Travel Dine Relax - Spring 2022

BERLIN CITYBREAK

by Mollie Kent

We’re huge fans of city breaks. The ability to take a snapshot of culture and cram in discovering new sights and sounds into a weekend may seem like a tall ask, but with some planning and research, they can be just as enriching and fulfilling as a long-stay break.

Editorial team member Mollie took the opportunity to visit Berlin and passes on her top tips for making the most of this rich, vibrant city.

Berlin is one of those cities you have to experience to understand why it is like nowhere else. It’s a city that sets trends, whether music, fashion or food, and it is full of hidden gems that make it stand out from other short stay locations. Its turbulent history has seen it re-emerge with an impressive modernist architecture full of utopian aesthetics. From Bauhaus to Brutalist, a walk from Brandenburg to one of the many bars provides an opportunity to absorb yourself in the cities rich tapestry. If you’re short on time and budget, you’ll find that most of the iconic monuments are located in the centre of the city, meaning you can explore them all relatively easily and only have to pay the price of travel.

Top of your itinerary should be the Berlin Wall. It has now been covered in graffiti highlighting the rebellion against the repression and division the Wall brought to the everyday lives of Berliners. This, along with Checkpoint Charlie, is a great place to understand the history of Berlin.

Although there are so many unique bars to choose from, a key one I would recommend is the Berliner Republik. It is located on the river Seine and boasts 18 different German beers sold in a stock market-style, along with a myriad of Berlin dishes, including the traditional Currywurst. If you are looking for a fine dining restaurant for date night, on the 12th floor of Vienna house Andels, you can find SkyKitchen, an unpretentious Michelin star restaurant with amazing views of Berlin.

Finally, there are many things to see, but I found the perfect way to nurse a sore head after a night in the Berghain is to walk through Museum Island, where you will find a traditional market full of antiques and food vans whilst you follow the path along the river.

I think what makes Berlin a place you truly have to visit is that it is so unapologetically itself. Although millions of tourists visit a year, it doesn’t let its popularity as a destination change it, and you either become a part of it or they won’t let you in!

My two top tips for visiting would be embracing the culture and learning some basic German phrases.

TOP OF THE LIST FOR 2022

Along with some traditional favourites, there are plenty of new events and attractions to whet the appetite of returning travellers.

Berlin’s cultural centre, in particular, is developing dynamically and awaits its guests with new top-class museums. Starting in March, the Samurai-Art-Museum will present the art of weapons and blacksmithing of Japanese samurai culture and the works of contemporary Japanese artists on around 2,000 square meters in Berlin’s gallery mile, Auguststraße.

In May 2022, the first museum in Berlin to honour the Berlin painter, graphic artist and caricaturist George Grosz will open with its own museum. The location: a converted petrol station from the 1950s in Berlin-Schöneberg on Bülowstraße near Nollendorfplatz. The “Kleines Grosz Museum” will feature works of art by the Berlin painter to whom Dadaism goes back. The museum also shows solo exhibitions and offers an oasis in the middle of the city with a small garden and café.

The Berlin branch of the renowned Swedish photography museum “Fotografiska” is currently being built in the former rooms of the legendary Tacheles art quarter. The 5,500-square-metre space will not only feature works by world-renowned photographers but will also serve as a venue for cultural events and creative exchange. In the immediate vicinity, directly at the Humboldt Forum, the new Freedom and Unity Monument with its gigantic walk-in steel shell will commemorate the Peaceful Revolution of 1989 starting in the autumn.

image: Berlin Brandenburg gate

In 2022, an absolute public favourite will celebrate its return to Berlin: predatory dinosaur Tristan Otto advanced to superstar status within a very short time after moving into the Natural History Museum.

For the last three years, the original skeleton of the Tyrannosaurus rex has been a guest in Copenhagen; from 2022, Berlin will once again be Tristan’s home. Staying on the topic of bones: The Computerspielemuseum presents the Wall of Hardware, the sacred bones of digital culture. This autumn, the airport tower will open with an exhibition floor and a roof terrace offering unique views over the former Tempelhof airfield. Over the following years, this historic location will be further developed into a new creative space.

The Freedom and Unity Monument is scheduled to be inaugurated during the autumn. This 50-metre-long kinetic memorial is set opposite the Humboldt Forum’s west portal and dedicated to the Peaceful Revolution and the fall of the Wall in 1989. The Lollapalooza is one of the biggest music festivals in Europe and will take place at the Olympic Stadium Berlin from 24 - 25 September 2022. The same weekend, the 48th BMW Berlin Marathon will once again take place through the streets of Berlin.

As every year, we can already look forward to this year’s Festival of Lights with the title “Vision of our future” when famous landmarks and historical places all over Berlin will be colourfully illuminated for a very special week in October.

DID YOU KNOW...

... Berlin is one of the few cities that has three UNESCO World Heritage sites? In addition to the famous Museum Island and the Prussian palaces and gardens, the Berlin Modernist housing estates are also among them. Furthermore, the German capital has also been bestowed the title of UNESCO City of Design and is thus included in the UNESCO Creative Cities Network.

