Favorite Concerts & Performances in Europe

When it comes to concerts and performances, Europe is like a chocolate box brimming over with artsy flavors. Venues in every city and town showcase a wide range of musical styles, from classical to traditional to rock.

In addition to music concerts, you’ll find plenty of theater and dance performances, along with festivals and special events.

Gregg and I reminisce most often about the many wonderful performances we’ve enjoyed during our European travels. Some of our favorite memories are of performances we stumbled across, often as a result of chatting with locals and fellow travelers, noticing posters and flyers, and checking out “What’s On” pages on local websites.

Gregg and I reflected in the ultra-modern façade of the Paris Philharmonie

Overview

While I’m always open to serendipity when it comes to choosing performances and concerts, I also believe in planning ahead. I suggest that as soon as you know the dates of your trip, go online and search for concerts, performances, festivals and other live events that will be on while you’re traveling.

A search for “musicals in London”, “classical concerts in Paris”, or “dance performances, Seville” should yield good results. You can also use generic searches such as “what’s on in Berlin” or “concerts in Vienna” and then narrow down the choices to focus on the music genres that interest you.

In this post, I share some of the memorable concerts and performances we’ve enjoyed, listed by city.

Amsterdam

One of Europe’s most beautiful concert halls is Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw, located across from the Museumplein. Free lunchtime concerts are held on Wednesdays in the small concert hall adjacent to the main hall.

On a recent visit to Amsterdam, we enjoyed a lively performance by two vibraphonists. Check the website to find out what’s on when you’re in Amsterdam. You’ll join locals and very few other tourists for a marvelous (and free!) musical experience.

Exterior of the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, a great place to see concerts and performances in Europe
The Concertgebouw in Amsterdam

Barcelona

The Ópera y Flamenco performance at the astonishingly exquisite Palau de la Música Catalana is not to be missed. Even if Ópera y Flamenco is not playing when you’re visiting Barcelona, check out the Palau de la Música Catalana website to see what’s on and, if possible, get tickets. A visit to the Palau de la Música will quite simply blow your mind!

The magnificent stained glass at the Palau de la Música Catalana

Built between 1905 and 1908 by the modernist architect Lluís Domènech i Montaner, the Palau de la Música Catalana is designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you can’t get tickets to a performance, you can still take a tour of the building.

Berlin

If you’re a classical music fan, check out what’s on at the impressive home of the Berlin Philharmonic (Berlin Philharmoniker). The building itself is fabulous with wonderful acoustics and worth touring even if you can’t see a concert there. We enjoyed an awe-inspiring performance of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring performed by the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin.

Exterior of the Berlin Philharmonic, a stunning venue for  concerts and performances in Europe
The Berlin Philharmoniker

Check out the concert calendar and buy tickets from the Berlin Philharmoniker website.

Cologne

While we usually book tickets well in advance, we’re always open to attending concerts on the spur of the moment. One such memorable concert was at the Kölner Philharmonie, a magnificent concert hall a stone’s throw from Cologne’s famous cathedral and in the same complex as the wonderful Ludwig Museum.

We had just finished visiting the Romano-Germanic-Museum (a must-see!) and were walking past the Kölner Philharmonie when we noticed a poster for the evening’s concert. The programme appealed to us and so we inquired at the box office about tickets. The very friendly, English-speaking attendant told us that tickets were available and at a price we considered incredibly reasonable, at least compared to what we were accustomed to paying in Vancouver.

Two hours later, we took our seats in one of the most dazzling modern concert halls I’d ever been in. Built in 1986, the Kölner Philharmonie is constructed like an amphitheatre and provides near-perfect acoustics. Even the size and padding of the seats have been selected to ensure constant acoustics regardless of whether the seat is occupied.

Check the Kölner Philharmonie website to see what’s on.

Leipzig

Marvelous Leipzig is a must-visit for classical music lovers, particularly if you adore (like I do!) the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Read my post about our visit to the Bach Museum (I still swoon when I think of it!).

While in Leipzig, we attended a wonderful concert at the famed Gewandhaus where the young Clara Wieck (who became Clara Schumann and the inspiration for my second novel, A Woman of Note) debuted as a solo pianist in 1828. Many other famous musicians have played at Gewandhaus and for that reason I was curious to see a performance there.

Exterior of the Gewandhaus concert venue in Leipzig, Germany, a stunning venue for  concerts and performances in Europe
Gewandhaus concert hall in Leipzig, Germany

The ultra-modern Gewandhaus concert hall is nothing like the venue Clara played in, and is, in fact, the third concert hall to bear the name Gewandhaus, the first being built in 1781, the second in 1884 (designed by famed architect Martin Gropius), and the current hall in 1981.

