21 Famous Berlin Landmarks you Should not Miss

Berlin is one of the most compelling European cities because it was at the forefront of European history for much of the 20^th century.

It’s now one of the best art cities in Europe, a young, dynamic city in feel.

Prussian palaces, totalitarian-era towers, Cold War relics and cutting-edge street art – Berlin landmarks are among the most fascinating and diverse of any European city.

Start discovering it with these famous landmarks in Berlin and explore further from there.

The best-known of all Berlin landmarks, the Gate was built by Frederick William II of Prussia and designed by Carl Gotthard Langhans, between 1788 and 1791. Originally known as the Peace Gate (Friedentor), it is one of the most famous landmarks in Germany, and a symbol of both the city and country for over two centuries.

Like numerous other Berlin buildings, the Brandenburg Gate was built in the Neoclassical style, meant to resemble the Propylaea gateway to the Acropolis in Athens. It’s topped by a Quadriga of horses driven by the goddess Victoria, with an Iron Cross subsequently added to her spear.

Napoleon Bonaparte pinched it for a few years, but it was returned to Berlin in 1814.

It’s the first place many people head for when visiting Berlin, and rightly so. It transcends the usual shorthand visual notion of a city or country – also symbolising the Cold War, division, reunification and, yes, peace.

The German Parliament building dates from the 19^th century but it was burned down soon after the Nazis assumed power in 1933.

It remained in ruins until after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and it was decided to restore it to its former use, ending Bonn’s time as the capital of West Germany.

The Reichstag was famously ‘wrapped’ by Bulgarian artist Christo, and it was reopened with a new glass dome and spiral walkway inside.

It’s one of the most famous places to visit in Germany, offering great views over the city and also over the main debating chamber of the Bundestag.

Something you’ll still encounter in Berlin – and eastern Germany – is ‘Ostalgie’, a longing for the old East Germany. Sometimes this can be genuine and heartfelt, sometimes ironic.

One of the most visible survivals of the old East Berlin is its pedestrian traffic lights, quirky little figures called ‘Ampelmännchen’.

They are one of the few remnants of the Communist era that people wanted to keep, and almost as soon as you pass beneath the Brandenburg Gate and walk up Unter den Linden you’ll encounter them. 

They’re one of the easiest things to see in Berlin, as they’re everywhere in the former Communist half of the city.

This is the most beautiful of Berlin’s squares and home to the annual Berlin Christmas Markets, with the Neoclassical Konzerthaus, and similar domed Deutscher Dom (German Church) and Franzosischer Dom (French Church) at either end.

The Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church is another well-known stop on the sightseeing in Berlin circuit, on Breitscheidplatz on the Kurfurstendamm in former West Berlin.

The church was built in the late 19^th century in neo-Romanesque style, similar to several Rhineland churches including Bonn Munster.

It was severely damaged during an air raid in 1943, leaving a small part of the original body of the church and the tower and part of the spire above.

It was decided not to restore the church – like the original Coventry Cathedral in England – and the ruin – albeit recently stabilised and restored – has been left as it was, together with a modern church next to it.

Like Coventry Cathedral it’s now a symbol of reconciliation and peace. It’s one of the most famous Berlin landmarks, well worth a visit.

This splendid Baroque palace in Berlin’s west was originally completed in 1699, a summer palace for his consort, Sophie Charlotte, from Elector Friedrich III.

Much was added over the ensuing century, and you can visit the opulent state rooms and apartments and Oriental porcelain collections.

The Gardens, which include two Orangeries, are a lovely place to spend an hour or two – if you love Park Sanssouci in Potsdam you’ll enjoy these too.

More of a land mass than a landmark, possibly, Tempelhofer Feld is one of the most unusual Berlin sights.  

Berlin Tempelhof was once one of the most important civilian airports in Europe, and was greatly expanded by the Nazis, its 1.2 kilometre-long terminal building one of the largest buildings in the world.

Time eventually passed Tempelhof by, and it was decided to close it and Tegel airport so that all air traffic to Berlin would come through the new Berlin-Brandenburg airport at Schonefeld

Tempelhof Airport was closed in 2008 and opened as a vast park. It’s a fantastic site, with kids on tricycles hurtling down runways that would have been used in the 1948 Berlin Airlift.

