Skip to main content
Berlin's official travel website

11 tips for a mindful visit to Berlin

Discover Berlin at a relaxed pace

Landwehrkanal with a sunset
Landwehrkanal with a sunset © (c) visumate

Why don't you just take some time for yourselves? In Berlin there are countless idyllic places and small green oases where you can escape the stress of everyday life for a few hours - and still discover a new side of Berlin. Here are our 11 tips for a relaxed visit to Berlin. You are now welcome to sit back and relax. Enjoy your city!

Tip: With the Berlin WelcomeBackCard you can also go easy on your wallet. For only 2.50 Euros per day you get up to 50 percent discount at many attractions.

Tip 1: Drift leisurely over city canals and waters

Spree cruise in Berlin
Spree cruise in Berlin © visitBerlin Foto: Martin Peterdamm

On a boat trip you can discover Berlin in a relaxed manner from the water. Let the cityscape pass you by and see the most beautiful attractions from the comfort of the water. With the wide range of different boat and steamer tours through Berlin, there is sure to be something for you.

City tours by boat

Tip 2: Holiday feeling with stand up paddling

Nalani SUP on the Spree_summer
Nalani SUP on the Spree in summer © nalani-supsurfing.com

Take a little time out and rent a SUP paddle board. Take a break from paddling and sunbathe in the middle of the Spree - far away from everyone else on the riverside sunbathing areas.

SUP Paddling

Tip 3: Let the city pass the window

City tour by bus through Berlin
Bus tour at Potsdamer Platz © visitBerlin, Foto: Lukas Spörl

Sit back and enjoy the view. During a bus tour through Berlin you will be taken comfortably and safely to the most important sights and you can let the streets and neighbourhoods pass by your window in comfort. Tip: When the sun shines, some buses also run with an open roof. And on the hop-on hop-off city tours you can simply get off at your favourite sights and spend as much time as you like.

Tip: If you buy a Berlin WelcomeBackCard for 2 Euros, you can get discounts for a whole day with many providers.

Bus tours

Tip 4: Enjoy the sun on the beach

Lake Wannsee in Berlin
At the lake Wannsee © visitBerlin, Foto: Thomas Kierok

Berlin is famous for its beautiful lakes in the surrounding area, which we have compiled for you here on our swimming map. But if you don't have time for a longer trip, or if you just want to refresh yourself, you can dive into the blue water of some of the city's open-air swimming pools again in early summer. Afterwards there will be an ice cream on the lawn. Sunglasses on, radio on, pure relaxation!

Off to the pool

Tip 5: Feel free and easy: A bird's eye view of Berlin

Berlin TV Tower
A view of Restaurant Sphere at the window tables in the Berlin TV Tower © Foto: Torsten Fritsche/Die Lichtisten

203 meters above Berlin is the viewing platform of the Berlin TV tower (Fernsehturm), the revolving restaurant is even a few meters above. And the best thing is: From now on you can enjoy the view of your city from here again. Get a 50 percent discount with the Berlin WelcomeBackCard.

Berlin TV tower

Tip 6: Berlin up close!

Little BIG City Berlin
Little BIG City Berlin © visitBerlin, Foto: Janina Vogel

So, did you get a bird's eye view of all the important buildings in Berlin? In the model city of Little BIG City you can check if you recognized them all. Numerous city models also show how the cityscape of Berlin has changed over the centuries.

Afterwards we recommend a visit to Chancellor Angela Merkel. You can book a meeting with photo opportunity at Madame Tussauds.

Time slot tickets for Berlin attractions

Tip 7: By bike through town and country

Cycling at the Müggelsee in Berlin
Cycling at the Müggelsee in Berlin © visitBerlin, Foto: Dagmar Schwelle

Bicycle lovers get their money's worth in Berlin. Berlin is one of the greenest metropolises in Europe and offers a variety of great cycling routes within the city - but also out into the idyllic suburbs and surrounding areas. If you want to learn a little bit more about Berlin and the individual neighborhoods, these guided bike tours are sure to be a great offer. The best way to find out about the current regulations is to visit the website of the respective provider. 

By bike through Berlin

Tip 8: Explore Berlin comfortably with a guide

Berlin Reiseführer Brandenburger Tor Sommer
© visitberlin, Foto: Philip Koschel

If you are interested in a specific topic or want to go deeper into history, we recommend a guided city tour. Even real Berlin experts will find out something new about their city here from time to time, both on historical topics and on current developments in the individual neighbourhoods. The best thing is to choose a thematic tour according to your interests.

With the Berlin Welcome Card all inclusive you will receive many discounts and you will be on the spot quickly with public transport for free.

Tip 9: Small adventure tours for the comfortable traveller

Segway Tour in Berlin
Discover Berlin by Segway © SEG TOUR GmbH

In addition to bikes, buses and boats, Berlin naturally also offers more unusual ways of getting around. So your city tour will become an unforgettable adventure. Tips for nostalgics are a Trabi Safari or a tour in an Oldie Käfer. You can also book a limousine, including driver, or change to a SEGWAY. There are even city tours for joggers or SUP paddlers. Or how about a tour through the underworlds of Berlin?

Berlin's Unterwelten-Museum

Tip 10: Discover Berlin at your own pace

Audio tours Stadt im Ohr. Two user on a bridge in Berlin.
Audio tours: Stadt im Ohr © stadt-im-ohr.de

For those who would like to actively discover the city, street-safaris and scavenger hunts are available, for example from Foxtrail Berlin. Sightseeing thus becomes a playful adventure. 

If you would like to discover the city on your own without riddles and time pressure, we recommend an audio walk. Many of the tours are produced like an exciting radio play - and there are also great offers for children and young people.

In our story App ABOUT BERLIN you will find many tour suggestions as well as over 200 background stories about well-known and less well-known sights, buildings and Berlin districts. Use the map function to discover all the stories about the places around your. ABOUT BERLIN is available for free for iPhone and Android:

In the App Store now: Download ABOUT BERLIN
In the Google Play Store now: Download ABOUT BERLIN

More individual tours

Tip 11: Enjoy a place in the sun

Family enjoying the evening sun at Rummelsburger See in Berlin
Restaurant Hafenkante on Lake Rummelsburg © visitBerlin, Foto: Dagmar Schwelle

Indulge yourself. Find yourself a comfortable place by the water. Cafés in the sunshine, restaurants and beer gardens in Berlin are open again. Also some clubs invite you with new concepts to chill out on the beach and bring with DJ sets To Go scene vibes into Berlin city life. 

More Berlin nature spots

Josefine Köhn-Haskins

Josefine

is originally from Munich and started out her career at one of Germanys largest daily news papers. Before finding her home in Berlin, she also reported as a correspondent and trend scout from the US. Today she is cruising Berlin's neighbourhoods, always on the lookout for good stories - with a focus on culture, music and ideas for the future of an innovative Berlin. All posts