Berlin Travel Guide & 2-Day Berlin Itinerary

Berlin is the capital city of Germany, and it is one of the most historically significant cities in Europe in the 20th century, playing a key role in both World War II and the Cold War.

Despite its rather dark past, Berlin has been transformed into a modern metropolis with beautiful buildings for visitors to explore.

So, in this post, I’ll be sharing my top Berlin travel tips and my perfect 2-day Berlin itinerary.

Getting to Berlin

Most visitors will arrive in Berlin via Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER).

From the UK, there are many flight options:

The airport is connected to the city’s train and tram network, making it quick and easy to get into the centre of Berlin.

The quickest option is to the take one of the many train lines connected to the airport. The best one for you to take will depend on where you are staying, with the two main hubs being Hauptbahnhof (in the North West) and Alexanderplatz (in the East).

The airport train station – Flughafen Berlin – is located in Terminal 1.

You could also choose to take the S9 tram (the S-Bahn), which takes 50 minutes and departs from the airport every 20 minutes.

If you’re travelling with a lot of luggage and you’d prefer to take a taxi, the journey to the city centre takes approximately 35-40 minutes.

Berlin 2-Day Itinerary

This itinerary has been designed based on a Friday to Sunday evening trip to Berlin, but can be adapted to your travel plans.

DAY 1

08:30: Breakfast

09:00: Explore the Museum Island

Museum Island is exactly what it sounds like: an island in the middle of the River Spree that is home to 5 different museums:

• Altes Museum
• Bode Museum
• Neues Museum
• Pergamon Museum
• Alte Nationalgalerie

On a short trip to Berlin, you would not have time to visit all of the museums, but it is worth researching each museum to decide which one you would enjoy the most.

For architecture lovers like me, the obvious choice is the Pergamon Museum, which houses reconstructions of ancient structures such as the Great Altar of Pergamon and the Ishtar Gate.

Unfortunately, the Pergamon Museum is currently closed for renovation, so I wasn’t able to visit on my trip.

If you’re not a museum person, it is still worth visiting Museum Island to admire the different architecture styles of the museum buildings, and to take pictures on the bridges on the Eastern side of the island.

I recommend starting your trip to Berlin with a walk along the River Spree, stopping to admire the view from Friedrichsbrücke and Nördliche Monbijoubrücke.

10:00: Berlin Cathedral

Berlin Cathedral is also located on Museum Island, making it a logical next stop.

The Cathedral was built between 1894 and 1905 and combines Baroque and Renaissance architectural styles. It is best known for its dome, which stands out as a key component of Berlin’s skyline.

10:45: Berlin Cathedral Café

No visit to Berlin Cathedral is complete without visiting the café.

This is one of the best cafés I have visited in Europe. Not only are the cakes and drinks fantastic but there is also an outdoor terrace at the back of the cathedral offering beautiful riverside views.

11:30: Checkpoint Charlie

After exploring the cathedral, it’s time for the first war-related monument: Checkpoint Charlie.

Checkpoint Charlie was one of the crossings along the Berlin Wall.

A quick history lesson: following WWII, Germany was split into four sections and divided between Britain, France, the USA and the USSR. Berlin, as the capital, was also split into four sections. As tensions between the US and the USSR grew, the Berlin Wall was built to separate the Western and Eastern sides of Berlin.

The Berlin Wall fell in 1989, but there are still many reminders of its impact across Berlin, including Checkpoint Charlie.

To get to Checkpoint Charlie, take the metro:

• U5 Line from Museumsinsel to Unter den Linden (dir: Hauptbahnhof)
• U6 from Unter den Linden to Kochstr (dir: Alt-Mariendorf)

All that is left of the checkpoint is a small hut, but its historical significance makes it worth a quick visit. There’s also a free exhibit about the checkpoint and the Berlin Wall just across the road – BlackBox Cold War.

12:00: Potsdamer Platz

Potsdamer Platz is one of Berlin’s major squares, and is just a 10-minute walk from Checkpoint Charlie.

