Where to stay in Berlin
SO / Berlin Das Stue
Drakestrasse 1, 10787
Lavishly appointed rooms and Michelin-starred dining, in a former Danish Embassy built in the 1930s? Why not? From the gasp-inducing entrance, through to the soothing spa, this is the perfect city stay. It also overlooks the zoo, so you can animal-spot over a fabulous breakfast.
The Westin Grand Berlin
Friedrichstrasse 158-164, 10117
It’s all about the location here, right on Friedrichstrasse shopping street and a few steps away from the leafy pathways of Unter den Linden Boulevard. If you can leave your spacious room or the full service spa, you’re close to both Checkpoint Charlie and Brandenburg Gate.
Provocateur Berlin
Brandenburgische Str. 21, 10707
Slightly less central, Provocateur scores on the seductiveness of its interior – subtle it isn’t. Expect bold colour choices, extravagant fabrics and a touch of kitsch, making it the ideal accommodation for a romantic weekend retreat.
Best restaurants in Berlin
Restaurant Tim Raue
Rudi-Dutschke-Strasse 26, 10969
Close to Checkpoint Charlie, a meal at Tim Raue is a memorable affair. Recently ranked in the world’s top 50 restaurants, the unstuffy venue has a striking modern design and signature menu. Its brevity of description, ‘wagyu beef, beetroot, jalapeno’, for example, belies the invention in each dish. There’s also a separate vegan menu available.
Coda
Friedelstrasse 47, 12047
While it’s billed as a ‘dessert bar’, there’s more to Coda than that. Sat in the fashionable Neukölln District, this playful restaurant is all about applying dessert and pastry techniques to savoury ingredients. Notably, they eschew refined sugar and draw out the natural sweetness of their other ingredients, for a unique culinary approach your tastebuds will love.
Villa Rixdorf
Richardplatz 6, 12055
A great choice for family meal, Villa Rixdorf is a welcoming restaurant that’s big on atmosphere and happy to accommodate children. Food runs the gamut from German classics to Italian, so hop from perch fillets, wiener schnitzel and pork knuckle, to pizza and pasta.
What to do in Berlin
Berlin Wall
Bernauer Strasse 119, 13355
There isn’t much of the Berlin Wall left to see and most of it is now distributed around museums and as keepsakes in the homes of those there the night it came down. This memorial, however, does a fantastic job of explaining what it was, what it meant, how it came to be and how it ended.
Museum Island
Berlin, 10178
Five museums occupy this island in the Spree River, between them spanning thousands of years of history. From the Altes Museum, to the Neues Museum, you’ll find everything from medieval-era sculptures and architecture, to painting and staggering collections of Roman and Egyptian antiquities.
Street Art
Berlin
Graffiti and street art have made the leap from urban areas to Berlin’s galleries. However, much of the best new material still springs up in areas once derelict and now reclaimed. Have your camera ready as you take yourself through Mitte or Kreuzberg or join one of the walking tours to unearth new compositions.