An ideal day exploring a new city must meet a few requirements. Coffee (and/or drinks) at an outdoor cafe; unique shopping; some kind of historical or cultural experience that is not too tedious but educational nonetheless; a good view; and about ten miles’ worth of walking. During my recent trip to Berlin, there was not one single day in which all the requirements were met, but over the week — with the sage advice of my Berliner uncle — I managed to create what I would call the perfect Berlin day.
The More Peaceful Side of Berlin
We begin with a not-too-early morning in Hotel Art Nouveau, a unique boutique hotel in the heart of the upscale Charlottenburg neighborhood. There is much to love about this hotel. It is the kind of place that has real keys instead of key cards and an “honesty bar” at your service each night. Located in a classic Berlin apartment building, you take an old-fashioned elevator complete with an enclosed mesh gate, wooden doors and pulley system to the top floor. The rooms are quite large and very clean. Practical, but nothing fancy. The hotel offers a decent breakfast spread, but as they charge you extra for it, I prefer to start the day with breakfast out. Coffee options nearby are endless, but we made our way around the corner to Restaurant Louis Laurent to sit among the potted greenery with a coffee and croissant or omelette.
Charlottenburg is the more peaceful side of Berlin. This is not the Doc-Marten wearing, edgy, Berghain East part of the city — though that is well worth a visit too. After a relaxed breakfast, we will make our way to Kurfurstendamm, a main street lined with luxury shopping. If Gucci is in your budget, the shopping might begin shortly into the walk, at the near end of Kurfurstendamm. For the rest of us, it will be a few blocks before the prices become more reasonable. The wide boulevard is a lovely walk, shopping or not. Follow it to the center of town.
Parts of History and Future
At this end, the streets are busier. When I was there, the day of a big Euro Cup game, football fans lined the streets, filled the cafes and partied in the plazas. And in the center of it all, the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church stood half-destroyed, its dramatically broken spire standing against the blue sky as a memory of a time not long past. The bottom floor of the has been made into a war memorial. We enter for free and read about the building’s history.
By now, it is probably time for a rest and a drink. A short walk through Berlin’s largest park, the Tiergarten, brings us to outdoor biergarten, Cafe am Neuen See, located right on the lake. Rows of picnic table-style seating make the perfect backdrop for a rest and a Weissbeer. The cafe also offers coffee and food, including pizza and more traditional Flammkuchen. The environment is idyllic enough you that probably won’t want to leave, but once you’ve had enough people-watching, continue on through the Tiergarten to the Victory Column. I would recommend keeping your eyes straight ahead on the path if you don’t want to risk seeing a group of nude sunbathers.
Flea Markets and Licorice
I cannot recommend the Victory Column viewpoint to those who are afraid of heights or stairs, but for everyone else it is a must-do. Descend into a tunnel to get across the busy boulevard and emerge at the center of the roundabout, right underneath the tower. Meant to commemorate Prussian’s territorial victories against the French, you can learn a potted history of the German state on the bottom floor of the tower. Take your time and prepare yourself for a climb up a seemingly endless set of spiral staircases, but the expansive view of Berlin spanning from east to west is well worth your effort.
It has been a long walk at this point. Half of our group gave up and took a Bolt car service home, but for the persevering few with that ten mile goal, it is time to make our way back on foot. Walk again through the park, this time along Bremer Weg, until you find yourself before the Tiergarten S-Bahn stop. If it is late in the week and before about 4pm, there will be a bustling flea market between there and the Charlottenburg Tor gates.
Berlin is quite famous for its flea markets; this one abounds with old watches, kitchenware, mirrors, and the like. If a market filled, instead, with vintage leather jackets and football jerseys where the oldest patron appears to be no more than 30 sounds appealing, head on a Sunday to the RAW-Gelände flea market in East Berlin. It is an utterly different version of the city, and well worth taking a day to explore.
Pubs, Dinners, and a “Bathroom” Bar
For now, however, continue back toward the hotel and stop by Manufactum, an eclectic assortment of high-quality German-made goods. The journals, leather items, and strong licorice in tins were our highlights. Old-school Berlin food hall Rogacki is also on the way back and is well worth a stop, as recommended to me by food writer Meike Peters. It offers a delightful assortment of traditional smoked food, seafood, cured meats and a variety of local cheeses that can be eaten right there or taken away for a hotel snack.
If you feel like adventuring to a different part of the city, try dinner at Trio, a hip pub with traditional dishes also recommended by Peters. But Le Consulat, located directly across from the hotel, is as convenient as it is delicious. The refined but simple French bistrot serves fantastic foie gras, oysters and monkfish. Take your time at dinner, but beware: the night is not over yet. We head next to the elegant, dark bar at the Provocateur hotel and take a journey of cocktails through the twelve districts of the city. The Taihu — Grey Goose, Oolong, lemon and jasmine — comes highly recommended. The bartender gracefully kicked us out at closing with a free shot, which helped with this recommendation as well.
There’s one stop left for the most persistent among us. It is on the way back to the hotel, and impossible to miss: the bar called Klo, which means “bathroom” in German. The name is literal, and the place is a bit of a tourist gimmick, but a gimmick well worth giving in to. You will be sprayed with water, sit on toilets, and have drinks served in urinal flasks. What better Berlin day!
See the walk yourself on Google Maps.
Story by Mitra Nourbakhsh / Photography by Julia Solonina
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