Which areas to stay in in Berlin?

[MsFogi]

I'm booking a long weekend in Berlin in May/June - can anyone who knows the city let me know which would be the best areas to book a hotel or AirBnB in? Somewhere well positioned for tourism!

The Visit Berlin site is good here.

We stayed at the art'otel which was near Tiergarten and the Gedachtnis Kirche. Area was fine and it was easy to get around on the public transport but if I went again I think I would stay in Mitte or Kreuzberg as we spent most of our time around there.

I always stay in Alexanderplatz, there’s loads going on and the transport links are excellent.

Who are you going with and what are you interested in? I used to live there so happy to suggest areas and comment on specific streets! It's a fab city, you'll have a great time!

Really interested as well please as looking to go in July with my teen before he heads off to uni Also looking at Airbnb if possible

@redavocado your advice would be most welcome!

Anywhere within the S-Bahn route. Berlin is enormous and the tourist stuff is spread out but the public transport is excellent.

Look up Tropical Islands. It's an old air hanger converted into a tropical swimming pool. It also has accommodation. We're staying there in September and can't wait.

Tropical Islands is quite a long way from Berlin (45 min by train to the centre).

Berlin is very much more touristy than it once was but some bits of Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg are still nice. Honigmond is a nice hotel in Mitte, close to the Wall memorial and other things.

You could do a lot worse than stay a bit further out on the S1 S-Bahn line - somewhere in Friedenau, for example, which is very pretty and leafy - then you can travel in to the tourist stuff in the centre and out to Wannsee, Schlachtensee etc for lake swimming if you like that kind of thing and to the Botanical Garden.

As a long-time Berliner I would say you’re best placed in Mitte, because you can more or less step out the door and be in the middle (hence the name) of things rather than having to take the (excellent) public transport everywhere. The Kiez (neighbourhood) around Oranienburgerstrasse has a more edgy vibe, to the north of Unter den Linden is a bit fancier (but also less interesting in the Berlin sense).
The area around Gedächtniskirche used to be the centre of West Berlin when the city was divided, so it has quite a few hotels, and it’s handy for visiting the zoo and KaWeDe, but apart from that, it feels too conventional for most people. It’s still West Berlin rather than real Berlin, as it were.
If you want to go to Tropical Islands as a separate destination that’s fine, but it’s very much not in Berlin and can easily take 90 mins to 2 hours to get to on a bad day. I also wouldn’t recommend that part of Brandenburg for people of colour, the locals can be a bit, um, unenlightened at times.

Anything else you’re interested in?

If you like it a bit edgier, north Neukölln or Friedrichshain. Kreuzberg is full to bursting these days but Bergmannstrasse is still OK, cafes, shops, great food hall (Markthalle).

I recently stayed on Kurfürstendamm with DC. We loved the location, the zoo was a couple of minutes walk in one direction and we were in the midst of a smart shopping area.
It's easy to get round Berlin on public transport. We hopped on and off trains and underground very easily.

Definitely Mitte. Everytime I go that’s why I try to stay. Lots of things within walking distance and S bahn stops everywhere.

Sorry for offering help and then abandoning the thread! I'd agree with all of this though.

Charlottenburg and the west is still real Berlin (my family are from there!) but it's not the Berlin most tourists are looking for. There are great places to visit there but I'd base myself in Mitte or Kreuzberg if I were you.

The east/west s bahn lines are great for getting around so places near Alexanderplatz or Hackescher Markt would be really central and good for tourists. Otherwise anywhere in Prenzlauer Berg (especially south of Eberswalderstrasse and Danziger Strasse) is good if you want something less hip than Kreuzberg/Neukolln but still buzzy but slightly away from the very centre.

Adina Apartment Hotel, Hackescher Markt (1 minute walk from the S-Bahn overground train and tramline, bus stops 5 minute walk) Hackescher Markt is 1 stop away from Alexanderplatz but I preferred it to Alexanderplatz and it’s still perfect accessibility for everything. We visited for the first time last month!

'Charlottenburg and the west is still real Berlin (my family are from there!) but it's not the Berlin most tourists are looking for.'

Sorry @redavocado, didn't mean to be offensive. Of course Charlottenburg is as real as anywhere else, and I go there frequently, was shopping on Tauentzien only last week. But the feel of the place isn't unique in the way that Mitte or Prenzlberg or Friedrichhain are unique, as you say. It was just renovated too comprehensively in the 60s. You might want to say the same has happened to Mitte in the past few decades, but something of the old vibe still survives.

With respect to the S-Bahn lines, especiaily the S1 down to the south west: while it's a great line that takes you straight through to Potsdamer Platz or Friedrichstrasse, it's also subject to horrendously frequent closures for repairs, with a replacement bus service so stupid that most people just find an alternative or don't travel. So while Friedenau is a lovely leafy suburb, if you were staying there just when the S-Bahn was closed (as it was recently for weeks on end) your transport options would be severely restricted.

Don't worry, I wasn't offended!

When I lived there I used to really rate the west for shopping (Steglitz, Wilmersdorfer Strasse, Kudamm) even when I lived much further east!

I agree re the S Bahn lines. The east west route is your friend! And I'd never suggest anyone (maybe my parents!) stayed in Friedenau, lovely and quiet as it is.