We snagged tickets to a solo piano concert of music by Mozart and Chopin. What a treat, and, at less than $30CDN per ticket, probably the best value for a concert I’ve ever enjoyed. At the interval, we thought the concert was over. The pianist had played for so long that we couldn’t imagine he’d be able to perform any longer. As we prepared to leave, a local woman came up to us and told us in careful English that it was only the break and that we needed to stay for the second half. Gratefully, we returned to the concert hall to enjoy another ninety minutes of jaw-dropping music performed by the very hard-working pianist.

Check the Gewandhaus website to see what’s on.

Lisbon

When you’re visiting Lisbon, make time for a fado performance (or two). We favor the smaller clubs with intimate performances over the more touristy offerings.

A fado guitar; see fado performances while traveling in Portugal

Our favorite place for fado in Lisbon is Restaurante Canto do Camões on Travessa da Espera in the Bairro Alto. It’s low-key, with a friendly owner, good food, reasonable prices, and lots of fado. When we were there, singers dropped in, performed a few songs designed to rip our hearts out, collected a few euros from the proprietor, and then left, presumably to go sing in another place. Sadly, Restaurante Canto do Camões is now closed permanently; however, you’ll find other small restaurants that feature fado in the Bairro Alto and the Alfama.

You can also see fado performances in Porto and Coimbra. In Porto, we loved the performance at the Casa da Guitarra, which also included a glass of port. In Coimbra, fado is only sung by men. We saw a troupe of men who sing wearing traditional costumes at À Capella, a 14th-century chapel that includes a bar and tapas with the live fado serenades.

Skyline of Coimbra in Portugal, a great place to hear fado
Coimbra is a charming town and a great place to enjoy fado

London

The first thing I do after booking a trip to London is check out what’s playing in the West End and what’s on at the National Theater and the Globe. I’ve enjoyed so many memorable performances in London, starting in the 1970s when I was a student at Reading University, a 40-minute train ride from the bright lights of the West End. In those days, performances in London were so reasonably priced that even a student could afford them! Even now, I find that prices for musicals in the West End are far below what I’ve paid in New York.

View of a street in London's busy west end theater district; visit London to see plenty of awesome concerts and performances while traveling in Europe.
London’s busy West End has plenty of great theaters

Go to the London Theatre website, see what’s on and get tickets well in advance. You can also take your chances during your trip and purchase last-minute tickets, often at a reduced rate. However, I don’t recommend doing this for a performance that you really want to see.

But if you are flexible and open to seeing what’s playing, you could well get lucky. On a trip to London in 2018, I got a ticket for Mamma Mia on the day of the performance for just 40 GBP.

Before going to the theater, enjoy an early dinner at one of the many restaurants in the West End advertising pre-theatre menus.

And while planning your entertainment options in London, don’t forget to check out what’s on at venues such as the Albert Hall and the Barbican Centre. Another option is the lunchtime and evening concerts at the achingly lovely St Martin-in-the-Fields near Trafalgar Square.

Exterior of Saint Martins-in-the-Fields in London, a venue for classical music concerts
Saint Martins-in-the-Fields next to Trafalgar Square in London hosts classical music concerts

Paris

We love going to concerts in Paris. Spectacular venues such as the Opéra Bastille, the Paris Philharmonie and Sainte-Chapelle enhance the musical experiences, and the quality of the performances is always first-rate. Here are just a few of the venues to check out, particularly if you are a classical music lover.

Opéra Bastille

Seeing an opera in Paris is definitely a cool experience, and one that we hope to repeat as restrictions continue to lift. One of our most memorable opera experiences was seeing Götterdämmerung at the Opéra Bastille. Talk about mind-exploding!

Exterior of the Opera Bastille in Paris, a stunning venue for concerts and performances in Europe
Opéra Bastille in Paris

The Opéra national de Paris presents operas at two venues—the ultra chic and modern Opéra Bastille and the sumptuously decorated and historic Opéra Garnier. Check the website for the Opéra national de Paris.

Paris Philharmonie

The Philharmonie de Paris is just breathtaking! Located in Parc de la Villette in the northeast of Paris, the Philharmonie is a complex of buildings that also house exhibition spaces and rehearsal rooms. We attended a performance in the symphonic concert hall—a 2,400-seat über-modern venue designed by Jean Nouvel and opened in January 2015. It was a stunning experience.

Interior of the Paris Philharmonie

Check the website for upcoming performances and events.

Piano Concerts at Église Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre

Located just across the Seine from Notre-Dame Cathedral in the 5th arrondissement, the Église Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre is one of the oldest churches in Paris. Concerts featuring either solo piano or duos (e.g., violin and piano or cello and piano) are frequently held there—and they are well worth attending. We’ve been to several. Tickets are reasonably priced, the venue is deliciously ancient and atmospheric, and the quality of the playing is first-rate.

