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Hotel Class: 
3 Stars - 1 Opinion
Boxhagener Str. 53, Berlin, 10245, Germany
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East Side Gallery
Route 66 at Pariser St.
Entrance to the Altes Museum
BMW 7 Hydrogen in front of Reichstag
Sorry if this sort of question has been asked before.
I am not familiar with Berlin, and have been trying to decide between Airlines which fly into one of the airports mentioned above.
Please tell me distances from Berlin city centre of both, and if one airport has any advantage over the other, re facilities, transport to and from, etc.
Many thanks,
Glenda
Its been 27 years since I used Tegal and last year when I used Schonefeld.
This really depends one where you are going, where is your hotel?
Both will have excellent transport to the city, most likly both would take you to Zoo Station.
If I recall rightly 45 minutes to travel from Schonefeld to Zoo Station.
Tegal would be closer. Look up Berlin's transport S-Bann: U-Bann; Bus and train or taxi. Get a free map of the transport system and a day/week ticket.
Its easy to get around and make use of the buses 100/200 as they both travel along the tourist routes.
Buy your ticket from a machine and cancel it in the red box YOURSELF you will have two hours to reach your destination, that's plenty of time.
I don't think it much matters which one you fly into.
It only matters if one is closer to your hotel.
Schoenefeld and Tegel transport info (in English) here:
http://www.berlin-airport.de/EN/ReisendeUndBesucher/AnUndAbreise/AnfahrtBusUndBahn/SXF/OeffentlicheSXF.html
Tegel is about 8km from the city, Schonefeld is about 18km. It is being expanded and, eventually, Tegel will close when the new expanded airport is opened as Berlin Brandenburg International.
Both airports have good, quick transport to the city centre and appropriate facilities so I don't think it really matters much which you choose, other than for convenience of flight times/fares etc.
as we were advised here on VT - Tegel is one of a dying breed of airports - older, crowded, a little disjointed, idiosyncratic, not a modern "masterpiece". They don't make them like Tegel anymore. And both airports you mention are convenient enough, it's not like one is 60 miles out or anything.
Both airports are laughable, and it is high time that BBI, Berlin's new airport, opens doors.
If I were you I would choose Tegel, though, as Tegel has better facilities (don't expect much, though) and getting to most places in downtown Berlin takes less time.
Remember that Berlin, as a result of the decade long division in east and west, doesn't have a real city center.
Theres a gallery at Werder. Markt. inside the church. I'm affraid I don't remember the name of the church. The gallery shows sculptures, but the glasspaintings in the church itself is also worth a look. The church isn't used as a church anymore though: They've taken out the alter. The glas paintings are beautifull. Go up to the stairs to a closer view. I've added more pictures in the travelougue.
Culture
In the decade since the fall of the Berlin Wall the city has emerged as one of Europe's most culturally vibrant cities, infused with a unique blend of Western and Eastern European cultures.
In the twentieth century Berlin was the cradle of German cinema, with seminal films such as Metropolis (1927) and other works of German expressionism. The 1930 film, Der Blaue Engel (The Blue Angel), starring Marlene Dietrich was based on Heinrich Mann's novel Professor Unrath, and catapulted her to stardom as the sexy cabaret singer, Lola Lola. Berlin earned itself a reputation for decadence in the 1920s and 1930s, which were recaptured to good effect in the 1972 film, Cabaret. More recent works have included Wim Wenders' Der Himmel über Berlin (Wings of Desire), in which two angels watch over the divided city from the Siegessäule.
In Berlin today there are world-class theatre and opera performances and a comprehensive array of museums and galleries to choose from. Beyond this, there are all the expressions of the counter culture for which Berlin is famous. Although remnants remain in Kreuzberg, the most avant-garde artists have moved to Mitte and, increasingly, to Prenzlauer Berg.
Tickets to cultural events can be purchased through Berlin Tourismus Marketing (tel: (030) 250 025 (reservations) or (0190) 754 040 (hotline; calls charged at DM2.24 per minute); from outside Germany tel: (01805) 754 040) or through most venues directly.
Music: The Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra is renowned worldwide. Their performance space, the Philharmonie, matches their reputation, Herbert-von-Karajan-Strasse 1 (tel: (030) 254 880 or 2548 8132 (information); tel: (030) 2548 8126 or 2548 8194 (ticket office); fax: (030) 261 4887 or 2548 8323 (ticket office); e-mail: karenbuero@philharmonic.sireco.de; website: www.berlin-philharmonic.com). The Kammermusiksaal der Philharmonie is its smaller neighbour, hosting chamber players, soloists and small orchestras. Berlin's most elegant venue for classical music is the Konzerthaus am Gendarmenmarkt, Gendarmenmarkt 2 (tel: (030) 2030 92101 or 2030 92102).
Berlin's premier venue for opera, ballet and concerts was built in 1741-43 as the Court Opera House. Today, the Staatsoper is under the artistic and musical direction of Daniel Barenboim. It is at Unter den Linden 7 (tel: (030) 2035 4555 or 2035 4438 (information); fax: (030) 2035 4483; website: www.staatsoper-berlin.org). The Deutsche Oper Berlin, located in the west of the city, at Richard-Wagner-Strasse 10 (tel: (030) 343 8401; fax: (030) 3438 4232), stages classical and modern opera, as well as ballet, operettas and concerts. The Komische Oper Berlin opened in 1947, performances include music, dance and concerts at Behrenstrasse 55-57 (tel: (030) 20 260-0; fax: (030) 2026 0405; e-mail: info@komische-oper-berlin.de; website: www.komische-oper-berlin.de).
