Berlin

[petitdonkey]

Hi All, Does anyone have any Berlin recommendations? I have never been but going in late April and so excited.
I would especially like restaurant recommendations - somewhere cool with a relaxed but energetic vibe... does that make sense??! Not formal but great food.
We have booked a hotel in Charlottenburg - no idea on areas though.

Any must-dos gratefully received!

There is so much to do and see in Berlin, you can't do everything in one trip.

We liked the Reichstag, Brandenberg Gate and Holocaust Memorial which are close to each other. The Jewish Museum was very interesting too.

We went with DD and she was really interested in the idea of the Berlin Wall and divided city so we spent time in East Berlin. Coffee at the top of the Fernseherm tower, the DDR museum, remains of the wall and Tranenpalast. The Wall panorama just near Checkpoints Charlie gave a good idea of what it was like. We went to the equivalent in Dresden as well.

We had a boat trip to the House of the Wannsee Conference.

Next time we will go to the Pergamon Museum and out to Potsdam.

No food recommendations as we were going vegan so not everyone's cup of tea!

If you're a movie fan, a lot of movies have been filmed in Berlin and tracking down the locations can be a good way of exploring the city (and further afield). Most of the first Bourne film was filmed there, including lots of bits supposedly filmed in Munich, Moscow, etc. The S-Bahn station Messe Nord features in a lot of movies, music videos, etc. due to it's distinctive appearance.

Over the last 20 years I've been to Berlin at least a dozen times, I always find somewhere new I haven't been and I still have a list of places I haven't got around to seeing yet.

If you’re interested in history a trip round the flak tower at humboldthain is interesting. There’s also the spy museum.

I don’t know any cool bar/restaurant recommendations but I second PPs suggestion of getting doner - it was so good!

One of my favourite cities!

The museum at Checkpoint Charlie is fascinating. The weekend breakfast buffet at Ka De We is amazing! There's also a revolving restaurant at the Fernsehrturm with amazing views.

If you have time take the S-Bahn out to the Grunwald or Wansee and have lovely leafy walks and boat rides across the Havel. So pretty.

I'm following as would love to go one day!

Just come back from Berlin. Really enjoyed Markthalleneun for street food Thursdays. We stayed in Mitte and were spoilt for choice for great places for cocktails and restaurants. Also Monkey bar overlooking the zoo for great views and lovely cocktails.

Walking tour - fascinating
Walk yourself down to museum island and site by the river
Radio tower
We went to a restaurant above the zoo - monkey bar and Nene or something - was good!

Cuore di Vetro ice cream parlour has the most incredible flavours. I went 5 years ago and still remember the pistachio scoop.

www.unsicht-bar-berlin.de/en/html/menu.html

Make sure you watch Deutschland 83 and then go to the Stasi museum. And while it’s not feel good, if you haven’t been to a concentration camp, do go to Sachsenhausen. Horrific. But important. My sons were 12 and 14 and the older one wants to study history. His personal statement begins with a reference to his visit. Lots of lovely biergartens too. Awesome city.

As others have said, the Reichstag tour is fantastic but you have to book ahead. The Jewish museum is overwhelming. Loved the Pergamon museum.

We had a really good meal at the Literaturhaus - interesting local food and deeply untouristy.

www.literaturhaus-berlin.de/

The DDR museum is excellent, combine it with a boat trip down the Spree as iirc the tours go sort of from the same area .

My grandfather and his family were in Sachsenhausen. My grandfather was rescued by the Kindertransport but the rest of his family were murdered there. My DD has been and said it was an experience quite like no other. You will need a whole day.

For something less genocide tinged there is a great place where you can visit the tunnels under the wall and see where East Berliners attempted to cross to the West.

You’ll be spoilt for choice food wise. Definitely get a curry wurst. There are plenty of funky places to eat.

My favourite activity? The Sunday flea markets. Total heaven. I nearly bought a taxidermied otter last time but then thought I could probably spend 50 euros in a better way. I still regret leaving it there 😂

Also pay a visit to a supermarket , there are a couple of ReWe ones on Friedrichstrasse. Honey, chocolates and sauces are good.

Definitely go out to Wannsee if you can and take a trip on the lake. It’s beautiful.

Love Berlin... check out Neukolln for some interesting places to eat

We really enjoyed Maximillians, a traditional Bavarian restaurant (even though Berlin isn't in Bavaria!) Very simple food, but very tasty. Whilst you might strike it lucky with a walk-in, would recommend booking to be sure if you like the look of it.

We ate here last year:
Kumpel & Keule Speisewirtschaft

would definitely recommend!

And I wouldn’t advise Berghain unless you are into very hard techno 😛and like queues!

For food I recommend 'NYOM' on Boxhagener Platz, vegan and veggie Asian, I'm a carnivore but the food is wonderful and it has a good cool ambience, it's an informal busy kind of place. Boxhagener Platz generally and the area around ut is great for restaurants and cafes, you really are so spoilt for choice in Berlin. Boxhagener Platz also has a great flea market on Sundays if that is your thing. Get the tube to WarschauerStrase and walk up from there.

My favourite meal in Berlin is always Fruhstuck! Breakfast! They really do a great breakfast, meat, cheese, eggs, it's a huge feast.

Worth knowing - cash is king in Berlin. It's quite common for places to be cash only although more places do take cards these days, don't expect everywhere to.

My top Berlin tip for summer is get the train to Shlachtensee, it's a beautiful lake for swimming, very popular in the summer months, take your swimmers, a towel, a picnic and a bottle of beer. It's heaven. Enjoy!