5 Things You MUST Do In Berlin
Berlin is one of the best cities in the entire world and once you go you will fall in love. I have, personally, loved it since my first trip there many years ago. I keep going back and feel somewhat like a local myself, so I thought I would share some of my best tips for visiting Berlin. If you’re staying in the city for more than a few days, I recommend apartments instead of hotels or hostels. You can use websites like Booking.com, Airbnb, Trivago, or Homelike to find apartment rentals in Berlin. When visiting you definitely want to experience something that the locals experience and this is not always easy in such a large city like Berlin, that happens to have a lot of tourists. I hope you enjoy reading about it and enjoy visiting some amazing sights and connecting with some new and interesting people in Berlin.
Visit the alternative neighbourhoods
The southern parts of Berlin are well known for their alternative culture and it is definitely something that you should see when in Berlin. Neighbourhoods like Kreuzberg and Neukölln are places that are flooded with great cafes, restaurants, shops, bars and clubs. You can include this in your itinerary if you prefer to take your time seeing the city. It’s a great alternative to visiting common tourist sites in the city. These are great places to visit in the day or at night time, but not something you should experience alone. There are many hidden gems here and knowing a few of the locals definitely helps in this regard. You can always organise something with a local through Withlocals. Never heard of them? These guys are setting up a growing online marketplace through which travellers and locals can connect directly. In this way the former manage to scratch the touristy surface of the city and get a juicy bite of what Berlin actually is; the latter are enabled to capitalise upon their skills, share their experiences and earn money by doing what they are most passionate about.
Going around the city with a local will allow you to experience their culture firsthand and find places that aren’t well-known by tourists. You can also ask your guide to bring you to local restaurants to try some of the city’s signature dishes. After all, food is a significant part of any culture, so trying them out while you’re traveling will make your trip more memorable.
The Eastside Gallery
This is one of the few remaining sections of the Berlin Wall and one of the most interesting, especially due to the colourful paintings that adorn it and it has quite literally been turned into an art gallery that lies on a main street very close to the centre of the city. The colourful artworks are a strong contrast to the grey concrete wall and is one of my favourite places to visit in the capital. It’s a great place to visit if you like capturing vibrant photos of sites and sceneries during your trip. If you want to have a great experience you should check out some of the bars in the area, in particular the colourful Yaam, which is a beach club/bar near the end of the Eastside Gallery.
TV Tower
The Fernsehturm or TV tower is definitely the icon of the Berlin sky at Alexanderplatz, which is considered one of the two centres of the city. You can see it from more or less anywhere in the city due to its imposing size and this means that it is a great place to see the other parts of this huge city. It’s a tourist spot you shouldn’t miss since it’ll complete your visit to Berlin. You can even catch a quick bite here and enjoy the view from the restaurant at the top, how many people get to say that they got the chance to site in a restaurant over 300 metres in the sky?
Tiergarten
This huge park is located right next to the city centre and is a very interesting place to be. There are a huge number of bike paths, walking paths, monuments, memorials and lush greenery for you to see. You can spend your afternoon here if you want to take a break from your trip. It’s a relaxing but lively place to visit while you’re in Berlin. I absolutely love taking picnics in the park and just getting a beer and chilling out and once you have met a few of the locals you can all spend the day here together. What would be better than that? This is a place that you could endlessly explore and it is always nice to rent a bike and ride through this amazing place.
History
Berlin is one of the most fascinating cities in the world for its history and there are a number of museums and exhibitions that you can visit to discover this. You can learn more about the Second World War by visiting museums like the Jewish Museum or the Topography of Terror. There are a number of landmarks that had a very interesting significance during the war and it is amazing to see and discover these places today. Again the knowledge of your new local friends can help you to explain the significance of some sights and take you out for some food in the area or a beer.
Remember, never travel without travel insurance! And never overpay for travel insurance!
I use HeyMondo. You get INSTANT quotes. Super cheap, they actually pay out, AND they cover almost everywhere, where most insurance companies don't (even places like Central African Republic etc!). You can sign-up here. PS You even get 5% off if you use MY LINK! You can even sign up if you're already overseas and traveling, pretty cool.
Also, if you want to start a blog...I CAN HELP YOU!
Also, if you want to start a blog, and start to change your life, I'd love to help you! Email me on johnny@onestep4ward.com. In the meantime, check out my super easy blog post on how to start a travel blog in under 30 minutes, here! And if you just want to get cracking, use BlueHost at a discount, through me.
Also, (if you're like me, and awful with tech-stuff) email me and my team can get a blog up and running for you, designed and everything, for $699 - email johnny@onestep4ward.com to get started.
Do you work remotely? Are you a digital nomad/blogger etc? You need to be insured too.
I use SafetyWing for my digital nomad insurance. It covers me while I live overseas. It's just $10 a week, and it's amazing! No upfront fees, you just pay week by week, and you can sign up just for a week if you want, then switch it off and on whenever. You can read my review here, and you can sign-up here!
Got a question? Wanna comment? I'd love to hear from you
Comments are closed.