Berlin Attractions

The Brandenburg Gate was originally a gate in Berlin's city wall at the end of the Unter den Linden avenue. Since the fall of the Wall, Brandenburg Gate has become the symbol of a reunified Berlin.

The historic Reichstag building was reconstructed after the fall of the Berlin Wall. The original dome however was replaced by a modern glass one. Since 1999 the building serves again as Germany's seat of Parliament.

Most of the Berlin wall has been demolished since the border between East and West Berlin opened in 1989. The more than 1km long East Side Gallery is the most important part still standing.

One of three checkpoints at the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie was the site of a standoff between American and Russian tanks in 1961. It became one of the most famous symbols of the Cold War Era.

The Schloss Charlottenburg is an early 18th century baroque palace in Berlin's Charlottenburg district. Several sections of the lavishly decorated building are open to visitors.

The Alexanderplatz, a famous square in Berlin's central district Mitte was used as a podium for the GDR's architectural ambitions. The 1197ft/365m tall Fernsehturm is one of the results.

Berlin's Museumsinsel (Museum Island) is home to no less than five museums, all right next to each other. The museums were built over a century, with the last one, the Pergamon Museum, opening in 1930.

This Memorial to the victims of the Holocaust is an undulating forest of 2711 slabs of concrete, each of a different size. It was dedicated 60 years after the fall of the Nazi regime.

The Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtnis-kirche, a partially destroyed 19th century church is a constant reminder of the ravages of war. A 1960s modern church was built next to the destroyed tower.

Once the busiest crossing in Europe, the Potsdamer Platz was completely destroyed after the war. In 1998 the new Potsdamer Platz, full of modern buildings, officially opened.

The Berliner Dom is a baroque Cathedral built between 1894 and 1905. It is located on an island in the river Spree, known as Museum Island. Severely damaged during the war, it reopened in 1993.

The Berlin zoo is one of the largest zoos in the world. It boasts some 1400 different species including pandas, gorillas, wolves, polar bears and elephants and many more exotic animals.

One of the most beautiful squares in Europe, the Gendarmenmarkt is bordered by three magnificent buildings: the Konzerthaus, Französischer Dom and Deutscher Dom.

The Pergamon is one of 5 museums on Berlin's Museum Island. It boasts a Babylonian gate and the enormous Pergamon Altar among many other attractions.

Berlin's largest park was originally a royal hunting ground. Today it an expansive park in the center of Berlin with more than 23km (14 miles) of pathways and dotted with sculptures and monuments.

The capital of Brandenburg, just an S-Bahn ride from Berlin, is a popular day trip destination. The city boasts many historic buildings, including the sumptuous Sanssouci Palace.

The Berliner Fernsehturm is a 368 meter tall television tower located in the center of Berlin. From a viewing platform in the tower's metallic sphere you have a wide view over the whole city.

This prestigious wide boulevard connects Berlin's Palace Bridge at the Museum Island with the Brandenburger Gate. The street is lined with impressive historical buildings.

Once ubiquitous in Berlin, courtyards such as the Hackesche Höfe are now a rarity. The elaborate jugendstil decorations make this series of courtyards a popular attraction.

Kurfürstendamm, a wide boulevard locally also known as Ku'damm, is Berlin's most famous shopping street. The street was envisioned as a Berlin version of Paris's famous Champs-Elysees.

This large park in Potsdam - about 24km from Berlin - contains the large baroque Neues Palace and the beautiful rococo style Sanssouci Palace, a summer palace built in 1747 for the Friedrich the Great.

Nikolaiviertel is a historic district in Berlin popular with tourists thanks to its recreated historic houses and pestrianized streets. At its center is the Nikolaikirche, Berlin's oldest church.

The Siegessäule is a 69 meter tall victory column in Tiergarten, a large park in the center of Berlin. On top of the column is a gilded statue of the Goddess of Victory, known as “Golden Else”.

The statue of Frederick the Great was completed in 1851, 20 years after sculptor Christian Daniel Rausch started with the design of this monument. It is decorated with sculptures of generals and contemporary leading figures.

The Kulturforum is home to about ten cultural institutions, of which five are museums. All are housed in modern buildings which together form the cultural center of Berlin.

One of several magnificent museums on Berlin's Museum Island, the Altes Museum (Old Museum) is home to a collection of Greek, Roman and Egyptian artifacts.

This large monument in Berlin's Tiergarten park commemorates the Red Army soldiers who died during the battle for Berlin in WWII. It was erected just a few months after the capture of Berlin in 1945.

Bebelplatz is a historic square surrounded by magnificent buildings such as St. Hedwig's Cathedral and the State Opera House. The square is however best known for the infamous book burning in 1933.

The Karl-Marx-Allee is a wide boulevard originally known as the Stalin-Allee. The monumental street is lined with apartment blocks in typical socialist neo-classical style.

During the Cold War this twin-towered 19th century bridge was used as a border crossing between West and East Berlin. The bridge and its picturesque towers were restored to their pre-war glory in the 1990s.

When it opened in 1963, Europa Center was one of Europe's most modern shopping center. A symbol of postwar Germany, the center is still one of Berlin's best known landmarks.

The Schloßbrücke or Palace Bridge connected Unter den Linden with Berlin's palace. The bridge is adorned with eight statues depicting a heroic warrior's life, from his early youth to his death.

The Neues Museum was built in the 1840s to house the prehistory, early history and Egyptian collection. After it was destroyed during WWII the museum finally reopened in October 2009.

The Rotes Rathaus is a large red brick building in high Renaissance style that was built in the 19th century as Berlin's city hall, a function it still serves. Its facade is decorated with a long frieze, depicting scenes of the city's history.

The House of World Cultures was the contribution of the United States to the Interbau 1957 building exhibition in Berlin. The building is nicknamed 'the oyster' due to its peculiar shape.

Berlin's modern glass and steel central railway station is an impressive railway hub with 5 different levels. It was built at the site of a former historic railway station, the Lehrter Bahnhof.

The Bode Museum, one of Museum Island's five museums, is home to an exhaustive collection of European sculpture. It also houses the Museum of Byzantine Art and a numismatic collection with more than half a million coins and medals.

Now the official residence of the German president, this palace was built in 1786 as the summer residence for Prince Ferdinand of Prussia, the younger brother of Frederick the Great.

The Old National Gallery is one of several museums on Berlin's Museum Island. The museum - housed in a neoclassical building - has a collection of mostly 19th century paintings and sculptures.

Originally built as a guard house in 1818 by the renowned German architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel, this neoclassical building was rededicated in 1991 as a memorial to victims of war.

Germany's modern Chancellery Building is part of a complex built at the end of the 20th century to house government instances moving from the former capital Bonn to Berlin.

The Neue Synagogue is a magnificent 19th century building. Destroyed in 1938 during the Kristallnacht pogrom, the largest German Synagogue was only reconstructed in 1995.

A huge memorial in Treptower Park commemorates the Soviet soldiers who died in the Second World War. The centerpiece of the memorial, which was completed in 1949, is a colossal statue of a Soviet soldier.

Marienkirche (St. Mary's Church), is the second oldest church in Berlin. The first stone was laid around 1270. One of the main highlights inside is wall painting depicting the Dance of Death.

This 19th century church was the first neo-gothic church in Berlin. The building's nave is now used as a museum displaying a nice collection of 19th century sculpture.