Museums and galleries in Berlin

Museums and galleries in Berlin

1. SeeMitte

   Alte Nationalgalerie

   Old National Gallery

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

   Admission: €10, discounted: €5, children under age of 18 free

2. SeeMitte

   Altes Museum

   The main floor houses the antiquities collection in an ongoing exhibit called "Neue Antike im Alten Museum" (New Antiquities in the Old Museum). Directly through the front door, entering from the Lustgarten (Pleasure Garden, now under reconstruction), there is a domed rotunda with red and white cameos, Greek-style, with statues of the gods. To reach the Hildesheim silver collection, go to the back of the rotunda, turn left, walk through the long gallery and turn left into a small room at the end.

   Admission: €10, discounted: €5, children under age of 18 free

3. SeeTreptow-Köpenick

   Altstadt Köpenick

   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.

4. SeeMitte

   Bauhaus-Archiv / Museum für Gestaltung

   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.

   Wed-Mon 10:00-17:00·Sa-M €7/€4; W-F €6/€3

5. SeeMitte

   Berlin Musical Instrument Museum

   Museum established in 1888, with a collection of 3,500 instruments.

6. SeeEast Central

   Berlinische Galerie

   A museum of modern art, photography and architecture. Its collection focuses on art created in Berlin.

   Wed-Mon 10:00-18:00·Adults EUR 8, concessions EUR 5, under 18 free. Every first Monday of the month €4. Reduced admission if you show a ticket from the nearby Jewish Museum

7. SeeMitte

   Bode-Museum

   The museum’s treasures include the sculpture collection with works of art from the middle ages to the 18th century. The Bode museum is best known for its Byzantine art collection and the coin cabinet.

   Fri–Wed 10:00–18:00, Thu 10:00–20:00·Admission: €10, discounted: €5, children under age of 18 free

8. SeeCity West

   Bröhan Museum

   A small but interesting collection of decorative arts from the Art Nouveau and Art Deco periods

9. SeeSteglitz-Zehlendorf

   Brücke-Museum

   Works from the Dresden art collaborative called "Die Brücke".

   Wed-Mon 11:00-17:00

10. SeeCity West

    Buchstabenmuseum

    Like the name says, this museum showcases letters that have been used in signage as well as entire signs, illuminated and non-illuminated with focus on Neon sign.

    Thu-Sun 13:00-17:00·Adults €12, reduced price €6.50

11. SeeEast Central

    Checkpoint Charlie

    It was the only border crossing between East and West Berlin that permitted foreigners passage. Residents of East and West Berlin were not allowed to use it. This contributed to Checkpoint Charlie's mythological status as a meeting place for spies and other shady individuals. Checkpoint Charlie gained its name from the phonetic alphabet; checkpoints "Alpha" and "Bravo" were at the autobahn checkpoints Helmstedt and Dreilinden respectively. Checkpoint Charlie's atmosphere was not improved at all on 27 Oct 1961 when the two Cold War superpowers chose to face each other down for a day. Soviet and American tanks stood approximately 200 m apart, making an already tense situation worse. Now the remains of the Berlin Wall have been moved to permit building, including construction of the American Business Center and other institutions. At the intersection of Zimmerstraße and Friedrichstraße (U-Bahn Kochstraße U6) is the famous "You Are Leaving the American Sector" sign. The actual guardhouse from Checkpoint Charlie is now housed at the Allied Museum on Clayallee. For a more interesting exhibit go to the Haus am Checkpoint Charlie. This is a private museum with kitschy memorabilia from the Wall and the devices GDR residents used to escape the East (including a tiny submarine!). There are also people who set up booths here offering to stamp your passport with souvenir stamps in exchange for a small fee. You are highly advised not to put these stamps in your passport, as these are not official stamps and could invalidate it. Instead, bring along an expired passport or a small booklet to put the stamps in.

12. SeeEast Central

    Computerspielemuseum

    Exhibition of digital interactive entertainment culture. You can actually play almost all of the exhibits making it a more "hands on" museum than most.

    Wed-Mon 10:00-20:00·€8, reduced €5

13. SeeMitte

    DDR Museum

    A museum dedicated to everyday life in communist East Germany. The museum has very relaxed rules and you are allowed to touch and examine almost every object, which adds greatly to the experience.

