Seek out the Hidden Hot Spots of Berlin

If you want recommendations for lesser known places to see in Berlin, this article from Yuli Linssen Kaminitz will send you to seek out an artist’s warehouse, an abandoned theme park, an inexpensive bus tour to see the sights, not to mention unusual places to stay or find live music and nightlife.

Ever since the famous Berlin wall collapsed, the city has been reborn and changed completely from what it used to be. From a dark, sleepy and unknown destination, Berlin today is one of the trendiest places to visit. The relatively cheap prices, alternative vibe, historical landmarks and the amazing people, all contribute to the immense popularity of Berlin.

Because the city is rather big there are so many things to see and do. Everybody knows that the places where the local go to are the best ones and also the most unknown for tourists. We managed to get some inside tips on the top hidden hot spots:

Kunsthaus Tacheles

It might be very hard to believe, but this super unconventional spot used to be a luxury department store in the past. The place transformed itself a few years ago to an underground display area which showcase art works of very talented and upcoming artists. Local Berliners love to go there and meet the new “starts” in town. The general atmosphere there is relaxed and natural, even if you are not an art lover you can still go there and no one will grudge your lack of knowledge; here everyone is welcome. Visit the Kunsthaus Tacheles website here.

Address: Oranienburger Str. 53 10117

Spreepark

This next hidden hot spot is not only unfamiliar to tourists and some locals; it also has a unique history to it. The “Spreepark” used to be an entertainment park with many visitors during the years, nearly two millions per year, to be exact. Unfortunately, the park’s theme was changed and with that the visits from the general public dropped off. After few years of decline, the park finally got closed. Even though the park was no longer open, the attractions that so many people loved remain there. The place became sort of an urban myth and people from all over the world travelled there in order to see what it was all about. Although the park is closed to visitors, you may be able to get access to look around and there are sometimes guided tours, check out the website for more information.

Address: Kiehnwerderallee 1-3 D-12437

Propeller Island City Lodge

Bizarre, amazing, shocking and funny will be your first thoughts when you arrive to this mind blowing hotel. After one look, you will quickly understand this is not just a simple hotel; this is a piece of art! Created and designed by extraordinary artist, Lars Stroschen this location is worth a visit even if you didn’t plan to stay overnight. Each room here has a different vision to it: some rooms embody a far away reality or a fantasy of the designer, some look like they were taken from a scene in a horror film and some are just so crazy that you will never understand how a person can think of such an insane idea. “Mirrors room”, “Flying bed room” and “Upside down room” are just some of the available themes. Check out their website here.

Address: Albrecht-Achilles-Strabe 58 10709

Number 100 public bus line

This might not be a hidden attraction, but you can be certain it’s a top tip! Instead of exploring the city like the rest of the tourists, (usually using the expensive tourist buses) why not taking advantage of the extremely organized German public transport? Bus line 100 will take you on the complete route through the most important landmarks in Berlin. This bus is normally used by locals but it happens to be also a very useful and cheap solution for visitors. In order to learn more about the bus route, please click here.

Cassiopeia club

This night club is highly recommended by locals. Aside from good music, (every night different tunes) friendly people, welcoming atmosphere and relatively cheap beverages, there are some extra factors that make this place stand out in the vibrant Berlin’s nightlife: a climbing wall in the backyard, (don’t try it if your drunk!) a small movie theatre for those who tire of dancing, crazy theme parties and many more treats. For more info, visit their official website.

Address: Revaler Strasse 99, Tor II, 10245

Thanks for this sponsored post to EasyToBook.com and to guest writer Yuli Linssen Kaminitz for an inside track on some of the lesser known things to see and do in Berlin.  To get the best prices and book your  hotel in Berlin visit EasyToBook.com today!

Photo credits: Kusthaus Tacheles by Heatheronhertravels, Spreepark by Ani!, Flying Bed from Propeller Island Website, Cassiopeia Club by Landii

More cool things to see in Berlin

Inspired by the Anne Frank Museum in Berlin
White Trash Fast Food and meeting the bloggers in Berlin
A Cool street-art hang-out at Kunsthaus Tacheles

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White Trash Fast Food and meeting the Bloggers in Berlin

If I’m in a new city I always like to seek out fun and authentic neighbourhood places to eat. Guidebooks have their place but there may just be too many recommendations, or they’re on the other side of town, or they just don’t match your mood or the time of day. So my answer is always – ask a local. This might mean the person at the desk of your hotel, but better still ask a resident who shares your interests, and especially one that enjoys eating out.

That’s one reason on our trip to Berlin last spring, that I took the opportunity to meet up with Jacinta Lodge, an Aussie, travel blogger, embroiderer and writer who’s settled in Berlin. Before we arrived we exchanged a few e-mails and arranged to meet for a drink at our hotel one evening. ‘I’ll be the one with the fuschia and lime green glasses’ she told me in her e-mail and ‘I’ll be the tall blond twentysomething’ I quipped back, thinking she was joking.

