Berlin advice please!

[LucyLastik]

Dd1 and I are heading out to Berlin in February half term and I have some questions:

Is a welcome card worth it for travelling purposes?

Can I use chip and pin or would cash be better?

Where are the must see places?

Is there anything else I need to know?!

It's the first time I've ever booked a holiday, let alone an abroad one so any information or advice would be much appreciated.

Oh I love Berlin! You will have a great time! How old is your DD? We went in February about 4 years ago and Im pretty sure we did most things on a card rather than cash? Would imagine with Covid it will be even more cashless now?
There are loads of things to see, we did Reichstag, Checkpoint Charlie, Brandenberg Gate, Museum Island, Berlin TV tower. My kids were little so we also did Legoland discovery centre and took a train out to Tropical Islands (Huge swimming place in an old zeplin Hangar) and the Berlin zoo. We found it a really easy city to navigate by public transport and all really enjoyed it.

It’s a brilliant city. We went in May:
Reichstag
Brandenburg Gate
Badeschiff but that might not be open www.arena.berlin/veranstaltungsort/badeschiff/
If either of you is veggie, Cookies Cream is amazing. Not cheap at all but a real treat
cookiescream.com/
It’s really easy to get around.
Have a brilliant time!

Hi sorry to gate crash but are PCR tests required for entry to Berlin ?

Highly recommend the berlin zoo it’s is excellent!

Potsdam an interesting day out.
Travel around on the trains is very easy and comprehensive.
Jewish museum and Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe I suggest visiting if your DD is old enough.

Depends how old your child is but we did day trip to Sachenhausen Concentration Camp. I think about 45mins by train from Berlin. Sad but very much worth the trip.
We also did a free walking tour one morning, they left from Brandenburg gate and took us for 2hrs or so around Berlin, to the holocaust memorial etc and was so interesting we tipped the guy €50. Also worth a look.
Berlin is a great city, really friendly people.

This is amazing! I've promised DS14 we will do a quick jaunt to Berlin over Easter. I'm only thinking 2 nights (he has ASD and although very chilled and high functioning, he can just tune out and disengage, so I thought a shorter trip (albeit super busy!) might be ok). Hoping it helps with his German & History GCSEs, just to put a bit of perspective to his studies.

Have been doing a bit of research, is the Mitte the best area to stay? And is it straightforward getting from airport to city via train, or are we best off getting a cab? I've never been to Berlin, and haven't uttered a word of German since my GCSEs (which I've 99.9% forgotten), but am hoping that shouldn't be an enormous hindrance.

Any recommendations for hotels and restaurants that a teen boy would love?

I’ve been twice, first time at Christmas and second time in October when heavily pregnant. First time we spent a lot of time at the Christmas markets, but other stuff we did included the Reichstag (need to prebook and take passport) DDR museum, topography of terror and the trannenpalast. Second time we went to the Olympic stadium, checkpoint Charlie museum and did a boat trip. Really enjoyed everything except the checkpoint charlie museum which was really expensive and a bit shit. First time I stayed at the intercon which was gorgeous and the lounge there was really good, second time we stayed at the Marriott which was nice but I don’t remember loads about the hotel.

Thanks all.

DD is just 18 so we are both super excited!

@EmmaStone Depending on your budget the Radisson hotel in the centre is very cool, it has the worlds largest free-standing aquarium towering over reception and you can get rooms that overlook it (plus it's right next to Museum island and not far to walk from the Brandenburg Gate).

I see recommendations for Berlin Zoo but I have say it really upset me, lots of animals seemed poorly cared for (both the Andean bear and one of the cats had very badly overgrown claws for example).

Ah you’ll love Berlin! Just worth noting that currently the rules for entering non-essential shops, bars, restaurants and attractions are quite strict so it’s advisable to make sure you have had your booster less than 3 month ago otherwise you need a daily test to enter.

I would probably stay in Prenzlauerberg on a first trip. Berlin has good public transport and the center can be a bit soulless to stay even though there are lots of great attractions.

Enjoy!

@escocesita

Ah you’ll love Berlin! Just worth noting that currently the rules for entering non-essential shops, bars, restaurants and attractions are quite strict so it’s advisable to make sure you have had your booster less than 3 month ago otherwise you need a daily test to enter.

I would probably stay in Prenzlauerberg on a first trip. Berlin has good public transport and the center can be a bit soulless to stay even though there are lots of great attractions.

Enjoy!

Ah I'm worried now.

I was boosted in December but Dd isn't as she was due it from 28/01 but had Covid 2 weeks ago.

According to our gov website, she is classed as fully vacced.

Might this be an issue?

I love Berlin and for first visit I would definitely the main things so the Reichstag , we loved the Holocaust museum - it is done in a really interesting way - there was also a little village place we went to for a meal which was v cute but sorry forgotten the name - someone will know. The one thing we did not do & so not sure how expensive but looked quite fun was a Trabant Safari.

We stayed near the Gendarmenmarkt which I though was a nicer place in the evening than Alexanderplatz. (It may have been the Hilton but if you are able to find it via google it was two doors away from the most fabulous chocolate shop if you like that sort of thing ( bizarrely I don't but other members of the family did )

I think you will have a fabulous time ) .

3G rule - geimpft, genesen, getestet - fully vaxxed, recovered or lat test for entry. You should be fine as long as you have evidence - mine has her vax confirmation on her phone.
What you will need is medical-grade masks, when going from place to place - they would be laughing at our cloth ones - you have to have FFP2 ones there.
www.boots.com/boots-protective-ffp2-nr-face-masks-5s-10292473

Hi @LucyLastik

Yes, that should be fine! I believe people who had corona in the last three months are exempt from a test as long as they have proof.

Here are the current rules in English: www.berlin.de/corona/en/measures/

The good news is that getting a test done is really, really easy in Berlin. There are test centers on every corner though I’m not 100% on how this works for tourists. For residents it’s definitely free.

I can’t remember what the welcome card is, but we had a card that meant you could travel on anything and it was amazing. Just jump in any transport without thinking about it - it made it so easy to get about so assuming it’s that, go for it. My favoured were the ddr museum where everything is set up like life in the gdr. Really fun and hands on for kids too. The wall art gallery was really cool too - you walk along a section that has been graffitied by artists. Free and interesting. The holocaust museum and monument to the murdered Jews is well done and very moving. Similarly the museum about the wall. To be honest there’s so much good stuff that’s fascinating!

The Holocaust Memorial is really moving in its simplicity I found.
We stayed at Pullman Berlin which was great - good pool and spa too.

Just wanted to wish you a fantastic time on your first trip with your daughter .

Have lots of fun and come back and tell us about it if you remember!

Bon voyage

Just to say have a great time. Please let us know how it goes, where you stay and what you enjoyed the most - I am also thinking of a similar trip in early April with DS and DD

Plenty of great things to see in Berlin, wishing you a fabulous time! One thing to bear in mind is that Berlin can get very cold in winter. You’ll be fine indoors, German buildings tend to be well-insulated. However I recommend taking some warm layers against potential bracing wind/snow!