    Sun–Fri 10:00–20:00, Sat 10:00–22:00·€7, concession €4

14. SeeMitte

    Deutsches Historisches Museum

    German Historical Museum

    German historical museum covering everything from pre-history up to the present day. One can spend many, many hours here! The building from 1695/1730 was the Zeughaus (Arsenal) until 1876.

    10:00–18:00·€8, concession €4, under-18s free

15. SeeEast Central

    East Side Gallery

    The longest stretch of the Berlin Wall still in existence, painted by artists in 1991 and restored in 2009, after years of decay. At Mühlenstraße, next to the river Spree. The murals are painted on the east side of the wall after the fall of Communism; so they are not from the Cold War, during which murals could only be painted on the west side. Make sure not to miss the famous mural of a car seemingly crashing through the wall with Leonid Brezhnev and Erich Honecker kissing above it. It is actually on the back side of the gallery (it is facing away from the street.) It is just inside the entrance of the Eastern Comfort Hostel, near the east end of the gallery.

    Open now · open 24 hours·Free

16. DoEast Central

    East Side Gallery

    The Wall

    The longest stretch of the Berlin Wall that is still standing. It has been painted by street artists and has several famous art pieces. (If you want to see the wall in its original condition, see the Gedenkstatte Berliner Mauer in Wedding.)

    Free

17. SeeSteglitz-Zehlendorf

    Ethnological Museum

    Again one of the world's most comprehensive ones. At the museum district of Dahlem.

    Closed as of August 2017

18. SeeMitte

    Französischer Dom

    French Cathedral

    The French cathedral houses the Hugenottenmuseum. It represents the ongoing influence on Berlin by the Huguenots who emigrated from France after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. Crown Prince Friedrich William encouraged them to settle here because most of them were skilled workers or otherwise useful to the kingdom. One memorable artwork, in room nine of the museum, pictures Crown Princess Dorothea exclaiming "But he's a refugee!" upon being presented a very valuable set of jewels by Pierre Fromery. The generally agreed-upon view of refugees as poor, without resources let alone diamonds, was blown apart by the talented French Protestants forced to leave their country due to religion. One of the most notable effects of having such a large French population was their influence on the infamous Berlin dialect. Berlinerisch words such as Kinkerlitzchen (from French "quincaillerie" - kitchen equipment) and Muckefuck (from French "mocca faux" - artificial coffee, though that etymology is not universally accepted) are unique to the area. The Französischen Dom (cathedral) itself was built to resemble the main church of the Huguenots in Charenton, France, destroyed in 1688. It has housed the museum since 1929. Closed till 2019

    Tue–Sun 12:00–17:00·€2

19. SeeMitte

    Friedrichswerdersche Kirche

    Friedrichswerder Church

    Nice church near Unter den Linden/Museum Island, finished in 1830 by Schinkel in English Neogothic style. Nice exhibition inside (neoclassical statues and an exhibition about Schinkel's life and work upstairs).

    Free

20. SeeMitte

    Galerie Eigen & Art

    One of the most famous German art galleries, home to the Neue Leipziger Schule (Neo Rauch et al.)

21. SeeMitte

    Gemäldegalerie

    Old Master Paintings

    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).

    Tue Wed Fri 10:00–18:00, Thu 10:00–20:00, Sat Sun 11:00–18:00·€10, concession €5; Kulturforum all exhibitions: €12, concessions €6

22. SeeEast Central

    German Museum of Technology

    Deutsches Technikmuseum Berlin

    Huge technical museum, on a former railroad depot, featuring from ancient water and wind mills to computer pioneer Konrad Zuse's inventions, a collection of old to new vehicles of all types -bicycles, boats, trains, etc - and the interactive Spectrum science center with various hands-on experiments. There's an actual C-17 "Candy Bomber" airplane hanging on its façade. The railroad and aeronautical sections are hard to beat.

    Tue-Fri 09:00-17:30; Sat Sun 10:00-18:00·€8, €4 Concession

23. SeeEast

    Gründerzeitmuseum

    Museum of Wilhelminial style

    Features many objects and even whole rooms in Wilhelminian style. Only accessible by guided tour (English tours can be arranged).

