Sights

Neues Museum

Visitor Entrance:
 Bodestr 1
Open Sun-Weds 10am-6pm, Thu-Sat 10am-8pm
Tickets by phone: +49 (30) 266 42 42 42 (Mon-Fri 9am-4pm)

This museum, housed in an imposing Neo-Classical building, first opened in 1855. Badly damaged in WWII, it remained closed for 70 years – the renovated museum reopened in October, 2009. Instead of pursuing a traditional restoration, architect David Chipperfield modernized the exhibit spaces while leaving much of the original building intact, including walls still pocked with bullet holes. The museum is best known for its excellent collection of Egyptian art, including the famous bust of Nefertiti. The building also contains the Museum of Prehistory and Early History, and select pieces from the Collection of Classical Antiquities.

Pergamonmuseum

Visitor Entrance: Am Kupfergraben 5
Information: +49 (30) 266 42 42 42
Open daily, 10am-6pm (Thu, 10am-10pm)

This museum accommodates three separate museums: the Collection of Classical Antiquities, the Museum of the Ancient Near East, and the Museum of Islamic Art. It is world-famous for its monumental reconstruction of ancient architectural masterpieces, including the Hellenistic Pergamon Altar; the Babylonian Ishtar Gate, which Alexander the Great passed through; and the Roman Market Gate of Miletus. The museum is currently undergoing restoration, but total closure will be avoided.

Altes Museum

Visitor Entrance: Am Lustgarten 

Information: +49 (30) 266 42 42 42
Open Tue-Sun 10am-6pm (Thu, 10am-8pm). Closed Mon.

This stately museum, built in Classical style between 1823 and 1830, was originally designed to hold all of Berlin’s art collections. Today it presents the heart of the Classical Antiquities collection: antique sculptures, vases, terracottas, bronzes, gold and silver jewelry, gemstones, cameos and glass. One of the most extensive collections of Etruscan art and culture outside Italy is once again on display, and new exhibitions are being unveiled constantly.

Alte Nationalgalerie (Old National Gallery)

Visitor Entrance Bodestrasse 1-3
Information: +49 (30) 266 42 42 42
Open Tue-Sun 10am-6pm (Thu, 10am-10pm). Closed Mon.

The temple-like exterior of this museum, with its monumental staircase, came from a sketch by King Frederick Wilhelm IV. Badly damaged in WWII, it was partially restored in the late 1940s, and underwent full restoration in the 1990s, reopening in 2001. The museum is home to 19th-century sculpture and paintings, including masterpieces from the schools of Romanticism and Impressionism.

Bode-Museum

Visitor Entrance: Am Kupfergraben 1
Information: +49 (30) 266 42 42 42
Open Tue-Sun, 10am-6pm (Thu, 10am-10pm). Closed Mon.

Distinctive for its round shape and impressive dome, this Baroque building suffered extensive damage in WWII. Reconstructed over the years, it was reopened in its entirety in 2006. The museum’s holdings include a first-class collection of Byzantine Art, one of the world’s largest Numismatic (coin) collections, and a vast collection of sculpture, from the early Middle Ages to the late 18th century.

Neue Nationalgalerie

Visitor Entrance: Potsdamer Strasse 50
Information: +49 (30) 266 42 42 42
Open Tue-Sun 10am-6pm (Thu, 10am-10pm). Closed Mon.

The Neue Nationalgalerie was opened in 1968 as the counterpart to the Alte Nationalgalerie. Its collection of 20th-century art is now located in a striking building by Mies van der Rohe. The focus of the collection is on cubism, expressionism, the Bauhaus, surrealism and American color-field painting.

Deutsches Historisches Museum

Unter den Linden 2
Information: +49 (30) 20 30 40
Open daily 10am-6pm. Closed Dec 24 & 25.

History buffs will enjoy this museum’s exhaustive collection of artifacts, spanning 2000 years (including an impartial look at the 20th century). Housed in the Zeughaus, the oldest structure on Unter den Linden, the museum features a new extension designed by I. M. Pei.

