We absolutely loved our few days in Berlin. Had not been here for years.. when Potsdamer Platz was Europe´s largest worksite.

I would dare to say that nowhere can you find such a variety of new vibrant architecture, and a city that has been planned and respected to such a degree the visitor feels comfortable on every block.

Did not realize berlin has more bridges than venice, either, as that previous visit of ours was in February.. so we weren't strolling around much.

some tips:
we arrived at schonenfeld, furthest airport from city, and there is no tourist office in airport, so, be happy you get a map from the information counter and not much more.

there are two good train options from there to city. airport express and s-9. both leave from station 500m. away which is serviced by free shuttle bus.

tickets can be bought in automatic yellow sided machine ( 10 euros max size bill), in airport lobby, train platforms and train station lobby (up several steps) for 2 euros. or buy the all day ticket for 5.60 (berlin AB) or the group ticket (up to 5 adults a couple kids) for 14.00 euros.

we did not see chance to buy welcome card there.. so we got these type tickets.

i spent two nights at holiday inn anhalter bahnhof area. excellent well connected..close to potsdamer and a block adn a half to metro.. great bus near hotel, and felt very safe as woman alone. this is a nice resdiential business area.. not your typical train station atmosphere. i was not sure until i got there and was pleasantly surprised. shops and restaurants in area. very convenient. good rate (60 euros/with breakfast for two).

there are three other hotels across from metro. eatp, suite accor, and ibis.

my last three nights wre spent with friends and family at the kempinski. super great neighborhood (Ku' damm). most of the recommended restaurants were within two blocks of there.(dresslers, ottenhal, paris bar.. and probably more). the staff was very very nice to us. our room was quiet and although the hallways seemed a bit outdated for this caliber hotel, the room was scrumptuos, and our bed was one of the most comfortable i have ever slept in. would return if i could get good rate. ( i don't usually spend a fortune on room, but it sure was nice to have luxury for a change!!)

taxi from hotel for 6.30 a.m. flight was only 28 euros.

all the major sights are in your books, but we especially liked the 100 and 200 buses that followed a tourist route. very easy to just get on any ole bus and change whenever you felt like it since we had the all day passses. i prefer the bus to subway unless i am in hurry.

the canals and cafés and restuarants along them were great. near the radisson hotel, and the parallel canal from there, we found a fun restaurant called "eins café". really enjoyed it. didn´t ge a card so don't have exact address.

also went past a hotel/ aprtament complex, deraghotels, that have some great deals on apts. and rooms. they are next to a canal, too. very quiet. in stadmitte area. would probably try for there for longer stay.

dressler was expensive. but good. good apple strudel.

borchardt was good, not full on a sunday. good quality, but not sure i could rate it number 1. would probably not bother going back, just because there are so many places we want to try next time.

gugelhof was very good food quality -wise.
service... really awful saturday night with reservation. table waiting for us. decide our order, then first plates came quickly.. then a 40-50 minute LULL... we finally finished dinner.. had a few words with the waiter.. and paid our bill saying what a shame the service was so bad.

food is good though.
they say they were minus one waiter. this is the same story i seem to get everywhere classy when they screw up.

potsdam was lovely, as the weather behaved ALL weekend! some friends took us there and then we went to a complex where they distill liquor, have craft shops and several restuarants on a stream. very nice place. good food, and there was an outdoor craft fair while we were there. "Krongut Bornstedt Potsdam". The bus leaves you off a few minutesd walk from here. british lifestyle fair here june 4-5.

we had asparagus every time we could since they were in season, and our entire meal was delicious. the soups in berlin were all tasty also. had an orange/asparagus soup at borchardt that was very intriguing.
usually no room for dessert anywhere. the portions are normally quite large.




breakfast was not included in our cheap internet 115 euro rate, but there were many options outside the door.

sorry . that was my post before i edited it two times. what is happening? not one of the corrections came through.! plus, more report is gone, and as you see some things are out of place. sorry.

will try to post the addition later.