I’d seen that Jacinta had been a fellow blogger at Europe a la Carte and that she was also one of the Berlin experts writing on Planet Eye, so I thought she’d be good for a tip or two on Berlin. We nearly missed each other, as she was waiting for us in the bar of Circus Hostel across the road from the sister Circus Hotel where we were staying. Luckily she realised the mistake and rushed in to the hotel just as I was off to find the mobile number and call her. She was indeed the girl with the lime green and pink specs, but sadly I wasn’t the tall blonde twentysomething.

We chatted for an hour or two over those delicious cocktails that they do so well at Circus Hotel - mine was a Mojito, Jacinta’s a Caipirinha and they were slipping down very nicely. But we moved on to the local recommendations and this was my brief to Jacinta. We wanted somewhere that we could take our gaggle of gorgeous 14 year old girls to give them a taste of the famous Berlin nightlife and music scene, but which wouldn’t subject them to over-18 pick up lines and would be relaxed and teenage friendly. WhiteTrashFastFood was Jacinta’s recommendation and it proved to be a great choice.

It’s a burger bar with live music every night, housed in an old bank with an atmosphere of pub meets Chinese brothel. There’s a tattoo parlour downstairs, where most of the waiting staff looked as if they had been spending their tips and a congenial atmosphere with groups of 20-somethings enjoying their beer, burger and fries. Think Hard Rock cafe with a bit more quirky Berlin originality. It was absolutely packed and we were relegated to a booth towards the back, but luckily we had a word with our nice English waiter from Essex and bagged a table much nearer the front and the music as soon as it became available. The music started at around 9pm but we didn’t stay for it all once we’d finished with our home-made apple pie and ice cream. Street cred all round I’d say – but not the place for your tiddlers who’ll want to pay a visit to the tattoo parlour or ask you to explain some of the ‘Ooh shocking!’ names on the menu.

Along the same lines was the second recommendation for teenagers of Kunsthaus Tacheles that Jacinta thought we’d enjoy for that authentic, grungy Berlin experience, what with the graffiti murals, and the half burried plane in the waste-ground sculpture park at the back. Take a look at my article on Kunsthaus Tacheles here.

Perfect recommendations for teenagers I’d say – if in doubt ask a local!

This article is posted as part of Wanderfood Wednesday, posted at Wanderlust and Lipstick – head over for some comfort Nachos and other foodie delights

White Trash Fast Food
Schönhauser Allee 6-7
10119 Berlin
Telefon:               (030) 5034 8668         (030) 5034 8668
Telefax: (030) 5034 8669

Email: info [at] whitetrashfastfood [dot] com

Looking for a Berlin hotel? Compare prices and book at Hotels Combined

Read more Berlin Articles

Budget boutique bliss at Circus Hotel in Berlin
Our 36 hours in Berlin
Eat on the street in Berlin

www.flickr.com    heatheronhertravels’ Berlin – Circus Hotel photoset

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My travelling year in 2009

2010 is well and truly here, and with snow on the ground in Bristol, I’ve been reliving the memories of some of the sunnier places I visited last year – here’s the round up the places I travelled and enjoyed in 2009.

By the way, if you enjoy my blog, please do nominate me for best travel blog at the Bloggies before 12 January 2010.

Berlin for a girly break in April

April saw me on a 4 day break to Berlin in Germany with my teenage daughter and her friends. We were blessed with sunny spring weather and loved our stay at the fabulous budget boutique Circus Hotel, where the girls had their own apartment and the Mums were banished to their room at the other side of the courtyard. We saw the sights on foot, bus, s-bahn and rickshaw and generally soaked up the arty and trendy vibe of Berlin, an ideal city to please the most picky teenager. For more Berlin stories read;
Checkpint Charlie and other Berlin Wall stories
Blue Glass reflections at the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church
Our 36 Hours in Berlin

Val Cenis, France for a family ski-break in April

Hardly had we returned from Berlin when we were off again to join the boys on a family ski-ing break in Val Cenis in France, not too far from the Italian border. This was a last minute bargain break at the end of the ski season, in which we squeezed ourselves into a modest self-catering apartment. My kids are mad-keen snowboarders, while I’m a rather more sedate skier who likes to break up a few easy runs with long chocolat chaud stops in between. Meanwhile my children whizz past me showing no fear, only pausing to blague the price of an expensive plate of pommes frites or a crepe. For tales from Val Cenis read;
The Good Friday service in the ski resort of Val Cenis in France
Keeping my ski helmet on in Val Cenis, France
Savoyard food specialities to enjoy from the French Alps