It is also a great place to stop for lunch. In particular, I recommend eating at one of the cafés and restaurants in Das Center, a circular area with an interesting roof.

On the opposite side of Potsdamer Platz, you’ll find a small section of the Berlin Wall still standing. Today, it has been decorated with testimonials explaining how it felt to live in a divided Berlin.

When you visit the wall, don’t forget to look down at the floor, where a line engraved into the pavement shows where the wall used to split the city in half.

13:30: Memorial to the Murdered Jews

The next monument on our list is sobering to visit.

The Memorial to the Murdered Jews is a series of 2,711 concrete blocks arranged in lines across a 19,000-square-metre site in the centre of Berlin. It was built in 2005 to commemorate the 6 million Jews who died in the Holocaust.

It is a sombre location to visit and it is important to be respectful as you explore the poignant tribute.

14:00: Brandenburg Gate

Before researching my trip to Berlin, the only monument I had heard about was the Brandenburg Gate, so I was excited to see it with my own eyes.

Built between 1788 and 1791, the Brandenburg Gate was the first Greek revival building to be built in Berlin.

Something I didn’t know while I was there is that the Brandenburg Gate once stood in the restricted zone between the two sides of the Berlin Wall, meaning that no one could see it for decades. So, when the Berlin Wall fell, the Brandenburg Gate became a symbol of German unity and peace.

The best view of the gate is from Parisier Platz.

15:00: Reichstag Building

The final stop of the afternoon is the Reichstag Building, the seat of the German Bundestag (Federal Assembly).

Although the Reichstag was originally built in the 19th century, much of the building was destroyed by a fire in 1933 and was further damaged during World War II.

The building was restored to its former glory in the 1990s and is now one of the most beautiful buildings in Berlin.

Before your trip to Berlin, you can register online to visit the rooftop of the Reichstag Building. The visit is free, but you must pre-register and provide your passport details before you travel.

Since it’s a government building, security is tight. You will only be allowed to enter the building if you have your passport or photo ID with you (and it matches the ID you registered with online). Backpacks and suitcases are also not allowed inside.

Once you’ve scanned your tickets and been through security, you take a lift up to the roof, where you get a great view over the rest of Berlin.

But the visit doesn’t stop there: you can also climb up the ramp inside the Reichstag’s iconic glass dome for an even more spectacular view of the city below.

16:30: Head Back to Your Hotel for a Break

18:30: Dinner

End your first day in Berlin with delicious food and great views of the city’s architecture at night.

On my trip, I ate at Piazza Rossa, an Italian restaurant near the TV Tower. If you love Italian food, I highly recommend eating here.

DAY 2

08:30: Breakfast

09:00: East Side Gallery

The East Side Gallery is a little further out of the city centre than the rest of the attractions on this list, but it is worth making the journey out there to see this unique take on historical preservation.

The East Side Gallery is a 1,316m-long section of the Berlin Wall that has been turned into an open-air art gallery. The wall is now decorated with art pieces created by 118 artists from 21 countries.

The gallery was opened to the public in 1990 and has become one of the most popular areas of Berlin to explore.

On such a short trip, it might not be possible to see all of the artwork, but one piece you will definitely want to see is My God, Help Me To Survive This Deadly Love. This is the most famous painting on the wall and depicts a fraternal kiss between Leonid Brezhnev and Erich Honecker.

To get to the East Side Gallery from Alexanderplatz, you have two options:

• RE7 train to Ostbanhof
• S3, S6 or S7 S-Bahn to Ostbanhof

10:00: Berlin Wall Memorial

After visiting the East Side Gallery, take the tram back to Alexanderplatz and then transfer to the U8 metro line up to the Berlin Wall Memorial.

This memorial is an open-air museum dedicated to preserving memories of the Berlin Wall and the experience of living in a divided Berlin.

The memorial is set out along Bernauer Street, with one side lined with panels showing images of the wall and explaining its significance. The other side of the street next to the road is lined with a series of brown poles, representing the division the wall created.

