Discover Berlin: Museums, Gardens and History
Accommodation in Berlin
Berlin has many sides: On Museum Island, you can encounter art and culture from different eras; at the Wall sites, the history of Germany’s division; and in the gardens, the natural world. Wildlife and walking paths also add their own distinctive touches. As you plan your trip, you can start by asking yourself which of these experiences interest you most.
Berlin
Photo: Hans Jürgen Lenk
Art and Culture on Museum Island
Museum Island is home to unique collections of European and Mediterranean art and culture. Its five museums cover a broad span of time: the collections range from prehistory to 19th-century art. If you are interested in different eras, you will find a range of subjects here within a shared museum offering. Museum Island has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1999. Visitors can explore the museums and collections independently or as part of a guided tour.
Gardens, Plants and Wildlife
The Gardens of the World bring together themed gardens and garden pavilions from different cultures with contemporary garden art. For the 2017 International Garden Exhibition Berlin, they were expanded together with Kienbergpark to cover 43 hectares. The site offers opportunities to relax, observe nature, play and enjoy cultural events. This lets you shape your visit according to your interests, without any single focus defining the grounds.
Britzer Garten also focuses on garden design: it has four themed gardens, and three flower shows are held there each year. The Botanical Garden offers a different perspective on plant diversity. Its 43 hectares are home to 20,000 plant species from every continent. Its tropical greenhouse is a 25-meter-high Art Nouveau building, surrounded by 14 other exhibition greenhouses. At Berlin Zoo, meanwhile, the focus is on animals: it is Germany’s oldest zoo and is home to many endangered species as well as rare domestic animal breeds.
Wall Sites and Berlin History
Mauerpark lies on the former Wall strip between Prenzlauer Berg and Wedding. Right next to the park in Prenzlauer Berg is a flea market whose stalls are run mostly by private traders rather than professional vendors. Since 2009, karaoke has taken place in Mauerpark’s amphitheater on Sundays in good weather from 3 p.m.; visitors can sing in front of an audience.
The Berlin Wall Memorial stretches for 1.4 kilometers along Bernauer Straße, on the former border strip between East and West Berlin. It includes the last preserved section of the Berlin Wall, along with the former border area behind it, and is the central memorial to the division of Germany. The East Side Gallery offers another perspective on the Wall: at 1,316 meters long, this section is the longest continuous surviving stretch of the Berlin Wall and can be explored on foot. Public introductory tours on various topics are held there regularly. They last about an hour and use audio guides.
Walking Routes and Getting Around
The Berlin Wall Trail is one of Berlin’s Green Main Routes. This network comprises walking paths, promenades and leafy streets, extending for almost 550 kilometers. This figure describes the length of the network, not the length of the Berlin Wall Trail. When choosing what to experience, this offers a different approach from museums or individual memorial sites: here, the focus is on walking paths and promenades.
For public transport, the Berlin WelcomeCard includes a travel pass and a free app. It can be purchased for fare zone Berlin AB or Berlin ABC, with a freely selectable validity period of 48 hours to six days. If you are looking for a holiday apartment in Berlin, your preferred focus can offer an initial guide: museums and history, gardens and plants, or wildlife and walking paths each open up different ways to discover the city.
Discover More Places
If you would like to explore individual local and neighborhood pages, here are more destinations: Schöneberg, Berlin-Reinickendorf, Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg, Kreuzberg, Hermsdorf, Friedrichshain, Berlin-Neukölln, Wilmersdorf, Rahnsdorf, Bohnsdorf, Altglienicke, Weißensee, Zehlendorf, Spandau, Marienfelde, Friedenau, Pankow, Rudow, Steglitz, Biesdorf, Grünau, Friedrichshagen, Karlshorst, Karow, Kladow, Ruhlsdorf, Schmöckwitz, Wannsee, Adlershof, Charlottenburg, Köpenick, Mahlsdorf, Velten, Tiergarten, Buckow, Wedding, Berlin, Marzahn, Tempelhof, Lichtenberg, Hellersdorf and Hohenschönhausen.
For the overarching travel overview: Germany.