Exterior of Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre in the 5th arrondisement in Paris, across the Seine from Notre-Dame Cathedral. The church is a lovely venue for concerts and performances in Europe.
Saint-Julien-le-Pauvre is just across the Seine from Notre-Dame Cathedral

Check the website for upcoming concerts and keep an eye out for posters in the area (that’s how we discovered what was on).

Sainte-Chapelle Concerts

Fancy spending an hour or two staring up at sublimely beautiful stained glass supported by impossibly slender columns while listening to sublimely beautiful classical music? Then check out the website for Sainte-Chapelle’s concerts and purchase tickets for a performance. You won’t be disappointed!

Imagine listening to music surrounded by this view!

We’ve enjoyed several concerts at Sainte-Chapelle and have always been transported into ever higher planes of awesomeness. A favorite evening out is to enjoy the performance at 7 pm and then to wander starry-eyed through the cobbled streets of Île de la Cité to Île Saint-Louis and dine at one of the many small bistros in the area. Artsy traveling doesn’t get much better!

Seville

We’re firm fans of flamenco. See my post describing the flamenco performance we enjoyed on our first visit to Seville. In Seville, you can see flamenco at several venues. I recommend two.

A flamenco dancer dressed in red; a flamenco performance is not to be missed while traveling in Seville, Spain
A flamenco performance will captivate you!

Flamenco Museum

From the website, purchase the combo ticket that includes the museum and a late afternoon flamenco performance that will leave you breathless.

Los Gallos

Situated in a charming little courtyard in the heart of Seville, Los Gallos is an intimate venue with world-class talent. Sip the Sangria included in the ticket price and prepare to be blasted into the stratosphere.

Stratford-upon-Avon

Every time I visit England, I do my best to squeeze in a trip to Stratford-upon-Avon to see a performance by the Royal Shakespeare Company. I have been fortunate to see many wondrous performances there, including productions of Romeo and Juliet and Hamlet that both starred the incomparable David Tennant.

Exteior of the main theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon, one of the world's most famous venues for theater performances in Europe
Main theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon

When I was a student at Reading University, a two-hour drive southeast of Stratford-upon-Avon, I frequently made the trek to see a performance. I was studying for a degree in English Literature so taking in as many Shakespeare productions as possible was almost mandatory.

You can see Shakespeare productions at the Globe in London and the experience is highly recommended. However, I must admit that I prefer the productions at Stratford-upon-Avon. The seating is more comfortable, and the quality is top-notch. I liken seeing a production by the Royal Shakespeare Company as the auditory equivalent of looking at high-quality cut crystal. Every word and gesture is crisp and perfect.

When you go up to Stratford-upon-Avon to slake your Shakespeare yen, you also get the bonus of having time to wander the charming streets of Stratford. Sure, it’s a bit touristy, but so what? I love touring Shakespeare’s birthplace, paying my respects at his grave in the church, and watching the swans glide by on the River Avon.

Exterior of Shakespeare's home in Stratford-upon-Avon in England
Shakespeare’s birthplace in Stratford-upon-Avon

In August 2022, I’ll be visiting Stratford-upon-Avon again, this time to catch a performance of Richard III. Although admittedly not my favorite of Shakespeare’s History plays, I know I’ll see a production to remember.

Visit the RSC’s website for details about upcoming productions in Stratford-upon-Avon and London.

Venice

On one visit to Venice, we were strolling through the quiet streets after dark when we noticed a young man dressed in 18th-century garb and carrying a violin case hurry past. We caught up to him and asked if he was a musician. He told us he was on his way to play a concert of 17th- and 18th-century music in a church. Did we like music like that?

Is Vivaldi Venetian?

Yes!

We followed him to the church and half an hour later were sitting beneath a mural painted by Titian and listening to a selection of Venetian classical music favorites. Bliss! The orchestra was clad in 18th-century garb and the performance was obviously aimed at tourists, but that didn’t affect the quality of the musicianship or the depth of our enjoyment.

A mask and violin representing music in Venice, a place with many venues for concerts and performances
Hearing Baroque music in Venice just makes sense!

After the concert, we floated out into a warm evening to find ourselves moments later at the edge of the Grand Canal. A barge filled with another group of musicians in period dress slid past, the music wafting through the balmy air like the rustling of silk stockings.

Magical!

In Venice, several venues feature classical music concerts. Check out the Music in Venice website for programs and dates.

Verona

The Arena di Verona, the Roman amphitheatre in Verona, Italy, periodically presents operas to hundreds of fans who are mostly perched on the edge of very hard, very ancient Roman stone steps. We know because several years ago, we were such fans. To read about an evening that has become synonymous with disaster in our family, check out Meltdown in Verona.

Our experience aside, attending a performance at the Roman arena in Verona could be the magical experience we’d expected. The detailed RM Europa Tickets website contains information about all the opera festivals in Europe in 2022. You’ll find opera festivals in almost all European countries, along with a detailed list of venues and schedules, including the Arena di Verona.

