Holidays in Berlin - Tourism
After the reunification and the fall of the wall, Berlin - the capital of Germany - has become one of the most exciting capitals in Europe. The cultural and entertainment diversity of Berlin has a great tradition; this includes the formidable patrimony exposed in the Island of the Museums, the Cultural Forum or the collections reunited in the district of Dahlem, all of them cultural samples of world-wide category. The three opera houses, the famous Philarmonica Orchestra and the numerous theatres, audiences and libraries determine the fame of the capital like the European cultural metropolis. In addition, Berlin attracts many artists worldwide, many of which settle down in the German capital and enrich with their creative proposals the dynamic and artistic world of Berlin.
Things to do in Berlin
Shopping in Berlin
There are many things to do and places in Berlin to enjoy and do tourism. For shopping, the world famous “Kurfürstendamm”, more famous department store of the west “KaDeWe”, the elegant “Friedrichstraße” with its exclusive boutiques, as well as the new galleries “Arkaden” in Potsdamer Platz. In the numerous small stores it will be able to shop and find occasion articles, original fashion and small objects of value. For more outlandish desires there are multiple swap-meets.
Restaurants & Entertainment
Most of the coffees and restaurants are in the western part of the city. The Coffee Einstein, of Viennese style, is known of politicians and journalists, the Zwielbelfisch restaurant, is a very know restaurant where some of the most important artists of Berlin come together. The Brown coffee is one of most showy of the German capital, with young atmosphere and a beautiful tile decoration.
In order to eat cheap it is possible to go to an Imbiss, where one eats standing up. A peculiar place is Theaterschiff TAU, a restaurant on a boat where the summernights offer fantastic climate, are delighted with concerts and where theatre plays are organized.
Night life is concentrated in the known areas of Kreuzberg and Schönenberg, although Mitte is also a demanded area. In Berlin you will find a wide variety of clubs offering all types of music - from classical to jazz and electronics.
If you are looking for something more alternative Berlin is the ideal place to find it. The Kulturbrauerei, is an old factory of beer where you can attend a life concert or a fashion parade. In Tacheles, a house occupied by the alternative movements, offers all type of activities, performances and entertainment. Spending holidays in the capital, Berlin offers you many things to do, from restaurants to shopping centres, travel with the S-Bahn and enjoy a good climate in summer.
Berlin – Transports
Berlin counts with three international airports offering good flights.
By Plane (flights to Berlin - flights from Berlin)
Airlines as Easy Jet, Air Berlin, Via Berlin offer affordable flights to Germany, Berlin and other main cities.
Easy Jet offers flights to Berlin and other cities from London Lutton and Gatwick, Liverpool, Glasgow and Bristol in the U.K. and from Belfast, Ireland.
Air Berlin offers flights to Berlin and other cities from Bournemouth, Glasgow, London Standsted and Manchester in the U.K. and from Belfast in Ireland.
The three international airports, Tegel, Tempelhof and Schönefeld, have excellent information that can serve you as reference on the exact situation of your flight. Please, click here for all the useful information of the flights and telephone numbers.
2007 – the year of major construction work at Berlin Schönefeld Airport
The construction work for the expansion of Schönefeld Airport to the capital city airport Berlin-Brandenburg International BBI began with the groundbreaking ceremony in September 2006. Europe’s most modern concrete plant is already in operation and by the time BBI opens will have produced 3.4 million tons of concrete. The year 2007 will be the year of major construction work at BBI. In spring the work for the railway station will commence. The railway station’s shell and the 3.4 km tunnel inside the airport property will be built by a consortium of small and medium sized companies from the Berlin-Brandenburg region. The airport station below the terminal will have two platforms for the regional and long-distance rail and one platform for the Berlin rapid transit system, the S-Bahn. On the western edge of the future airport property, the structure referred to as 262, a 90 meter section of the western railway connection to the BBI railway station, will be complete by April 2007. the future road L785 and the utility connection for BBI will lead through a tunnel in the railway connection. Passengers will not only be able to reach BBI easily via rail, but also comfortably with the care using the A 113 freeway (new).
BBI will have its own exit from the city freeway ring and be connected to the city freeway. The construction work on freeway A113 (new) in the south-eastern area of Berlin-Schönefeld Airport has already commenced. This year the Berlin city freeway A111 will be connected to the A113 (new) at the Waltersdor/Schönefelder interchange. Another mayor project: the construction of the parallel runway system with two runways. The existing Schönefeld southern runway will be extended from 3,000 to 3,600 meters to become the future northern runway at BBI. The runway will have four rapid-exit taxiways ad four access taxiways. The preliminary work for the taxiway accesses has already commenced, too. The BBI southern runways with a length of 4,000 meters and aprons will be completely new. BBI is being constructed as a mid-field airport. As a result of the 1,900 meter distance between the two runways, the northern and southern runways can be operated independently of one another. The BBI terminal, the Airport City service centre, the gate positions and parking will be located between the runways.
By train
If you want to travel by train, please visit Deutsche Bahn railway website. In addition, for the present schedules and to buy your ticket in line. Another thing to do is visit the train station Hauptbahnhof.
By car
Visit our maps of Germany section for interactive road maps of Berlin and the rest of Germany.
The weather in Berlin
In Berlin the summers are warm and sunny, and the winters are very cold. The annual average temperature is of 11º C. The annual average precipitations are of 585 mm. Check 7 day weather forecast for Berlin for more information.
