Be prepared that a lot of the original structures have been moved or destroyed since 1989; most of the original artefacts from Checkpoint Charlie are actually in the open-air ‘Allied Museum’ in Berlin-Zehlendorf.
Between 1949 and 1961, over 3½ million East Germans, many of them young and well-educated, fled to the West. So ferocious was this brain drain that that Walter Ulbricht, the East German leader, coerced the Soviet union into building a wall between the two powers of East and West. The most popular border crossing between the two became known as Checkpoint Charlie, which separated American and Soviet zones.
Today, on a stroll down Friedrichstraße Checkpoint Charlie comes as a sudden, surprising reminder of the turbulent times the city has faced. Halfway down the popular street in Mitte, the former border crossing is commemorated by a open museum.
The name Charlie came from the letter C in the NATO phonetic alphabet, and as the most visible Berlin Wall checkpoint, Checkpoint Charlie has crept into popular culture through its frequent features in spy movies and books.
A famous rendezvous and viewing place for Allied officials, armed forces and visitors alike, the Café Adler is situated right on the checkpoint. It was, and still is, an excellent vantage point from which to look into East Berlin without raising suspicion while having something to eat or drink.
Since communist times, Checkpoint Charlie has become a major tourist attraction. An open-air exhibit was opened during the summer of 2006. Information on the walls of Friedrichstraße and Zimmerstraße inform on escape attempts, its significance during the Cold War, and in particular the confrontation of Soviet and American tanks in 1961 known as the Berlin Wall Crisis.
Discover Berlin’s monuments, museums, and memorials dedicated to commemorating the dark, difficult and turbulent years of the Second World War. With an expert private guide, you will explore Germany’s capital city through the lens of its role in the Holocaust and Hitler’s war, uncovering many horrors and unsung feats of heroism.
On your private tour, you will:
Today Berlin is a thriving urban metropolis, famous for its alternative culture, art, music, theatre, and multi-ethnic food scenes. But its past is more tumultuous than most, and the city is full of monuments, murals, museums, and memorials dedicated to commemorating the horrors of the Holocaust, and the darkest days of Soviet rule behind the Iron Curtain.
Your guide will talk you through the history of Berlin and its role as Hitler’s Headquarters during the Second World War. You’ll see many historic monuments from the grandeur of the 19th Century Brandenburg Gate, to the small but incredibly moving brass plaques known as the Stolpersteine (stumbling blocks) that name every single person taken by the Nazis.
You’ll have the opportunity to pay your respects at the very moving, haunting Holocaust Memorial as well as pass by the locations of Hitler’s bunker and office.
Explore the beautiful Tiergarten Park, and hear the stories of desperate Berliners who used the park as farmland and for firewood after the war. Learn about the final moments of World War II in Europe. See the bullet holes, shrapnel and Soviet graffiti that cover the Reichstag building.
This tour explores the German culture of memory while talking about those who lost their lives and were persecuted. A visit to Berlin is a reminder to never forget.
Explore the very best of Berlin on this full-day private tour of the German Capital including the majestic buildings on Museum Island, the moving memorials to the Holocaust, many haunting reminders of World War 2, as well as the bustling food market near the iconic East Side Gallery commemorating the fall of the Berlin Wall.
On your private tour, you will:
Explore the beautiful and buzzing Berlin with an expert private guide on this immersive full-day tour of Germany’s capital city.
Today Berlin is famous for its majestic neo-Baroque architecture, especially on the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Museum Island. You’ll learn about the city’s history from medieval times when it was founded in the 13th Century, through to becoming the heart of the powerful Prussian Empire, later the centre of Hitler’s war machine, then a city divided by the infamous Berlin Wall during the Cold War years to a thriving, modern capital.
The city doesn’t shy away from its dark past. You will see many moving memorials to the Holocaust, including the Holocaust Memorial and the copper “stumbling stones” commemorating Jews who were taken from their homes and deported to the camps. You will also see the Berlin Wall, Checkpoint Charlie, and later in the day explore the iconic East Side Gallery.
Today Berlin has overcome its complicated past and is a thriving metropolis, famous for its alternative fashion, music, film, theatre, dance, art, and digital scene. It has also become a melting pot of multiculturalism which is reflected in its diverse multi-ethnic cuisine.
Berlin is renowned for its turbulent 20th-century history, the Holocaust, and its division between East and West in the aftermath of World War Two by the infamous Berlin Wall. Today, Berlin is a thriving urban metropolis famous for its traditional, contemporary, and alternative music, art, and culture, its many museums and historic monuments, and its delicious, multi-ethnic food scene. Discover the highlights of Berlin on a fascinating private half-day tour of the vibrant German capital city with an expert private guide.
On your private tour, you will:
Explore the beautiful city of Berlin with an expert private guide on this immersive half-day highlights tour of the major sites and a few hidden gems of Germany’s capital. Berlin has a long history dating back to the medieval period; it is a city that has weathered many storms, been humbled, and overcome much tragedy and adversity - especially during the tumultuous 20th century.
The city commemorates the dark days of the Holocaust and the division between East and West with moving monuments and memorials throughout the city - and your guide will show you the extraordinarily emotional Holocaust Memorial as well as what remains of the infamous Berlin Wall and Checkpoint Charlie.
Berlin is also famous for its majestic architecture, housing some true political, cultural, and historic treasures from the parliament buildings, to the Opera House to the prestigious museums, palace, and cathedral on Museum Island - designated a UNESCO World Heritage site.
You’ll learn all about Berlin’s incredible journey from medieval times to becoming the centre of the formidable Prussian empire, its decimation after the First World War, the rise of Hitler, the uncertain years of the Cold War, and the triumphant falling of the Berlin Wall in 1989.
Today Berlin has overcome its dark past and is a thriving, urban city famous for its alternative fashion, music, film, theatre, dance, art, and digital scene. It has also become a melting pot of multiculturalism reflected in its diverse multi-ethnic cuisine.
Your tour ends with a spectacular view from atop the TV Tower Observation deck from where you can admire the city's stunning architecture and skyline.
Explore the highlights of Berlin on this half-day family-friendly walking tour, learning about the 20th-century history of Berlin in a vivid and engaging way.
On your private, family-friendly tour, you will:
Explore the beautiful German capital city of Berlin with an expert private guide on this immersive family-friendly half-day tour. You'll learn about Berlin's turbulent century from the humiliation of the Prussian Empire after the First World War, to Hitler's Rise to power, the Holocaust and horrors of World War II, the Iron Curtain dividing East from West during the Cold War years, the toppling of the Berlin Wall, and finally Berlin's emergence as a successful, leading capital city known for its architecture, food, culture, music, art and so much more!
Berlin confronts its difficult past - with many moving and sombre memorials to the Holocaust and those who perished during the Nazi regime. You and your family will see many of these important memorials on your fascinating tour, from Checkpoint Charlie to the Holocaust Memorial, from the plaque commemorating the book burnings to the remains of Hitler's last bunker, as you also discover modern Berlin.
Your tour finishes with tickets to the amazing German Spy Museum, in the very heart of Berlin - which was famously known as the city of spies during the Cold War! The museum has amazing interactive displays, a tricky lazer maze, cyphers and passwords to decode, and engaging exhibits that tell the story of espionage dating as far back as the ancient Romans! You will learn the cypher technique invented by Julius Caesar - which is still used by spies today! You'll learn about the secret service methods used by Oliver Cromwell, by Napoleon Bonaparte and by both the English and the Germans during World War I and II - as well as during the Cold War. A wonderful way to bring the past to life for your family!
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