Berlin

Berlin is one of Europe's most layered capitals. Prussian avenues and imperial museums sit beside Nazi-era sites and Cold War landmarks, and the same streets hold new architecture, small cafés, big parks and a club scene that changes from one district to the next. The city is large, but it rewards anyone who plans by cluster instead of crossing it again and again for single sights.

The useful question for a first trip is which version of Berlin each day should show. A historic-centre day links the Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag, the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe and Unter den Linden. An eastern day follows the Wall from Bernauer Strasse to the East Side Gallery. A western day pairs Charlottenburg Palace with Kurfürstendamm. Begin with our Berlin travel guide for the planning basics.

Museum plans need a quick check this year. The Pergamonmuseum is closed for renovation and is scheduled to reopen on 4 June 2027, and the German Historical Museum's permanent exhibition in the Zeughaus is closed, though its Pei Building still opens for temporary shows. The Bode-Museum and the Alte Nationalgalerie remain open. Build the days around what is open on your dates, not around an old list.

BER Airport is the city's air gateway, with rail links to the centre, and the central station takes the long-distance trains. Inside the city, one ticket system covers the S-Bahn, U-Bahn, trams and buses. Our getting there guide covers the airport and the stations, and the getting around guide explains the zones.

Mitte suits first visits because the main sights are within walking distance. Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg suit food and late nights, Prenzlauer Berg suits slower mornings, and Charlottenburg suits City West. A room near a strong S-Bahn or U-Bahn station beats a bigger room in a weak spot. We compare the areas in our where to stay guide.

Start with the best things to do in Berlin, then choose a cluster: Museum Island for museums, the Berlin Wall Memorial and the Topography of Terror for twentieth-century history, Tiergarten and Tempelhofer Feld for open space. For neighbourhood days, try Kreuzberg or Prenzlauer Berg.

Berlin eats far beyond traditional German food. Currywurst and the döner kebab are the two city institutions, shaped by post-war history and Turkish migration, and markets and food halls make it easy to mix both with Vietnamese, Korean, Polish or Middle Eastern kitchens. Our food and street food guide shows where to start, and the nightlife guide covers the late hours.

Berlin's culture is a conversation with its own past: Prussian court life, the capital of two dictatorships, a divided city and a reunited one. The memorials are meant to be read, not photographed in passing, so give them time and quiet. Migrant communities have shaped the food and the neighbourhoods, and the club scene, on the world map since the 1990s, is part of the city's identity. The Jewish Museum and the DDR Museum are two useful ways to meet that history from different angles.