    Wed and Sun 10:00-18:00; tours outside of opening hours can be arranged·€4.50

24. SeeCity West

    Hamburger Bahnhof – Museum für Gegenwart

    Museum for the Present

    Museum of Contemporary Art located in former Hamburger Bahnhof train station. Big halls filled with artworks made since 1960s. In 2004 Rieckhallen, former Lehrter Bahnhof, was opened and now provides exhibition space for the Friedrich Christian Flick Collection. Free public guided tours (in English): Sa and Su at 12:00.

    Tue Wed Fri–Sun 10:00–18:00, Thu 10:00–20:00·€10, concession €5, under 18 years free. Free entry for everyone every first Thursday of the month from 16:00-20:00

25. SeeMitte

    Hanfmuseum

    Hemp Museum

    It is the only hemp museum in Germany; you can see the history of hemp, the culture and use of it. You can see hemp grow. There is a cafe downstairs, with an open WiFi access. Everything going on here is legal - including the hemp growing under artificial light (a low THC strain grown with a special permit) - but they do not refrain from political commentary on the legal situation of cannabis in their exhibits.

    Tue–Fri 10:00–20:00, Sat Sun 12:00–20:00, Mon closed·€4.50, concession €3

26. SeeSteglitz-Zehlendorf

    House of the Wannsee Conference

    This museum explains how this house was used for a meeting of senior Nazis to ensure that they all knew that the SS would industrialize the use of mass-murder in disposing of Jews and "undesirables" and to debate a little the logistics of the Holocaust, for which Hitler had already given the orders.

    Daily 10:00-18:00; closed May 1, Good Fri, Jan 1, Dec 24-Dec 26, Dec 31·Free

27. SeeEast Central

    Jewish Museum Berlin

    Jüdisches Museum Berlin

    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.

    Mon 10:00-22:00, Tue-Sun 10:00-20:00·Adults €6, concessions €3. Reduced admission if you show a ticket from the nearby Berlinische Galerie

28. SeeCity West

    Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church

    Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche

    Also known as "der hohle Zahn" (the Hollow Tooth), this church in Breitscheidplatz is a memorial to Kaiser Wilhelm, and one of Berlin's most famous landmarks. Thick walls and plain decor mark it as neo-Romanesque, but with what's left of the Gedächtniskirche, it's tough to distinguish it as any one style. Allied bombing left only one tower standing on 22 November 1943, but a new location for worship designed by Egon Eiermann was completed in December 1961 (it's the octagonal structure with blue stained glass windows). There is a small memorial museum beneath the tower filled with artifacts from the original church, which was built from 1891-95 to architect Franz Schwechten's specifications. Controversy arose after the war over the various options presented by the half-ruined cathedral - should it be torn down completely and rebuilt? Or should the destroyed sections be left standing as a memorial? The four major sections of the Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche (central space, foyer, new tower and chapel) surround the ruined tower of the old church bridge and show the time gap between old and new. Mosaics and other remnants from the old church serve as a monument against war.

29. SeeMitte

    Kongresshalle – Haus der Kulturen der Welt

    House of the Cultures of the World

    Germany's national centre for contemporary non-European art. The house is a leading centre for the contemporary arts and a venue for projects breaking through artistic boundaries. This architectural landmark was an American contribution to the international building exhibition INTERBAU 1957 as an embodiment of the free exchange of ideas. Colloquially called Schwangere Auster (Pregnant Oyster).

    Wed–Mon 11:00–19:00·Around €8 depending on exhibit

30. SeeMitte

    Kulturforum

    A collection of most important and architecturally impressive cultural institutions, including many museums and galleries, that was built in West Berlin next to the wall separating it from the Berlin historic centre, which remained in the East along with the original cultural institutions of Berlin.

31. SeeMitte

    KunstHalle

    Former Deutsche Guggenheim

    This former German Guggenheim branch is run entirely by Deutsche Bank since 2013. Compared to the Guggenheims in New York, Bilbao and Venice, it is a relatively small exhibition place. It usually hosts a temporary exhibition and is free on Monday, with a free guided tour starting at 16:00. Since the place is small and the name "Guggenheim" a very famous one, the place is often very crowded.

