Foreign Visitors Guide To Berlin
image by concreteLace
Here is a quick, little guide we created for those of you who will be joining us in Berlin. You can also see our handmade city guide to Berlin here
See you this weekend!
Emergency Contacts:
- Police : 110
- Ambulance: 112
- Firefighters: 112
Transportation
Bikes:
With bike lanes on basically every street and nary a hill, Berlin is a biker’s dream. Most hotels offer bike rental.
Trains and Buses:
If you don’t like biking or are simply too lazy to ride, you will certainly benefit from the vast and efficient public transportation system. It consists of the U-Bahn (underground train), the S-Bahn (City Train), the Tram Bahn (tram), Buses and ferries, which will bring you almost anywhere in the city 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. The bus or underground ticket costs € 2.30 (fare zone AB), or € 2.80 for trips to the surroundings (fare zone ABC). Trips of three stops or less are kurzstrecke and are only € 1.40
Everything here runs on the honor system. You need to buy a ticket and stamp it at the little machine on the platform. Well, you don’t NEED to, but if you do not and you get caught it is a €40 fine on the spot, plus you have to deal with weirdly aggressive, undercover, subway fare inspectors.
Taxis:
There are 7000 taxi cabs (watch out NYC!) that you can hail on the street, find at a taxi stand, or call at your convenience.
Can’t find a cab? Call one, it’s free: 030 20 20 20 and they will come pick you up, generally within 3 minutes
Airports:
There are two major airports in Berlin for international travel: The small, incredibly efficient, and conveniently located Tegel (TLX) and the larger, less convenient and more generic Schönefeld (SFX). Cabs to/from Schönefeld to the city center are generally around €30. Cabs to and from Tegel are generally around €20. Taxi drivers are usually tipped a euro or two on top of the fare.
Money
Berlin uses the popular ‘Euro’ as its currency of choice. The current exchange rate of 1 Euro is anywhere from $1.35 – $1.40.
You will soon learn that there are basically two ways of paying for things: Cash or EC-Karte. The latter is the German version of a Debit Card and is accepted in every store or restaurant even for small payments. Credit Cards are accepted at some restaurants and most stores, especially Visa and MasterCard, but you may want to check before starting to feast lavishly.
ATMS:
Cash is king and you will need it to get around! Don’t expect to find dirty ATM’s in even dirtier bodegas. Most bank branches have ATMS that will take your foreign card. Fees for withdrawal of cash are set by your bank, not the machine.
Note: if you are a customer of the Bank of America you can withdraw money at Deutsche Bank’s ATMs without additional fees.
Food/Entertainment
Berliners love not working, leaving cafes and restaurants filled at every waking minute. Here are some of our favorites:
Bars/Cafes:
Mitte
- Clärchens Ballhaus, Auguststrasse 24, 10117
- Strandbad, Kleine Hamburgerstrasse 16, 10117
- Bar 3, Weydingerstrasse 20, 10178
- Beth Cafe, Tucholskystrasse 40, 10117
Kreuzberg
- Madame Claude, Lübbener Strasse 19, 10997
- Luzia, Oranienstrasse 34, 10969
- Würgeengel, Dresdner Strasse 122 , 10999
- Heinz Minki, Schlesischen Tor 3, 10997
- Cuccuma, Quality Coffee, Zossener Strasse 34, 10961
Restaurants:
Mitte
- Al Contadino Sotto Le Stelle, Auguststrasse 36, 10119
- Al Contadino Sottoe Le Stelle Winebar, Gormannstr. 10, 10119
- YamYam, Alte Schönhauser Allee 6, 10119
- Bandol sur Mer, Torstrasse 167, 10115
- Che Che, Rosenthaler Straß, 10119
Kreuzberg
- Kimchi Princess, Skalitzer Strasse 36, 10999
- La Crapule, Skalitzer Strasse 68, 10997
- Miss Saigon,Skalitzer Strasse 38, 10999
- Der goldene Hahn, Pucklerstrasse 20, 10997
- Santa Maria, Oranienstraße 170, 10999
Prenzlauer Berg
- Maria Bonita, Danziger Straße 33, 10435
- The Bird, Am Falkplatz , 10437
- Fleischerei, Schönhauser Allee 8, 10119
Shopping
Just be prepared for most things to be closed on Sunday.
Health
Pharmacies or “Apotheke” are a special experience in Berlin and actually make you feel better upon entering. The pharmacists are more like actual doctors and everything is beautifully organized. There is basically no self-service. Just say what ails you, and the good “doctor” will take care of you.
If you need a pharmacy at night or on the weekend you can always go to Hauptbahnhof (central train station) where they have a 24/7 pharmacy.
Medical Glossary:
- Headache = Kopfweh
- Sore throat = Halsweh
- Aching tooth = Zahnweh
- Cold = Erkältung
- Fever = Fieber, erhöhte Temperatur
- Nausea = Übelkeit
- Hangover = Kater (translates as male cat)
- Home Sickness = Heimweh
Understanding Germans:
Glossary of Key Terms
- Hello: Hallo
- Bye: Tschüss
- Thanks:Danke
- Please: Bitte
- How are you?: Wie geht’s?
- Pardon me : entschuldigung
- I only speak English: Ich spreche nur Englisch
- Sparkling water :Mineralwasser mit Kohlensäure, or you can just say “mit”
- Stillwater: Stilles Wasser oder Mineralwasser
- Tapwater: Leitungswasser
- Draught Beer: Bier vom Fass
- Coke = Cola
A few more things to know:
- Ice Coffee is only on the rarest occasions what you think it should be. Mostly you will be served cold black coffee with vanilla ice-cream and potentially some whipped cream on top.
- Tapwater does not come with meals, you have to ask for it (leitungswasser) (Free of charge)
- Drinks are never served with ice unless you ask.
- Tips at restaurants should be generally around 10% or less. Tip is almost never included on the check.
- There is 19% VAT added to the total in restaurant. That is not tip that is included.
- Paying in a crowded restaurant can make for the longest part of your meal.
Ettiquette:
• Don’t burp, not considered funny
• Don’t jaywalk, you will immediately identified as a foreigner
• Just nod politely if somebody tries to tell you how to do something better (especially in traffic)
• Don’t look directly into a German’s eyes, refrain from quick hand gestures, and roll into a ball, covering head and neck, if attacked
This guide couldn’t be more spot on! Pay special attention to the last paragraph.
All transportation methods (including S-Bahn and tram, not just U-Bahn and Bus) are €2.30 per trip.
Also, waiters don’t bother you after you’ve finished eating because they are rude; rather, they are politely not rushing you. It’s refreshingly unhurried. If you are in a hurry just go to the counter to pay.
Tiffany, you are correct. I was just trying to be funny. Thanks for the correction on the fare info.
Cheers,m
sweet idea :)
O boy O boy O boy!!! Getting reeeallll excited to go!! Thank you for the information :D
Great guide, see you tomorrow! :D
About that last etiquette tip : I find that Germans don’t mind staring and direct eye contact doesn’t scare them either like it does in New York. So be prepared to be stared at unabashedly.
Thank you for the helpful tips! I will roll into a ball if needed (already training) :-)