Deutsches Technikmuseum

Trebbiner Strasse 9
Tel: +49 (30) 90 25 40
Spectrum Entrance: Möckernstrasse 26
Spectrum Tel: +49 (30) 90 25 42 84
Open Tue-Fri 9am-5:30pm, Sat-Sun 10am-6pm. Closed Mon.

One of the largest technology museums in Europe, this complex gives a truly exciting insight into technological development through the years. Visitors can discover the history and science behind navigation, avaition, and the things we use every day. Dozens of old planes, ships and locomotives are also on display. The neighboring Science Center Spectrum offers 250 hands-on experiments that help visitors of all ages learn about scientific discoveries and natural phenomena.

Mauermuseum Haus am Checkpoint Charlie

Founded in 1963 directly next to the legendary Checkpoint Charlie border crossing, this museum has exhibitions on the history of the Berlin Wall, and original objects from successful escapes under, over and around the wall.

Reichstag

Platz der Republik 1
Roof terrace and dome open 8am-11pm (advance registration required - book online)
Visitors Services: +49 (30) 22 73 21 52
Rooftop restaurant open daily 9am-4:30pm and 6:30pm-midnight
Use the entrance to the right of West Portal (West C)
Reservations: +49 (30) 22 62 99 33

This massive Neo-classical building was a powerful symbol of the German Reich. Heavily bombed in WWII, it was transformed into a modern masterpiece in the late 90s by British architect Sir Norman Foster. It is now the seat of the German Parliament. The egg-shaped dome offers spectacular views over the city and down into the Parliament chamber. Dining at the rooftop restaurant is the best way to see the Reichstag – it lets you avoid the hours-long wait to get inside.

Brandenburg Gate

The last surviving gate of Berlin’s original 18, the famous Brandenburger Tor was built in 1791 by Prussian rulers as a triumphal arch. With the Tiergarten behind it, and the grand Unter den Linden boulevard stretching before it, the gate has been a focal point of the city for centuries, as a symbol of Prussian Berlin, of divided Berlin, and now of reunified Berlin.

Hackesche Höfe

An elaborately restored network of nine 19th-century courtyards, this attractive complex is the largest of its kind in Germany and one of Berlin’s main hotspots, filled with galleries, shops, bars, restaurants and clubs.

Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche

Breitscheidplatz
Open 9am-7pm

This Neo-Romanesque church is called the “Broken Tooth” for its jagged, ruined bell tower, left standing as a memorial of WWII. The restored mosaics inside, featuring Prussian emperors and dukes, are stunning.

Topography of Terror Documentation Center

Niederkirchnerstrasse 8

Open daily 
10am-8pm. Closed Dec 24 & 31, and Jan 1. Admission is free.
Tel: +49 (30) 25 45 09 50

This site marks the former headquarters of the SS and Gestapo. Since 1987 a permanent exhibition has informed visitors about the site. In May 2010, a new Documentation Center opened, with exhibitions addressing National Socialist policy in Berlin from 1933-45, the central institutions of the SS and police in the “Third Reich,” and the crimes they perpetrated throughout Europe. There is also a site tour with 15 stops illustrating particular aspects of the site’s history.

Denkmal für die ermordeten Juden Europas

Cora-Berliner-Strasse 1
Field of stelae open 24 hrs. Information center open daily 10am-8pm.

The first German government-sponsored Holocaust memorial, this field of 2,711 concrete stelae is a somber, moving tribute to the Murdered Jews of Europe. The field is open to the sky – visitors can move among the blank pillars, then continue to an information center listing facts and figures about the Holocaust victims. The former site of Hitler’s bunker is just 200 yards away.

Nikolaiviertel

This old German village, with its medieval church and narrow streets lined with shops and restaurants, is one of the most charming parts of Berlin.