The Arena di Verona, a venue for grand operas and other concerts and performances in Italy
Arena di Verona

Vienna

You can’t walk two feet in Vienna’s Stephansplatz without tripping over a bewigged young person trying to sell you tickets to a performance of Strauss, Mozart, or both. Vienna has several venues featuring tourist-oriented shows designed to showcase the oldie goldies of several of its most famous composers, particularly Johann Strauss.

The last time I visited Vienna, traveling solo, I attended a delightful string quartet concert at the gorgeous Sala Terrena, an intimate and heavily decorated venue in the center of the city. Mozart allegedly lived in the building in which the Sala Terrena is housed when he first came to Vienna as a young man. While you wait for the concert to begin, feast your eyes on the riotous Baroque frescoes and look out especially for the leopard! For more about my experience at the Sala Terrena concert, check out my post on Music in Vienna.

Interior of the Sala Terrena in Vienna, a charming venue for classical concerts and performances
Some of the frescoes at the Sala Terrena in Vienna

On the same trip to Vienna, I took the tram and then a bus out to Schloss Laudon (Water Palace) in the bucolic countryside surrounding Vienna to attend a concert that was part of the five-day Schloss Laudon festival. I discovered the festival while planning my trip to Vienna and was very glad I managed to snag a ticket for a performance that featured an early Beethoven piano trio in the style of Haydn and a marvelous rendition of Tchaikovsky’s piano trio.

Hamburg

In Hamburg, get tickets to see a performance at the ultra-modern Elbphilharmonie, one of the world’s most stunning concert halls.

Conclusion

Before you travel, check websites for venues and performance times and budget as much money as you can spare for live entertainment. You’ll be making memories that last a lifetime.

And keep a lookout for local folk performances that are often free, with some even encouraging participation. You’ll typically find these advertised in flyers and on posters. Watch a flag-waving demonstration by young people dressed in medieval garb in Siena, dance the Sardana in front of Barcelona Cathedral along with hundreds of locals and tourists, watch a concert featuring ancient instruments in a tiny chapel in Les Baux de Provence, and more!

Keep your eyes and ears open; you never know what’s around the next corner.

Statue featuring several figures dancing the Sardana, a traditional dance in Barcelona, Spain
Statue commemorating the Sardana in Barcelona

Have you attended concerts while traveling in Europe? Share your experiences and recommendations in the Comments below. Here are some more posts that feature information about concert-going in Europe:

View of castle in Germany

Exploring Favorite Regions in Germany for the Artsy Traveler

Germany has much to offer the Artsy Traveler–from the museums of bustling Berlin to the pastoral landscapes of the Rhine Valley and a lot in between.

In this post, I review some of my favorite regions in Germany and include recommendations for what to see and where to stay.

The map below shows the destinations I’ve visited and recommend for artsy traveling.

Map of Germany

Cologne and the Rhine Valley

Add Cologne and a short cruise along the Rhine to your Germany trip. Here’s a suggested itinerary for a week in this magical area.

Days 1 and 2: Cologne

Day 3: Bonn

Days 4 and 5: St. Goar to home base, then take a cruise down the Rhine to Bacharach (about an hour) and the local train back to St. Goar

Days 6 and 7: Stay in Cochem and explore the Mosel Valley for a day or visit Trier with its excellent Roman ruins.

Town of Bacharach in the Rhine Valley in Germany
The Rhine Valley at Bacharach is fairytale land

See more details about this itinerary in Exploring Cologne and the Rhine Valley.

Berlin

Gregg and I spent a week in Berlin when he had an exhibition there and so had lots of time to explore this remarkable city. The weight of history is heavy in Berlin but at the same time, the city is energetic and forward-looking.

From an artsy perspective, Berlin is up there with London and Paris as one of Europe’s premier cultural capitals.

Read my suggestions for enjoying up to a week in Booming Berlin: Your Artsy Guide.

Leipzig

This city retains some of its East German past—dreary apartment blocks, cheap tickets to music concerts, and Ampelmänn (Ampelmännchen in German).

When you travel in Germany, you know when you’re in a city or region that was once part of East Germany by the crosswalk signals for pedestrians. We first spotted the red Stop and green Go Ampelmännchen in Leipzig and again in Berlin when we were in neighborhoods that used to be behind the Berlin Wall.

Green Ampelmänn pedestrian go sign in Germany
Ampelmänn says Go
Red Ampelmänn pedestrian stop sign in Germany
Ampelmänn says Stop

I became rather fond of Ampelmänn and even bought a plastic walking man for my keychain. For a dizzying variety of Ampelmännchen schlock, visit the Ampelmänn shops in Berlin (see more in Booming Berlin: Your Artsy Guide).

The big draw in Leipzig is Johann Sebastian Bach. I’d always wanted to visit Leipzig because of its connection to Bach and finally got my wish in 2015. The Bach Museum has to be one of the world’s finest music museums.

