Walk Along the Berlin Wall - A Self-Guided Tour Through Germany’s Capital City- Day 2
Hey, you!
Welcome, or welcome back if you’ve come to this blog as a follow-up to Busy in Berlin: Day 1 Walking Tour Itinerary of Germany’s Capital City.
In the first blog, we gave you the deets on how to get from the German Parliament, to the Brandenburg Gate, and then through the Memorial of the Murdered Jews of Europe by foot. We also shared a handful of know before you go tips to make cruising the city fun and easy.
This is the itinerary for day two.
We think any visitor to Berlin would love this tour, but we curated it for those with a special interest in historical and popular culture. There are five stops in this itinerary - all along the Berlin Wall.
Let’s get started.
FIRST STOP: Mauerpark, Gleimstraße 55, 10437
We start this tour at Mauerpark. Today, you’ll find families, cyclists, joggers, and musicians at Mauerpark, but for nearly three decades it was part of the heaviest patrolled parts of the Berlin Wall.
If you close your eyes and imagine what the Berlin Wall looks like, you might envision a concrete wall painted with street art. That’s what you’ll see at Mauerpark. An 800 m strip of the Berlin Wall remains in the park as a monument, and serves as a canvas for graffiti artists. Interestingly, graffiti is illegal and punishable throughout Berlin - except in Mauerpark.
If your visit falls on a Sunday, check out the Mauerpark flea market. It’s open 9AM to 6PM and is an indulgence for thrifters.
The second stop on this tour is an easy 20-minute walk down Bernauer Strauss. Plug your phone into your battery pack and tuck it away during this walk. You’ll want to have juice when you arrive at the Berlin Wall Memorial.
SECOND STOP: Berlin Wall Memorial, Bernauer Str. 111, 13355
When you arrive at The Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer, you will have arrived at the one of the most significant memorials dedicated to the Berlin Wall. Here you can take a self-guided tour using your phone. Through texts, photos, and audio recordings you’ll learn about the construction and destruction of the Berlin Wall. There are three tour options available based on how long you plan to stay: 30 minutes, 75 minutes, or 120 minutes.
When your tour is over, you’re ready to make your way to the third stop - Potsdamer Platz. We suggest grabbing an Uber or a ticket from the BVG App and hopping on public transit to get there.
THIRD STOP: Potsdamer Platz, 10785
Potsdamer Platz has a long history. It was a trading post in the late 1600s. In the 1920’s it was a hot spot for artists, entertainers, and other creatives and was one of the busiest places in Europe. During World War II, Potsdamer Platz was destroyed and left desolate before later becoming known as it is today - full with shops, theaters, restaurants, and hotels.
Stop here for lunch before heading to the next stop.
FOURTH STOP: Topography of Terror, Niederkirchnerstraße 8, 10963
After a five minute walk down Potsdamer Platz, you’ll make a left on Niederkirchnerstraße then walk an additional three minutes before finding the Topography of Terror. This site once imprisoned 15,000 Nazi opponents. It is also the site of the strongest surviving section of the Berlin Wall.
Entry is free, as are the tours. You can choose a guided tour at the visitor’s service center or follow a self-guided audio tour on your phone. Both tour options last about an hour.
The final stop of the day is just five minutes away.
FINAL STOP: Checkpoint Charlie, Friedrichstraße 43-45, 10117
When you’re ready for the final destination, continue to walk east on Niederkirchnerstraße until you reach Friedrichstraße. Turn right and you’ll see an American guard house at the best-known Berlin Wall crossing point.
Checkpoint Charlie was the only place where foreigners and members of the Allied Forces could cross the border wall by foot or by car. The name “Charlie” comes from the phonetic alphabet and was named as a third checkpoint after Checkpoint Alpha (the largest border crossing) and Checkpoint Bravo (the main Autobahn crossing point).
There are souvenir shops nearby where you can purchase an original piece of the Berlin Wall, art and other memorabilia.
That’s a wrap for day 2!
Check back soon for the third and final post in this series. The day three itinerary will start at the tallest structure in Germany, move through the largest burial space for former German kings and their royal families, before ending at one of the most important museum sites in Europe.
In the meantime, click through the gallery below for snaps of what you can expect to see along the Berlin Wall.
Photo Gallery Credit: Kelli Owen