Organised bus tours provide a useful way of seeing the city in a short space of time.  English commentary is available and you’ll soon be the proud possessor of a number of local facts, useful or otherwise. Most tours pick up at Kurfurstendamm, last around 2 hours and cost around €18. One of the biggest problems you’re likely to have is choosing what to see first, there’s so much out there to do.

The most obvious place to start sightseeing is the Brandenburg Gate. Slightly north of the Gate is the Reichstag, whilst to the south is the striking Memorial to Murdered Jews. West of this area you’ll find the Tiergarten, a huge park with landscaped gardens and woodlands right in the centre of the city.  Walk south along the Tiergarten and you will come to Potsdamer Platz – Berlin’s equivalent of Piccadilly Circus – where you’ll find the glass building that is the Sony Centre.

If it’s a symbol of all things Cold War you want, head for Checkpoint Charlie (U-Bahn Kochstrasse). The military post marked the border between East and West Berlin until 1990.

Less than 10 minutes walk from Checkpoint Charlie is the Judisches Museum Berlin (the Jewish Museum), which tells the story of the history and culture of German Jews.  The nearest U-Bahn is Hallesches Tor.

The eastern city’s main commercial centre is to be found in and around Alexanderplatz.  The huge Fernsehturm –TV Tower – built by the East Germans, is worth going into if only to use the very fast lift to the viewing platform and the perfectly placed nearby bar.  On a clear day (and before one too many Bitburgers) the view is fantastic. Plus, you can always console yourself with the fact that if the world starts to spin it’s because the café revolves on its own axis twice an hour.

To the west of the city centre is Bahnhof Zoologischer Garten (Bahnhof Zoo). Go through the main entrance of the station and cross over the bus station to the other side of the square and you’ll be at the entrance to the Zoologischer Garten, which contains a zoo and an aquarium. Entrance to either one of these attractions costs €12, or you can get a combined ticket for €18. The gardens are open between 9am and 6.30pm.

For those of you who are more interested in the human species in all its glory, you could visit the Erotik-Musuem just south of Zoo station, past a row of sex shops.  Entrance to the museum will set you back around €5 and its open between 9am and midnight. Not that you'll see anyone from the FSF here of course. Entrance is over-18's only.

A short walk from the zoo is the Kurfurstendamm strasse, or Ku’damm as it is more commonly known. This is one of the main shopping areas in the city, but also contains the Story of Berlin museum, which is a great introduction for anyone interested in finding out more about Berlin’s history. Entrance will cost you €9.80 and it’s open every day from 10am – 8pm. Last admission is at 6pm.

Berlin is a great city for shopping, the Ku’damm is home to lots of glitzy shops and designer label clothes stores.  Head to Tauentzienstrasse (21) in Schoneburger and you’ll come across KaDaWe, the continent’s largest department store (U-Bahn Wittenbergplatz). 

Berlin Tourismus Marketing has offices at the Europa Centre on Budapester Strasse, Mitte on Branderburger Tor and Alexanderplatz. Tel: (+49) 30 25 0025.

• Hello – Guten Tag
• Goodbye – Auf Wiedersehen
• Yes – Ja
• No – Nein
• Please – Bitte
• Thank you – Danke
• Help! – Hilfe!
• Call a doctor! – Holen Sie einen Arzt!
• Call the police! – Rufen Sie die Polizei!
• Do you speak English? – Sprechen Sie Englisch?
• Entrance – Eingang
• Exit – Ausgang
• Open – Offen
• Closed – Geschlossen
• Information – Auskunft
• Toilets – Tiletten/WC
• Men – Herren
• Women – Damen