Leipzig has a marvelous pedestrian area teeming with restaurants. Different varieties of beer from various regions all over Europe are featured. When I asked for a beer that was local to Leipzig in a restaurant that only served beer from Munich, I got a very frosty reception from the server. Apparently, it’s a faux pas to order Leipzig beer in a Bavarian-themed restaurant. Who knew?

The people of Leipzig are proud of their contribution to the dissolution of East Germany. The pivotal day of the Peaceful Revolution was October 9, 1989 when 70,000 protestors marched into the center of Leipzig crying “We are the People!” and “No violence”.

The young man at the hotel desk, who probably wasn’t even alive in 1989, was eager to tell us all about it when we checked in.

Munich

Like Berlin, Munich is a must-see city in Germany. Alas, I haven’t been back to Munich since our family trip in the 1990s which means I’m due for another visit.

Aerial panoramic view of Frauenkirche, Marienplatz Town hall and Old Town Hall in Munich, Bavaria, Germany
Aerial panoramic view of Frauenkirche, Marienplatz Town hall and Old Town Hall in Munich, Bavaria, Germany

I remember drinking excellent beer in the Marienplatz—the main square—while waiting for the famous Rathaus-Glockenspiel clock to chime the hour. Every day at 11 am and noon (and 5 pm in the summer), the clock chimes and carved medieval figures re-enact stories from the 16th century.

The dolls dancing in the clock of Marienplatz in Munich, Germany.
The dolls dancing in the clock of Marienplatz in Munich, Germany.

Don’t miss the massive Deutsches Museum that showcases over 100,000 objects from the fields of science and technology and is one of the most important museums of science and technology in the world. Exhibits range from atomic physics to the Altamira cave to a magnified model of a human cell as well as other displays from the Stone Age to the present.

Munich is also home to world-class art museums including the Alte Pinakothek and the Pinakothek der Moderne. The Neue Pinakothek is closed until 2025, with some of its masterpieces now being exhibited at the Alte Pinakothek.

Nuremberg

This city in south central Germany has a lot to recommend it. We stopped there on our way north from Italy en route to Leipzig and Berlin.

You’ll find an attractive old town with plenty of half-timbered buildings, pedestrian-only streets, the Nuremberg Castle which miraculously survived allied bombs, and my favorite, the Albrecht Dürer House (see Artsy Favorites in Germany below).

Stroll the medieval streets and enjoy a dinner of German sausage and beer. Here are two views of Nuremberg.

View of Nuremberg in Germancy
Nuremberg and bridge in Germany

Trier

We spent a night in Trier and really enjoyed its laid back atmosphere, attractive town square, and its Roman ruins. It was a convenient night’s stopover on our way from Amsterdam to Italy.

For us, the attraction of Trier was its Roman ruins. As you’ve probably already guessed if you’ve spent any time on this website, Gregg and I are suckers for a good Roman ruin and usually go out of our way to find them.

The Romans lived in Trier for over 500 years, and in the 4th century the city was the favored residence of Roman emperors, including Emperor Constantine. In Trier, you’ll find lots of Roman ruins including a complex of Roman baths, a large amphitheater and the mammoth Porta Nigra (Black Gate).

The Porta Nigra (Black Gate) - a 2nd-century Roman city gate in Trier, Germany
The Porta Nigra (Black Gate) – a 2nd-century Roman city gate in Trier, Germany

When you’re done with ruins, visit the Rheinisches Landesmuseum, a large archeological museum with an excellent collection of Roman artifacts.

Once you’ve had your fill of Roman ruins, spend the evening strolling Trier’s pedestrian main street lined with half-timbered houses, admire the market cross that dates from 958 in the market square, and enjoy a dinner accompanied by plenty of local wine.

Attractive half-timbered houses in Trier, Germany

When we were in Trier in 2018, the town was gearing up to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of Karl Marx. Strores were filled with Karl Marx rubber duckie, replete with a copy of Das Kapital clutched under one wing and a quill pen in the other.

Photo Credit: Vaaju.com

I didn’t buy one and am now kicking myself since I doubt I’ll be around for the 300th anniversary.

Booming Berlin: Best Bets for the Artsy Traveler

Berlin is an artsy sightseer’s candy store. If you love museums, you’ll love Berlin. It’s worth at least three full days of your sightseeing time. If you have more time, you’ll find lots more to do and see. It’s a big city with a whole lotta history.

We spent a week in Berlin when my husband Gregg Simpson had an exhibition there and didn’t come close to seeing everything we wanted to. Check out Gregg’s paintings at Gregg Simpson Art.

In this post I feature the highlights I recommend in Berlin. To help you plan your time, I’ve grouped the sites in geographical order, moving from western Berlin through the historic core and Museum Island in eastern Berlin to the Kreuzberg neighborhood in south Berlin (where we stayed) and the fantastic Jewish museum.