    10:00–20:00·€4, free on Mondays

32. SeeMitte

    Kunstgewerbemuseum

    Museum of Decorative Arts

    The oldest museum of its kind in Germany which, despite great losses during the World War II, still possesses one of the world's primary collections of European applied art. There are two sections to the collection: one located at the Kulturforum in Tiergarten, the other at Köpenick Palace.

    Tue-Fri 10:00-18:00, Sat Sun 11:00-18:00

33. DoMitte

    Kunsthaus ACUD

    Free arts centre

    The ACUD arts centre houses a theater, a gallery, two cinemas, a club, a concert venue, a bar and several artist's studios.

34. SeeCity West

    Käthe Kollwitz Museum

    Käthe Kollwitz's reputation as a social activist who used art as a means to express her support of pacifism was hard-won. Her son was killed in the World War I, after which her art took a turn for the morose. When her grandson was killed in World War II, her art became even darker and more brooding as she contemplated the huge loss of life Germany had suffered. Her own losses and those of the nation affected her art. After the war, ever-present artistic themes for Kollwitz - death, violence, war, misery, guilt and suffering - took shape as the drawings, prints, sculptures, original posters and woodcuts housed in this museum.

    Daily 11:00-18:00·Adults €7, reduced €4, under 18 free

35. SeeSteglitz-Zehlendorf

    Liebermann-Villa am Wannsee

    House museum on Max Liebermann, German painter and printmaker. Has about 15 Lieberman paintings.

    Oct-Mar: Wed-Mon 11:00-17:00; Apr-Sep: Wed-Mon 10:00-18:00, Thu Sun holidays 10:00-19:00; closed Dec 24, Dec 31 off·€7 (€6 in winter)

36. SeeEast Central

    Martin-Gropius-Bau

    It was a museum of applied arts and a listed historical monument since 1966, and it is now a well-known Berlin exhibition hall.

    Wed-Mon 10:00-21:00·Around €10, varies between exhibits. Free for ages 16 and under

37. SeeReinickendorf and Spandau

    Militärhistorisches Museum der Bundeswehr – Flugplatz Berlin-Gatow

    Military History Museum; RAF Gatow

    At a former Luftwaffe and Royal Air Force (RAF) airfield, RAF Gatow. The museum's focus is on military history, particularly the history of the Luftwaffe of the Bundeswehr, with a collection of more than 200,000 items, including 155 aeroplanes, 5,000 uniforms and 30,000 books. There are also displays (including aeroplanes) on the history of the airfield when it was used by the RAF. Aircraft include reproductions of Otto Lilienthal's gliders, of World War I planes such as the Fokker E.III, and World War II planes such as the Bf 109 and Me-262, as well as at least one aircraft of every type ever to serve in the air forces of East and West Germany. Most of those postwar aircraft are stored outside on the tarmac and runways, however, and many are in bad condition. There are long term restoration projects, including a Focke-Wulf Fw 190. RAF Gatow is notable as the "missing third airport" of West Berlin. Each sector used to have its own airport; the French sector had Tegel, the American sector had Tempelhof and the British had Gatow. However, RAF Gatow never saw much traffic of any kind, was more kept as a political statement than for transportation value, and thus was shut down after reunification. Tempelhof, after having been shut down for civilian traffic from 1975 to 1981, closed for all flights in 2008, while Tegel shut down in November 2020.

38. SeeCity West

    Museum Berggruen

    Also known as "Picasso und seine Zeit", this not so large, but precious museum hosts a very good collection of paintings and sculptures signed by Picasso, Klee, Matisse, Giacometti, and others from the first decades of the 20th century.

39. SeeEast

    Museum Karlshorst

    German-Russian Museum

    In this house the surrender of Germany was signed on May 9th, 1945, ending WWII in Europe. This museum describes the history of the war between Germany and the Soviet Union between 1941 and 1945 and the GDR/German-Russian relationship ever since. Historic rooms, permanent exhibition and special exhibits.

    Tue-Sun 10:00-18:00·free

40. SeeEast Central

    Museum for Architectural Drawing

    Tchoban Foundation

    The museum is in an iconic building opened in June 2013, showcases privately owned collection of architectural drawings from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries..

    Mon–Fri 14:00-19:00, Sat 13:00-17:00·€5, €3 (discounted)

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Listings from the Wikivoyage guide to Berlin (CC BY-SA 4.0).