CONTENTSIntroduction.............................................................................................................P3

Survival Guide.........................................................................................................P8Public Transport.....................................................................................................P10

Food & Drink............................................................................................................P38

Museums & Galleries............................................................................................P26

A History of Berlin...................................................................................................P4

Sights & Tours..........................................................................................................P12

Shopping.................................................................................................................P56

The Team.................................................................................................................P86

Accommodation....................................................................................................P82

Outdoors...................................................................................................................P74

Nightlife..................................................................................................................P64

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Berlin has something for everyone: whether you’re a hipster or history fan, music lover or art fanatic, fashion-ista, foodie or techno-loving night owl.Whatever your interests, this guide has been compiled to help make your time in this vibrant city as exciting and worth-while as possible. We have made it our mission to visit and research the best that Berlin has to offer and along with details of the top attractions, have included a sur-vival and orientation guide to help you get started on your Berlin adventures.

INTRODUCTION

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War and the Napoleonic Wars. Though, it finally emerged from the dust as a cen-tre for German nationalism. The city expanded rapidly, the population grow-ing tenfold from 201,000 to 2,712,000 in under a century. Berlin fast became one of the world’s great urban centres, finally becoming the capital in 1871.

Founded in the 13th Century, Berlin has had an eventful history. The city began as two Wendish villages: Berlin and Kölln, which merged in 1307. The city’s impor-tance grew in 1486 when it became the seat for Brandenburg’s electors (later Prussia in 1701). Berlin endured long pe-riod of suffering beginning with the Thir-ty Years War, followed by the Seven Year

HISTORY OF BERLINHannah Seaton

Asian Palace, Park SanssouciSophie Hume

5Schloss CharlottenburgHannah Wilson

Extensive social and political unrest fol-lowed Germany’s defeat in World War I. On 9th November 1918, Kaiser Wil-helm II abdicated, leaving power to the SPD, the largest party in the Reichstag. The party was a coalition between left and centre parties, and pleased no one. However, through all the unrest Berlin’s art and culture flourished, giving the twenties the name ‘The Golden Twenties’. Unemployed was at c.10% but this only fuelled Berlin’s dive into a hedonistic paradise. Cabaret clubs, Dada and jazz took over and ‘pleasure pits’ appeared left, right and centre. Berlin gained a lib-eral reputation (that it still holds today) drawing in genius’s of architecture, fine art and literature. Although, this period of happiness was not set to last, all came crashing down with the US stock mar-ket crash of 1929, launching the world into economic depression. Half a million Berliner’s were left unemployed and ri-ots ruled the streets. Political extremism was seen as an escape and Hitler and his party the ‘Nationalsozialistische Deut-sche Arbeiterpartei’ (NSDAP, Nation-al Socialist German Workers’ Party, or Nazi Party) seized the opportunity. In January 1933, Hitler became chancellor, celebrating by marching through the Brandenburg Gate, although not every-one was pleased. In 1934, following the

death of the President, Hitler fused the role of Chancellor with President, declar-ing himself Führer of the Third Reich.

Hitler did not hesitate in commencing his dictatorship. Within three months all non-Nazi parties, organizations and labor unions were disbanded and all po-litical opponents, intellectuals and artists were arrested or hid in exile. A culture of terror developed at an alarming rate with the escalation of the terrorization of Jews and anyone who dared to speak against the Führer. In 1933, the Nazis announced a boycott of all Jewish businesses and all ‘un-German’ books were burned by a right-wing section of Humboldt Uni-versität students. In 1935, Jewish per-secution reached an alarming point; all Jews were deprived of German citizen-ship and not allowed to marry outside of their religion. Despite this, the 1936 Olympic games were a PR triumph, all persecution was temporarily halted and the rest of the world was none the wis-er to the terror just beginning in Berlin.

Gedenkstaette Deutscher WiderstandGiorgia Masiello

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Berlin was divided, to be administered by the four allied powers: Britain, France, the USA and the Soviet Union. Though tensions were high between the Western powers and the East and came to a head 1946. In 1948, the Soviet Union put a complete blockade around West Berlin, preventing any travel out of the city and the import of supplies. West Berlin com-bated this by building an airport and sup-plying the entire area with goods, making a mockery of East Berlin. The blockade finally ended on 12th May 1949, although access to West Berlin through Soviet occupied areas still remained difficult.

During the 1950s, due to the huge eco-nomic divide between East and West, 3.5 million GDR (German Democrat-ic Republic, the Soviet Union occupied area) citizens made the move into West Berlin prompting the development of the Berlin Wall in 1961. The wall was

Berlin suffered terribly during World War II, 600,000 apartments had been flattened and only half of the city’s pop-ulation remained. In order to prevent such a catastrophe ever happening again,

GendarmenmarktCharlotte Sykes

The imposing Brandenburg GateJames Fossdyke

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erected almost overnight to the surprise of the residents of Berlin, families and friends were separated with no chance of seeing each other as visiting was pro-hibited between the two states. The wall eventually became two walls, with a strip of land known as the ‘Death Strip’ in be-tween. The guards had shoot-to-kill or-ders for any GDR citizens caught in this area. The number of people who were killed attempting to cross is not known, but it is thought to be several hundred.