It’s a very popular place with Berliners, and accessible from Neukolln and Schoneberg.

The Berliner Dom is one of the most prominent sights in Berlin, a colossal domed Protestant church on Museumsinsel, just across the Lustgarten from the Altes Museum.

Many call it Berlin Cathedral but technically speaking it isn’t – Dom is the German word for a large church or Minster, though some translate it as ‘cathedral’ instead.

The vast domed structure is, believe it or not, in something of a truncated state.

The East German authorities did away with the chapel housing the tombs of the Hohenzollern dynasty – an Imperial mausoleum across the street from several Socialist landmarks.

These included Alexanderplatz, the Fernsehturm TV Tower and the now-demolished Palast der Republik, which housed the GDR Parliament.

The Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Strasse is the only fully preserved part of the Wall in the city.

Cross the street and climb to the viewpoint where you can look down on the Death Strip between the two sections of Wall, with the central Berlin skyline in the distance.

The Fernsehturm, or TV Tower, is the most visible of the landmarks of Berlin, looming 368 metres above Alexanderplatz and the heart of former East Berlin.

It was built as a symbol of the power and might of the GDR. But this rather backfired because the sun shining on the tiles of the orb created the reflection of a Greek cross. Not quite what an atheist regime with a habit of knocking down churches would have wanted.

The viewing platform is just over 200 metres above street level. And just above that is the classic Communist-era revolving restaurant.

The rebuilt Potsdamer Platz is once again one of the top landmarks in Berlin, a collection of skyscrapers replacing the wasteland that had occupied the site for over 50 years. 

Prior to World War II it was the thriving heart of Berlin nightlife, busy with cafes and hotels. After a massive rebuilding project, it has become the corporate corner of Berlin, with several high-rise towers soaring above the square.  

This enormous Memorial is on Cora-Berliner Strasse, the street linking the Brandenburg Gate with Potsdamer Platz.

Designed by Peter Eisenman, it was opened in 2005 and occupies a 1.9 hectare site with over 2,700 concrete slabs, or stelae.

I’ve always thought that the site resembles a cemetery or graveyard, though not everyone agrees on this. It’s very effective in conveying the scale and scope of the Holocaust, with seemingly endless rows of blocks, all without names.

There is an excellent information centre underground on the east side of the Memorial. One of the most moving monuments in Berlin.

After the Brandenburger Tor, the Berlin Wall – which once ran behind it – is the most widely recognised Berlin landmark.

The most-visited surviving section is the East Side Gallery on Mühlenstrasse, which runs between the striking towered Oberbaumbrücke bridge and  Berlin-Ostbahnhof, with the River Spree below.

While much of the Wall was destroyed, this section has been preserved for posterity, and in 1990 was decorated with a series of over 100 murals.

Essential Berlin sightseeing.

It’s one of the least obvious things to see in Berlin. An inauspicious 1960s building just off Friedrichstrasse, yet this was where so much Cold War history was made.

Known as the Tränenpalast, or Palace of Tears, it was the Berlin Friedrichstrasse station westbound only  border crossing.

It was given this name because of the daily emotional farewells between Western visitors and their East German families and friends who were trapped behind the Berlin Wall and had to remain there.

The building is a single large hallway with an exhibition devoted to the history of Berlin during the Cold war, and you can also pass through the grim GDR border posts.

Karl-Marx-Allee – originally Stalinallee – was the showcase street of the German Democratic Republic (GDR or East Germany). It’s one of the widest streets I’ve ever seen, 89 metres wide.

The buildings are all in the monumental Soviet-influenced Socialist Realist style, with endless rows of identical windows and stone friezes with typical sculptures (see also the Hotel International in our Prague Architecture article) of heroic figures leading the effort to greater production output.

The main breaks from the monotony are the twin towers either side of the street at Frankfurter Tor.

In June 1953, a strike by construction workers on the street sparked nationwide protests which were brutally suppressed within 24 hours with Soviet backing.

Berlin is a relatively young city, but it’s natural to seek out the older, historic parts of a destination.

