Berlin City Guide - Sightseeing

Sightseeing Overview
Berlin can be a sightseeing nightmare - the vast sprawl that is the city has no definite centre and pockets of attractions are dotted all over. That said, the state museums are grouped in clusters - on the Museumsinsel, at the Kulturforum, in and around Schloss Charlottenberg and in the southwestern suburb of Dahlem.

There are also a large number of attractions either at Potsdamer Platz or very close to it, including the Kulturforum to the southwest. To the north lie the Brandenburger Tor (Brandenburg Gate) and the Reichstag, sporting Lord Foster's glass dome. The Brandenburg Gate is situated on Berlin's main east-west axis. To the west lies the Siegessäule (Victory Column), which provides a view over the surrounding Tiergarten and the Western city centre, to the southwest of the column.

West Berlin's centre has less to offer and is better for shopping and nightlife than for sightseeing. Nevertheless, visitors should take a look at the broken shard of a church, the Kaiser Wilhelm Gedächtniskirche, which serves as a brutal reminder of WWII. The zoo is nearby.

The densest array of sights lies to the east of the Brandenburg Gate, on either side of Unter den Linden, lined with many 18th- and 19th-century buildings. At its end are the artistic and architectural treasures of the Museumsinsel, where the city's main cathedral, the Berliner Dom, can be found. Further on is the Communist-era Fernsehturm (television tower), on Alexanderplatz, which marked the centre of East Berlin. Just south of the Brandenburg Gate is the controversial Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, which opened in 2005.

Due to ongoing restoration work, some of the city's museums are prone to closures and some of the collections are temporarily relocated.
Tourist Information
Berlin Tourismus Marketing GmbH
Tel: (030) 250 025.
Website: www.visitberlin.de

Hauptbahnhof (Main Station)
Opening hours: Daily 0800-2200.

Brandenburg Gate (South Wing), Pariser Platz (East Berlin)
Opening hours: Daily 1000-1800, opens later Apr-Oct.

Another tourist information office is located at the Alexa Shopping Centre near Alexanderplatz. There is a Berlin Info Store, Grunerstrasse 20, Ground Floor, open Monday to Saturday 1000 to 2200, Sunday 1100 to 1500, extended hours April to October. The City of Berlin provides online information (website: www.berlin.de), some of it in English.
Passes
Berlin Tourismus Marketing offers the WelcomeCard, (website: www.berlin-welcomecard.de) which gives discounts on museums and attractions (including Schloss Sanssouci and Zoologischer Garten) as well as guided tours, boat trips and performances in both Berlin and Potsdam. The pass is available for 48 or 72 hours and covers one adult and up to three children. Also included in the price is unlimited travel on all buses and trains in zones A, B and C. The card can be purchased at tourist offices, transit ticket offices and some hotels.

There is also the SchauLUST Museen Berlin three-day tourist pass, which gives free admission to more than 70 museums, including the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, the Pergamon Museum and Gemäldegalerie. The pass is available at the main tourist offices.

A day pass for all of the region's Prussian palaces and gardens can be purchased at Schloss Sanssouci.