The capital of Germany is difficult to describe in a few words. Berlin, a city of contrasts, stands on the banks of the Spree River and is one of the most interesting megacities in Europe. And this is a Mecca of contemporary art with many galleries and eccentric installations. We tell you what to visit if you arrived in the city for a couple of days.
Entrance rules
Russians will need a passport with a Schengen visa. The cost of registration is 80 euros for an adult (about 5,800 rubles*).
How to get
From Moscow to Berlin you can fly with transfers in Istanbul, Antalya, Ankara and Cairo. The cost of tickets in both directions starts at 36,000 rubles*.
Where to stop
The Dude Berlin-Mitte (Evaluation 8.9) is a hotel in the retro style near AlexanderPlatz. The night in a standard room costs from 15,000 rubles*.
Gemütliches Hausboot Mit Kamin in Berlin (estimate 10.0) – a floating hotel near the Treptower park with a fireplace and its own boat. For one night on the river, pay from 15,500 rubles*.
Titanic Comfort Mitte (rating 8.2) – a modern hotel in the city center. The night in a standard room costs from 17,000 rubles*.
Eurostars Berlin (rating 8.6) – a five -star hotel in the west of the city with a covered basin. The night in a spacious issue will cost from 27,000 rubles*.
What to see
Day 1. Walking in historical places
East Side Gallery
When the Berlin wall was destroyed, a piece of almost 1.5 km long along the banks of the Spree River and a metal line on the asphalt – instead of the “fallen” part, remained from it. Now it is the world’s largest open -air art gallery – a fragment of the wall has become a concrete canvas for 118 artists from 21 countries.
The most popular works here: “Brotherly Kiss” between Brezhnev and Honecker Dmitry Vrubel, “Trabant” by Birgit Kinders and the caricature faces of Thierry Noir. You can walk along the gallery on foot and stop to consider the work that will respond to you, visit the excursion and find out the history of paintings or drive past a bicycle.
The Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe
The memorial of memory to the Jews killed during the Holocaust is 2,271 concrete slabs. They are of different heights, but identical in width and length. From the side it seems that these are “concrete sarcophagi” for those who were not buried. In fact, the authors calculated the distance between the blocks so that people could not go in pairs, only one by one, feeling loneliness and uncertainty, how Jews felt during the Holocaust.
The information center shows the whole history of the oppression of the Jews in Nazi Germany, presented genuine things and letters of people. And in one hall, an audio perform is held: the stories of fifteen families are told.
Reichstag building and Brandenburg Gate
Behind the symbol of Germany of different times, the name Bundestag was fixed. The building was restored in such a way as to take into account the important past of the country and the technological future that go side by side. To do this, a futuristic glass dome with a panoramic view of the iconic places of Berlin was designed. In the center is a mirror cone that directs sunlight to the building – this helps to take care of the ecology: use daylight and reduce carbon dioxide emissions.
And although the current parliament is now in the building, you can get inside with a free excursion. When going to the roof terrace, you will be offered a free audio guide (there is in Russian). It is interactive – the story will begin as soon as you rise to the dome, and will continue depending on your location.
The Brandenburg Gate stand next to the Reichstag building. They were built at the end of the 18th century and since then serve as a point of attraction for tourists.
Museum Futurium
It stands on the banks of the river near the Brandenburg Gate and is like a large black cube outside. If you take a cruise along the spray, you can enjoy the view of the building from the water. This museum is called the “home of the future” for a reason – it fully provides itself with electricity due to solar panels, and inside there is the most modern technique for experiments, accessible to everyone: robots, library, 3D printers and laboratories.
For those who came to relax and not to explore, many puzzles and interactive expositions are presented, which will be interesting to visitors of all ages.
The exposition is unique in that it literally talks to you – projects of the cities of the future are also proposed, thoughts on consumption, green energy, future transplantology and new materials. Here you can not only read signs near the exhibits, but also listen, enter into a dialogue with them and even try on models on yourself. And this is completely free.