The nearest thing you’ll find to an old Berlin is the Nikolaiviertel, a small area of restored streets around the twin-spired Nikolaikirche.

It’s one of the oldest churches in Berlin, originally founded in the 13^th century. The church was largely complete by the 15^th century, including its distinctive brick façade, similar to others in the Baltic region of north-east Germany and over the border in Poland.

The church was deconsecrated in 1938 and, after belated post-war restoration, has been used as a church museum and concert venue.

The surrounding area is one of the quieter places to visit in Berlin, but well worth a brief visit.

The Neue Synagoge (New Synagogue) on Oranienburger Strasse is one of the most poignant landmarks in Berlin.

It was completed in 1866 to serve the thriving Jewish community of Berlin, a splendid building in Moorish style like many others of the period in central Europe.

It narrowly escaped complete destruction in the Kristallnacht pogrom of November 1938 when a fire officer insisted that the arsonists left as it was a heritage building.

Further destruction ensued during Allied bombing raids, and it wasn’t until the late 1980s that restoration could be considered.

The main front and domes have been restored, but much of the rest of the synagogue, including the main prayer hall, hasn’t been. It’s now home to the Centrum Judaicum, which lead guided tours of the Synagogue and Dome.

Checkpoint Charlie is probably the best-known of the crossing points between West and East Berlin, situated at the lower end of Friedrichstrasse.

The checkpoint itself in the middle of the street consists of a sandbagged sentry point and the famous multi-lingual ‘You Are Now Leaving The American Sector’.

The presence of the various multinational chain fast food restaurants adds to the feeling it’s a bit of a tourist trap nowadays, but the Mauer Museum – Haus am Checkpoint Charlie is very much worth the visit.

It’s mainly devoted to the history of the Berlin Wall and tells the story of various ingenious escapes, from tunnels to hidden compartments in cars and false papers. I’ve been twice and spent a few hours in there each time.

The Olympiastadion (Olympic Stadium) was built by the Nazis to host the infamous 1936 Olympics, making it one of the most famous places in Berlin, albeit far from the most visited.

The original arena was hugely impressive, a concrete bowl of the grandest totalitarian architecture, and I happened to see the last football match there before it was closed for a massive refit in 2000.

I was especially keen to see where the great Jesse Owens won his four gold medals under the out-of-joint nose of Hitler. Many wanted the stadium demolished because of its past Nazi associations.

It was remodelled and rebuilt for the 2006 World Cup, whose final it hosted, with the roof expanded to cover all spectators. It is the home ground of Bundesliga side Hertha BSC (usually known as Hertha Berlin), and they play there on alternate weekends during the August to May season.

If my copy of the 1962 Travel Guide GDR – hurriedly written months after the Berlin Wall was built – could be believed, this is one of the very best places to visit in Berlin.

The Soviet War Memorial commemorates the Red Army’s losses – around 80,000 soldiers – with the focal point a soldier rescuing a child while trampling on a swastika.

If 20^th century history or Soviet architecture are your thing, it’s well worth the trip into old East Berlin.

Famous Berlin Landmarks – Final Words

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading this article on landmarks in Berlin, and that you get to see many of them yourself.

Seeing many of these Berlin sights will give you a great overview of one of the most fascinating cities in Europe. I’ve had four long stays there over 25 years, and am as enthralled as ever with the place. Be warned – you may well be too!

Check out my article on the best places to visit in Eastern Germany. It includes the likes of Dresden, Leipzig and some of the lesser-known gems like Bautzen, Gorlitz and stunning Quedlinburg.

If you’re interested in exploring further, take a look at our article on the best places to visit in Germany.

We cover places right across the country, from Cochem and Beilstein in the Mosel Valley in the west to the stunning Bastei Bridge in the east. It’s a fascinating and hugely rewarding country to explore.

David Angel is a British photographer, writer and historian. He is a European travel expert with over 30 years’ experience exploring Europe. He has a degree in History from Manchester University, and his work is regularly featured in global media including the BBC, Condé Nast Traveler, The Guardian, The Times, and The Sunday Times.  David is fluent in French and Welsh, and can also converse in Italian, German, Portuguese, Spanish, Czech and Polish.

• Facebook
• Instagram
• Mail
• Pinterest