Berlin's most powerful sights cost next to nothing: the Wall, the memorials and the Brandenburger Tor are open to everyone. This part of my Berlin guide covers what to see. East Side Gallery, the Pergamon panorama and the mosaic on Alexanderplatz come from my own saved list; the main sights I added from 34travel's Berlin guide and neighbourhood guide, and checked every one on Google: still open, rated 4.2 or higher. I haven't written my own notes yet, so all the descriptions are put together from Google Maps reviews.
Ticket prices are from Google Maps reviews, hours from Google; valid as of 7 October 2026. Rate: 1 € ≈ $1.12.
In short
- The big free sights: the Brandenburger Tor, the Holocaust memorial, the Berlin Wall Memorial and East Side Gallery — no tickets needed.
- The Reichstag dome: free, but only with an advance booking on the Bundestag website, and bring your passport.
- Pergamon: the main museum building is closed for renovation, but the panorama of ancient Pergamon is on show in a temporary pavilion opposite.
- For a rainy day: Berlin Cathedral, with a crypt of royal coffins and a climb up the dome; ticket about 15 €.
- Free and open until 20:00: Topographie des Terrors, the story of Nazi terror on the site of the Gestapo HQ.
- For a walk: the Hackesche Höfe courtyards in Mitte and Tempelhofer Feld, a former airport where you stroll down the runway.
- GDR mosaic: Haus des Lehrers by Alexanderplatz, always on view and a couple of minutes from the TV tower.
What to see
Brandenburger Tor
Pariser Platz · 18th-century gate · free · always open
Google Maps · website · Pariser Platz
According to Google Maps reviews (4.7 from 190,000+): the city's main symbol, a neoclassical colonnaded gate at the edge of the Tiergarten. Reviewers suggest coming twice, by day and after dark when it's lit up. The downside: from mid-morning the square is packed with people taking photos, so come before 10:30 for a clear shot. Cafés, food vans and the odd street musician are nearby. 34travel recommends it too (article).
Reichstag Building
Tiergarten · parliament with a glass dome · free with booking · time depends on your slot
Google Maps · website · Platz der Republik 1
According to Google Maps reviews (4.7 from 10,900+): the Bundestag building, topped by Norman Foster's glass dome. You walk up a spiral ramp with an audio guide; there's an exhibition on the building's history at the base of the dome and a 360-degree view from the roof. Entry is free, but you need to book a slot in advance on the Bundestag website and bring your passport — it's a government building and IDs are checked.
Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe
Mitte · Holocaust memorial · free · always open
Google Maps · website · Cora-Berliner-Straße 1
According to Google Maps reviews (4.6 from 49,000+): 2,710 concrete slabs of different heights; the further in you walk, the more it feels like a maze where the city noise fades away. Beneath it is a free information centre with a Room of Names, where the names of the victims are read out one by one. Many reviewers found it deeply moving; some felt almost unsettled among the slabs. The wait for the underground part is usually short.
Berlin Cathedral
Museumsinsel · 19th-century cathedral · ticket about 15 € (≈$17) · Mon–Fri 9:00–18:00, Sat 9:00–17:00, Sun 12:00–17:00
Google Maps · website · Am Lustgarten
According to Google Maps reviews (4.6 from 47,000+): the Berliner Dom, a huge cathedral with an organ of more than 7,000 pipes. For many the highlights are the crypt, with rows of royal coffins, and the climb to the dome for the view. The audio guide is included, with a children's version in English, and there's no need to book ahead. The ticket isn't cheap, but inside it's quiet and cool — a good pick for a rainy day.
Pergamon Museum. The Panorama
Museumsinsel · panorama of ancient Pergamon · tickets online · Tue–Sun 10:00–18:00, closed Mon
Google Maps · website · Am Kupfergraben 2
The saved place was the Pergamonmuseum itself, but its main building is closed for a years-long renovation, and Google points to the temporary pavilion across the street. According to Google Maps reviews (4.7 from 4,200+): a 360-degree panorama of ancient Pergamon, viewed from a tower on several levels, with light that shifts from day to night and a soundscape; next to it is a small sculpture exhibition. Allow one to two hours.
Hackesche Höfe
Hackescher Markt · Art Nouveau courtyards · free · daily 9:00–22:00
Google Maps · website · Rosenthaler Str. 40
According to Google Maps reviews (4.5 from 15,000+): a chain of linked early-20th-century courtyards with tiled Art Nouveau facades, hiding boutiques, cafés, galleries and the Monsterkabinett mechanical theatre. Next door is a passage covered from end to end in stickers and street art. A couple of hours disappear easily, and in the evening — especially after rain — it looks lovely. 34travel recommends it too (article).
Haus des Lehrers
Alexanderplatz · GDR building with a mosaic · free · the façade is always on view
Google Maps · website · Alexanderstraße 9
According to Google Maps reviews (4.2 from 190+): a 1960s tower by Alexanderplatz wrapped in a mosaic by Walter Womacka in the style of the Mexican muralists, showing scenes of life in the GDR. Reviewers call it one of the largest artworks in Europe by surface area; it's in excellent condition and shimmers even on a cloudy day. The TV tower is a couple of minutes' walk away.
Tempelhofer Feld
Tempelhof · park on a former airport · free · daily 7:00–19:00
Google Maps · website · Tempelhofer Damm
According to Google Maps reviews (4.6 from 29,000+): Tempelhof airport, hub of the 1948 Berlin Airlift, is now a vast park, its runways used for cycling, skating and running. People come for picnics and barbecues, and there are open-air concerts and films; the middle of the field is fenced off for nesting skylarks. There's so much space you can find solitude even at the weekend. Downsides: there's nowhere to shelter from rain, and drones are banned.
The Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall Memorial
Bernauer Straße · open-air memorial · free · daily 8:00–22:00
Google Maps · website · Bernauer Str. 111
According to Google Maps reviews (4.6 from 47,000+): the Gedenkstätte Berliner Mauer covers almost 1.5 km of the former border strip, with a preserved stretch of wall, a watchtower and an outdoor exhibition about the people the border divided. Both the museum and the memorial are free. Reviewers call it the most powerful and informative of the Wall sites; it's quieter and more serious than East Side Gallery.
East Side Gallery
Friedrichshain · wall murals · free · always open
Google Maps · website · Mühlenstraße
According to Google Maps reviews (4.6 from 66,000+): 1.3 km of surviving Wall along the Spree, painted by artists from around the world. You can walk it any time, for free, and in good weather street musicians play along the promenade. The downside: the most famous murals draw such crowds that sometimes you can't see the wall at all.
Topographie des Terrors
Kreuzberg · museum on the site of the Gestapo HQ · free · daily 10:00–20:00
Google Maps · website · Niederkirchnerstraße 8
According to Google Maps reviews (4.6 from 40,000+): a documentation centre on the site of the former Gestapo and SS headquarters — the story of the Nazi state and its crimes told through photographs and documents, in German and English, with an audio guide. Outside are the excavated cellar ruins and a stretch of the Wall. Entry is free and it's open until 20:00, handy after other museums close at six. Allow a couple of hours: there's a lot to read, and it's heavy. 34travel recommends it too (article).
One last thing
Book the Reichstag dome on the Bundestag website a few days before your trip and bring your passport. Everything else on this list needs no booking, but Pergamon. The Panorama is closed on Mondays.
More on Berlin: where to eat, bars and cafés, coffee and breakfast.