AlexanderPlatz area
There are two symbols of the German capital: the Berlin TV tower, the highest building in the city, and the world clock. In general, AlexanderPlatz is the largest retail space, now there are several large shopping malls at once. In the center is the Neptune fountain, which is decorating Berlin since the beginning of the 20th century. The area is located in the center of East Berlin, which can be determined by the style of the surrounding architecture. It is very easy to get here – any type of public transport has an alexanderplatz stop. Therefore, the area is also an excellent point for the start of the trip.
Day 2. Cultural rest
Park Tempelhofer Feld
Tempelhof airport operated until 2008. Today it is a giant park where you can relax in nature and walk in a runway. Locals come here to run, ride bicycles under the old radar station and relax in zones with a barbecue. There are also playgrounds, zip lines and deduction points of sports equipment.
Zoo
It is amazing in that there are no cells inside – all animals are in open enclosures. Each of them is stylized as a natural habitat: trees grow in a large square, stones lie, a river flows and there are even caves and shelters. A moat, which is filled with water, and behind it are a low fence for visitors. It turns out that animals are literally from you at an extended arm.
At the entrance, a card is issued, on which the time of feeding animals is noted. Employees of the zoo tell a lot of interesting facts about their wards and show what they can perform tricks.
Inexpensive cafes and snacks with national cuisine work on the territory: you can try the legendary Currywurst or German sausages of all kinds: Berlin, Thuringen and Munich. The entrance ticket costs 15.5 euros (about 1,300 rubles*) for an adult, with a visit to the aquarium – 21 euros (about 1,800 rubles*).
Museum Island
On the banks of the Spree River, there is a whole ensemble of the UNESCO World Heritage Ensemble, which consists of five Prussian buildings, each of which has its own peculiarity. Museum collections cover 6,000 years of art and history. In Altes Museum, you can see many Greek, Etruscan and Roman antiquities, the most popular treasure of the island is stored in Neues Museum: a bust of the Egyptian Queen Neferthyti with an age of 3,300 years. The Alte NationalGalerie Gallery resembles a Corinthian temple outside, a collection of works of art from neoclassica to early modernism is presented inside, including the parade of French masters of the 19th century – Monet, Manu and Renoir. Pergamonmuseum is dedicated to the ancient world, starting with Rome and Greece, ending with Babylon and the Middle East. Especially among other antiquities, the Pergamon altar stands out (160 BC), which is decorated with a frieze with the image of the battle of gods and giants. Bode Museum presents one of the greatest sculpture collection collections in Europe – German, Italian and French works from Gothic to neoclassical periods.
It is almost impossible to visit all five museums in one day, it is better to choose one or two. A ticket for a visit to everyone costs from 10 euros (about 850 rubles*), and the total for everyone for one day – 19 euros (about 1,600 rubles*). If you want to go around the whole exposition, it is more profitable to take a three -day ticket with the right to visit all museums and panoramas, it costs 29 euros (about 2,450 rubles*).
Palace Charlottenburg
He was built at the end of the 17th century as a summer residence for Princess Sofia Charlotte of Brandenburg, the wife of King Frederick I. Now it is the largest baroque palace in Berlin, inside of which there is an exhibition complex. The collection presents royal porcelain and silver, jewelry, crown and furniture. Visitors come here to be surprised at the size of the ballroom, which served as the main place of receiving guests, or to study the picture gallery of the round hall. The works of French artists of the 18th century are stored there. The rest of the rooms are also rich in gilding and frescoes.
In addition, on the territory there are two winter gardens, a greenhouse and a large park, an area of 56 hectares. Gardens created in the French and English style, with ordered hedges, fountains, ponds and gravel paths seated with trees, are the highlight of the museum. All this makes Charlottenburg a real pearl of Berlin and an excellent place for tourists who love history, culture and architecture.
*Prices are relevant at the time of publication.
