - I left it until the week before going and could only get 8am entry. It's definitely easier (for you) if you print a copy of the letter they send. It's free and you get a free audio guide as well.
The TV tower is expensive, if you're going to go up it for the view anyway, why not kill 2 birds with one stone and book a restaurant ticket instead? The menus are all online so you can decide for yourself if you think it's worth the money. You get the table for 90 mins IIRC.
Also, when we were there in Feb one of the main museums on Museum Island was closed for refurbishment so worth checking if that was one you were hoping to visit.
Can't remember specific eateries I'm afraid, other than my DD was disappointed she only discovered the child menu option of potato pancakes and apple sauce on the last day 😂

When people are saying book tickets for Museum Island is that for the island itself or the museums on it?

Just a warning about Fernsehturm -

If you are remotely prone to vertigo, the elevator ascends fairly quickly, and there's a distinct feeling of the floor moving once you step out of it, so it triggered mine quite severely and I had to go back down again after a couple of minutes. It was worth it just to see the view, but I made me feel ill to the point whereby I couldn't just ignore it.

Thanks everyone!

does anyone have recommendations on where to eat / drink / jazz clubs?

Bump. We’re flying today!

Have a wonderful trip and please update us on your return about what was good.

@Whatslovegottodowithit123 how was the trip? Do you have any recommendations as we go in a couple of weeks