Lynn

I am going to Germany for a week and was wondering if Berlin is a must see. I will be spending most of my time in the south of Germany (Bavarian region) and the trip to Berlin, with travel and everything, is taking up a good chunk of the time. Is Berlin worth the time?

Thanks!

Richard

The last time I was in Berlin the wall was still in place and I had my three teen-agers (at that time) with me. I thought the contrast between East and West Berlin, just a short ride on the S-Bahn was a great lesson for them. Now I'm not sure if it would be worth the trip. If this is your first trip I would just enjoy the warmth of Bavaria.

Dean Hicks

Not no, but HECK NO. It will be a waste of your time and money. We were there in Sept. of 96. At that time the whole east side was under construction. Very little wall left and YOU have to find it. No,
do not waste your time and money.

Beth

I certainly disagree with that last poster! Berlin is a *wonderful* city! One of the most interesting in the world (and I have been to many, many cities). I have been there many times and have always enjoyed it......wall or no wall.
Last time we spent 2 months there and my husband cried when we left (*very, very* rare thing for him). However if you are in Germany for only one week and will be down in Bavaria, well then you don't really have time to go see Berlin. It is well worth seeing on your next visit. I certainly *far* prefer it to Munich which I do not like.

Joe

I haven't been to Bavaria, but I spent 6 days in Berlin last summer, staying at the Gendarme Garni on the Gendarmentmarkt (don't trust any of my spelling)in former East Berlin. It's a magnificent world class city, in the middle of rapid change -- maybe a little like Paris during Baron Haussman's heyday. If you like art, history, parks, shopping, a great zoo, and the hustle of a great city, go there. Berlin has been central to so much that's happened in this century, it's a shame to miss it.

Janie

We visited both cities last September. Totally different atmosphere - Munich warm and friendly and FUN. But I'd say YES go to Berlin. So much history there. Take a city bus tour -- the one that lets you get off at various sites and catch the next bus (schedules easy to follow). Former East Berlin a giant building site -- but worth the visit.

Terri

Was in Berlin in June, 97. What a city!!! You can still see the ruins from the war, but you can also see what a wonderful job they are doing trying to rebuild after all these years..A must see if you've got the time.

AJ

Berlin is an absolute must. I was there about 4 weeks ago after having travelled Western Europe for 2 months. It is an incredibly exciting city due to the fact that it is basically being rebuilt. Despite the fact that the wall is down, there is still so much history and there is So much to see. It is remarkable to see a city undergoing so much reconstruction. It is different to most other cities in Western Europe which makes it all the more exciting. i did a 3 hour walking tour which was brilliant. Berlin is a far more interesting city than Munich. The best things about Munich is its closeness to the castles and Dachau, otherwise it is pretty boring. Go to Berlin!!!!

Terry

I went to Berlin with a friend for a week last summer (we visited four German cities altogether.) It was certainly well worth the visit. We thought it was a particularly exciting time to go because, as pointed out by one of your other respondents, the former wasteland around the wall is undergoing huge reconstruction. There is an amazing amount of history--grand old cathedrals, amazing museums--the Checkpoint Charlie Museum is also well worth a visit. We also took a day trip to Sans Souci--also well worth it.

We did have one unpleasant experience. We stayed in a very nice (budget) hotel near the Charlottenburg S-Bahn station. It turned out that this area is earmarked for special attention by the police due to high criminal activity. One morning as we were leaving our hotel two plainclothes police officers leapt out of their car and grabbed at our knapsacks! We thought we were being mugged. The criminal activity itself wasn't obvious to us, and we didn't at any time feel particularly threatened in the neighbourhood, but you might want to first check out the environs of any hotel you book yourself in to!

Have a great trip!

Horst

Going to Germany without seeing Berlin is like going to New York and not seeing Manhattan.

Richard

Cities are cities, is the bombed out Church still standing as a monument? I posted the first message, and want to amend that to add that the 2d message to my kids was the Kirche with the Mercedes star in the background ..we drove from Munich to Berlin in January and experienced the border crossing from West to East Germany..how we cheered went we saw the sign saying " YOU ARE ENTERING THE U.S SECTOR OF BERLIN" I guess I see it from an entirely different viewpoint than previous posters.

Leslie

Lynn - I love Bavaria and I love Berlin... but if you only have a week, I don't think you can see both. Travelling would just take up too much time. Instead, may I suggest a little tiny town on the border of Bavaria that has a piece of the Wall running right through the middle of it. It's called Mödlareuth, and it's north of Nürnberg near the Czech border.