This weekend, we’re looking forward to the summer solstice – the longest day and shortest night of the year. Summer has finally arrived in our calendars too. Berlin welcomes its favourite season with hundreds of open-air concerts, a major tennis spectacle, and art, culture and culinary delights to delight all the senses.
Tip 1: Experience the Fête de la Musique across the city
Sunday is the longest day and it ends in the shortest night of the year. The Fête de la Musique is the perfect fit for this special occasion, bringing its soundscapes to the summer city. Since 1995, it has welcomed summer in Berlin and around the world with a day full of free concertsin unusual venues such as parks, pavements, waterfront promenades, backyards, cafés and bars. So, on this extra-long summer evening – with sunset not until half past nine – over 250 open-air stages across the city will be ready for live music of every genre. This year, Reinickendorf has secured the status of partner district and is presenting the area around Borsigturm and Lake Tegel as the backdrop for this musical spectacle. A wonderful way to round off your weekend!
When: Sunday from around 2 pm
Where: Various venues across Berlin
Tip 2: Pay a visit to the Federal Government on its Open Day
What better way to put the ideal of democracy in action than with an open day? And the Federal Government has actually planned two of them this weekend. On Saturday and Sunday , the federal ministries, the Federal Press Office and the Federal Chancellery will offer you direct insights into their areas of work through a wide range of events. At the Federal Foreign Office, you can find out everything about visas and the United Nations, whilst at the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs you can learn about the Federal Government’s plans regarding the climate crisis. The highlight of the event is sure to be the stage discussion with Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Sunday – questions are very much welcome!
When: Saturday and Sunday at various times
Where: Various venues across Berlin
Tip 3: Catch the World Cup fever at a public viewing
As this year’s World Cup is taking place on the other side of the Atlantic, a trip to the stadium isn’t really on the cards at the moment. However, to give Berlin’s football fans a real live atmosphere, the KulturBrauerei is transforming its courtyard into a public viewing fan zone. In front of a 36 m² LED screen, you can cheer on your team alongside many other fans, refuel at the food stalls with typical stadium snacks and enjoy a cold beer in the sunshine or moonlight. And should the football weather fail to materialise, the broadcasts will be moved to the KulturBrauerei’s many indoor venues. On our blog, you’ll find 11 more tips for public viewing, such as the Wendenschloss lido (see picture).
When: Friday at 7 pm, Saturday from 7 pm and Sunday from 6 pm
Where: KulturBrauerei, Knaackstraße 97, Prenzlauer Berg
On June 19 & 21, Iván Fischer conducts the Konzerthausorchester Berlin in the world premiere of Bryce Dessner's Cello Concerto, with Anastasia Kobekina—and Bruckner's Symphony No. 7, whose Adagio is imbued with mourning for Richard Wagner.
Tip 4: Explore FREIRAUM KUNST at Bellevue Palace
It is rare for the premises of Bellevue Palace to stand empty for any length of time. Normally, Frank-Walter Steinmeier uses the magnificent classical building and its surrounding grounds as his office. However, extensive renovation work is set to begin here in a few weeks’ time. Before the noise of the building work echoes through the palace, the Federal President is handing over his official residence to the Academy of Arts.
Over twenty members of the Academy of Arts are transforming Bellevue into a pop-up gallery with a comprehensive exhibition that explores the question of political public sphere through various art forms and from different perspectives. Its title, Freiraum Kunst, can be seen from afar in large white letters on the palace roof. Do let yourself be tempted by it!
Tip: Be sure to book time-slot tickets in advance.
When: Friday from 11 am to 7 pm, Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 7 pm
Where: Bellevue Palace, Spreeweg 1, Tiergarten
Tip 5: Feast at the 5th Kosher Street Food Festival
Even a small anniversary is still an anniversary: the Kosher Street Food Festival is turning five and, to mark the occasion, invites you to a particularly festive edition. In the sunny courtyard of the New Synagogue , you can feast on a delicious selection of Israeli-Mediterranean dishes at over 50 stalls. Alongside classics of Levantine cuisine such as hummus, shakshuka and sabich, more experimental variations also await you. In this anniversary year, artistic director Avi Toubiana is focusing on fusion cuisine and reinterpreted traditional dishes. The grand feast is set against a colourful programme of events for all ages.
When: Sunday from 11 am to 9 pm
Where: Neue Synagoge Berlin, Oranienburger Straße 28–30, Mitte
Tip 6: Set off on a grand boat tour around Berlin
Berlin, Potsdam and the surrounding area have more to offer than just the TV Tower and Sanssouci Palace. Especially along the waterways, you’ll discover whole new perspectives on sights and green spaces. On the grand boat tour around Berlin, you can admire Prussian history, architecture and nature in comfort from the deck of the boat. The tour begins at Treptow Harbour and initially heads across the south of Berlin towards Potsdam. Afterwards, the Kleinmachnow lock and Peacock Island come into view along the shore. At the turning point in Wannsee, near the station, you have the option to disembark or, alternatively, board the boat and enjoy the return journey to Treptow Harbour.
