Berlin-November for Xmas markets and tourist things.

Droolinggimp

Droolinggimp

Droolinggimp

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Hi. Myself and the wife are looking to go in the last week of November for 2, possibly 3 nights to visit the markets and general sight seeing during our short stay there. I am presuming plenty of you guys have been before and may offer some advice.

We are looking to stay central if possible. Public transport is plenty so a little further out is not out of the question. We are wishing to see some of the usual sights such as the Brandenburg Gate, Jew war memorial, TV Tower etc etc.

So any recommendation on hotels (no Hostels please) would be nice and other sights to see that are possible in a few days. We would be going room only or B&B as we would like to eat out. We don't mind travelling using the Underground, Buses or Tram as we are looking into getting a welcome pass/ticket thing.

thanks in advance.
 
Titanic Comfort Mitte - Right next to the subway and within 20mins walk of most places.
Visited the places you mentioned along with a few others, didn't actually need to use public transport during the 3 days I was there.

Great hotel with really comfy beds, nice and quiet and a decent breakfast buffet (costs extra.) Only cost £5 or so for a bus and subway (change at Alexanderplatz) to get to the hotel from Berlin Tegel airport.

Chuck it in to google maps and check out the walking distances for where you want to go.
Am going back there this week actually, same hotel.
 
its cheaper in the east.

ill look up the place we stayed in.

As you say transport is so good it was 10 mins to Alexander platz then everything is literally a decent walking distance or a couple of Tube stops.

Stayed Here
 Got a discounted price. it was a little bit poncy for my simple tastes but cant fault the place at all. Maybe a little warm but we did go mid summer and the air con was a bit meh.
 
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We stayed at the Hotel Indigo near Alexanderplatz which was nice. I have to say although it's a handy location it didn't seem like Alexanderplatz itself was that great. It's a bit like asking to stay near Leicester Square in London. Very touristy, just full of shops and very touristy looking bars. However, it's good to get around from there (the tube is very easy). Also walking distance to some museums and sights. Hackescher Markt is nearby and that is nice, good for restaurants etc.

Two warnings - 1. It's flippin' cold. We went in Feb and although we were prepared it tainted the trip by how cold it was. We couldn't walk around outside for long periods of time, it was that cold. Not sure how November compares though.
2. Everyone says go to Kreuzberg. Do go, but not at the weekend. Everything is shut during the day. We went for a look around on a Saturday and actually struggled to even find a cafe open for lunch. Mad. Good place for a night out I've heard.
 
Apologies for the thread revival but I am trying to decide between the following two destinations for a small pre-Xmas break -

Budapest Christmas Markets, staying at City Inn Budapest
Berlin Christmas Markets, staying at Ivbergs Premium

Will be the wife and I and depending on feedback we may also take our daughter with us who is almost 3 years old (turns 3 in January).

Any advice is very much appreciated :)
 
If you are flying into Schonfeld, there is an office in the airport that will sell the berlin travelcard, but they don't take VISA, only mastercard or cash. The queue there was non-existent - whereas the queues in the train station for the ticket machines were massive both when we arrived and were leaving berlin.

Family liked Berlin, we would definitely go back, but choose different place to stay next time. The apartments we were in were really noisy, mostly down to bad design and nothing to deaden sound.
 
Hey there.

I have lived in Berlin for a couple of years and can recommend visiting the city. As said above, be aware that it is pretty cold over here at that time of the year. If you stay in the city center close to a train station, lets say between Alexanderplatz & Ostbahnhof, then you will be able to reach most of what is worth seeing in a few minutes with the U-Bahn or S-Bahn for those couple of days. On Sundays shops are closed, but restaurants and pubs are open.

The best xmas Market in my opinion is the one close next to Alexanderplatz, right next to the massive shopping center "Alexa". They put up a massive fair there, it can be tons of fun experiencing it new. For the more traditional classic Xmas Market I would recommend going to Potsdamer Platz, near the Sony Center. I would definitely take a trip to Potsdamer Platz if you are new to Berlin, the Sony Center, Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie, the Holocaust Memorial are all close nearby and there are some great side streets there with pubs and restaurants. Not far from the Sony Center is also the Reichstag and Parlament if you are interested in that.

