Berlin with 15 year old

[Lonecatwithkitten]

I am thinking of a possible city break with 15 year old DD to Berlin next year. She is doing GCSE History Cold War and Rise of Nazis modules. I have never been.
She loves to shop, I love to wander look and see history. We both like food, but I am a coeliac.

We have travelled together quite a bit France, USA and Belgium. DP travels a lot through work and has very restricted holiday times so DD and I off alone.

Loads to do. My favourite city. Look on Trip Advisor for things to do in Berlin.
Friends of ours have just been with teenagers. The things they enjoyed most were Topographie des Terrors (WW2) and the Spy Museum. You can visit the Stasi H Q and Stasi prison. The Jewish Museum is very moving.
Don't bother with the Checkpoint Charlie Museum. You can get the same information from other places.
My friend's DH is coeliac. They don't have too many problems. She has a written script (in German) explaining what he can't eat and she shows it to the staff.

The Reichstag (parliament) building is a great visit and it's free! However, you do have to book a time slot online in advance. (We nearly missed out due to leaving it too late.) You also have to show your passport when you visit, as security there is understandably tight.

We also enjoyed the Sandeman's "free" walking tour which explained the historical significance of places that we wouldn't have realised if we'd just walked there without a guide. I say "free" in that no one will force you to pay, but the guides rely on tips to earn a living, so it would be mean not to pay something at the end if you enjoy the tour (which we certainly did).

One tip: the Berlin public transport system is very good, but be aware that when you buy a ticket, you have to stamp it in a machine on the platform to validate it. Failure to validate your ticket will result in you getting fined if there's a ticket inspection.

Enjoy your trip!

We went In the summer with 15 yr old coeliac ds. We managed to eat everywhere with no issues. Shops had big gf sections, I brought loads home.

We did the sachsenhassan concentration camp (harrowing and humbling but very informative) hitlers bunker - again interesting but long, checkpoint Charlie - just took pictures. River trip, good and the hop on /off bus.

We've booked to go to Berlin next year too. My DC will be 16 and 19 at the time. I've been doing my research and am hoping to 'theme' days so one day looking at Jewish history, one at Nazi history and another looking at the Communist era and the Berlin Wall.

As others have said, visiting the Reichstag is free and you can book ahead to go into the dome. Topography of Terror I think is on the site of Gestapo HQ and is also free. I've noted that there is a free tour in English on Sunday at 3.30pm. Between the two is the Holocaust Memorial (Memorial to the murdered Jews of Europe). Also free but €4 ish for an audio tour. Hitler's actual bunker is now a car park but part has been reconstructed in the Berlin Story Bunker. That has mixed reviews as it sounds like there are a lot of artefacts and boards to read (Inc in English).

There's a memorial to the book burning in Babelplatz and a few buildings still standing that had illustrious pasts which might be best covered on a walking tour.

To focus on the Berlin Wall era I'm tempted by a Trabi tour but it might be a bit expensive for 4. The DDR museum gets good reviews and there is the Berlin Wall memorial which is a section of the original wall in North Berlin and the East Side Gallery which I think are murals on the wall. There's also the Tranenpalast or Palace of Tears which I think is a station divided by the Wall.

Further afield there is the Concentration camp at Sachenhausen to the North. To the West there is the House of the Wannsee Conference and Glienicke Brucke (spy exchange bridge) on the way to Potsdam.

Loads to do with older children!

The wall memorial on Bernauer St is superb. The Stasi HQ museum is also worth a visit.

Yes to Topographie of Terrors and also to the exhibition underneath the Holocaust memorial. The Jewish museum is also excellent.

Treptower Park for an amazing statue to the Russian soldiers who died taking Berlin.

House of the Wannsee Conference is very moving. You can use your public transport ticket to get the ferry across the lake there too - there are beer gardens on the other side.

agree with all the other posters , we rally enjoyed the DDR interactive museum here

For Jewish Berlin, wander around the area around here and look out for stumble stones, which mark where Jewish families used to live before being murdered in concentration camps -they are all paid for by individuals/communities who live there now.

Also we downloaded an app called get your guide, saved us a fortune on entrance fees.

I did the exact same thing with my DD when she was 15. We also did the SachsenHausen trip through this company. www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Attraction_Review-g187323-d1807002-Reviews-Vive_Berlin_Tours-Berlin.html
I would highly recommend them!

Went last month, we enjoyed a bus tour for starters. Our favourite was the Topography of Terror and the Reichstag(so glad we booked).
Had great food everywhere we went, so don't think your struggle coeliac.

For a bit of fun go to the monsterkabinett.

www.monsterkabinett.de/www-html/index.php

It's a funny show made up of automechinisms. Last year it was about €8 and lasts about half an hour. Very funny!

If you buy a travel pass don't forget that you can use it on the ferries as that is part of the public transport system.

.

There are a lot of god suggestions for the war type attractions but can I suggest that's you break the day up into history stuff/ fun stuff.
The first time I went my friend crammed so much stuff in about the spies, the Jewish memorial, and other similar things I felt utterly drained.
Do fun stuff as well. I have mentioned the Monsterkabbinet which I saw fabulous. There's lovely parks all over. If you are there on a Sunday head over to Mauerpark. Half is a flea marke/ food place and the other half has buskers, bands and acts on.
Museum Island is good as well. There is the city zoo, East side gallery I see a good walk. Remember to look at both sides of the wall
I've booked my next flIshtar for December.

The zoo (the one in the west) is the best I've ever been to.

If the weather is nice (cold and dry works well too), try to get out to a lake for a walk. Schlactensee is on the Wannsee line, so it's easy to do both in one day.

A river trip (you can catch boats outside the DDR museum) is a nice relaxing way of learning more about the city - and a nice balancer to all the history stuff.

And just sitting and people watching is great.

Thank you everyone so many great ideas.

Coeliac with German OH here. 😊

This is an organic gf bakery in Berlin, you can order online to collect.

www.jute-bäckerei.de/en/about-the-jute-baeckerei/about-us/

There are lots of good apartments to rent in Berlin, might be your easiest option.