Theatre: The Deutsches Theater und Kammerspiele, Schumannstrasse 38 (tel: (030) 2844 1225; fax: (030) 282 4117; website: www.deutsches-theater.berlin/net), mounts contemporary productions as well as nineteenth- and twentieth-century plays. The neo-Baroque Berliner Ensemble was built before the turn of the century as the Neues Theater. It was taken over by Bertolt Brecht and Helene Weigel, and continues to show perfomances from Brecht's works, as well as classical and modern pieces, Bertolt-Brecht-Platz 1 (tel: (030) 2840 8155 (recorded information and voice mail service); fax: (030) 2840 8115; website: www.berliner-ensemble.de). For non-conformist and unconventional theatre and dance, the Volksbühne, Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz (tel: (030) 240 655; fax: (030) 2406 5642) is one of the top addresses.
Dance: The Hebbel-Theater, Stresemannstrasse 29 (tel: (030) 2590 0427 (recorded information on events); fax: (030) 2590 0449; e-mail: pr@hebbel-theater.de; website: www.hebbel.theater.de), is one of the centres for contemporary dance and opera in Europe. It also hosts the TanzWinter and Tanz im August dance festivals.
Film: The Berlin Film Festival (website: www.berlinale.de) is one of the most important on the circuit and the Berlin Bear prize is almost as highly valued as the legendary Palme d'Or. The film festival takes place in February and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2000. At other times, it is possible to see English-language films at many of the city's cinemas. Weekly film listings are printed on posters, which are displayed throughout the city. Tip and Zitty also have listings. In summer, there are popular outdoor film screenings in the Volkspark Hasenheide and at the Waldbühne near the Olympic Stadium.
Cultural events: Berlin offers a number of multi-disciplinary venues, which offer a range of cultural events throughout the year. Haus der Kulturen der Welt, John-Foster-Dulles Allee 10, in the Tiergarten (tel: (030) 397 870; fax: (030) 394 8679), hosts concerts, theatre, films, readings and more, with a remit to spotlight non-European cultures. Tacheles, Oranienburger Strasse 54-56 (tel: (030) 282 6185; fax: (030) 282 3130; e-mail: buero@tacheles.de; website: www.tacheles.de), is an avant-garde, somewhat anarchic, cultural centre in the bombed out shell of a former department store. One of Berlin's more poignant venues is the Tränenpalast (Palace of Tears), Reichstagsufer 17 (tel: (0172) 640 3535), is where West Berliners visiting East Berlin had to pass through. Today, it hosts theatre, films and concert.
Literary Notes
Der Stechlin (1898), Theodor Fontane's late nineteenth-century novel has the Stechlinsee in the dark Menzer Forest to the southeast of Berlin as its setting. Berlin Alexanderplatz (1929) is Alfred Döblin's epic tale of the city. Also from the inter-war period are Christopher Isherwood's The Berlin Stories which contains two novels Mr Norris Changes Trains (1935) and Goodbye to Berlin (1939). They depict Berlin in the pre-Hitler years of the decadent Weimar Republic. Bertolt Brecht moved to Berlin in 1924 and stayed there until 1933, when he fled after the burning of the Reichstag. He directed and wrote many of his early plays here, most successfully Die Dreigroschenoper (The Threepenny Opera) which opened in 1928. Berlin's post-war appearances in English writing have tended to be of the spy novel genre - fitting, as the city was the front line of the Cold War. Robert Harris' Fatherland (1993) is a disturbing speculative fiction of Berlin based on the premise that the Nazis had not lost the war. Peter Schneider's The Wall Jumper (1984) is a mixed genre meditation on the Berlin Wall.
The Bucher Forst is only for the keen walker or the foolhardy like myself. It is a 435 hectare forest which has nature trails, 2 fish farms and various places to rest. Though the trail I took was unable to find anywhere to sit down. There are maps at some of the starting points so you can get your bearings. I went to the Buch S Bahn Station on the S2 and walked along Wittbergstrasse in a north west direction. It is a 15 minute walk to reach the forest.
There were always some small gifts/souvenirs offered at newsstands along the main and most representative shopping boulevard of former West Berlin - Kurfürstendamm. The Berlin mascot, a cuddly bear to hug and hold available in various sizes, with crown and sash, a heart or Berlin bear-flag. If you like them. From 1.30 € to 7.60 € for a small bear up to over 30 € for a large one.
Berlin has a perfectly advanced publication system! And even at mid-night, the major lines of trams, underground trains and so on are still running at an interval of only 10 minutes! One has to exclaim at the high efficiency of German people.
Some most importand train stations in Berlin: 1.Hauptbahnhof (English: Main train station, where most international trains go);2.Zoologischer Garten(in west Berlin, the connection between U, S, and B, ect);3. Alexander-platz(in East Berlin, also connecting a lot of U, S and B lines);4. Potsdam-platz(in the city center, where a lot of tours start). So, if you get lost, just look for a tram/bus/metro going to each of these stations, and you'll safely find the way back!
Buying ticket and information service: there're information service desk in all the big stations, where the DB staff are ready to help! And they work until late(maybe until mid-night, which I'm not quite sure). Though not all of them speak English, there's generally no difficulty to communicate. Besides, the ticket machines also provide information enquiry function. All are multi-lingual and very user-friendly. Once you found the information you need, you can even print them on a piece of paper which looks like a ticket (DB is really generous!)
In a word, I'm amazed by the high advanced transport system in Berlin! You can easily reach every corner of this metropolis within 20 minutes!
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