For going and eating out I highly recommend the Simon Dach Straße & Warschauerstraße in east Berlin, close to Ostbahnhof. It is basically a long street packed with cocktail bars, restaurants and pubs, this is also the student district, so a lot going on here.
Also nice for going out is Friedrichstraße and Kurfürstendamm in the west. These are a bit more the "posh" and clean areas of the city. I would avoid going to Zoologischer Garten, I personally think that part of the city has become a mess and avoided going there specially nights out, however you do have the Berlin Zoo there right next to the station as well as some interesting land marks like the Frauenkirche, or the Beathe Uhse museum ;).

One tip for seeing some stuff would be Alexanderplatz. From there on you can basically walk past the "Rote Rathaus" to the "Museumsinsel" in about 15-20min where all the nice museums are as well as the Humboldt University. If you carry on for about 10 -15min you can walk directly to the Brandenburger Tor and Pariser Platz.

Berlin has an "overground" public tube line that basically circles within the city. You can buy a day ticket and just sit in the Ringbahn and it will take you to most of the landmarks throughout the city.

I am living in Hamburg atm and would also recommend this city for pre xmas market sight seeing if you are not up to Berlin. I do think that Hamburg has a bit more "character" but that is just my humble opinion.
 
Im interested in Berlin from early November short stay but heading to Prague after by train.

Any opinions on Schoenefeld airport? going by reviews online it sounds like a right dump but I will only have to land there. What are the options of getting into the city centre trains and or taxi and how much will it cost where to go etc.

Going cheap get a triple room at Generator Mitte and share between 3 will cost £56 for 2 nights.
 
bingham67 said:
Im interested in Berlin from early November short stay but heading to Prague after by train.

Any opinions on Schoenefeld airport? going by reviews online it sounds like a right dump but I will only have to land there. What are the options of getting into the city centre trains and or taxi and how much will it cost where to go etc.

Going cheap get a triple room at Generator Mitte and share between 3 will cost £56 for 2 nights.
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Schonefeld is nothing special - comparable to places like Luton in the UK.

Perfectly efficient though and a 2 min walk to the S-Bahn station with trains direct to the centre.

Bear in mind if buying a travel card that it is in zone C though - some cards only cover A & B
 
I wouldn't describe Schonefeld as a dump. Its an airport, you just pass through ..... Suspect the bad reviews are people used to business class levels of pampering or the mega luxury airports like dubai and so on. Main observation we had was there wasn't much seating when waiting for our flight out. They are building a new airport (running very late) so not investing Schonefeld as it will be closed once the new one is open.

No real need for a Taxi in Berlin unless you are some kind of clothes horse needing 10 bags. The trains are very efficient, myself, wife and 2 daughters (10 and 7 at the time) managed it all fine for a 5 day stay just with suitcases on wheels. The lines aren't deep like in London, most are just a flight of stairs - think circle line rather than northern line.

Buy the travel card - and see my tip above about buying on the airport concourse rather than the queues at the station. Its all very civilized - they rely on honesty so don't have barriers like in London - BUT, the fines are very steep if you are caught fare-dodging. We were only checked once and that was on the train in from the airport. It also gives discounts on entry to quite a few places.
 
The berlin u bahn is hideous compared to most modern cities. Utilitarian at best. It just needs some 1970s curtains and My nan would feel right at home
 
svensonbanks said:
I am living in Hamburg atm and would also recommend this city for pre xmas market sight seeing if you are not up to Berlin. I do think that Hamburg has a bit more "character" but that is just my humble opinion.
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I'm in Hamburg in december with the girlfriend for the xmas markets, any advice on the best ones to go to? We're staying not far from the main train station, seemed pretty central
 
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