What should I avoid in Berlin?

Checkpoint Charlie is the most overrated stop in Berlin. The white guardhouse on Friedrichstrasse is a replica, the sandbags are props, and the district banned the costumed 'soldiers' who charged for photos in 2019, leaving behind a traffic island with a McDonald's and souvenir shops selling 'Wall fragments' of doubtful origin. Spend that hour at the Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Strasse instead (U8 Bernauer Strasse), where an original stretch of wall, the raked death strip and a watchtower stand in the open for free, and the wind hums through the rusted steel rods that mark the old border line.

Do not build a morning around the Pergamon Museum either. Its main building closed for renovation in October 2023, and the Pergamon Altar is not expected back before 2027, so the Neues Museum next door makes the better first visit: the bust of Nefertiti sits there in its own hushed, dim room. The walk-up line at the Fernsehturm on Alexanderplatz can run past an hour on weekends, so book a timed slot online or skip the tower. The Reichstag dome is free, but the Bundestag requires you to register online in advance and bring the passport you registered with.

Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) is where first-timers make the costliest mistake. BER sits outside the AB fare zones, so an AB ticket bought on reflex is invalid on the FEX airport express, and the correction is simple: buy an ABC single, currently around €4.70, from the BVG machines on the station level or in the BVG app before you board. The FEX reaches Berlin Hauptbahnhof in about 30 minutes, while a taxi to Mitte tends to cost €55 to €70. Most paper tickets from machines are not valid until you stamp them in the small red or yellow validators on the platform. There are no gates, and plainclothes inspectors charge €60 on the spot for an unstamped or wrong-zone ticket, with no exception for tourists.

Berlin runs on cash more than most visitors expect. Döner counters in Kreuzberg, Späti corner shops, older Neukölln bars and Christmas market stalls routinely accept no cards, or they set a card minimum of €10 or more. Withdraw euros from a bank ATM: Sparkasse, Berliner Volksbank and Deutsche Bank are the reliable ones. Avoid the standalone Euronet machines around Alexanderplatz and the East Side Gallery, which add high fees and push 'dynamic currency conversion' at poor rates. Whenever a machine or card terminal offers to charge you in your home currency, decline it and pay in euros.

Sundays catch first-timers out: supermarkets, pharmacies and most shops close by law, so buy groceries on Saturday, or rely on the shops inside Hauptbahnhof, Ostbahnhof and Friedrichstrasse stations and the corner Spätis. Many museums close on Mondays, so check before planning a culture day. Watch your bag on the U2 and U8 and around Alexanderplatz, where pickpockets work the crowded platforms. If you are visiting between November and January, plan outdoor sights for the morning, because the sun sets before 4pm.