It’s rare to find so many open-air cultural events taking place in Berlin over a single weekend: as well as numerous festivals, the city in summer invites you to join architectural tours, the book festival at Bebelplatz, public screenings in the beer garden and a free poster exhibition at the Kulturforum.
Tip 1: Get into the festival spirit all over the city
Long, balmy summer evenings… enjoy Berlin’s open-air season. This weekend alone, there’s a huge choice of festivals – and not just outdoor ones. Music on Kreuzbergstraße, exciting art from the independent scene, culinary discoveries and cool drinks on Museum Island bring a festival atmosphere to the city.
Kreuzberg Festival
A street festival awaits you on Kreuzbergstraße, with live music, stalls and a programme of events centred around Viktoriapark.
When: Fri from 4 pm, Sat & Sun from 12 noon
Where: Kreuzbergstraße, Kreuzberg
Project Space Festival
The Project Space Festival showcases the independent art scene: self-organised spaces present contemporary artworks, talks and events.
When: Friday to Sunday at various times
Where: various venues in Berlin
Restaurant Week
Restaurant Week takes you to selected restaurants across the city. There, you’ll find three-course menus on the menus at heavily discounted festival prices.
When: Friday to Sunday at various times
Where: various restaurants in Berlin
Summer festival with the Kolonnaden Bar to mark the 200th anniversary of Museum Island
To mark the anniversary, the Kolonnadenhof will become a hub for cool drinks, a cultural programme and DJ sets on Museum Island.
When: Friday to Sunday, 12 noon to 10 pm
Where: Kolonnaden-Bar, Museum Island, Bodestraße, Mitte
Tip 2: Experience Berlin’s architecture on Architecture Day
On Architecture Day, you’re invited to get up close and personal with the diversity of Berlin’s architecture. Members of the Berlin Chamber of Architects will be presenting ongoing construction projects and planning processes in their open-door offices, or taking you on guided architectural tours directly on site. With the experts’ specialist knowledge, you can discover places such as the Olympic Park, the Museumsinsel underground station or Tempelhof Airport from a whole new perspective. The programme is wide-ranging not only geographically but also thematically: everything is covered, from interior design to landscape architecture.
When: Sat & Sun from 10 am
Where: Various venues across Berlin
Berlin turns into the stage for international hockey stars! The FIH Pro League is the final showdown before the World Cup. Experience top teams, thrilling action and electric stadium vibes. Be there from 23–28 June 2026.
Tip 3: Immerse yourselves in the latest literature at the book festival
With the ilb, the poesiefestival berlin and the open mike, Berlin isa hotspot for the German-speaking book industry. For many, the Bücherfest on Bebelplatz is an insider’s tip amongst Berlin’s literary events. Set against the magnificent façades of the State Opera House and the Prinzessinnenpalais, this is where up-and-coming new talents and established figures from the literary scene come together . Booksellers and publishers meet their audience here. You can look forward to discussions, live readings and, of course, thousands of books at over 100 stalls. There’s a dedicated programme for children featuring readings and workshops.
When: Sat & Sun, 11 am to 7 pm
Where: Bebelplatz, Mitte
Tip 4: Explore the legend of Tempelhof
The former Tempelhof Airport is well known to Berliners – after all, it borders directly on Tempelhofer Feld, one of the city’s most popular recreational areas. The imposing halls of the former airport harbour numerous stories and secrets from Berlin’s past. Did you know, for example, about the extensive network of cellars and tunnels beneath the building? Or about the film bunker that was burnt down at the end of the war? If you’d like to find out more about the old airport, the ‘Myth of Tempelhof’ guided tour is just the thing for you. With the combined ticket for the guided tour and exhibition at the THF TOWER, you’ll have knowledgeable guides by your side for around two hours; you can visit the ‘Lufthansa. Berlin-Tempelhof 1926–1945 and round off your tour on the THF Tower’s roof terrace with a unique view.
When: Friday at 12 noon and 3 pm, Saturday at 12 noon and 1 pm, and Sunday at 12 noon, 1 pm and 3 pm
Where: Tempelhof Airport, CHECK-IN Visitor Centre, Platz der Luftbrücke 5, C2, Tempelhof
Tip 5: Have a go at experimenting with music during Polish Art Week
The Avant Art Festival Berlin presents art not as a finished object, but as an experimental setup. Each year, the festival sets a new theme. This year, the spotlight is on an entire country: under the title Polish Art Week , numerous artists and musicians from Poland are bringing their cultural influences to Berlin’s stages. The festival combines concerts with performance art, improvisation and shared experiences. Educational events and collaborative creative workshops are also part of the programme. Explore the experimental side of Polish music culture at exciting venues across Berlin.