At the Southern end of the memorial, there’s the Documentation Centre, where you can climb up the stairs to an observation deck to view one of the towers of the Berlin Wall.

This is only visible from the observation deck, so it is worth the climb for those interested in Berlin’s recent history. Plus, entry to the deck is free.

While in this area, also don’t forget to check out Bergstrasse, the only street to still be blocked off by the Berlin Wall.

11:30: Lunch

Stay around Bernauer Street or head back to the centre for a light lunch.

12:15: Berlin TV Tower (Fernsehturm)

After lunch, head back to Alexanderplatz to visit one of the emblems of Berlin: the Fernsehturm, or the TV Tower.

This 368m-tall tower is the tallest structure in Germany and can be seen from all over the city. But, during your trip, it’s also worth taking a trip up to the TV Tower Observation Deck for stunning 360° views of Berlin and beyond.

This is a popular attraction, so make sure to book your tickets in advance and arrive on time to board the lift to the top.

13:00: River Cruise

One of the best ways to see the most of a city on a quick trip is to take a river cruise. So, next up on this itinerary is a 1-hour cruise on the River Spree.

The dock for the cruises is located opposite Berlin Cathedral, next to Karl-Liebknecht Brücke. You don’t need to pre-book: just turn up and wait in line until the next boat arrives. Boats leave every 30 minutes.

The River Spree runs right through the centre of Berlin, so you see a lot from the water, including:

• Museum Island
• Nikolaiviertel (Berlin’s old quarter)
• Reichstag Building
• Government District

Our guide was fantastic at explaining what each building was and why it was significant, providing commentary in both English and German.

On our boat, you could also order drinks, making it the perfect way to spend a leisurely afternoon in Berlin.

14:00: Berlin Cathedral Café

Since the river cruise ends right by the cathedral, why not take a break at the Cathedral Café for an afternoon drink.

14:30: Nikolaiviertel

Taking the river paid off, because I learned about an area of Berlin that I’d never heard of when planning my trip, but one that is definitely worth visiting.

Just a 5-minute walk from the TV Tower is Nikolaiviertel, the oldest neighbourhood in Berlin. While most of Berlin feels like a modern metropolis, Nikolaiviertel is home to charming cobbled streets and houses.

The highlight of the visit is Nikolaikirche, a church with two parallel towers that now houses a museum.

You’ll also want to head down to the river to see the St George and the Dragon Statue. And the riverside section of Nikolaiviertel is a great place to grab some dinner. While there, I enjoyed traditional schnitzel.

Getting Around Berlin

Berlin is a really easy city to navigate. The city’s public transport network is extensive and reliable, getting you where you need to go quickly.

As I mentioned earlier, Alexanderplatz is the best place to stay when visiting Berlin, and that is because the station is well connected to the rest of the city.

Alexanderplatz is within walking distance of Museum Island, the TV Tower and Nikolaiviertel. To visit other places in Berlin, head to Alexanderplatz station and take either the metro (U-Bahn) or the tram (S-Bahn).

Metro (U-Bahn)

The following routes are most useful for visitors:

Trams (S-Bahn)

Trams are also a useful way to navigate Berlin. Here are some of the top routes:

Tickets

Berlin’s transport network is an integrated network run by BVG, meaning that you can use the same type of ticket no matter which mode of transport you want to use.

You can purchase tickets at any metro station from the BVG ticket machines.

There are two main ticket types to consider for tourists:

Once you’ve bought your ticket, don’t forget to validate it at one of the machines on the train or tram platform. If you’ve bought a 24-hour ticket, you only need to validate it the first time you use it.

Should You Visit Berlin?

Berlin is a fantastic city for tourists.

There’s something for everyone, from the history of the Berlin Wall to the architecture of the Brandenburg Gate and Reichstag to the city’s many museums.

That’s it for today’s post. If you have any questions about visiting Berlin, leave them in the comments section below and I’ll be happy to answer them.

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Thanks for reading, and see you next time.