Berlin - Top 5 Attractions

(1) The Kulturforum:
Berlin is a vibrant centre for the arts with superb museums, theatres and art galleries. Visit the Kulturforum - the city's most important cultural centre. The Kulturforum is located just west of Potsdamer Platz and is home to many fascinating and impressive museums and concert venues, including the Berliner Philharmonie concert hall and the complex's Picture Gallery. The gallery houses a vast collection of European paintings from the 13th to 18th centuries. The Kulturforum at Potsdamer Platz is connected to the S- and U-Bahn networks.

(2) Checkpoint Charlie Museum:
Visit the house of Checkpoint Charlie Museum, once a threatening monitoring tower erected to ensure no one crossed over from East to West Berlin. Discover fascinating facts about the Wall - including the courage of those who tried (and often succeeded) at escaping under, on and over the border. Visit the nearby East Side Gallery memorial in Berlin-Friedrichshain; the open-air gallery showcases the 'longest surviving' section of the Berlin Wall, now decorated by local artists.

(3) The New National Gallery:
Visit the The New National Gallery, the gallery owns one of the most important collections of twentieth-century art. The gallery has recently undergone six years of restoration work and is considered an icon of architecture, with its flowing, open hall and seemingly floating flat roof.

The gallery has its own collection of Classical Modernism and exhibits around 250 paintings and sculptures from the years 1900 to 1945. The collection includes works by world-famous artists such as Otto Dix, Hannah Höch, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and Paula Modersohn-Becker. Famous artists Dali, Miro and Picasso are also on display. Plus, check out the green outdoor sculpture garden - inspired by MoMA’s sculpture garden in New York.

(4) The Brandenburg Gate:
Visit the impressive Brandenburg Gate. This grand monument (built between 1788 and 1791) - is an important, symbolic landmark of the city. The gate used to lie abandoned in no man's land behind the Berlin Wall but now stands proud as Berlin's only remaining sandstone City Gate. The whole area has been renovated, along with the newly reconstructed Pariser Platz, the avenue linking the gate to the beautiful Unter den Linden Boulevard - an elegant part of the city - close to world embassies, and upmarket hotels.

(5) The Potsdamer Platz:
Potsdamer Platz represents the new Berlin, a city within a city. Potsdamer Platz is a modern matropolis full of entertainment, including; shops, bars, restaurants and cinemas; Potsdamer Platz is a central hub and meeting place where modern skyscrapers meet the old town.

The square includes the Kollhoff Tower, with its impressive, open-air viewing platform and a café on the 24th and 25th floors. The Sony Centre, Sony's German HQ, is an impressively modern and futuristic development with a world-famous roof structure. The Arkaden is Berlin's flagship shopping centre. The centre contains over 130 shops, a food hall, 15+ eateries and exclusive boutiques. Nearby you'll find Cinemax and the Berlin Casino Spielbank.

(6) Shopping:
Berlin has excellent shopping with the renowned Kufurstendamm or Ku'damm well known for it's glitzy chic shops and restaurants. A must do is the famous department store KaDeWe, the second largest department store in Europe after Harrods in London.

Travelling around Berlin is easy, and the city's public transport system is safe and efficient. However, as with any city, keep a lookout for those looking to take advantage, especially pickpockets.

Top Tip: Consider buying Berlin's official tourist card, called the Berlin Welcome Card. The card gives you access to free public transport in Berlin, plus savings of up to 5o% on many top attractions.

The Berlin WecomeCard:
The Berlin WelcomeCard gives you access to public transport services across the entire city, with additional charged access to Potsdam if required. Berlin is divided into 3 fare zones A, B and C. Section A includes Berlin's inner city up to and including the S-Bahn Ring. Section B is located outside the S-Bahn Ring up to the city limits. Section C is the area around Berlin, including the town of Potsdam. Each card is valid for 1 Adult and up to 3 children (aged between 6 & 14 yrs).

Public Transport:
The Berlin public transport system is very efficient with an extensive combination of services, including buses, trams, ferries, the U-Bahn (underground) and S-Bahn (commuter rail), with the U & S Bahns being the best forms of transport.

East Berlin has a network of modernised and authentic pre-war trams serving the city's tourist sites and locations. Travel passes are available, including daily, weekly or monthly tickets. The Berlin Welcome Card is valid for 48 or 72 hours and gives unlimited travel for an adult and three children over three zones, plus discounts at many of Berlin's popular tourist attractions.

Berlin Nightlife:
Berlin has a fantastic legendary nightlife with world-class opera, jazz and classical concerts year round, the city can boast to having more pubs than any other European city. A great way to relax is to take a break in one of Berlin's many traditional cafes and sample their legendary pastries or gateaux.

Club Scene:
Berlin is known as the Capital of Techno, with thousands of techno fans (from the world over) flocking to Berlin's legendary clubs every week. The most famous clubs originated after young people took over abandoned buildings in East Germany after the fall of The Wall.

One of the best clubs to head to is Berghain & Panorama Bar; Berghain is known as the church of Techno and is one of the world's most famous techno clubs. The club occupies an abandoned power plant; inside the same building, you'll find the Panorama Bar, which has a slightly more relaxed house feel.

Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER). The airport is 18 kilometres (11 miles) southeast of the city centre at Willy-Brandt-Platz 1, 12529 Schönefeld, Germany.

Berlin Brandenburg (BER) serves as a base for the following airlines: Eurowings, Easyjet, TUI fly Deutschland and Ryanair.

The airport operates flights to European metropolitan and leisure destinations, plus several intercontinental services. British Airways operates direct services to Berlin from London Heathrow (LHR) & London City (LCY) airports.

Lufthansa:
Lufthansa operates regular direct services from Berlin T1 to Frankfurt and Munich. Both services provide access to Lufthansa's global flight network - with just one change of aircraft.

Airport Transport and Shuttle Services:
Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) has its own train station with fast train and suburban train services to downtown Berlin. The Airport Express (FEX) and regional trains (RE7, RB14) operate between Berlin central station and Flughafen BER Terminals 1 & 2 several times per hour. In addition, there are various direct bus services to downtown Berlin, plus a direct road link to the autobahn.

Car Hire:
All major car rental companies are represented at Berlin (BER) airport, Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz and Sixt.