The cool factor of Berlin isn’t solely in the east – pockets of West Berlin are well worth visiting too.
What makes West Berlin unique?
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, the ‘eastern’ side formerly occupied by the communist German Democratic Republic was ripe for renovation. The space created by the removal of the wall, and the old buildings ripe for renewal meant everything edgy and inventive went east. The formerly cool west Berlin districts fell into something of a funk as the gaze in the German capital shifted elsewhere.
But the comeback is on, as the eastern districts rapidly gentrify. Charlottenburg, in particular, is undergoing a considerable renaissance, with a host of hip openings around the Zoo train station. Here, indie shops and restaurants are opening up under the railway arches, while the highly thought-of C/O photography gallery has made the conscious decision to move west.
A walk through West Berlin’s highlights
Start by wandering through newly cool Charlottenburg to the C/O Gallery or its bigger brother, the Museum für Fotografie, which goes heavy on work by works by legendary fashion photographer Helmut Newton.
From there, take a walk around the canal to the Bauhaus-Archiv, which tells the story of the influential Bauhaus design school, which shaped more 20th century architecture and furniture than you might imagine. There are also some fabulously representative pieces and artworks on display.
The huge, five square kilometre-plus Tiergarten was once used as a private hunting ground for the Electors of Brandenburg, but it is now Berlin’s most treasured public park. Part of the appeal is that it is relatively heavily forested, rather than primped into formality – so for walkers it feels like an escape to the countryside.
West Berlin’s top tour
Berlin Musictours runs a genuinely superb David Bowie-themed walking tour, taking in key parts from his story during his three album period in Berlin between 1976 and 1978. To the non-Bowie fan, visiting his old apartment and the Hansa recording studios may not seem particularly exciting, but the story of how Berlin changed – partly spurred by Bowie making it cool to be based there – is deftly woven in.
Other West Berlin options worth considering include a literary walking tour and a visit to Charlottenburg Palace.
Where to eat in West Berlin
Kantstrasse in Charlottenburg has seen a fair few hip restaurants open up, most of which take something of a magpie approach to world cuisine. Madame Ngo is an excellent example, which does a fine line in Vietnamese cuisine – the massive pho pots in the window provide the visual clue. But there’s a French influence too – with the filet mignon pho going above and beyond the usual street food fare.
For something completely different, Marjellchen goes in for unashamedly hearty Prussian fare. That means hefty portions of dishes such as braised goose, three kinds of cabbage and potato dumplings, served up in warm, homely surroundings.
Shopping in West Berlin
The Kurfürstendamm has long been Berlin’s prime shopping street, and this has not changed since reunification. As a sample, within one block you’ve got Hugo Boss, the Apple Store, Timberland, Karen Millen, Michael Kors, Barbour and Urban Outfitters.
What’s new(ish) on the west Berlin scene is the Bikini Mall near Zoo station. Here, several hip labels mingle with indie designers. Promobo is a great example, proudly boasting “young designers and manufacturers” as its catch-cry.
West Berlin hotel recommendations
Berlin is a fairly spread out city that only the most hardened pavement-pounder will manage entirely on foot. Therefore, it’s best to pick a hotel relatively near a U-bahn or S-bahn station. But some stations are more useful than others, as a few of the lines don’t go near many places of visitor interest. The U7 and U9 lines, especially, aren’t all that helpful.
The Hotel Zoo is daring and distinctive, put together by a designer who largely works on film sets. This shows through in the flamboyance, plus the quirky touches such as the lifts where one wall is an image of photographers, their bulbs flashing as the lift goes up. Each room is different, artworks and sculptures have been sourced from around the world and superking beds come with top range linen.
The 25 Hours Bikini is part of the Bikini complex, and is defiantly un-bland. Dangling bicycles in the lobby, video art installations and rooms that overlook the enclosures in the zoo are just some of the many points of difference in this youthful, fun-focused joint.
At the cheaper end of the scale, the Motel One chain does the affordable but with a bit of style thing very well, and their Ku’Damm property is handily positioned in the heart of newly cool Charlottenburg next to the Zoo station.
More Berlin travel
Other Berlin travel articles on Planet Whitley include:
- The best time to visit the DDR Museum in Berlin.
- Canoeing along the Berlin Wall.
- Taking the Berlin to Munich train.
- Is it realistic to do a Berlin to Prague day trip by train?
- How to get cheap Hamburg to Berlin train tickets.
