Oberbaum Bridge stands out as one of Berlin’s most striking landmarks and serves as the link between the neighborhoods of Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg. Its brick arches and towers make it instantly recognizable, and its role as both a road and U-Bahn crossing keeps it lively at all hours.
Signage on the bridge notes that it was constructed twice: first in the 1890s, when the original structure took shape, and again in the 1990s, when it was rebuilt after major damage and decades of division. The design blends historic character with careful restoration, preserving the look of a late 19th-century gateway while meeting modern needs.
During the years before German reunification, the border between East and West Berlin ran along this very spot. The bridge, once a crossing point controlled by checkpoints and barriers, now brings Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg together, symbolizing the city’s shift from separation to connection.
Source - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oberbaum_Bridge
Oderberger Straße is known for its beautiful and generous Gründerzeit architecture, as well as its cafés and restaurants. Since before Germany's reunification the street has been the desired place for alternative folks and avant-gardists, but the area has seen continual gentrification since the early 2000s.
Closed for renovations; the temporary Bauhaus-Archiv is at Knesebeckstraße 1-2 in Charlottenburg. Building designed by Walter Gropius. Inside a museum, library, cafe and shop.
Built by Hitler for the 1936 Olympic Games, this is one of the better examples of Nazi neoclassical architecture (laying claim to the legacy of Rome, fasces and all) and is still used for sporting events. At those Olympics, African-American athlete Jesse Owens won four gold medals, a party-spoiler for Aryan superiority. It's the home of soccer team Hertha BSC - they were relegated in 2023 and now play in 2. Bundesliga the second tier. In 2024 this stadium hosted games in the UEFA Euro Finals, including the final itself. For a glimpse of the Olympiastadion in its original state, seek out Leni Riefenstahl's movie Olympia - clips are shown in the Kinemathek and elsewhere.
Experience the Stasi Secret Police Prison first-hand. Tours are compulsory. Some of the tours are done by former inmates.
The largest zoo in the world, both in terms of number of species (1500) and animal population (14,000). It is especially famous for its pandas. The Elephant Gate (Budapester Straße), one of the two entrances and next to the Aquarium, is a traditional photo stop for most visitors because of the architecture.
A small but interesting collection of decorative arts from the Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods
Designed by Daniel Libeskind with an excellent exposition on the Jewish life in Berlin and the impact of the Holocaust. You can easily spend a day here. There is a metal scanner and other security features you'd rather expect at an airport than a museum.
150 m high lattice tower with open-air observation deck 124 m above ground.
This heritage-protected public bathing beach which opened in 1907 is one of the largest inland lidos in Europe and has a 1275-m-long sand beach, a capacity for up to 30,000 guests and a popular nudist area.
Specializes in 19th-century painting and sculpture; Monet, Manet, Cézanne, C. David Friedrich and other important 18th- and 19th-century artists are well-represented.
Gothic church, the second oldest (built in late 13th century) of the historical centre of Berlin. It's the highest church tower of Berlin (about 90 m), but seems rather small beneath the gigantic TV tower. The church tower was built in the late 18th century by Carl Gotthard Langhans, the architect of the Brandenburg Gate.
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.
More than 30 million objects in the scientific collection and a fascinating exhibition in one of the most significant institutions of its kind in the world. Some parts still under construction.
This museum is perhaps something you wouldn't expect in a major metropolis and truth be told it owes its existence in part to partition (when West Berlin schoolkids couldn't go to the surrounding Brandenburg countryside to experience rural life). Opened in 1975 it is an attempt to recreate as faithfully as feasible a medieval farming village from roughly the era of Berlin's founding (12th or 13th century). The village that existed at this place 800 years ago was not called "Düppel" back then as that name was only applied in the 1860s after the Prussian victory over Denmark at Dybbøl which was rendered into German as "Düppel" and applied to the area to honor a member of the Prussian royal family who owned land there.
An observation tower without an elevator in Southeast Berlin, from which you can see that there is a great deal of forest around Berlin. There is a cafe at the tower.