Best views in Berlin

Best views in Berlin

1. DrinkEast Central

   Berghain/Panorama Bar

   Techno club in an old cogeneration plant near the Ostbahnhof. It has a huge dancefloor and room for more than 1500 people. Panorama Bar upstairs is open late until Sunday afternoon. Gay friendly, with hidden darkrooms and leatherboys. Be prepared for tough door policy on popular nights. Not for teenagers, no cameras allowed (mobile phones with a camera are allowed, but holders are expressly warned not to use them).

2. SeeCity West

   Berliner Funkturm und Messehallen

   Radio Tower Berlin and Messe)

   150 m high lattice tower with open-air observation deck 124 m above ground.

   Tower viewing platform: Mon 10:00–20:00, Tue–Sun 10:00–23:00, limited access during trade fairs·Tower viewing platform: €5, concession €2.80

3. SeeMitte

   Kollhoff Tower

   Includes the Panoramapunkt, the viewing terrace located 101 metres above ground, accessible by Europe's fastest elevator.

   10:00–20:00·€6.50, concession €5

4. SeeMitte

   Park Inn

   Panorama Terasse

   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.

   10:00–18:00·€4

5. SeeMitte

   Pergamon Museum

   There are three huge collections housed within this grand building: the Collection of Classical Antiquities, the Museum of Near Eastern Antiquities and the Museum of Islamic Art. The Pergamon Museum was the last museum built on Museumsinsel (Museum Island) and was intended to house the great acquisitions brought to Germany by archaeologists of the eighteenth and nineteenth century. The museum's best-known attraction is the Pergamonsaal. The Pergamon Altar (165 BC), from the eponymous Asia Minor city-state, is three stories high and served as the entrance gate to an entire complex. It is astounding both because of its size and extremely precise detail, especially in a frieze which shows the gods battling giants. The entire room is the same colour as the building's stone, making the details on the frieze section stand out even more. Facing the stairs, on the left hand side of the room there is a small-scale model of the altar which allows the viewer to see where the frieze segments would have been mounted. A 1:300 scale model of Pergamon city is on the right side of the room. The monumental market door of Milet has just been restored. Every first Sunday of the month, many museums in Berlin are free of charge. Sometimes a reservation is necessary in advance. For more information, see Museums Sonntag Booking. Since 2018 there is also a huge 360° panorama of Pergamon in another museum building, which is included in the Pergamon-only ticket.

   Fri–Wed 10:00–18:00, Thu 10:00–20:00·Admission: €19, discounted: €9.50, children under age of 18 free

6. SeeCity West

   Planetarium am Insulaner

   In the very southeast of Schöneberg, there are daily shows for children and grown-ups alike. Projection is into a drawn Berlin skyline. Several guided tours to the obervatory daily with sky observation, conditions permitting.

7. SeeEast Central

   Viktoriapark

   With the Kreuzberg, a hill in Kreuzberg 61, the Prussian National Monument by Schinkel and a waterfall. Superb panoramic views across south Berlin.

8. Do Not mapped

   Berlinale – Berlin Film Festival

   The city's largest cultural event and an important fixture in the global film industry's calendar (up there with Cannes). 250,000 tickets sold, 400 different films screened and a host of associated parties and events every year. In contrast to Cannes, all screenings at the Berlinale are open to the public. Tickets are inexpensive and relatively easy to get for the "International Forum of Young Film" screenings and the "Berlinale Panorama" (movies which are not in the competition).

   In February

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