Lebanon for a girl’s road trip

My week in Lebanon, touring the country with a friend who works there was a real highlight. I didn’t know what to expect of Lebanon but was blown away by the variety and accessibility of what was on offer for those who want a taste of the Arab World at it’s most cosmopolitan and sophisticated. We didn’t spend too long in the glitzy building site that is Beirut, but got out of the capital to walk the mountain trails, eat mezze in the souks of Sidon, see some amazing archaeological and historic sites and taste our way through some world class wines. For stories from Lebanon read;
St Anthony’s Monastery of Qozhaya in Lebanon – video
The Cedars of Lebanon – Tannourine Cedars Reserve – Video
Mezze Memories in Lebanon

Zakynthos in July for our family beach holiday

July took us back to the Greek island of Zakynthos, where my sister lives with her Greek husband Denis and juggles family life with running two hotels. Although we’ve been going for the last 20 years, there are always surprises when you get away from the main resorts and we enjoyed meeting some locals, like Yannis Vardakastanis who founded the Earth Sea and Sky Wildlife centre at the beautiful Gerakas Turtle beach, Timotheos and Christina-Maria the stylish wine-makers at Oenpoli winery, and our photographer friend and bar owner, Rob Wallace and his wife Ritsa at Freddie’s Beach Bar at Tsilivi. I hope I’ve convinced you that there’s more to this island than its package holiday image might suggest. For tales from Zakynthos read;
How to make delicious Greek stuffed tomatoes
How to find a real Greek Taverna on Zakynthos
My top three beaches on Zakynthos

Istria, Croatia for a family resort break

In August I took a 4 day break with my family as a guest of the Istrian Tourism board, who invited a number of bloggers to this beautiful province of northern Croatia. The kids were smitten with our modern resort hotel Laguna Molindrio with it’s two pools and view of the sea and we swam and cycled through the pine woods that fringe the shore. There was plenty to interest the culture lover in me in the old Venetian ports of Porec and Rovinj nearby as well as fresh seafood, local truffles and the picturesque hill towns that reminded me of Tuscany. For more Istrian travel stories read;
Visiting the hill towns of Grozjnan and Motovan in Istria
My Istria Travel diary – podcast and slide show
Cycling by the sea in Istria

Brittany in August to go fishing for crabs

Another short break took me with my daughter to visit an old friend in Vannes in Brittany, in an effort to improve both our language skills. My friend lives in a beautiful spot overlooking the marina at Conleau on the Gulf of Morhiban and we took a day trip to the island of Houat where we swam, sunbathed and had fun fishing for crabs. Unfortunately our catch was rather insignificant, so we had to pay a visit to the fishmonger on the way home to get some more respectable specimens to eat for dinner. For a few fishing tales from Brittany read;
How to prepare a crab a la Francaise in Brittany – video
Gone fishing for crabs on Ile de Houat in Brittany
A postcard from Conleau near Vannes in Brittany

Lisbon in November for a romantic weekend a deux

At the end of November, I visited Lisbon for a 3 day weekend break with my husband, leaving the kids behind. We loved our welcoming boutique hotel which was ideally placed for sightseeing and wandering the back streets. We visited the Monastery of Jeronimus and the Castelo de Sao Jorge, getting around on the modern metro, old fashioned trams and elevador funiculars that climb hills of the city, saving the legs of the weary traveller. We ate our way through as many local specialities as we could including the port, salt cod and seafood and the custard tarts Pasteis de Nata that are the sweet symbol of Lisbon. For more Lisbon stories read;
An autumn weekend in Lisbon – Podcast
An authentic Portuguese meal at Casa do Alentejo in Lisbon
A rainy day at the monastery of Jeronimus

Munich in December with my parents to see the Christmas markets

To round off the year I took a 3 day weekend break with my parents to visit the Christmas markets and get into the holiday spirit. I loved the feeling of Christmas in the air, especially in the atmospheric market we found in the courtyard of the Residenz with local choirs and Alpine horns playing, the smell of gingerbread, sizzling sausages and mulled wine and the dusting of snow on the rooftops. I loved the cosy feel of sitting in a condotorei, having our kafee and kuchen, but I did feel the cold when the temperature dropped below freezing. For more Munich stories read;
Visiting the Munich Christmas Markets – podcast
Empty splendour at the Resindenz in Munich
Bavarian pork knuckle at Haxnbauer in Munich

So that was 2009 and where will 2010 take me? The only thing booked is a visit to the Passion play at Oberammergau in July, which happens only every 10 years, so it’s really a once in a lifetime thing. Other than that the plans are fluid for the spring - I’m waiting to see where the cheap flights, friends around the world and any other offers may tempt me. What are your travel plans for 2010 – I’d love to hear them. And if they bring you to Bristol in 2010, I’d love to show you my city.

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