(no subject)

[aroraborealis]

Can anyone recommend good places to stay in Berlin, Germany? And what activities or other attractions should one be sure not to miss?

Comments

[kcatalyst.livejournal.com]

Oo, oo, and where to eat!

I was gonna check the library for travel books today....

Stuff we enjoyed

[lillibet.livejournal.com]

Restaurants:
Savoie Rire (http://www.berlin-hidden-places.de/yuba_web3/sachindex_en/bars_rest/charl_tybreizh_en.htm)--a marvelous French bisto with a lot of character.
Florian (http://www.restaurant-florian.de/), in Savignyplat, where there are a dozen or more restaurants in a few blocks.

Things to see:
The Pergamon Museum--one of the great archeological museums in the world. The Ishtar Gate is...it's amazing and beautiful and interesting.

The East Side Gallery (http://www.eastsidegallery.com/), a long section of the Berlin Wall that's been painted by various artist. The art isn't the reason to go--some of the bits are interesting, but it's in poor condition--but I found it the best exposure to the idea of The Wall.

The Gemäldegalerie and the Bauhaus Archiv, depending on where your interest in art lies.

I'd also highly recommend getting on the S-Bahn out to Potsdam for a day to see the several different palaces and gardens there.

The Berlin Zoo was fun, if you like that sort of thing. We find that going to the zoo the day we arrive works well for jetlag--it's interesting, but not demanding, gets you outside in the sunshine, etc.

In general, we found Berlin to be an excellent walking city. One of our favorite routes was walking through the Tiergarten and down Unter den Linden. There's also very easy public transportation.

Re: Stuff we enjoyed

[aroraborealis.livejournal.com]

Awesome, thanks!

Re: Stuff we enjoyed

[missionista.livejournal.com]

I absolutely second the Pergamon museum and the East Side Gallery.

I stayed in a youth hostel when I was there (one of the IYHF ones, I don't remember which), and liked it a lot.

I was on a really low budget when I was there, but you should be able to get some great Turkish food.

[maebeth.livejournal.com]

um. Berlin is in Massachusetts.

[jacflash.livejournal.com]

Homes still available!

[crouchback.livejournal.com]

If you get the chance to see Sanssouci (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanssouci), it's worth the trip.

I second the recommendation of the Pergamon Museum.

The Museum für Naturkunde is worth the visit, too, especially the famous Archaeopteryx.

[hotpoint.livejournal.com]

In 2002 I stayed at the Hotel Pension Columbus and it was fine. It had friendly English-speaking staff and good breakfasts, and it felt comfortably lived-in.

I fourth the Pergamon; it is the only museum of its kind. (Plus, it's not far from the Lustgarten!)

[dbang.livejournal.com]

You're coming to Berlin? Well. I would hope you'd stay with ME!

[(Anonymous)]

Hi,

Kai told me, you could use some tips for the real Berlin.

to stay: if you are staying for more than 3 or 4 days you should consider tc-apartments-berlin.de (in Central Berlin = Mitte, they've got appartements in other districts as well, but I'd recommend Mitte), very early booking necessary. A good hotel in perfect location is hotel-albrechtshof.de (in Mitte), christian background, but very liberal nowadys (some of the rooms are quite small). Less expensive but nice Wilhelminian Style Hotel is hotel-residenz-berlin.de, nice rooms, maybe a bit small as well (near Kudamm, Charlottenburg, second best district to stay).

to see: Museums: of course the Pergamon. And the Gemäldegalerie has probably the most consise collection of late medieval and early modern art in Europe. You should consider the Bode Museum for an hour or two as well, less spectacular collection (sculpture) but one of the nicest neo-classical museal buildings I know. Outside: Be sure to take a long walk down Unter den Linden and along the Friedrichstraße from Checkpoint Charly towards the east. Potsdam is worth a trip as well (just 25 minutes by train): Sanssouci, the Park of Sanssouci and the Dutch Quarter.

at night: if you're interested in theatre, consider the Berliner Ensemble (conservative aesthetics according to german standards), Deutsches Theater (less conservative), Volksbühne (often somewhat experimental) or the State Opera (great stuff). To go out (restaurants, bars, clubs) there's plenty in Kreuzberg of course (Yorkstraße, Oranienstraße) - preferably turkish kitchen, in Charlottenburg and on the Prenzlauer Berg; avoid the Oranienburger Straße in Mitte (best days are long gone) and Potsdamer Platz area (boring).

[ifman.livejournal.com]

Rosa: that comment is from my brother Jens, who was in the wrong Berlin pretty recently and goes there quite a bit.

[aroraborealis.livejournal.com]

Thanks, Kai! And thank Jens for me, too, please -- this is a great help!