I’ve been living in Berlin since 2010 and making this city my home base and the place to start our company was a very conscious choice. Berlin is vibrant, a bit gritty, very walkable and offers a high quality of life relative to the cost of living. It’s also a city full of culture and history, having been at the centre of modern European history for the past 100+ years, from two world wars to the Cold War and the years spent as a city divided between East and West Germany.

This guide collects some of my personal favourite places and recommendations, including restaurants, cafés, bars, shopping, activities, museums and practical tips. Of course, my selection of places is very biased and heavily centered around the district of Kreuzberg, where I live and work.

Use the sidebar to navigate by category or expand the map to view it in a new window. Click on a place for my notes and more info.

Areas and streets

Sometimes you just want to walk through the city, take in the surroundings, do some shopping and maybe stop for a coffee or food along the way. Berlin’s central districts are very walkable and dense, so here’s a non-exhaustive selection of streets to start on. I recommend starting at a more central point and then walking outwards.

• Oranienstraße (Kreuzberg): Vibrant and slightly gritty street at the centre of the alternative Kreuzberg district with many shops, restaurants, cafés and bars.
• Maybachufer (Neukölln): Recently voted one of the “coolest streets in the world” by Time Out Magazine, Maybachufer runs along the canal, often hosts markets and is home to many nice cafés. For an extended tour, also include the parallel Paul-Lincke-Ufer on the other side of the canal.
• Gräfestraße (Kreuzberg): Street with beautiful architecture and many nice restaurants and some shops, connecting the Hasenheide park to the Landwehr Canal. I used to live around there and it’s still one of my favourite areas of Berlin.
• Boxhagener Straße (Friedrichshain): Street leading you through the alternative and free-spirited district of Friedrichshain and past Boxhagener Platz, a small park surrounded by many restaurants, bars and shops. Also check out the various side streets. I often take this route when shopping for clothes and gifts.
• Neue / Alte Schönhauser Straße (Mitte): A slightly more traditional shopping area with international stores and brands like Weekday, & Other Stories and Doc Martens, mixed with some local shops and cafés. But hey, better than a mall!
• Bergmannstraße (Kreuzberg): Popular street taking you through the “other side” of Kreuzberg, less gritty and with nice architecture and many small side streets, restaurants, cafés, a market hall and independent local shops.
• Weserstraße (Neukölln): Although Neukölln is considered one of the hippest districts, its appeal is definitely less obvious compared to Kreuzberg or Friedrichshain. This street is a nice intro and has several cool bars and restaurants. I sometimes take tourist friends for a “Späti” (kiosk) tour through the area: grab a drink for the way (see notes on drinking below) and walk along to the next Späti (there are many).
• Kurfürstendamm (Charlottenburg): Also called “Ku’damm”, this historic boulevard is probably the most famous and touristy street. Likely more of a sightseeing experience, because shopping-wise, it’s mostly big brands and chains, tourist shops and luxury fashion (think Dior and Hermès).

City and walking tours

These are official tours I’ve been on and can recommend if you want a more structured way to explore the city, full of interesting cultural and social history.

• Berlin Bowie Walk: Hands-down my favourite Berlin activity for tourists! Very interesting and fun walking tour covering the history and culture of post-war Berlin through the eyes of David Bowie when he lived here. Highly recommended, even if you’re not a Bowie fan! The tour starts at the Martin Gropius Bau, which hosted the large Bowie exhibition in 2014, and leads you along the former Berlin Wall, past the Hansa Studios, where Bowie recorded his famous Berlin trilogy and wrote the hit song “Heroes” (you’ll learn all about the view that likely inspired his lyrics!), all the way to the district of Schöneberg where his former flat is located (commemorated by a wall plaque) and ending at a local bar that he frequented.
• Revolutionary Berlin Tours: These alternative anticapitalist walking tours take you through the little-known revolutionary underbelly of Berlin, with different routes covering the districts Neukölln, Kreuzberg and Moabit, and local history through the eyes of revolutionaries like Rosa Luxemburg and Karl Marx. See their Facebook or Instagram for upcoming tours and dates. You’ll also be able to pick up the companion book by tour guide, author and journalist Nathaniel Flakin.
• Berlin Bridge Cruise: One of my go-to activities for visitors and people new to Berlin: a ~3 hour boat tour along the canals, passing through more than 50 bridges and 3 locks and giving you a great overview of the city’s sights and districts. Try to pick a day with good weather so you can sit on deck! You can order drinks and small traditional German dishes on the boat and audio guides covering history and trivia are available for 12 languages (although be aware that some can be slightly outdated). Tours typically let you hop on at several locations along the way.