Orientation to Berlin

The map below includes the places mentioned in this post. Click a number to find out more information.

Map created with Wanderlog, a travel planner on iOS and Android

Getting Around Berlin

Make use of Berlin’s efficient subway system. The city is spread out, and distances between the places you’ll want to see require a lot of walking. Save your legs for touring the museums! For information about transit in Berlin, see the Official Website of Berlin.

Western Berlin

The two major sites we enjoyed in the former West Berlin are the relaxing Tiergarten and the Kulturforum near Potsdamer Platz.

Tiergarten

Chill out in the fabulous Tiergarten (#1), Berlin’s massive central park that stretches from the Brandenburg Gate to the Berlin Zoological Garden. We spent the better part of a day there strolling the pathways and enjoying brunch overlooking a lake. From the Tiergarten, you can’t miss the Victory Column, built in 1864. Climb it to enjoy a panoramic view over Berlin.

Potsdamer Platz and Kulturforum

Check out the modern skyscrapers and shopping malls in Potsdamer Platz (#2), then walk over to the Kulturforum where you’ll find a complex that includes the Gemäldegalerie and the Philharmonie Berlin.

In the complex, you’ll also find the Musical Instruments Museum (Musikinstrumenten Museum) and the Museum of Decorative Arts (Kunstgewerbemuseum (#3)), touted as Berlin’s version of the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. Head here if you’re a fan of the applied arts. The collection of women’s fashions over the centuries is especially good.

Gemäldegalerie

An impressive number of European masters grace the walls of this wonderful art museum. The sleek, modern building houses works by Rembrandt, Dürer, Brueghel, Rubens, and Vermeer along with Italian masterpieces by Giotto, Botticelli, and Caravaggio. On the Gemäldegalerie (#4) website, take a virtual tour of several of the main galleries.

Allocate a morning to enjoying the collection at the Gemäldegalerie.

Philharmonie Berlin

The magnificent home of the Berlin Philharmonic (Berlin Philharmoniker)(#5) will take your breath away. With its unusual tent-like shape and bright yellow color, the concert hall has been a landmark in Berlin since 1963, well before the fall of the Berlin Wall.

The Berliner Philharmonie concert hall in Berlin, Germany

We scored tickets to Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring performed by the Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin. The orchestra’s concerts are less expensive than concerts featuring the Berlin Philharmonic, and the quality was fantastic. Hearing Stravinsky played in the iconic hall was a special experience.  

Check event listings for the dates you’ll be in Berlin and consider getting tickets to a concert at the Philharmonie Berlin.

If you’re not able to see a performance, try to find time for a guided tour of the Philharmonie Berlin. One-hour tours are offered daily at 1:30 pm except during July and August and several days at Christmas. The tours are conducted in German and English.

Historic Core of Berlin

When you arrive in Berlin, make your first stop the area around the iconic Brandenburg Gate at the entrance to the Tiergarten. An 18th-century neoclassical monument built by Frederick William II, the gate once stood forlornly in no-man’s land between East and West Berlin.

Reichstag

The big-ticket site in Berlin is the Reichstag (#6)(Bundestag), Germany’s historic parliament buildings. Also located in no-man’s land between East and West Berlin throughout the Cold War, the Reichstag was rebuilt in 1999. With its glass dome dominating the skyline, the Bundestag has become a symbol of a unified Germany.

Entrance is free but you’ll need to make a reservation at www.bundestag.de. Be sure to get tickets well in advance or you may be out of luck. You’ll need to show your passport to pass through security.

Brandenburg Gate

Walk through the Brandenburg Gate (#7)—something you couldn’t do until the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989. The weight of history hangs heavy over the gate. Stand in front of it and realize that armies from Napoleon to Hitler have marched through its massive archway.

Now it’s a selfie stop.

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe

Walk into this labyrinth of 2,711 pillars of different sizes. The sobering—and gigantic—memorial (#8) to the six million Jews executed by the Nazis is a center of calm in the middle of bustling Berlin. In the Information Center, a continuously running soundtrack recites the names of known victims.

Regrettably, the memorial attracts more than its share of selfie sticks with people posing against the pillars and even climbing and jumping on them.

Go directly into the memorial to get away from the photography mayhem at the peripheries and to experience the dislocation and fear that inevitably arises when you try to find your way out again.

Unter Den Linden

The Unter Den Linden (#9) is the Champs-Élysées of Berlin. Stroll down it from the Brandenburg Gate and stop to sample a currywurst at one of the many kiosks in the center strip. A currywurst is Berlin street food consisting of a fried pork sausage (Bratwurst) cut into bite-sized chunks and seasoned with curry ketchup. Eat it with French fries. Fortunately, you’ll walk off the calories pretty quickly.

