Französischer Dom

Specializes in 19th-century painting and sculpture; Monet, Manet, Cézanne, C. David Friedrich and other important 18th- and 19th-century artists are well-represented.

The building of one of Berlin’s oldest breweries is a ravishingly beautiful and heritage-protected industrial monument.

A remarkable medium-sized classical castle by the famous K.F. Schinkel built 1820 to 1824, also called "Humboldtschlösschen", because Alexander and Wilhelm von Humboldt (and their family) lived here once. Still privately owned.

Official residence of the (largely ceremonial) President of Germany since 1994. Only Roman Herzog (president 1994-1999) actually lived here, his successors have preferred a quiet apartment on the outskirts of Berlin, but this is where the president will usually host guests and do public events. Guided tours are possible, but plan to book up to nine months ahead and be prepared for having to reschedule if the president decides to hold an event on short notice which preempts tours.

With an impressive, circus-tent-like roof over its courtyard and remains of the pre-war Hotel Esplanade incorporated into the modern structure.

The charming Baroque water palace of the Hohenzollern electors surrounded by the Dahme river and an English garden.

The synagogue in the backyard of an apartment house is one of the biggest in Germany.

The old town of Köpenick is surrounded by water. Especially noteworthy are the Köpenick Palace which houses a museum of applied art and the Neogothic town hall.

1938

The Gemäldegalerie contains an astounding array of paintings, including works by Rembrandt, Rubens, Botticelli, Raphael, Titian, Goya, Velasquez and Watteau. The collection contains works from the old Bodemuseum on Museumsinsel in the East, now closed, and the former Gemäldegalerie in Dahlem. Its strong points are German paintings of the 13-16th centuries, Netherlandish painting of the 15th and 16th centuries, Flemish paintings of the 17th century, and miniature paintings of the 16th-19th centuries. In the newer section of the museum, designed by architects Heinz Hilmer and Christoph Sattler, there is enough space to display 1,150 masterpieces in the main gallery and 350 in the studio gallery - of the almost 2,900 pieces in the European painting collections. Established in 1830, the newly built gallery from 1998 has about 7,000 sq m of exhibition space (a complete tour of the 72 rooms covers almost 2 km).

The former Imperial General Post Office, now Museum for telecommunication and post with many interesting historical objects.

This castle is one of Berlin's oldest castles and where Prince Carl used to reside. Be sure to check out Glienicke Bridge, the bridge that became renowned for the exchange of Western and Eastern secret agents. You can also visit Glienicke Park.

Take a stroll for a few kilometers along this canal which runs right through the heart of Kreuzberg. It's peaceful and mostly traffic-free, but full of life in summer. Some parts are lined with bars and restaurants with terraces. Sit on a bench or terrace and watch the world go by on a summer evening.

Small terrace on the top of the Park Inn, publicly accessible. Take the elevator to the 40th floor, and follow the signs up the stairs. Pay the attendant who also serves beer and coffee. Great views of the Fernsehturm. In the summer, consider base jumping off the roof with Jochen Schweizer. It is often closed in bad/windy weather, so look for a notice posted near the elevator that the terrace is closed.

Designed by Hans Scharoun.

This imposing building houses the Federal German Parliament or "Bundestag" and was completed in 1894 to meet the need of the newly-unified German Empire of the Kaisers for a larger parliamentary building. The Reichstag was intended to resemble a Renaissance palace, and its architect, Paul Wallot, dedicated the building to the German people. The massive inscription in front still reads: "Dem Deutschen Volke" - 'For the German people'. The Nazi leader Adolf Hitler exploited the fire which gutted the Reichstag building in 1933 by blaming the Communists for the arson and for attempted revolution. There is good evidence to suggest, however, that his followers were actually responsible and that this was a manufactured crisis. The iconic photo symbolizing the Soviet victory over Nazi Germany shows a Soviet soldier planting the Soviet flag on top of the building and there are to this day graffiti left by Soviet soldiers on some walls of the Reichstag which were deliberately preserved by the new Germany as a memento of the war. It's perhaps the only national parliament to have traces left by a foreign army deliberately preserved. When German reunification became a reality, the new republic was proclaimed here at midnight on 2 October 1990. The Reichstag building is well-known in the art world thanks to Paris-based Bulgarian artist Christo's mammoth 'Wrapped Reichstag' project in 1995. The entire building was swathed in silver cloth for two weeks that summer.The Reichstag has undergone considerable restoration and alteration, including the addition of a spectacular glass dome designed by the British architect Norman Foster completed in 1999. You can visit the Reichstag building proper and even listen to a parliamentary debate but you need to book on their website sometimes weeks or even months in advance. Fortunately its much easier to visit the glass dome. You can reserve a visiting time and date on their website or in the small building across Scheidmannstrasse, except during the high season you should be able to arrange a time later the same day or the next day. Photo ID or passport is required to make the booking. A passsport is required during your visit. This is a very popular tourist attraction in Berlin and can get quite crowded however it is worth the effort. The helical path up the inside of the dome is a lot of fun and the 360 degree views at the top are splendid.