News and events

• Mit Vergnügen: German online magazine keeping you up to date on new places, events and what else is on, with nice themed and seasonal roundups.
• The Berliner: English-language city magazine for Berlin (formerly called Exberliner), online and as print edition every other month, available in stores across the city.
• Siegessäule: Berlin’s queer city magazine, available online and as a free monthly print edition all across the city.
• Cee Cee: Weekly email magazine and newsletter with hand-picked events and recommendations, including culture, food and lifestyle.
• 20 Percent: News, updates and commentary about everything that’s happening in the city, published twice a week. Also available as a podcast.
• The Next Day: Weekend guides released every Wednesday, featuring concerts, culture, arts, cinema and other events.
• Songkick: View all concerts in Berlin for a given day. Pro tip: if you create an account, you can sync it with your Spotify and get personalised recommendations for artists you like. You can also follow artists and get notified when they announce dates in the city.
• Resident Advisor: Club nights and concerts focused on electronic music.

Useful apps and websites

• CityMapper: All-in-one transport app for pros that helps you map out your route, including public transport, walking, cycling, scooting, driving and car sharing. My favourite feature: when taking public transport, CityMapper tells you which wagon to get on and which exit to take to get to your destination fast and hassle-free.
• FREE NOW: Support your local taxi drivers, order a real taxi and pay via the app! When ordering, make sure to actually select “taxi”, not “ride” (which is their Uber-like service). Note that unlike with Uber, the price you see when booking is only an estimate and not locked in beforehand, although they did recently introduce an Uber-like fixed price feature.
• BVG: Berlin’s public transport is one of the best in the world and includes subways, trams, buses and even its own taxi service. Download the app so you can get whatever ticket is right for you when you need it. If you’re planning on getting around a lot, day or week tickets are definitely worth it.
• Lime: If you want to get an e-scooter, Lime has the best and they can be booked via their app or on Uber. E-scooters are actually a great way to get around as an alternative to biking and public transport, and they’ve really grown on me. Keep an eye on the red areas on the map where parking isn’t allowed, and always park your scooter next to the sidewalk and out of the way of pedestrians.
• Wolt: My favourite delivery app, offering food from some of the best restaurants and all kinds of products from a growing selection of local stores, including groceries, drinks, pet food, beauty products, electronics and even over-the-counter medication from pharmacies. (Note that unlike in the US, medication is not sold in regular drug stores, only in pharmacies.)
• Flink: Get groceries and essentials from a large selection delivered to your door in under 30 minutes, depending on your location. Keep in mind that just like supermarkets, the service is closed on Sundays (see below).
• Flaschenpost: App and online shop for ordering drinks, food and household items, delivered to your door – even to the top floor! – within 2 hours. They even take all your empty bottles and crates with deposit (“Pfand”) and credit the money.
• Too Good To Go: Help reduce waste and rescue food from a restaurant or shop near you. After selecting a place, you can then collect your surprise bag at the specified pick-up time. Prices are super cheap and you can discover some real gems.
• Urban Sports Club: A huge variety of different sports all across the city with a single monthly membership. Also nice for testing and finding places you like.
• Treatwell: Need a haircut, cosmetics appointment or massage? This site and app makes it easy to find available salons and appointments nearby, including last-minute slots (especially helpful if you’re only visiting and need something right now)!

Practical tips

• Cash is king: Although things have changed a bit, especially after COVID, many places are still big on cash. Especially bars, clubs or takeaway places are often cash-only. So make sure to get enough money out.
• Language: Berlin is an international city and you should get by okay with English. However, not everyone speaks English or is comfortable with it, so I’d recommend downloading the German dictionary on Google Translate for offline use, just in case.
• Wi-Fi: There’s free wi-fi on public transport and in many cafés and restaurants, but it’s not as developed as you might expect from a big city. I recommend getting a cheap pre-paid (e)SIM just for mobile data.
• Drinking: It’s legal to drink alcohol on the streets and there’s even a German word for a beer you have on the way to a place: “Wegbier”. Drinking on the subway is not officially allowed, but common and tolerated. When you’re done, don’t throw your bottle in the trash but place it on the ground below the orange bin. There’s deposit (“Pfand”) on bottles and cans, so if you’re not taking your empties back to a store yourself, make it easy for someone else who needs it to collect them.
• Smoking: Despite the general German smoking ban, many bars, pubs and clubs still allow or tolerate smoking inside. If that’s not something you’re into, make sure to check before you head to a place. Cannabis was legalized in 2024, with certain restrictions, so if you’re interested in that, make sure to check online for the latest rules, and don’t buy anything from random people trying to sell it to you in the parks.
• Sundays: Shops and supermarkets are closed on Sundays. You may find a “Späti” (kiosk) with essentials, although that’s not officially allowed for places selling supermarket goods. If you’re desperate, there’s an exception for supermarkets at long-distance train stations, for example Ostbahnhof or Central Station.
• Rhythm: Berlin stays open late and likes to sleep in. It’s not uncommon for people to head out to a club way past midnight (or in the morning, really), and most cafés won’t open before 9 or 10am.