Plate of currywurst--street food in Berlin
Traditional German currywurst, served with chips

I’ve tried currywurst once, and I’m good now. It’s an acquired taste, but when in Berlin…

Ampelmänn Stores in Berlin

At the corner of Unter den Linden and Friedrichstrasse—another main drag—you’ll find the flagship Ampelmänn shop (#10).

This place ranks high on my list of favorite souvenir stores. The entire store is devoted to selling products inspired by the iconic Ampelmännchen pedestrian crossing symbols.

You’ll always know when you’re in a neighborhood that was once part of East Berlin because you’ll see Ampelmänn on the illuminated pedestrian signals. The green striding one tells you to Go, and the red standing one tells you to Stop. Both Ampelmännchen wear jaunty, flat-topped hats.

I don’t know why, but I fell in love with Ampelmänn and even bought a plastic one for my keychain. Berlin has several Ampelmänn shops. Search for Ampelmänn on Google maps and you might find one near your hotel. At the very least, treat yourself to a tea towel!

Museum Island

Keep walking down the Unter den Linden and you’ll eventually arrive at Museum Island, home to five world-class museums.

You could spend days, weeks even, exploring the museums here. Each historic museum building was built under a different Prussian king, with the whole site declared a UNESCO World Heritage site.

I recommend visiting Museum Island over two days. You can’t see all five museums in a day without completely wearing yourself out, so don’t even try!

Neues Museum

Of the five, my favorite is the Neues Museum (#11), where you’ll find the bust of Nefertiti along with several floors of treasures from the prehistoric, Egyptian, and classical antiquities eras. The displays on Floor 3 are awesome. Here you’ll find the artifacts from the Stone Age, Bronze Age, and other cultures of the pre-Roman Iron Age.

All the displays are well described in English. You could spend days in this one museum alone.

Pergamon Museum

The Pergamon Museum (#12) draws the crowds because of its jaw-dropping buildings from ancient Babylonia, Assyria, and the Islamic world. Unfortunately, you won’t see the enormous Pergamon Altar until 2025, but exhibits such as the Ishtar Gate (46 feet tall and 100 feet wide), the grandest of Babylon’s gates built during the time of Nebuchadnezzar, are worth the price of admission.

Alte Nationalgalerie

The Old National Gallery (#13) is the place to see German art, including the work of David Caspar Friedrich which pretty much sums up Romanticism. Check out his craggy mountains, bare-limbed trees, and swirling clouds that celebrate nature in the raw.

The gallery also includes works by French and German Impressionists.

Bode & Alte Museums

These two museums will appeal to connoisseurs of Byzantine art, historic coins, ecclesiastical art (Bode), and other classical antiquities from Etruscan, Greek, and Roman times.

If your time is limited, go to the Neues Museum and the Pergamon Museum on separate days, with one day split with the German History Museum (#14).

The museums on Museum Island are pricey. Consider purchasing the 3-day Museum Pass Berlin for €29 to gain entrance to just about every museum you’ll want to see in Berlin. See below.

Other Museums in the Historic Core

Deutsches Historisches Museum

Not far from Museum Island is this massive museum which presents 2,000+ years of German history. Over 7,000 exhibits take you from the early Middle Ages to the present day.

It’s another exhausting experience so pace yourself!

DDR Museum

I enjoyed this museum which shows what life was like in communist East Germany—the DDR (#15)(Deutsche Demokratische Republik).

Many kitschy items are on display, including the reconstruction of a typical home from the period, complete with drawers and cupboards that you’re encouraged to open and rifle through.

Buy your tickets for this popular museum in advance to avoid long lines.

Spree River Cruise

On the river not far from the DDR Museum and behind Berlin Cathedral, hop onto a Spree River Cruise. For a relaxing hour, you’ll listen to an English audio guide and enjoy a riverside view of amazingly nifty modern architecture in the former West Berlin.

You can get off at the Tiergarten, like we did, for some quality nature time – or stay on the boat until it turns around and returns to the dock.

Buy tickets at the dock or online before you go.

South Berlin

Two museums we enjoyed in this area of Berlin, near where we stayed in Kreuzberg in south Berlin, are the Asisi Panorama of the Wall at Checkpoint Charlie and the Jewish Museum.

Checkpoint Charlie

You can’t miss Checkpoint Charlie (#16), with its costumed guards and legions of tourists snapping pictures. In the souvenir shops on both sides of the street, you’ll find Soviet army hats and other kitschy memorabilia of the Cold War. The area is kind of a DDR Disneyland.

Between 1961 and 1989, Checkpoint Charlie, located in the middle of Friedrichstrasse, was one of the few places where people could legally pass between East Berlin and West Berlin. The giant back-to-back photographs of two young soldiers dominate the area.

Facing east, the photograph shows a young Soviet soldier (see below). Facing west, the photograph shows a young American soldier. The disconnect represented by the photograph remains a salutary warning that the Cold War wasn’t that long ago.

