The Spree River is the ideal spot for cycling, strolling, or enjoying a German beer in the sun. Photo / Getty Images
The Spree River is the ideal spot for cycling, strolling, or enjoying a German beer in the sun. Photo / Getty Images
Superb museums and a multi-cultural food scene feature in Germany's exciting capital city, writes Brett Atkinson.
What to see:
Having about 170 different museums, Berlin is one of Europe's capitals of history and culture. Highlights of Museum Island, a Unesco World Heritage-listed destination in the Spree River, include five different world-class institutions covering more than 6000 years of history. Classical sculpture and architecture from Greece, Rome and the Middle East are featured at the Pergamonmuseum – including the reconstructed blue and gold glory of the Ishtar Gate from ancient Babylon – while the Neues Museum's repository of Egyptian wonders includes a 3300-year-old bust of Queen Nefertiti.
Berlin is packed with museums and historical sites, including the Brandenburg Gate. Photo / Getty Images
More contemporary history is showcased at Museum Island's DDR Museum, offering fascinating and often poignant slices of life under socialism in the East German Deutsche Demokratische Republik from 1949 to 1990. There's even a Trabant ("Trabi"), the compact East German car citizens often had to wait years to buy. Take it for a virtual spin around an East Berlin neighbourhood.
To further understand East Germany's 20th-century history, visit the Stasimuseum, an intriguing insight into the all-pervasive control and surveillance powers of the Ministry of State Security.
North of the river in Friedrichshain, the East Side Gallery features murals and street art along a 1.3km-long stretch of the Berlin Wall that divided the city from 1961 to 1989. Essential Berlin monuments remembering the genocide of European Jews during World War II include the moving Holocaust Memorial, and the Judisches Museum, expanded and reopened in mid-2020.
The East Side Gallery features vibrant murals and street art on a section of the former Berlin Wall. Photo / Getty Images
What to do:
For ardent fans of East Germany's "Trabi" cars – vehicles loved and mocked in equal measure – Trabi Safari offer drive-yourself tours of the city. Look forward to squeezing into (very) compact front seats, cruising (slowly) past the al fresco colour and art of the East Side Gallery, and occasionally getting an ironic thumbs-up from Mercedes, Audi and BMW drivers when you're stopped at traffic lights.
Loved and mocked in equal measure, compact Trabi cars are the ideal way to (slowly) see the city's sights. Photo / Getty Images
Tours exploring Berlin with an eating and drinking focus are offered by Fork & Walk Food Tours. Book for the Inside Berlin: East Meets West experience taking in Berlin's "Little Istanbul" area of Kreuzberg, and also north across the Spree to Friedrichshain for local craft beer, street eats and more colourful street art.
Specialist tour operators include Berlin Unterwelten exploring the city's underground history and World War II bunkers, and Refugee Voices Tours, discovering the city with Syrian refugees and exploring historic parallels between the 20th- and 21st-century.
Where to eat:
Two Berlin neighbourhoods are standout destinations for the city's best eating. Sprawled along the Landwehrkanal, the Turkischer Markt is tasty evidence of Kreuzberg as the traditional home of Berlin's Turkish population, and across recent years, newcomers from Syria and Iraq have also broadened the area's culinary mix. Recommended restaurants include Fes Turkish BBQ and Cafe Mugrabi for modern flavours influenced by Lebanese and Israeli cuisine. Baklava and syrupy kunefe are dessert standouts at the Damaskus Konditorei.
For modern takes on traditional German dishes, always showcasing seasonal and regional produce, head to Kreuzberg's Ora, a stylish combination of wine bar and bistro set in a restored 19th-century pharmacy.
North of the river in Friedrichshain, the restaurant at the hip Michelberger hotel is informed by whatever has been harvested from their own "regenerative food forest" on the outskirts of Berlin. Michelberger's chefs also work closely with local foragers and hunters to craft menu highlights. Dinner consists of around 6-8 plates, while Michelberger's buffet brunch is a great way to start the day.
Where to drink:
Berliner weisse, a tart, lower alcohol wheat beer, is a refreshing favourite during warmer months. Try it with a dash of himbeersirup (raspberry syrup) at most cafes and beers. Look for Berliner Kindl Weisse on the menu and ask for "mit Schuss" ("with syrup") when you order.
From serene sidewalk cafes to busy markets, there are plenty of places to try the multicultural cuisine of Berlin. Photo / Getty Images
Versions of Berlin's traditional beer are made by a few of Berlin's craft breweries, but the emphasis is usually on hoppy IPAs, robust stouts and hazy pale ales. Popular destinations for travelling hopheads include the Protokoll Taproom in bohemian Friedrichshain, and Heidenpeters, south across the Spree River in multicultural Kreuzberg, and part of the Markthalle Neun, a renovated food market with stalls serving up cuisine from around the world. The market's regular Street Food Thursday events draw curious foodies from around the city.
Serving up frosty glasses of pilsner and wheat beer, Schleusenkrug's canal-side location is a classic Berlin biergarten (beer garden) experience. You'll probably want to order a currywurst sausage too.
For a less raffish experience, adjourn for cocktails at Mr Susan's stylish subterranean location. Courtesy of the owners' travels, everything from Mexican mezcal to Korean soju feature as ingredients on one of the city's best cocktail lists.
For good coffee, seek out any of The Barn Roastery's 10 Berlin locations.
Where to stay:
Combing a sociable hostel, smart hotel rooms and spacious apartments, Circus Berlin is north of the river and an easy walk from Museum Island. An in-house microbrewery and the opportunity to join exclusive guests-only walking tours are other highlights.
Getting There and Around
For New Zealand travellers, Berlin can be reached on direct flights from Doha with Qatar Airways. Scoot, Singapore Airline's low-cost subsidiary, has direct flights from Singapore.
