Berlin - absolute MUST to do's?!

[Louise190]

So DP and I are off to Berlin in a few weeks with a whole bunch of people. He's competing in a CrossFit comp over the weekend we are there but we've got a couple days either side for sight seeing etc!

It's just dawned on me that I have never paid much attention to Berlin! What are my absolute MUSTs to do? Any recommendations? We're staying at the Titanic Chaussee if that means anything to anyone!

Thanks in advance!

Berlin certainly knows how to do a good museum. They're so much better than ones in this country. Even the science museum beats the science museum in London, and I didn't think that was possible!
By far the best museum for history was the GDR museum. The queue was long but we are so glad we did it. It's really hands-on and there was so much to do and absorb that my mind was blown before we had done the whole museum!
The Topographie of Terror was very sensitively presented and another free museum worth going to.
For a more light-hearted experience, but no less fascinating, I recommend the Spy Museum. Again, you could spend hours there are not do it all. We loved it.
We also booked timed tickets to go up the Reichstag. Tickets are free but need to be sorted out online before hand for security reasons. Well worth doing though. We went up as it was getting dark and the city lights were coming on. Fascinating to look down into the building as well. Allow about an hour for your visit. From the top you get a good view of the Brandenburg Gate, but I advise walking through it on foot to fully appreciate it.
A walk into Tiergarten as far as the victory column is also great. This can easily be combined with a stop at the sobering but impressive memorial to the Jews.

The DDR museum was epic. We still talk about it 8 years later!

The food was errrrr, terrible. There's only so much schnitzel and sausage one can eat

That’s such a coincidence- I was in Berlin a few days ago staying at the Titanic Chaussee, it’s a good hotel very comfortable and convenient for the U-Bahn from which you can connect onto the S- Bahn busses etc. Just be aware that the hotel pool that you see on the website isn’t free, you have to pay €14 a day and I never had the time to use it.
Loads to see and do - I recommend either a hop on/off bus to get an overview of the sights or a walking tour(I used original Berlin walks who were very good).
Didn’t get a chance to do the DDR museum but did do the German history museum (3 hours not enough!) the topography of terror museum is excellent and checkpoint Charlie is just down the road (very touristy). Also recommend the wall museum near nordbahnhof station and the East side gallery.

East side Gallery, breakfast (or dinner) up the TV tower - mustbook in advance.
Loved the reichstag - again book timed tickets (free).
If you are an Anne Frank coninsuer (my daughter is) there is a tiny museum that is very interesting but quite intense but well worth it.

DDR museum is also my favourite

Going on Wednesday, watching with interest.

Holocaust memorial, an incredible, sobering experience

The check point Charlie museum is intense and not for the faint hearted. Also recommended the Holocaust museum. Again, a difficult but worthwhile visit.

We did a fantastic walking tour and separately the underground bunker tour. Fascinating. There are loads of beer gardens which are great.

www.rausch.de/schokoladenhaus/ Best chocolate shop.

Ka de We food court is amazing ( German Harrods).

Spy museum was good fun.

Holocaust memorial is very powerful.

Jewish museum
Wall memorial- start at Nordbahnhof station
Olympic stadium
Get the 100 bus through the Tiergarten to the gold victory statue
Chocolate shop a must!
East Side Gallery crazy busy unless you go really early but worth a look as a Berlin icon- the wall memorial much better though

I didn't like the DDR museum but did like the smaller, less tacky free one in Prenzlauer Berg

I'm a long time Berlin resident, I've posted on this subject under various names many times, so you could try doing an advanced search.

But adding to what people have written in here, filling in the gaps:

You can get an all-inclusive travel ticket for a number ofdays which is excellent value, and includes discounts for lots of attractions. They're sold at both airports.

Many of the museums are world class, so you really need to think about where your interests lie and specialize: history or art or science? One of my personal faves is the natural history museum. The trip up to the Reichstag dome is free and worthwhile, but compulsory reservation means the spots disappear quickly in summer.

You can get a 24-hour ticket for all (most state run) museums, but you will get fed up quickly if you go to more than three (bitter experience). It's best to attempt those on Museum Island together, but bear in mind that much of the Pergamon is closed off for renovations (including the eponymous altar I think).

The weather is verrry weird at the moment. July/August here tends to be like New York - hot and sticky daytimes leading up to frequent thunderstorms in the late afternoon. The difference being that virtually nobody has air conditioning . But it's mercifully pleasant right now - breezy and about 25 degrees, which is perfect. The best local weather forecast (sadly German only) is from RBB online ( give in RBB Wetter).

Bear in mind that Berlin schools are starting back very early this year - in fact tomorrow - so the city will be full of tourists PLUS locals, and public transport can get very full of kids around 7.30 am and 2pm ish.

DDR Museum
Pergamon museum
Holocaust memorial and the museum beneath - hugely powerful if you haven’t the time or emotional reserve to go to sachsenhuasen itself.

Breakfast on top of the parliament building. You skip the queue and food is amazing

If you are free on the Sunday afternoon then head to the Bear pit karaoke in Mauerpark. It’s fantastic! There’s also a market there.

Take cash, we struggled being used to using debit and credit cards in the uk.

And look down onto the pavements. You may see gold squares on the floor. If you google solpersteins (i think ive spelt it wrong), then youll see what i mean.

@wizziwig

They're called Stolpersteine - stolpern literally means trip over something but here it means coming across something by chance. The idea is to take the fate suffered by ordinary citizens in WWII out of the museums and onto the streets for people to see in everyday life. They're very moving sometimes.

And I'd second @wizzywig with the paying situation.Not only do many restaurants (especially non-touristy ones) only take cash (they're so not declaring all of their income!) but you are expected to have near the right change too. You might be glared at for trying to pay for a 2 Euro item with a 20 euro note, for instance. Berliners are still struggling with the notion of being a Customer-oriented economy...

Prater Garten is the oldest beer garden in Berlin and a lovely place to drink beer eat pretzels and not a tourist trap. The district of Prenzelauer Berg that it's located in is worth a visit in its own right as it has many cool bars and restaurants which are reasonably priced as it's a few stops out from the main attractions .