Berlin, twentieth-century history on the street.

Berlin is the capital of Germany and a city best understood on foot: the Wall that split it between 1961 and 1989 left its mark on pavements, vacant lots and neighbourhoods, and almost everything worth seeing from the twentieth century is where it happened. It is also a green, flat city, with districts such as Kreuzberg or Prenzlauer Berg where life is lived on the street. And it is a good base: by train, Potsdam is half an hour away, the Spreewald an hour, and Leipzig and Dresden less than two.

What to see in Berlin in three or four days

Day one, the centre. Start at the Brandenburg Gate, go up to the Reichstag dome —free, with advance registration— and walk down to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, five minutes away. In the afternoon, follow Unter den Linden to Museum Island and the bust of Nefertiti in the Neues Museum. Note that the Pergamonmuseum is closed until July 2027.

Day two, the Wall. In the morning, the Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Straße, the only place where you can see the whole death strip. In the afternoon, the East Side Gallery, the painted stretch of Wall beside the Spree, and cross the Oberbaum Bridge towards Kreuzberg. If you prefer to do it by bike, the guided Wall bike tour brings it all together in three and a half hours.

Day three, hard history. The Topography of Terror, where the Gestapo and the SS were based, and the DDR Museum to see what life was like in the East. In the afternoon, an hour on a boat trip on the Spree and, at dusk, the TV Tower.

Day four, out of town. Half a day at the Sachsenhausen Memorial, in Oranienburg, 45 minutes away by S-Bahn; or one of the day trips we suggest below.

How do you get there from Spain?

By air to Berlin Brandenburg airport (BER), the only one in the city, with direct flights from Madrid, Barcelona and other Spanish cities. The station is beneath Terminal 1: the FEX express train leaves every 15 minutes and reaches Hauptbahnhof in 23 minutes, and the S9 S-Bahn goes to Alexanderplatz and Friedrichstraße. You need an ABC ticket, because the airport is in zone C. Everything is in the entry for BER airport.

How do you get around Berlin?

By public transport: metro (U-Bahn), suburban train (S-Bahn), tram and bus on the same ticket. Zone AB covers the whole city; ABC adds the airport, Potsdam and Oranienburg. And by bicycle: the city is flat and has cycle lanes everywhere. You do not need a car.

Where to stay

The most convenient districts for a first visit are Mitte and Prenzlauer Berg, for the transport and what you have within walking distance. The Circus Hostel, on Rosenthaler Platz, is the budget option, with dormitories and private rooms. The Hotel Oderberger occupies a public bath house from 1902 with its historic swimming pool. The Adlon Kempinski is the grand hotel by the Brandenburg Gate.

Where to eat

Berlin's street food is the currywurst: Curry 36, on Mehringdamm, is open from morning until the small hours. The Markthalle Neun is a market with food stalls in Kreuzberg; on Thursday evenings, street food. For dinner, German cooking in a proper tavern, Max und Moritz, from 1902, or Zur letzten Instanz, which claims to be the oldest restaurant in the city.

Day trips from Berlin

You can leave Berlin by train, without a car:

• Potsdam, half an hour away: Sanssouci Palace, its gardens and the Dutch Quarter.
• The Spreewald, an hour away: punt boats along the canals from Lübbenau.
• Leipzig, a little over an hour away by ICE: Bach, the Peaceful Revolution and Auerbachs Keller.
• Dresden, less than two hours away: the Frauenkirche, the Zwinger and the Elbe; better with a night, and with Saxon Switzerland next door.