Berlin Travel Guide

Address: Alexanderplatz10178 BerlinGermany

At the very center of Berlin, Alexanderplatz serves as a hub of the city, with many of the best sights within walking distance of the square. Although the Fernsehturm, the large TV tower that is the second tallest structure in Europe, rises out of the center of the square, the name Alexanderplatz refers to everything within the square, including the world clock, city park, and the Fountain of Friendship between Peoples.

Alexanderplatz was renamed in honor of the Russian Emperor Alexander's visit to Berlin in 1805. With the construction of the station at its center the square became a prominent part of the city and was the center of Berlin's nightlife for much of the 1920s. Since German reunification, the square has started to reemerge as a shopping center and tourist district. One of the most popular attractions of Alexanderplatz is the Fernsehturm TV Tower. A high-speed elevator takes you to the top of the tower where a rotating restaurant completes one revolution every 20 minutes offering a complete view of the city.

Many buildings around the square are undergoing renovation right now although construction does not interfere with the Fernsehturm.

Admission: 8.50 Euros

Hours: March until October 9 o'clock to Midnight
November until February: 10 o'clock to Midnight

*The Fernsehturm is not wheelchair accessible.

Address: Berlin, Germany

Built by the Communists in 1961 to keep East Germans from escaping into the prosperous Western-controlled section of West Berlin, the Berlin Wall was the most famous symbol of the entire Cold War. After civil unrest in late 1989, the East German government stopped defending the Wall and in the weeks and months following, the Wall was torn down first by souvenir hunters and then later by heavy equipment.

Only three small sections of the Wall remain today as a memorial to that divided era. An 80-meter section near the Potsdamer Platz is the easiest to visit, but there is also an art-covered section near the Spree River known as the East Side Gallery, and another memorial section in the north near Bernauer Strasse. None of the remaining sections resemble the full-size look of the Berlin Wall during the Communist Era, as vandals and souvenir hunters continue to chip away at the remaining scraps, and the preserved sections are only one layer of the original security set up.

The best understanding of the Wall and the brutal East German security policies can be found by visiting the Checkpoint Charlie Museum near the site of that infamous border crossing.

Hours: Always open

Admission: The 3 remaining Berlin Wall sections are free to visit

Address: Am Lustgarten, 10178 Berlin

Enter the Berliner Dom and show your neck to the world as your eyes are immediately drawn up, up, up to Karl Friedrich Schinkel's rendition of the 12 apostles on the underside of the Berlin dome cathedral. One of Berlin's architectural landmarks and the former court cathedral of Prussia's roya family the dome is now in its third incarnation after being demolished in 1894 and damaged during World War II.

Built as the Protestant answer to Saint Peter's Cathedral in Vatican City, the church took 20 years to rebuild the dome and simplified the form of the roof in the process.

Located in the Lustgarten on Berlin's Museum Island, the Dome reopened in 1993 and during the 2006 World Cup offered soccer themed prayer services at noon each day. Climb the 270 steps to the top of the dome before you leave for a great view of the surrounding buildings and parks.

Visits to the cathedral can be quick drop-ins between other attractions, but if you're lucky enough to arrive in time for a service, stay to hear the 7,000 pipe Sauer organ--the largest organ in original form from the late Romantic period.

Berliner Dom also hosts organ concerts on Saturdays at 6:00 pm.

Hours: Monday thru Saturday 09:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Admission: 5 euro

Phone: +49(0)30 20269-136

Address: Am Pariser Platz, Berlin, 10117, Germany

Probably the most recognizable existing symbol of Berlin, the Brandenburg Gate (Brandenburg Tor in German) is the only remaining example of what used to be a series of gates through which visitors entered the city. With the new Reichstag building on one side, and the important Unter den Linden Street terminating on the other side, the Brandenburg Gate is in the center of a large chunk of Berlin’s compulsory sights.

Completed in 1791 with 12 Doric columns and a quadriga on top, the Brandenburg Gate is also the backdrop of many large public celebrations. After an extensive renovation prior to Germany’s 2006 World Cup hosting, the large area on the former-Eastern side has been home to most of the city’s biggest outdoor gatherings including an enormous 10th anniversary of the fall of the Wall event in 1999.

The former Berlin Wall ran through the plaza on one side of the Brandenburg Gate, which was closed during this era from 1961 through 1989. The wall is gone in this area now, but the outline remains preserved in the street so visitors can easily picture what the area looked like when it was fully divided. In 1987, US President Ronald Reagan delivered his famous “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” speech just inside the West Berlin side.

Hours: Always open

Admission: Free

Address: Budapester Straße10623 Berlin, Germany

After an allied bombing raid on Berlin in 1943, only part of the Kaiser-Wilhelm- Gedächtniskirche, was left standing. The burned out tower is still there today, a simultaneous reminder of the destruction of war and the resolve to rebuild and one of Berlins most viewed landmarks.

Gedächtniskirche was slated for destruction several times, but avoided demolition in the 1950's and 60's and now stands as a landmark. The church was known for its beautiful glass mosaics decorating the interior and at the base of the tower the surviving artwork can be seen on display along with a history of the church and photographs of the rebuilding process.

Located near Zoologischer Garten, the area around the Gedächtniskirche has filled in with large malls, and shops. A modern church with a hexagonal tower of approximately the same height was built next door in 1961 and took over the services formerly held in the other church.

The church is surrounded by a public square, so the church is visible all the time, but the lower historical gallery is only available to the public until 7 pm each day.

Admission: Free

Hours: 9am to 7 pm

Trains running to Zooligischer Garten stop: (S3, S5, S7, S9, U2, U9, U12)