Berlin

The Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Straße is the central memorial site of German division. It preserves the last piece of the Wall with the full depth of its fortification system — the "death strip" between inner and outer walls.

The Pergamon Museum is one of the most visited museums in Europe, renowned for its monumental archaeological reconstructions. Located on Museum Island, it houses three collections: the Antikensammlung, the Vorderasiatisches Museum, and the Museum für Islamische Kunst.

The Stasi Museum occupies the preserved headquarters of the East German Ministry for State Security (MfS) in Lichtenberg. The office of the feared Stasi chief Erich Mielke is maintained exactly as he left it in 1989.

The Brandenburg Gate is Berlin's most recognized landmark, an 18th-century neoclassical triumphal arch that has become the definitive symbol of German reunification. Designed by Carl Gotthard Langhans in 1791, it stands at the western end of Unter den Linden.

C/O Berlin is a premier photography and visual media exhibition space housed in the Amerika Haus, a Cold War–era cultural diplomacy building near Bahnhof Zoo. Its program features major international photographers and emerging talents.

The Olympiastadion was built for the 1936 Summer Olympics and remains an active sports venue — home to Hertha BSC and the annual DFB-Pokal final. Guided tours explore its monumental architecture and complex history.

The Reichstag is the seat of the German Bundestag and one of Berlin's most visited buildings, celebrated for Norman Foster's 1999 glass dome that symbolizes democratic transparency. Free advance registration lets visitors ascend for panoramic views.

Peter Eisenman's Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe is a haunting 19,000 m² field of 2,711 concrete stelae of varying heights near the Brandenburg Gate. An underground information center documents the Holocaust with personal stories.

Checkpoint Charlie was the most famous crossing point between East and West Berlin during the Cold War. Today a replica guardhouse and open-air exhibition mark the spot on Friedrichstraße.

Potsdamer Platz was Europe's busiest intersection in the 1920s, a Cold War no-man's-land, and after 1990 the largest construction site on the continent. Today it showcases 1990s star-architect urbanism by Renzo Piano, Richard Rogers, and Helmut Jahn.

Berghain is the world's most famous techno club, occupying a brutalist former power plant near Ostbahnhof. Known for its marathon weekend sessions, legendary door policy, and cathedral-like main floor, it has defined Berlin's electronic music culture since 2004.

Berlin Cathedral is the largest church in the city and the most important Protestant church in Germany. Its ornate Baroque Revival exterior and massive dome dominate the Museum Island skyline.

The Fernsehturm (TV Tower) at Alexanderplatz is Berlin's tallest structure at 368 m and visible from almost anywhere in the city. Its revolving restaurant and observation deck at 203 m offer unmatched panoramic views.

Museum Island is a UNESCO World Heritage ensemble of five museums on the northern tip of a Spree island in central Berlin. Spanning 6,000 years of human history, it ranks among the world's most important museum complexes.

A boat tour on the Spree is one of the best ways to see Berlin's governmental and historical landmarks from a different perspective. Hour-long cruises pass the Reichstag, Museum Island, Berlin Cathedral, and the East Side Gallery.

The Berlin Zoological Garden, founded in 1844, is Germany's oldest zoo and one of the most species-rich in the world with over 20,000 animals. Adjacent to it is the Berlin Aquarium, a separate building with fish, reptiles, and invertebrates.

The Neues Museum houses Berlin's Egyptian collection and the Museum of Prehistory and Early History. Brilliantly restored by David Chipperfield (reopened 2009), the building is an exhibit in itself — wartime scars are left deliberately visible alongside new interventions.

Neukölln is Berlin's most rapidly evolving district — a multicultural neighbourhood where Middle Eastern bakeries sit beside minimalist galleries and popup wine bars. Its northern strip around Weserstraße has become the city's most talked-about drinking and gallery-hopping strip.

Charlottenburg Palace is the largest and most opulent surviving royal residence in Berlin. Built for Sophie Charlotte, wife of Frederick I, it features lavish Baroque and Rococo interiors, formal French gardens, and an English landscape garden.

Kreuzberg is Berlin's countercultural heartland — a densely packed district of street art, Turkish döner shops, canal-side bars, and independent galleries. Once surrounded on three sides by the Wall, its isolation attracted immigrants, squatters, and artists who defined its defiant character.