...Berlin is the only city in the world that has three opera houses holding performances? The Deutsche Oper, the Staatsoper Unter den Linden and the Komische Oper offer more than 4,400 seats to their audiences. Berlin also has more than 150 theatres and live show stages catering to all genres.

...Berlin is the only European city that has more museums than rainy days? On average there are 99 rainy days a year, and there are around 175 museums.

...the Gemäldegalerie (portrait gallery) at the Kulturforum, which opened in 1998, unites the collections of the Bode Museum (in the former East) and the Gemäldegalerie in Dahlem (in the former West) that were separated when the city was divided?

...Berlin with its roughly 300 galleries for classical modernism and contemporary art has the largest gallery scene in Europe?

Top left image: Hackesche Hofe Bottom left image: Berlin Wall graffiti Top right image: Berlin sunset Bottom right image: Checkpoint Charlie

...the world’s largest universal museum is being built on the Museum Island in the centre of Berlin? The Old National Gallery, the Bode Museum, the Old Museum and the New Museum with the world-famous bust of Nefertiti have already been renovated. The new James Simon Galerie connects four of the five buildings on the Museum Island. The north wing and the central section of the Pergamonmuseum are currently being modernised. Work is scheduled to be completed in 2023, after which the south wing will be renovated and the museum will be given a new fourth wing connecting the north and south wings.

... the central entrance building of Berlin’s Museum Island was named after the patron of the arts James Simon? The Neues Museum has him to thank for the famous bust of Nefertiti. The historical entrances of the five individual museums will, by the way, also be retained.

... the largest Chinese garden in Europe is situated in Berlin? It is part of Marzahn’s leisure park and has an ensemble of ten ‘gardens of the world’. Visitors can take part in a tea ceremony in the Japanese garden. There are also Balinese, Korean and Middle Eastern gardens as well as an Italian Renaissance garden, shrub garden, Christian garden, English landscape garden and a maze. The 11th large theme garden is currently being created with a Jewish Garden.

... the Berlin TV tower, at a height of 368 metres, is the highest building in Germany?

... Berlin’s oldest pub is almost 400 years old and is still operating today? Zur letzten Instanz has been situated on Waisenstraße since 1621, once had Napoleon as a guest and is now also visited by numerous celebrities.

Planning your own visit, then do check out the Visit Berlin website as they have many suggested itineraries to help you get the most out of your journey.

nhow BERLIN

image: nhow Berlin

If our focus on Berlin has whetted your appetite to explore this fabulous city and you’re looking for a property that reflects its vibrancy and energy, then look no further than the nhow Berlin hotel.

Europe’s first music hotel, nhow Berlin, located in the ultratrendy area between Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg on the bank of the Spree, is at the epicentre of city’s music and artistic scene. A work of art in its own right, nhow Berlin boasts two recording studios, a recording booth and musical instruments on order through room-service.

The hotel’s 304 rooms are the vision of New York designer Karim Rashid, who’s introduced a futuristic look in pink hues. If inspiration strikes, there are keyboards, guitars and Bluetooth speakers on the 24hr room service menu. The hotel´s Upper Tower Suite on the 9th and 10th floors offers fantastic river views.

The hotel features its own art gallery and a terraced bar and restaurant overlooking the Spree. For those looking for an active stay, a fitness and wellness area spread over two floors, boasts a gym, spa and relaxation areas.

image: top nhow spa

image: nhow Berlin

nh-hotels.com/hotel/nhow-berlin

CAPRI BY FRASER BERLIN

If you’re looking for a home from home then the Capri by Fraser Berlin serviced apartments would make the perfect Berlin retreat. Each design-inspired apartment has been carefully curated to business and leisure travellers. Located within the heart of Berlin, travellers are well placed to explore the treasures and culture of Berlin.

There are specially curated art pieces that stand out in the colourful lobby and in the 143 stylishly decorated studio or one bedroom apartments with fully-equipped kitchenettes and stunning floor-to-ceiling windows. Active guests can sweat it out in a 24/7 gym and food and drinks are served at on-site restaurant Caprilicious, with bee hives on the rooftop producing local honey, which can be purchased as a gift and also served as part of the breakfast buffet.

Capri by Fraser Berlin’s serviced apartments for short and long stays are right between Potsdamer Platz - a buzzing business and lifestyle hub - and Alexanderplatz, with its old marketplace juxtaposed against modern buildings and a 365-metre TV tower for a stunning mix of old and new. Guests can enjoy incredible views of the city from the apartment balconies.

The apartment hotel in Berlin sits in the heart of history on Museum Island - a UNESCO World Heritage Site that’s also close to major multinational corporations and trendy shops, restaurants and vibrant nightlife.

Capri by Fraser Berlin’s apartment hotel has a history of its own, and there is a real life archaeological site that sits under glass in the lobby - traces of medieval occupation some 850 years ago (see top left image opposite).

Throughout the property, there are many services and facilities that keep you connected for work or play, and make new friends in curated, welcoming spaces designed for social living.

fraserhospitality.com