When: Sunday at 10.30 am
Where: From the Treptow Harbour jetty, Puschkinallee 15, Treptow, or from the Wannsee jetty, Kronprinzessinnenweg 5, Wannsee
Tip 7: Discover Brancusi’s world of forms at the Neue Nationalgalerie
The fact that we can experience Constantin Brancusi’s revolutionary sculptural art in such a comprehensive exhibition in Berlin is down to a stroke of luck: The Centre Pompidou in Paris is currently undergoing renovation, and so 150 sculptures, drawings, photographs, films and archive materials have temporarily found a home in the Neue Nationalgalerie. The clean lines and shimmering surfaces of ‘Bird in Space’ or ‘The Kiss’ seem familiar to us today. In the early 20th century, however, Brancusi was regarded as a radical innovator of formal language. The Romanian artist reduced his subjects in marble, clay and bronze to their very essence, masterfully uniting the dynamic forms with the rigid material and thus creating sculptures that still seem like a gift from the future today.
When: Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm
Where: Neue Nationalgalerie, Potsdamer Str. 50, Tiergarten
Tip 8: Visit the VANDA Pharmaceuticals Berlin Tennis Open 2026
At the Steffi Graf Stadium, the world’s leading tennis stars will be preparing for Wimbledon this weekend in thrilling matches at the VANDA Pharmaceuticals BERLIN TENNIS OPEN 2026 . The BERLIN TENNIS OPEN is regarded by many tennis stars as the final stop before the famous English tennis tournament and this year features nine top-ten players. This final weekend is now a do-or-die affair: On their way to the WTA 500 title, the players will face off in the quarter-finals on Friday, the semi-finals on Saturday and the grand final on Sunday . Secure your grandstand seats and enjoy not only top-class rallies but also a summer programme of events featuring live music and culinary delights.
Tip: Serena Williams is set to make her comeback at the Berlin Tennis Open.
When: Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10.30 am
Where: Steffi Graf Stadium, visitor entrance at Auerbachstraße 19, Grunewald
Tip 9: Enjoy the programme of Jazz Week Berlin #8
This year’s theme for Berlin Jazz Week deliberately plays on a double meaning: it is ‘Collective Improv(e)ment’ and highlights the fact that improvisation, as arguably the freest musical practice, only unfolds its full potential through ensemble playing. The musicians pick up on the ideas and impulses of the other instruments, vary them, transform them and add their own touches. Numerous discussion formats, which complement the impressive concert programme of Jazz Week, are dedicated to the theme of musical and, more generally, human collaboration. On Friday evening, the festival opens at the Gretchen Club with concerts by the Kelvin Sholar Trio and Julia Hülsmann.
When: Friday, Saturday and Sunday at various times
Where: Various venues across Berlin
Tip 10: Check out GRIEF at Acker Stadt Palast
Grief is not a particularly popular topic. But those who suppress it today run the risk of being completely overwhelmed by it tomorrow. Nora Amin has dedicated a performance piece to grief, entitled GRIEF, which combines dance, live music and poetic monologues. In this piece, the Egyptian-born dancer, choreographer and writer processes not only her own experiences of grief, but also her newly acquired knowledge as a grief coach. Together with the musician Momo Djender, a moving experience is created here at Acker Stadt Palast which, despite all the grief, also leaves room to celebrate life.
When: Saturday at 8 pm, Sunday at 8.30 pm
Where: Acker Stadt Palast, Ackerstraße 169/170, Mitte
Tip 11: Go and see DIE HEXEN VON BERNAU at the Theater im Palais
The repertoire of the Theater im Palais encompasses plays from a wide variety of genres. The strong Berlin connection alone runs like a thread through the programme. In keeping with this year’s theme, ‘The Power of Women’, the latest production, DIE HEXEN VON BERNAU, focuses on a particularly remarkable Berlin woman: Dorothea Meermann from Bernau. In 1619, she fell victim to one of the region’s largest witch hunts and thus exemplifies one of the most devastating campaigns of terror against women in Europe, which is estimated to have claimed around 50,000 lives. THE WITCHES OF BERNAU tells her story based on historical research and takes you back to one of the darkest chapters in our history.
When: Sunday at 4 pm
Where: Theater im Palais Berlin, Am Festungsgraben 1, Mitte
THE WITCHES OF BERNAU
Here you’ll find even more great tips for events in Berlin – whatever the weather.
