The 3.5km Kurfürstendamm (Ku’damm in local parlance) is a ribbon of commerce that began as a bridle path to the royal hunting lodge in the Grunewald forest. In the early 1870s, Otto von Bismarck, the Iron Chancellor, decided that the capital of the newly founded German Reich needed its own representative boulevard, which he envisioned as even bigger and better than Paris' Champs-Élysées. Today it is Berlin's busiest shopping strip, especially towards its eastern end.
Those with the urge to splurge should point the compass to the stretch between Olivaer Platz and Bleibtreustrasse, where door staff stand ready to usher you into the eye-candy emporiums of Prada, Gucci and other luxury brands.
If you’re not ready to drop a month’s rent on a handbag, focus on Ku’damm’s eastern end and its continuation Tauentzienstrasse, where high-street staples from H&M to Uniqlo cover all budgets. And don’t overlook the side streets: leafy Bleibtreustrasse, Schlüterstrasse and others are all lined with upmarket indie boutiques, bookshops, delis and galleries.