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Recommended! Die Fabrik Hostel, it is right in the heart of the Kreuzberg district (and, to be honest, where real Berliner life continues away from the hellish maw of global tourism!)
Those looking for a hotel-style accommodation with hostel prices, this is the one. Been going there since 1998 and makes part of why Berlin is so special to me! Has nice big rooms and cosy art deco style. So good, even real Germans stay there. Also has very nice and comfortable cafe adjoining it.
At Schlesische Str. 18, Kreuzberg. Nearest U-Bahn Schlesiche Tor
Part of the excellent Baxpax chain and recently opened, this modern, funky hostel is slightly out of the centre but located in the über-cool Kreuzberg district.
Some of the rooms have country themed decor (think Swiss cheese, mountains, flags etc) and kitchen and bathrooms are impeccably clean.
The small bar is laid back and chilled out; a good place to meet fellow travellers for a random chat.
Staff are welcoming and incredibly helpful, and you can even hire bikes for only 12 euros a day.
Skalitzer Strasse 104, 10997 Berlin, Germany.
Tel.:++49(0)30 695 183 22 www.baxpax.de/kreuzberg
Best hostel I stayed in out of the other 6 I visited while packing backing around europe. Would def go again, Berlin was also awesome.
Baxpax Downtown Hostel Hotel, Ziegelstr. 28, 10117 Berlin
www.baxpax-downtown.de
Fantastic pasta bar near Potsdamer Platz. You pick any pasta and any sauce and then wait at the counter while the chef cooks it for you. They use fresh pasta so you only have to wait a few minutes. They have pots of fresh herbs at the tables that you can help yourself to. When you go in you are given a card, which you hand over to the chef who swipes it for you, then if you want to order drinks or desserts hand the card to the counter staff. When you leave, give the card in at the till and then you pay. This is the best pasta I've ever eaten and prices are really reasonable, from about 5 euros. I particularly recommend the rustica ravioli and pasta with lemon and mint. It's so good I went twice!
Potsdamer Platz 5, nearest U/S bahn Potsdamer Platz (walk up towards the Jewish memorial)
Hidden away in Berlin's laid back East Side, this back-of-a-boatshed haunt for recovering weekenders and general misfits exemplifies the best of Berlin's DIY bar culture. Comfily lo-fi, still manages a natural tree-covered canopy, a covered cinema, consistently brilliant music, and plenty of canalside seats (even if that means sitting in a boat). Staff are friendly and sound without being too-cool-for-school, and atmosphere will accommodate everyone happily, whatever your pleasure. Only in Berlin...
If the list of 'stylish yet chic wine bars' listed by my fellow sandal wearing media types on GU scare you as much as it does me, go to Lemke. It's a brew pub. It has beer. It has food. It has everything except DJs, cocktails and anything that could be described as 'charming or eclectic'.
The food is German in quantity and style but really the beer is what marks it out. The dark is very nice, the porter is excellent but the wheat is even better. It's friendly, it's always busy and it's easy to get to, even if the road it's on doesn't look very promising. There is even a beer garden.
It's between Hackischer Markt and Alexanderplatz on Dirckenstraße.
www.brauerei-lemke.de
www.brauerei-lemke.de/
These people offer various walking and cycling tours around Berlin. The guides are all native English speakers and are extremely knowledgeable about all aspects of Berlin.
In fact, why not rent a bike and take a day trip by bike to Potsdam. There are plenty of parks and lakes to criss-cross. Plus everybody cycles in good weather. However, you don't have to cycle all the way. Take the bike on the S7 Train, change at Wannsee and get the S1 to Potsdam (just cross, it's on the same platform).
Potsdam is a World Heritage site with beautifully restored period architecture. It lies just 15km (10 miles) south-west of Berlin, but it is almost like travelling to another Eastern Europe city altogether, on par with Prague or Budapest, just a tad smaller (this is no exaggeration). Potsdam has a picturesque old town with many (outdoor) cafés, and even has its own Brandenburg Gate.
It is also home of the Royal Gardens, and the popular Sans Souci Palace. There is proof of Russian culture to be found in Potsdam's "Alexandrowka" which has replicas of Russian village houses and a pretty Orthodox Church on the Hill, and Dutch period buildings fill the Dutch Quarter (Holländisches Viertel). The historic sections of the city provide the flair of a city steeped in European tradition.
www.potsdam.de/cms/ziel/26822/EN;
Bike rental information: www.berlinfo.com/Traveltime/WithinBerlin/by_bike/bike_rental/index.htm
The most bizarre drinking experience ever. Red wine in blood transfusion packs, electric shocks from tables, rotating bar stools, a tarantula in a glass case, a flasher at the entrance... and not too expensive either! Has to be seen to be believed.