When: Fri–Sun at various times
Where: Silent Green, Panke Gallery and many other venues across Berlin
Tip 6: Celebrate PETRI Berlin’s first birthday
PETRI Berlin is one of Berlin’s newest museums, yet it stands on the foundations of one of the city’s oldest educational institutions. This is because the interactive archaeology lab is built on the remains of a medieval Latin school. For exactly one year now, Berliners have been able to enjoy a wealth of fascinating insights into archaeology. To mark this first birthday in style, the museum is hosting a big weekend of activities on Saturday and Sunday, with free entry and a host of events . On Sunday, there will also be an Open House , where visitors of all ages can follow in the footsteps of Berlin’s history from morning until evening.
When: Fri 9 am to 5 pm, Sat & Sun 10 am to 6 pm
Where: PETRI Berlin, Kleine Gertraudenstraße 8, Mitte
Tip 7: Rediscover the photography of Helmut Newton
For over twenty years, the Helmut Newton Foundation at the Museum of Photography has been showcasing the life’s work of Helmut and June Newton. The permanent exhibition ‘Helmut Newton’s Private Property’ offers intimate insights into their creative output spanning almost fifty years and an even longer life together. Although the concept has proved its worth since 2004, the museum has decided to give it a fresh new look and completely redesigned the ground floor in April. Under the title ‘Intermezzo. Revisiting Helmut Newton’, you can now discover new insights into the life and work of the master: well-known works, complemented by posters from solo exhibitions in Alice Springs, magazine editorials and previously unpublished film footage from the Newtons’ lives.
When: Fri–Sun, 11 am to 7 pm
Where: Museum of Photography, Jebensstraße 2, Charlottenburg
Tip 8: Cheer on your World Cup team at the public viewing event at DUFTE
Kantstraße is home to a mix of pop-up shops and traditional corner shops, Chinese restaurants and trendy Berlin bars, all clustered together. You ’ll find the same colourful mix of people and lively, friendly atmosphere at the new DUFTE Berlin , which opened a few weeks ago in the historic Kant-Garagenpalast. At DUFTE, a culinary cultural centre, you’ll find everything your heart desires: four distinct kitchens offering a delicious and varied selection, a bakery, a café, two bars and a large beer garden. And because diversity is the order of the day here anyway, this also applies during the World Cup: under the open sky, the large public viewing area has room for all football fans, cool drinks and Berlin hospitality.
When: Fri, Sat, Sun, depending on kick-off times
Where: DUFTE, Kantstraße 127, Charlottenburg
Tip 9: Discover the dark side of history at Schönhausen Palace
Behind the magnificent façade of Schönhausen Palace, several thousand works of art were stored during the Nazi era. However, this was not an exhibition: works deemed ‘degenerate art’ during the Third Reich were hidden here from public view and collected for sale. Since mid-June, the new addition to the permanent exhibition ‘Art – People – Power’ has been showing how the Nazi regime left its mark on art history too. The exhibition not only introduces those involved, but also brings the suffering of the expropriated artists vividly to life through diary entries and letters.
When: Fri–Sun 10.00–17.30
Where: Schönhausen Palace, Tschaikowskistraße 1, Niederschönhausen
Tip 10: Attend the Goethe-Institut’s 75th anniversary celebrations
As a venue for intercultural exchange, education and collaboration, the Goethe-Institut has been enriching the German cultural landscape for 75 years now. The institution is firmly committed to open-ended dialogue. It is therefore no surprise that this guiding principle will also take centre stage at the celebratory anniversary evening at the Haus der Berliner Festspiele. To honour this long-standing collaboration, the dance company Sasha Waltz & Guests has choreographed an evening of ‘Dialogues’. You can look forward to a birthday performance that not only entertains but also brings a universal language of cultural exchange to the stage through dance and music.
When: Fri 8 pm
Where: Haus der Berliner Festspiele, Schaperstraße 24, Wilmersdorf
Tip 11: Admire the poster designs at the Kulturforum
Posters sit at the intersection of art and communication and are a visual form of expression in their own right. To continue promoting this medium even in the age of AI and ever-faster reproduction, the 100 Beste Plakate association has launched the competition of the same name. Every year, an international jury selects entries from thousands of submissions from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. 100 brilliant works are then exhibited free of charge at the Kulturforum for three weeks before embarking on an international tour. This weekend, you’ll have the chance to discover this diverse collection of works in person – and to choose your personal favourites from among the 100 posters.
When: Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm
Where: Kulturforum, Johanna-und-Eduard-Arnold-Platz, Tiergarten
