Humboldt University is one of Germany’s most prestigious seats of learning—and one of Berlin’s oldest. It was founded in 1810 by Wilhelm von Humboldt, an education reformer and linguist who introduced the idea of pairing teaching with research, a model that went on to influence universities all over the Western world.
The imposing Berlin Cathedral dominates the eastern end of Unter den Linden and Museum Island. With its three copper-roofed domes and richly decorated interior with gilded decorations, Berliner Dom (as it’s called in German) is one of the few landmark buildings in the area that was not destroyed in World War II.
Located just north of Berlin, Memorial and Museum Sachsenhausen was once one of the Nazi regime’s harshest prison camps. Today, Sachsenhausen is a memorial to those who lost their lives here, as well as a museum with a library, archive, and open-air exhibits to educate visitors.
One of Berlin’s central meeting places, Alexanderplatz is full of attractions, buildings, restaurants, and shops. It’s a major hub for the U-bahn and S-bahn railway, buses, and trams, and houses the TV Tower (Fernsehturm), a famous Berlin landmark. The city center of East Berlin, Alexanderplatz also features a lot of socialist architecture.
Located on Berlin’s UNESCO-listed Museum Island, the Neues Museum is home to the Egyptian Museum and Papyrus Collection, the Museum of Pre- and Early History, and the Collection of Classical Antiquities. Restored and reopened in 2009 after having been left a ruin post World War II, the museum proudly displays the bust of Egyptian Queen Nefertiti.
The Palace of Tears (Tränenpalast) is a museum that once served as a border crossing point between East Berlin and West Berlin during the Cold War. It was erected at Friedrichstrasse station, when the city was divided by the Berlin Wall, and got its name due to the tearful goodbyes that occurred when people had to return home to West Berlin after visiting loved ones in East Berlin.
Note: Pergamon Museum is temporarily closed. One of Germany’s most visited museums, Berlin’s Pergamon Museum is renowned for its impressive collection of art and antiquities from Turkey and the Middle East. Located on Berlin’s UNESCO-listed Museum Island, the Pergamon is split into three permanent exhibitions—the Collection of Classical Antiquities, the Museum of the Ancient Near East, and the Museum of Islamic Art—which together chronicle over 2,000 years of history.
Step into Berlin’s Nicholas district (Nikolaiviertel) for a look at what the city was like during the Middle Ages. Though many of the buildings were built after World War II, St. Nicholas Church (Nikolaikirche) remains the city’s oldest church, dating back to 1230. Today, the quaint area offers a break from the hustle and bustle of Berlin.
East Side Gallery is perhaps one of Berlin’s greatest displays of repurposing war remnants for the better. It uses nearly 1 mile (1.3 kilometers) of the old Berlin Wall as a canvas for commissioned pieces by artists from all over the world. The art is constantly changing and is a powerful symbol for tolerance, diversity, and urban art.
A former hunting ground for Berlin’s aristocracy, Tiergarten Park is Berlin’s green heart. Measuring 0.8 square miles (2.1 square kilometers), it features shaded pathways, gardens, lakes and streams, and wide-open parkland. Locals and travelers alike come here for picnics and to run, walk, and cycle along the trails.
Built in the 17th century as a royal summer residence, Berlin’s Charlottenburg Palace (Schloss Charlottenburg) combines rococo and baroque decor and architecture, as well as a formal garden modeled after the Gardens of Versailles. Other highlights include a belvedere building showcasing German porcelain, a theater, a mausoleum of royal marble tombs, and regular evening concerts.
Berlin’s most famous shopping street, Kurfürstendamm is on par with New York’s Fifth Avenue and Champs-Elysees in Paris. Affectionately referred to as “Ku’damm” by locals, Kurfürstendamm is an elegant tree-lined boulevard running through the heart of West Berlin and crammed with shops, cafés, bars, restaurants, and hotels.
Berlin City Hall (Rotes Rathaus) is a striking neo-Renaissance building in Mitte, which serves a very special purpose—it houses the mayor’s office and is the seat of the city’s government. The red building is open to the public, so you can access majestic spaces such as the Hall of Arms and the Great Banqueting Room.
Berliners are never too far from a reminder of World War II, and the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (Kaiser-Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche) is one of the most obvious. The ruins of the Protestant church, left as a memorial and standing adjacent to a more modern belfry built in 1963, show the destruction that Allied bombers caused during the war.