Leibnitzstrasse 57 (50 metres from Ku'damm); U-Bahn: Adenauerplatz (U7);
tel: 030 32701466;
www.klo.de
Morena Bar in Kreuzberg serves the best breakfasts in Berlin, massive plates of meat, cheese and fruit with freshly squeezed juice and a bowl of coffee for about €6. It's also a great bar for drinks in the evening, always nicely busy with an interesting crowd. Great for sitting outside too.
Wiener Strasse 60, U1- Gorlitzer Bahnof
The name of the place says it all: "Bateau Ivre" is the title of a poem by Rimbaud and means "drunken ship". Accordingly, the crowd is mostly artsy Kreuzbergers and students who like their Ricard and their red wine.
Known only as "the Frenchman" by the locals, it's quite busy in the evenings, but during the day it's a good place to hang out and read, especially the five or so international daily papers they've got there.
Oranienstrasse 18, 10999 Berlin (right at the Heinrichplatz), U Kottbusser Tor
This outdoor bar is situated on the banks of the Spree river, facing Bar 25 on the opposite side. But it is much more relaxed and far less posh and swanky. There’s a few different areas: a sandy beach to sit down with a cocktail, an open-air dance floor, a restaurant and even a pool table under one of the trees. At night, little chandeliers and a cosy campfire are lit and the whole place takes on an enchanted-wood-style atmosphere.
Köpeniker Strasse 48/49;
www.kikiblofeld.de
A small bar and restaurant (Steam locomotive restaurant) at the S-Bahn station at Erkner (end of a line) which looks unpromising from the outside, but inside is cosily furnished with solid and confortable wooden tables and seats with cushions as comfortable as in an old first class carriage. They also make the best Soljanka (meat and vegetable soup of Russian origin, only available in the East) I've ever tasted, especially after a walk by the nearby lakes.
Take the number & S-Bahn to Erkner, or save time by going on one of the frequent DB regional train bound for Frankfurt an der Oder, which also stop there. Berli city tickets (valid for zone C) may be used on both
Erdbeer by day looks like a derelict block of flats, but by night tranforms into a cosy and unpretensious cocktail bar.The name 'Erdbeer' means strawberry which well describes the decor of comfy sofas and walls painted deep red. An extensive drinks menu includes a pint of daiquiri for 7 euros as well as exotic fruit juices and smoothies. It never gets busy before 11 though, which is when the DJ arrives ...
Max Beer Strasse 56; U-Bahn Rosa Luxembourg Platz
Good-looking bar in the old Czech Airline office on Karl Marx Allee. Excellent, table service, cocktails and good laid back tunes from the DJ made for a perfect night.
96 Karl Marx Allee
This is an Ultra-exclusive/fun club that serves great pan-Asian cuisine all night long. It is tricky to find, since it rests in the back of an abandoned warehouse, but with its five-star service and food, not to mention a romantic view of the Spree, it is not to be missed. Expect to be treated like a rock-star.
köpenickerstrasse 16-17
10997 berlin keruzberg
www.spindlerklatt.com
reservation: +49 0 30.695 66 775
The largest inland beach in Europe, surrounded by forest. Clean and safe.
On the shores of Wannsee, nearest U-Bahn is Nikolasee and then a ten minute walk
In the old east part of town, this is a large old, somewhat derelict and entertaining art workshop. It has a lively bar, with huge garden and installations.
It is on Oraniensburgerstrasse, opposite the bar Obst und Gemuse (literally fruit and veg!)
Excellent bar-ish restaurant that is what British gastropubs should be like. The beer and wine are excellent and the food is superb. Short, uncomplicated menu (one starter, five main courses, two desserts). I particularly recommend the fish: last time I went I had halibut, which was superb. Eating perched on a bar stool is the way to go, don't worry about waiting for a table.
Oderbergerstr. in the north-centre of the city, just to the west of the 'wall route'. Nearest stations would be Eberswalderstr or Bernauerstr.
A square in Prenzlauer Berg district just north of the perhaps better known Kollwitzplatz. The square is dotted with bars and cafes which continue off along Raumer-, Lychener-, and Dunckerstraße (where I live as it happens). It's a great summer hang out. Plus there's a youth hostel on the North side of the square.
Nearest stations are Schoenhauser Allee and Prenzlauer Alle (both S-Bahn), and Eberswalder Straße (U-Bahn)
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