Looking for the best area to stay in in Berlin in April 2016 Will be arriving by plane and will be using public transportation. Would like to be in an area where we can walk to restaurants and beer gardens. Also close to trams for getting around. Will be there for four nights. One of the days we want to do a day trip to Wittenberg...Anyone have good info if that will be easy to get to by train for an easy day trip? Thanks in advance for any comments and ideas...

Wittenberg...Anyone have good info if that will be easy to get to by train for an easy day trip?>

did this by train from Berlin as a day trip twice - easy as pie - the Lutherstadt-Wittemberg train station is about a 20-minute walk from the town center as I recall. The town in compact and nice restored - check www.bahn.de/en for train schedules and fares - but very easy to do.

The Mitte would be a great central location for Berlin - near Museum Island, Reichstag, Brandenberg Gate and S-Bahn trains take you everywhere you want.

Yes, Mitte gets my vote too. Gendarmenmarkt area is nice and central, with various transportation options (U-Bahn, bus).

Thanks...glad that Wittenberg will work out....So far it looks like Mitte is the place to be for us.

Beer gardens are more a thing of the South, i.e. Bavaria.
There are some - but without the oompah (we don't do this up here), like Prater beer garden on Kastanienallee in Prenzlauer Berg district.

There are many restaurants around Hackescher Markt - which is both a stop on the crosstown suburban railway (S-Bahn) as well as a popular and centrally located tourist destination.

Gendarmenmarkt is also nice, of course.

We stayed at an airbnb: Auguststraße 1, Berlin, Berlin 10117. Area was interesting mix. Several "ladies of the evening" strolled about after dark. Found out later that I was in the "Red Light" District. I thought it was ok, but wife was not impressed. We walked to all of the areas of Berlin that we wanted to. I am handicapped and did not take tram or bus. The lines were there, but chose not to use them since I do not speak or read German, we did not want to get lost.

I like Gendarmenmarkt more than Hackescher Markt as a place to stay.
A bit more upscale.

Auguststr. or rather Oranienburger Str. did/does have some street hookers at night. I think it has been more a thing of the recent past than today.
But that part of Mitte is not a "red light district". It's tons of normal restaurants and cafes and pubs. You won't even find a night club in the neighborhood.
You will find several other street blocks in town lined with hookers as prostitution is legal in Germany. But it's not dangerous to walk there as the ladies are usually looking for drive-in customers.

Agree with danon
We stayed at Arcotel John F on Hackeschermarkt. If it would have been another time of year (we were there during Xmas markets), I would have picked a hotel on Gendarmenmarkt which is indeed a more upscale area than Hackescher Markt. I'm glad I didn't, though because there was a huge Xmas market on Gendarmenmarkt that went on until very late at night. Both 'Markts' are only minutes apart.

Berlin has an excellent subway network, so it is not overly important in which part of the city you stay as long as the next U-Bahn station is in easy reach.

Here are the possible areas to stay:

- Gendarmenmarkt/Friedrichstraße in Mitte. Gendarmenmarkt is a beautiful square with two impressive churches. Many tourist attractions are in walking distance. There are many restaurants of all classes and many hotels. Public transport is good. The neighbourhood is quite touristy, with large, modern shopping malls along nearby Friedrichstraße.

- Hacke'scher Markt/Oranienburger Straße. It is in walking distance from Gendarmenmarkt, so also close to main tourist attractions. Also good traffic connections. It is one of the up-and-coming neighbourhoods with many hip restaurants. Not so touristy but more favoured by the locals. Choice of hotels is somewhat limited and they tend to be simpler than around Gendarmenmarkt.

- Alexanderplatz. The former center of East Berlin. High rise buildings from the 1960ies. Hardly any atmosphere. Mostly chain restaurants. Not an area where you like to walk. Would not be my recommendation.

- West Berlin. Many hotels. Elegant shopping venues, including the KaDeWe department store. Restaurants everywhere, especially around Savignyplatz and along Lietzenburger Straße. Several tourist attractions in the area and good traffic connections to Mitte.

- Potsdamer Platz. A brand new center with modern high rise buildings. A few brand new luxury hotels. Few restaurants. Somewhat sterile.

I travel 10 to 12 times per year to Berlin with overnight stays, often taking family with me. Each time, I look up www.hrs.com to find a good hotel deal. Most of the time I can get a 5-star hotel with pool for €99. I usually take the best hotel bet and do not care to much about the location because public transport in Berlin is so good.