Photograph of a young Soviet soldier at Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin
Photo of a young Soviet soldier faces east at Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin.

Asisi Panorama–Die Mauer (The Wall)

While in Berlin, I became fascinated by its recent Cold War past. You’ll find museums and memorials commemorating the Cold War throughout Berlin, including the DDR Museum mentioned earlier.

I enjoyed the Asisi Panorama: Die Mauer (The Wall), located across the street from Checkpoint Charlie. The Panorama is a multi-storey immersive experience created by artist Yadegar Asisi in which you step back in time to 1980s Berlin and peer over the Wall from West Berlin into East Berlin.

Climb a set of stairs in front of a massive curved screen. You are five meters back and four meters up on the western side of the Berlin Wall, watching a day unfold over the course of 24 hours.

Sophisticated lighting effects cycle through changes from day to night every half hour or so in the shadow of the guard towers. You experience the contrast between the lively streets and graffiti-daubed wall on the West Berlin side and the drabness and aura of danger of East Berlin.

I was riveted–and fascinated that the scenes depicted on-screen in East Berlin happened a relatively short time ago.

The Berlin Wall existed for almost thirty years of my lifetime, and yet now when you walk around Berlin, you often have no idea when you’re in the former East Berlin. Your only clues are the pedestrian crossing signals (Ampelmänn!) and the stark utilitarian facades of some of the government buildings. Thirty years of unification have blurred the divisions, and pretty much everyone under the age of 35 has little or no memory of the Cold-War past.

Buy tickets in advance to avoid line-ups.

The Jewish Museum Berlin

Housed in a spectacular modern building, the Jewish Museum Berlin (#17) is a must-see. The museum chronicles Jewish history and culture in Germany from the Middle Ages to the present day.

The building itself adds to the compelling visitor experience, with its bold zigzag design and occasional empty spaces (called voids) that stretch the full height of the building and symbolize the cultural loss caused by the Holocaust.

In one space, metal discs representing upturned faces make weirdly disturbing sounds as you walk across them. The effect underscores the dehumanization of the Holocaust.

Room of metal discs representing upturned faces in the Jewish Museum
A room in the Jewish Museum
Exterio of the Jewish Museum
Exterior of the Jewish Museum

Stumble Stones (Stolpersteine)

As you walk around Berlin, particularly in the old Jewish quarter north of Museum Island, you’ll come across slightly raised stones set into the sidewalk and polished by the thousands of feet that have walked over them.

Called stumbling stones (#18), each 10-square-centimeter polished brass square is inscribed with the name of an individual or family that once lived in the building you’re passing.

The inscription on each stone begins “Here lived”, followed by the victim’s name, date of birth, and fate: internment, suicide, exile or, most often, deportation and murder.

Dr. Martin Happ and Sophie Happ were deported from their home in 1943 and murdered (ermordet) in Auschwitz.

Over 70,000 stumble stones are laid in sidewalks in more than 1,200 cities and towns across Europe and Russia.

I wanted to stop and read each one as we walked along the streets, but there were so many, it was heart wrenching. The stumble stones have been controversial, but I found them to be moving tributes to people who were going about their daily lives until ensnared by the horrors of fascism.

According to the Guardian, despite their international scope, the Stolpersteine are a grassroots initiative. Local groups – often residents of a street, or schoolchildren working on a project – unite to research the biographies of local victims and to raise the €120 it costs to install each stone.

Museum Pass & Other Tour Options

I recommend purchasing the three-day Museum Pass Berlin. At €29, the pass gets you into 30+ museums in Berlin, including the five Museum Island museums, the German History Museum, the Jewish History Museum, the Gemäldegalerie, and other museums in the Kulturforum area.

Considering admission to each museum on Museum Island costs €10, a Museum Pass makes sense.

The €18 Museum Island Pass saves you money if you tour two or more of the Museum Island museums on one day.

Here are some other tour options in Berlin:

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Berlin Walking Tours

GuruWalk lists pay-what-you-please walking tours that connect tourists with tour guides all around the world. Check out their tours of Berlin!

More Berlin

Even after spending a week in Berlin, I hadn’t seen everything I wanted to. Depending on your interests, you’ll find many more museums, lively nightlife, and interesting neighborhoods to wander through.

Although we stayed in the Kreuzberg area in south Berlin, I recommend the trendier and more interesting Prenzlauer Berg in north Berlin. We enjoyed dining out in this area that features older buildings, lots of cool restaurants, and a youthful, neighborhood vibe.

The author at an outdoor cafe in Berlin
Enjoying lunch at a sidewalk café in hip and happenin’ Prenzlauer Berg

Where to Stay in Berlin

For accommodation suggestions in Berlin, see Where to Stay in Germany: My Best Picks.

Have you been to Berlin? Please share your experiences and tips with other artsy travelers in the Comments section below.

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