footastic

Hey guys - me and the wife are going to be spending some time in Berlin in march.. Any must see / eat places you guys know of? Whats a good area to stay in? this will be my first visit to Berlin (spent several weeks in Munich a few years back)... Thanks for the advice !^

linglingfool

Berlin is a huge, diverse city (and one of my favorites), so need a little more guidance to help you narrow it down. What types of activities do you prefer? Are you looking to stay in a younger, edgier neighborhood, or somewhere a little quieter and nicer? 4 days is a nice chunk of time, and may even allow you to take a trip out of the city, but hard to make a lot of blanket recommendations.

footastic

we are pretty open to ideas.. we are young so the edgier neighborhoods are always fun (with good bars and eats) along with artsy spots.. I was looking at maybe going on a day trip, but wasn't sure if 4 days would be better spent in Berlin over splitting it with another city.

StrophariaCube

Hi,
you should definitely spend the whole time there, a lot to see. Maybe
- first day general sight seeing with Brandenburg Gate, Kurfürstendamm, Unter den Linden.
- 2nd day museums (Museumsinsel for the antique stuff, Hamburger Bahnhof for modern art)
- 3rd day strolling in the cool quarters (Kreuzberg, Prenzlauer Berg, Friedrichshain)
- 4th day: relax

Or if you're strong enough: spend three whole days at Berghain techno club...;-)

footastic

haha great outline i think were staying in Kreuzberg - any specific regional eats to berlin we must try?

linglingfool

Berlin is the döner kebab capital (think a tastier version of a gyro, and possibly my favorite food in the world). There are stands everywhere that all put their unique spin on it, but it's all generally the same.

StrophariaCube hit on a good general plan. I would add a visit to the Bundestag on day 1, availing yourself of the excellent free guided tour provided. Advanced registration is required for security purposes; you can find more information here. I would also recommend a guided walking tour on the first day to help you get oriented with the major landmarks of the city, so you can be better informed when you do some exploring on your own.

You could easily spend an entire day on the Museumsinsel. One piece of advice I would have regarding museums is to skip the Checkpoint Charlie museum, which seems to appeal to visitors, but is overpriced and not very interesting.

I would look into a trip out to Potsdam or Sachsenhausen on day 4.

Kreuzberg has had a little of its edge taken off in recent years, but is still a lot of fun. There is a heavy Turkish influence in the area, so if you want to expand beyond the döner, give restaurants in the area a shot.

AlanInDC

I spent a full week in Berlin. I had thought I would do a day trip or two, but never made it out of the city.

Museum Island is the famous place for museums, but there are oodles of them in Berlin. Think about what you're interested in, and then look. For example, I went to a museum focused on Bauhaus and one that featured the work of Paul Klee.

I recommend the new museum on the site of the former SS headquarters. When I visited, it was only partially completed/open and even then it was quite impressive. Also, the Jewish museum is worth a visit. Though the Checkpoint Charlie museum is a bit touristy, it does have a lot of artifacts from that period of history--the ways people tried to escape from East Germany. I thought it was worthwhile.

The Bundestag was worth visiting, but the queue was very long, like 90 minutes in line. But that was during peak tourist season.

Great shopping. And I think more prevalence of English language than even in Munich or Frankfurt, so very easy to navigate for Americans.

Alsacienne

I'd suggest a visit to the DDR museum just next to the Cathedral church very close to the museums! This is tiny and interactive but leaves a lasting impression.

Also nibble a currywurst from the stalls opposite, near the Opera House.

I was NOT thrilled with the Checkpoint Charlie Museum ... far too pricey and a very obviously commercial enterprise, nor with the 'fake' soldiers outside and at Brandenburg Gate which I felt demeaned those who had lived through this dreadful period of history.

I recommend the Jewish Museum, even if you are not Jewish, and the Deutsches Historisches Museum which has a very honest and fair take on the Nazi era.

The Hauptbahnhof - not usually considered as a tourist site - is an amazing construction with plenty of shops and refreshment facilities.

The Hop On Hop Off bus with its 24 hours' validity of tickets means that if you take the last trip of the day, you can do it all again for free the next morning.

It might be worth looking into getting a Public Transport Pass ... ticket office at Tegel airport.

We also enjoyed the Charlottenburg Palace for a bit of fresh air and 'frothier' history.

A wonderful city - which will delight and exhaust you!

Primenumber

Footastic, Berlin is a great city! However, its very large and can be a bit overwhelming. Distances are large so I suggest focusing on one neighborhood per day and walking/eating/looking around there.

Do you have a hotel already? Otherwise I would suggest renting an apartment or a room e. g. through airbnb. That way you have better chances to connect with the local vibe.

Berlin is full of recent history, that's what I like the most here. Two somewhat different suggestions for that which take you away from the major tourist streams:

"Unterwelten", where you can do guided tours through real WWII bunkers. A bit scary but very interesting. http://berliner-unterwelten.de

A guided tour through the Tempelhof airport building. Started as a show-off project of the Nazis, never completed, used by the US airforce for many years, used to be a regional airport, not any more. All kinds of history wherever you step in this huge building. http://www.tempelhoferfreiheit.de/en.../public-tours/.

In addition the "100" bus takes you along many of Berlins major sights.

You asked for restaurant recommendations as well. What price range are you interested in? Berlin offers a lot from pricy star-cuisine to Currywurst and Döner.

Have fun!!

Safe travels

Primenumber

footastic

im a sucker for all things food.. so from street food to fine dining... granted 4 days limits the amount of consumption... we normally eat at one "fine" restaurant per city we visit and then try more low key places. Also Doner is one of my favorites

mosburger

For a night of everything that is representative of the Berlin I tend to love, please consider visiting Kindl Stuben in "fashionable" Neukölln.

https://de-de.facebook.com/Kindlstuben

Good southwestern German food, fairly trendy local and international alcoholic and soft drinks, beautiful people on the nights we have been there and that unmissable "Neukölln look" of large windows, minimalist wooden furniture and candlelights.

Oh, the music is also rather interesting with frequent gigs.

StrophariaCube

On the fine dining there will be a lot of different views, but to kick off the discussion: my favourites are Reinstoff and Tim Raue!
Both excellent service, interesting takes on modern cuisine, and both typical Berlin places...not cheap of course, but worth every Cent!

Nanook

If you like borscht, there's a restaurant on Unter den Linden called M3 that's got the best borscht I ever had, and I don't like beets. It's on the right side of the street facing the Brandenburg Gate about 3 or 4 blocks before you get there. There is outside seating, but it may be too cold for that.

x1achilles

One of those days should be spent in Potsdam, about 45 min out of Berlin. Wonderful palace and a bevy of historic sites, whereas Berlin proper is largely reconstructed after WWII.

lemonbar

Honestly, StrophariaCube's post is pretty much perfect.

If you go to the Reichstag, be sure to book your tour well ahead of time. I am embarrassed to admit that, though my in-laws live in Berlin, I've never been on the tour. We always forget to get the tickets far enough in advance of our visit. (I think, though, that the English-language lines are shorter than the German-language lines.)

I agree with the posters who said to skip the Checkpoint Charlie museum. There is a lot of interesting info in there, but it is presented with an obvious viewpoint and aim. If you are interested in the history of divided Germany, check out Berlin's Haus der Geschichte (House of History): http://www.hdg.de/fileadmin/static/english/berlin/

I also enjoy the boat tours, but March is probably not a good month for this.