Berlin was one of my top cities to visit. As part of my ongoing travel series, each post highlights a day that made a lasting impression, this one easily makes the list. Every place we visited had its own feel. Berlin is layered, historic, and alive in a way that rewards anyone willing to walk or ride through it.
This Berlin walking route covers some of the city’s most iconic landmarks.
Morning Fuel
We started at the Hilton buffet. Bacon, eggs, pastries, coffee, fuel for the day. Satisfied and cameras ready, we set out on one of my favourite days of the trip.
Hilton Berlin to Checkpoint Charlie
Our first stop was Checkpoint Charlie, once the tense crossing between East and West Berlin. Now it’s a busy tourist spot, but it’s hard not to imagine the history beneath.
Jewish Memorial
We walked to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe. The mood shifted. Concrete stelae rise, creating a silent maze, a moving reminder of Holocaust victims.
Brandenburg Gate
Near the memorial stands the Brandenburg Gate, one of Berlin’s most photographed and historically significant sites. I’d seen it in films and documentaries, including Reagan’s “tear down this wall” speech, but walking through it felt monumental.
Bike hunt & seeing the Reichstag
We passed the Reichstag, its glass dome catching the morning light as we searched for bikes. It took us quite a while to find three free bikes, but we found them.
The plan: ride through Tiergarten to Berlin Zoo. The execution? Not as simple. That’s the adventure.
Riding Through Tiergarten
Once we found bikes, the day felt special. Riding through Tiergarten on an autumn morning was spectacular: the crisp air carried the scent of damp earth and decaying leaves, while bursts of yellow and red foliage drifted down around us. The manicured gardens, mirror-like ponds that reflected the gold of the trees. For a moment, we felt like Berliners, riding to work, just part of the city.
We didn’t know the route but followed instinct, soon reaching the Victory Column, an impressive monument from 1864. A lucky detour.
Berlin Zoo
We continued to Berlin Zoo. The baby panda line was too long, so we skipped it, a small regret, but the rest of the zoo made up for it. We saw amazing bears, and unique animals, and it was fun to come across the Australian animals, seeing our local animals I’d usually see on a bush walk back home.
Back Through the Park
After exploring, we rode leisurely through Tiergarten, letting the city slow around us. We returned the bikes and made our way to the Hilton, tired legs, full memory cards, and satisfied from a well-lived day.
Closing Thoughts
Days like this are why I started documenting my travels in this series. My goal is not just to remember places, but to capture how it felt to move through them with a camera in hand. Berlin offered history, colour, quiet moments, and a sense of motion that stayed with me. More stories from this series are on the way, but this one will be hard to top.
You can read about our chaotic train journey from Berlin to Amsterdam here.