Berlin Trip January 2016

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MichGaughan97
MichGaughan97

Good evening all,

I am relatively new to this forum after rediscovering it looking for updated travel advice.

In January I am travelling to Berlin from the 21st - 25th (Thurs - Monday) to do some sightseeing in a city I have always wanted to visit. I had originally planned to go with one of my friends but he had to pull out due to work commitments so I will be travelling solo. This will be the first time I am travelling alone so I would appreciate any help and advice in this department (I am eighteen years old at the moment).

I have booked flights into Schönfeld airport, which cost £70 - quite reasonable I would say.

In terms of places to stay, I have not booked anything yet - but will proceed to do this when I get paid on Thursday - any recommendations on a hostel would be great! (Preferably one with more young people, to make some friends while I stay there).

Next up is my itinerary; I arrive at 10:35 on the Thursday morning so I will have most of the day ahead of me when I get there; I also have left Friday free to go around the city; on the Saturday I will go and see the Hertha Berlin football match at the Olympiastadion (something I have always wanted to do!!) and Sunday, being the football fanatic that I am, have looked into travelling to Frankfurt, despite how far away it is, to go and watch the Eintracht Frankfurt match that day - the return trip to Frankfurt costs £38 which is outstanding considering the distance; and then travel home on the Monday at 16:45.

I am here to get some recommendations about what to go and see however; obviously the big ones are the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag but can anyone recommend sights that are perhaps 'off the beaten track' in terms of history - I take a great interest in WWII so would love to squeeze in as much as possible during my visit.

I appreciate I have not given myself much time to see everything, but I hope to go back during the summer to experience Berlin when it's not freezing! ha ha.

So, my queries are:

  • Recommendations for any historical sights (especially WWII) which I MUST see while I am there.
  • The best district to stay in - I was probably going for Mitte?
  • Is the Frankfurt trip doable? I don't mind sitting on long train rides so that is not an issue at all.
  • Also advice for going to the Hertha match - any bars which the supporters congregate at? How much for food/drink etc.

Thanks in advance for answers as I know it was a long post - hope you all have a nice day :)

Michael

Edited by MichGaughan97
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nautiker
nautiker

hi mich,

welcome back. I'll just add your query from last year so others can check what information you already got and avoid repeats: trip to berlin

the trip to Frankfurt will cost you the complete Sunday - imo not worth the effort for a team like Frankfurt, but then I'm no football enthusiast.

don't forget to take into account that dusk comes early that time of the year, i.e. there won't be that much daylight left on Thursday once you've settled down and a large chunk of the Saturday will be gone as well.

I'll try to think of some more.

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carsten
carsten

I agree, unless you have a special interest or relation to Eintracht Frankfurt, I wouldn't go all the way. If it was Borussia Dortmund I could understand, but not Frankfurt. But if you really want to go and the match is on a Sunday, I would have a look at flights from Frankfurt to the UK and not backtrack all the way to Berlin only for a couple of hours before you have to catch your flight.
As for the district: Most young travellers stay in Friedrichshain: many bars, clubs and hostels.

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MichGaughan97
MichGaughan97
In response to #1

hi mich,

welcome back. I'll just add your query from last year so others can check what information you already got and avoid repeats: trip to berlin

the trip to Frankfurt will cost you the complete Sunday - imo not worth the effort for a team like Frankfurt, but then I'm no football enthusiast.

don't forget to take into account that dusk comes early that time of the year, i.e. there won't be that much daylight left on Thursday once you've settled down and a large chunk of the Saturday will be gone as well.

I'll try to think of some more.

Hi!

Thanks for your reply; I had a look at the recommendations from last year - unfortunately that trip didn't materialize so this will be my first time in Berlin.

I don't mind losing the Sunday to go to Frankfurt, it is a stadium on my bucket list of 'football teams to see' so I am determined to go and see them.

Yeah, very much aware of the daylight issues - I don't mind wandering around in the dark really (coming from Scotland we're used to this too ha ha!) Apparently the Reichstag is quite good to visit at night though?

On the Saturday I was going to try and sneak in some sights in before 11:30/12:00 and then make the trip to the Olympiastadion for the 14:30 kick off - I'll preferably take in the attractions close to the stadium on the Saturday and the ones further away on Thursday evening / Friday.

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nautiker
nautiker

if going to Frankfurt is one of the things you would enjoy doing, then by all means go (sounds like a long list to me...). the scenery isn't that bad, btw, though it obviously cannot compete with Scotland.

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reporter
reporter

You can't just wander into the Bundestag (home of the Reichstag) whenever you want. An "invitation" is required. In practice this is an advance registration to satisfy security clearance. It's available on-line and worth getting well in advance for busy periods. The view of the skyline from the glass dome is indeed spectacular. https://visite.bundestag.de/BAPWeb/pages/createBookingRequest.jsf?lang=en

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