Schloss Charlottenberg

Spandauer Damm 20-24
Altes Schloss open Tue-Sun 10am-5pm (to 6pm Apr-Oct). Neuer Flügel open Wed-Mon 10am-5pm (to 6pm Apr-Oct).
Tel: +49 (0) 331 96 94 200

Originally built in 1699 by Elector Frederick III as a summer residence for his wife Sophie Charlotte, this Baroque palace was expanded over the years and is now Berlin’s largest. It was heavily damaged by Allied bombs but has been meticulously restored. Highlights include the opulent chapel, the exquisite, mirrored Porzellankabinett, and the largest collection of 18th-century French paintings outside of France. Don’t miss the New Wing (Neuer Flügel), which houses the private quarters of Frederick the Great.

Schönhausen Palace

Tschaikowskistrasse 1
Tel: +40 (0)331 96 94 200
Open Apr-Sep, Tue-Sun 10am-6pm (Tue-Fri by guided tour only). Oct-Mar, Sat & Sun 10am-5pm (by guided tour only)

In December, 2009 this palace opened as a museum exploring its eventful history. Queen Elisabeth Christine, wife of Frederick the Great, once used the palace as her summer residence, and her exquisitely decorated rooms are on show. More recent exhibits include the originally furnished GDR government guest apartment and the study belonging to Wilhelm Pieck, the GDR’s first president.

Sanssouci

Open Apr-Oct, Tue-Sun 10am-6pm; Nov-Mar, Tue-Sun 10am-5pm
Tel: +49 (0)331 96 94 200

A full-day excursion by car or boat from Berlin, this magnificent palace complex has often been compared to Versailles. Sanssouci Palace was the former summer home of Frederick the Great. He named it Sanssouci (“without care” in French) and it became his favorite retreat from the city. Completed in 1747, its elegant rooms feature a number of works by the French rococo painter Watteau. The palace’s extensive park is filled with formal gardens, small palaces and charming buildings, including Roman baths, a Chinese House and an historic windmill (which now contains the visitor's center). North of the park is the vast, lavishly decorated Neues Palais, which Frederick the Great had built in Baroque style from 1763-69.

Zoologischer Garten

Hardenbergplatz 8
Tel. +49 (0)30 254 010
Open daily mid Mar-Oct, 9am-7pm; Oct-mid Mar, 9am-5pm (closes 2pm Dec 24)

Germany’s oldest zoo is one of the world’s best, with over 1,500 species ranging from pandas to gorillas, and a successful animal breeding program. The zoo captured international attention in 2006 with the birth of the über-cute Knut, the first polar bear born here in 30 years.

Deutsches Technikmuseum

One of the largest technology museums in Europe, this complex teaches insights about technological development through play. Kids can climb on locomotives, check out planes and ships, and discover how everyday objects are made. The Spectrum exhibit offers 250 hands-on experiments for learning about science and physics. (See "Other Museums" above.)

MACHmit! Museum für Kinder

Senefelderstraße 5/6
Open Tue-Sun 10am-6pm; closed Mon
Tel: +49 (30) 747 78 200

MACHmit! means "join in!" and this museum offers kids 4-12 myriad opportunities for hands-on learning through play. Located in a converted church, the space includes a house of mirrors, a wooden climbing shelf and a print shop, and offers workshops in arts and crafts like sewing, porcelain painting, and soap making.

AquaDom and Sea Life Berlin

Spandauer Strasse 3
Tel: +49(0) 180 5 66 690 101 (a small fee applies)
Open daily 10am-7pm (last entrance at 6pm)

This new complex holds two attractions in one. Sea Life takes visitors on an underwater journey from the Spree River to the depths of the ocean. AquaDom is the world’s largest free-standing aquarium, housing some 1,500 tropical fish.

Tierpark Friedrichsfelde

Am Tierpark 125
Tel. +49 (0) 30 515 310
Open daily late Mar-mid Sep, 9am-6pm; mid Sep-late Oct 9am-5pm; late Oct-late Mar, 9am-4pm (closes 1pm Dec 24)

Set in the parklands around Friedrichsfelde Palace, this is Europe’s largest zoological garden. The elephants, lions and Siberian tigers are particularly worth seeing. The palace, built in 1695, houses a museum of period art and furniture.