The New Synagogue is a historic landmark that is the current home of the Centrum Judaicum Foundation, an institution dedicated to the preservation of Jewish heritage. Dating back to 1859, the building has a large dome and was the center of the Jewish community in Berlin by the 1930s. It was damaged severely during World War II bombings.
Glimpse the lavish days of the aristocracy in 18th-century Prussia at Sanssouci Palace. Built for King Frederik the Great, the palace is a fine example of rococo opulence. Gilded ornaments and priceless antiques fill the interiors, while perfectly manicured grounds with fountains and follies, and even a vineyard, are outdoors.
Established in 1907, KaDeWe is Berlin’s most famous (and Europe’s largest) department store. In this extravagant mecca of shopping, high-end designer clothing and beauty products are the focus, with appetites further indulged at the store’s fanatically popular “Delicatessen” and glass-walled top-floor restaurant.
One of three memorials dedicated to Soviet soldiers who fell during the Battle of Berlin in World War II, the memorial in Tiergarten was the first built and is probably the most known due to its location near the Brandenburg Gate. The site lies near the Holocaust Memorial and other memorials dedicated to groups persecuted by the Nazis in Berlin.
Explore many layers of German history at the Neue Wache memorial in Berlin. Originally built between 1816 and 1818, the memorial first commemorated those who lost their lives in the Napoleonic wars. Later it was a memorial to victims of World War I and was damaged by bombings in World War II. It was rebuilt in the 1960s.
Kreuzberg is the trendiest district in Berlin and makes up the western side of the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg area. The neighborhood is comprised of many art galleries and museums, the infamous Checkpoint Charlie, and endless bars and restaurants that host the district’s diverse population of students, artists, and a large Turkish community.
A series of eight enclosed courtyards, ringed with art nouveau (jugendstil) buildings, Hackesche Höfe is the largest complex of its kind in Berlin. Since the fall of the Berlin Wall, the courtyard area has become a popular central meeting point, home to numerous bars, restaurants, shops, and galleries.
The perfect place to learn about Germany’s past—the German Historical Museum (Deutsches Historisches Museum) is the country’s national history museum. Centrally located in Berlin’s Mitte, it contains a diverse range of objects—including paintings, sculptures, and rare artifacts, as well as interactive areas and digital exhibitions.
Commissioned by Chancellor Angela Merkel and opened in 2006, Berlin’s central railway station was built atop the former East German station as a symbol of a reunited Germany. The five-story work of glass and steel serves up to 350,000 passengers per day and is one of the most well-connected train stations in the country.
The Oberbaum Bridge crosses the Spree River, connecting the two Berlin districts of Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg. Prominent in the city’s history, it was one of the only crossing points between East and West Berlin during The Cold War, and so, fiercely guarded. Today it is widely regarded as a symbol of reunification.
Centrally located, Berlin’s Mitte (which means “middle”) is a great base from which to explore the city’s historical and cultural center, as the bulk of the city's most famous attractions like Brandenburg Gate, Reichstag, and Museum Island are in this neighborhood. High-end shopping streets and excellent restaurants, cafés and bars round out the reasons to visit.
Named after the city of Paris to commemorate the overthrow of Napoleon in France, this public square lies directly in front of the Brandenburg Gate. Today, travelers visit Pariser Platz day and night to see and photograph the famous Brandenburg Gate—one of the most iconic landmarks in Berlin—and watch horse-drawn carriages waiting to take tourists on rides through the Tiergarten.
Karl-Marx-Allee, formerly known as Stalinallee, is a monumental boulevard that was once the most famous street in East Berlin. Built as part of the Soviet reconstruction project, it is lined with classic Soviet-style buildings including large residential blocks. It still remains a popular street for shopping, eating, relaxing, and reveling.
Once the division point between East and West Berlin, Mauerpark is now a large urban green space in the heart of the city. Literally translated, Mauerpark means “Wall Park,” as it was once where the Berlin Wall and its death strip divided the city. Tourists and locals gather in the park for many events and activities, particularly on Sundays.
One of Berlin’s most historically significant and symbolic locations, Friedrichstrasse runs straight through the center of the city. This buzzing shopping street and cultural hub was the site of part of the Berlin Wall, and today it still bears reminders of that turbulent period in Germany’s past. In fact, Checkpoint Charlie stands at one end.
Home to the most complete collection of animal species anywhere in the world, the Berlin Zoo and Aquarium celebrates the diversity of the animal kingdom. You’ll find everything from giant pandas to hippos, jellyfish, and gorillas here. Famous residents include Knut the polar bear and Bao Bao the giant panda.