Thanks for your report. I'm glad to hear that someone else besides myself doesn't feel that you "have to stay in Mitte" the whole time to enjoy all that Berlin has to offer.

thanks for the report, Linca-and I could NOT agree more, I've said it before, Berlin is the coolest of the cool capitals, so much to do, the choices can be overwhelming, with a transportation system second to none-it's a close no. 2 on my Top Ten Europe Hit Parade!

Yeah, the Anhalter Bahnhof area is not your typical train station neighborhood, since in fact there is no train station at all!!! The old Anhalter Bhf used to be Berlin's busiest train station before the war. After the war, the station ended up in the West, while all the railways (East & West) ended up in the East - so it became completely useless. It was abandoned in the late 50's, and now only a small fragment/ruin of the original building remains...

berlin is such a fun place, if people are having difficulty finding good airfares elsewhere.. check out berlin, as it is easyjet's hub, so i imagine even if it cost about the same in the end, you could easily get a couple more cities for the price of one.

Was surprised and impressed with the canals, transport, inexpensive food, expensive coffees, width of sidewalks, expanse of bicycle trails, (envy!envy!), variety of entertainment. They have some great DJ'S there.

We were at our convention's last night dinner at Adagio ( mediocre food, and cooky-amusement park castle interior) but the music was fabulous. Blue man group is playing there near Potsdamer Platz, at the Adagio itself, I think.

Plenty of nice shopping arcades and restaurants in P.P. also. Many buses in front of there. Sony Center "carp type roof" changes color all night.

Evening bus tour is a must as the illumination on all the buildings is top class.

Plenty of internet cafés. one chain is "easyinternet" connected to dunkin donuts. they were everywhere.

good phoning center across from the wilhelm cathedral (the half bombed one). you just call home and they charge accordingly by the minute.. left two messages to numbers in spain for 12 cents!

great crepes in freidrichstrasse metro underground arcade. 1.5 euros. made in front of you. nutella on one, and my friend had applesauce with cinnamon and sugar. yum! they have another stand out side zoogarten s-bahn.

the welcome card is good if you have time to go INTO the museums. do not miss the addition to the history museum. it costs 2 euros, designed by PEI. fabulous building. worth the small entrance fee just to see the inside.

teh jewsih museum merits several hours. there are many hands on exhibits and personal belongings and photos, testimonies, and details about the jewish religion and its history.
we walked through it more for an architectural tour, however, many, i am sure, do not leave tehmselves the proper time to really take advantage of it.
was quite busy on weekend.

the building is agressive.. and disorienting.. which i imagine is just what the architect wanted to do. but not an easy museum to go through.

about canal boat rides. they finish quite early. Many leave from around the radisson.
decide which one you will take. all prices.. from 5-10 euros and more.
the cheaper ones seem not to have explanation in english, so, beware.

stopped off at city hotels' lowenbrau restaurant on way to gugelhof. they had live music.. and since we had time to spare, decided to get off at stadtmitte and see what was around there. couldn't resist the liveliness of this place.
had a beer, listened to the hip music from 5 piece band, and off to our restaurant via metro.

other than that, now that i am more familiar with the areas, hotel searching will be so much easier. i find that is the most difficult and anxious part about going to such a big (60 km wide) place. so concerned the hotel will not be "well situated".
berlin is sooooo big.. as long as you can get to a metro or bus in a block or two.. and the surroundings are not intimidating.. not to worry.

lincasanova: Thanks for the report. We leave Friday for Berlin and there does not seem to be much posted about it. Luckily we will be staying with TCs daughter & SIL. Fifth floor (no lift. Yikes!), with a peek of the Kaiser Wilhem cathedral. We were there six years ago and stayed in East Berlin at Alexanderplatz. I could not believe the number of construction cranes in the ciy. It will be interesting to see how it has changed. And my TC can't wait to walk "unter den lindens".

Your title captures exactly how I feel about Berlin. I'm glad you had such a good time there.