The wall came crashing down on 9th No-

vember 1989, when the GDR announced that all travel restrictions to were to be lifted. The news spread like wildfire and hundreds of thousands of East Ber-liner’s ran to the wall, pulling it down.

With reunification, Berlin once again became the capital of a united Germa-ny in 1991 and the seat of the govern-ment in 1999. Although the fall of the wall united Germany, Berlin lost many of its financial subsidies from the West, ending up with huge debts and high un-employment. In 2001, with the election of a new government, Berlin’s status improved. Job creation is the fastest in Germany and population is steadily in-creasing. What really flourished was the Berlin art, fashion and design industries. Berlin is recognized worldwide for its in-novative art scene and exciting culture. After a dark history, Berlin is reaching its peak as an economic and cultural hub with some of the highest tourism in Europe, third only to Paris and London.

SiegessäuleJames Fossdyke

1936 Olympics Gold Medalists role of honour on the Marathon Tor in the OlympiastadionJames Fossdyke

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cheap here in Berlin, especially if you’re buying from a supermarket where you will pay well under €1 for a bottle. Ber-liner Pilsner is a great choice and often bottles in bars won’t set you back more than €2.50 (depending on your bar of choice of course). If you don’t like beer, wine can be equally as cheap but don’t expect to come to Berlin on a budget and drink spirits. Most bars charge over €5 for a spirit and a mixer.

4. World famous for its clubs such as Ber-ghain, Kater Holzig and Watergate, you’ll probably want to try out at least one during your time in Berlin – ‘try’ being the key word here. It really is hit or miss whether you will get into any of the big clubs. You could queue for hours, look-ing as hip as you possibly can and still get turned away. The trick is not to take it personally, don’t let it ruin your night and find somewhere else where the bouncer is in a better mood!

1. What’s this? There are no ticket barri-ers at any of Berlin’s transport stations? – No, this doesn’t mean free transportation for the duration of your stay. The metro system runs on a ‘we trust you’ basis, so make sure you buy the correct ticket and validate it before you travel. Getting caught is not a pleasant experience and be prepared to be surrounded by big and scary conductors until you pay a steep fine!

2. Don’t jaywalk. Look for the Ampel-mann when crossing the road! Berlin is full of cars, trams and bikes which all move very fast and are in no rush to stop for a pedestrian wandering across the road in a daydream. Wait until the Am-pelmann is green and you’re safe to go! Also beware that the traffic is permitted to turn right on a red light, so don’t be surprised to see cars coming even when the Ampelmann is green.

3. Beer fans, you’re in luck! Beer is really

BERLIN SURVIVAL GUIDEJennifer Graham

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5. Although most Berliners speak good English, it is important to arm yourself with a few essential phrases when com-ing to Berlin (the locals will appreciate your attempts – even if your pronuncia-tion is all wrong!) Here’s a few words and phrases we have found to come in handy:

Entschuldigung – Excuse me/ Sorry!

Sprechen Sie Englisch? – Do you speak English?

Ich verstehe nicht. – I don’t understand.

Ich hätte gern ein Bier. – I would like a beer.

Noch einmal, bitte! – One more, please!

Mio RestaurantHannah Wilson

The Brandenburg GateJames Fossdyke

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and C. Zone A covers the centre of Ber-lin, which is circled by the S41 and S42. Zone B covers the suburbs, with zone C covering the outskirts of the city. Tickets are bought according to zone, with AB, BC and ABC being the available options. Prices vary from €2.40 for a single AB ticket to €3.10 for a single ABC. Single tickets can be used two hours after val-idation, and other tickets are available for longer stays in Berlin. The City-TourCard is ideal for short breaks, and can be bought for 48 and 72 hour peri-ods. The tickets cover all public transport and come with discounts for many of the city’s main attractions.Ticket machines are on the U and S-Bahn platforms, and tickets for trams can be bought on board, but be sure to validate tickets before travel. There are various language options for the ticket machines, and most machines take card or cash, making purchasing tickets simple. Bus tickets can be bought from the driver.

Berlin’s public transport system makes getting around a pleasurable experience. Although a little daunting at first, the various transport systems will soon be-come second nature to visitors. There are many forms of transport available, with tickets covering all kinds. The frequen-cy, clear labelling and conditions of the transport make city travel stress-free. TicketsThe city is divided into three zones, A, B

Rosenthalerplatz U-BahnJames Fossdyke

PUBLIC TRANSPORTHannah Wilson