Trendy neighbourhoods in the south of Berlin
This varied tour takes you through hip neighbourhoods in Kreuzberg, Schöneberg and Tempelhof. Around the former Tempelhof Airport you can expect historical sites, lots of parks, interesting museums, pretty cafés and shops as well as the EUREF Campus, where research for a more sustainable future is conducted.
The tour starts and ends at Anhalter Bahnhof, which is well connected to public transport with several bus and S-Bahn lines. The pure travel time of the tour is a little over an hour, but plan enough time for stops and breaks. There are several interesting museums and sights along the route.
Tour map
Anhalter Bahnhof
Anhalter Bahnhof was one of Berlin's long-distance railway stations. The station building was badly damaged in the Second World War. In 1959, the station hall was blown up. The portico remained standing - and has also been a memorial against the war ever since. Turn into Möckernstraße - and you will see the Tempodrom on your left.
Tempodrom
The Tempodrom building looks like a tent because this important venue started in 1980 in a discarded green and yellow striped circus tent in the Tiergarten. The building is 35 metres high and seats 4000 people. Continue - and cross the Landwehrkanal. On the right you will see the German Museum of Technology.
German Museum of Technology
On the façade of the Museum of Technology is a "sultana bomber" - one of the transport planes used to supply Berliners from the air during the almost year-long blockade (1948 to 1949). The museum with its large park displays one of Germany's largest collections of technical history. Drive via the Spektrum car park to the Park am Gleisdreieck.
Park am Gleisdreieck
The Park am Gleisdreieck was opened in two stages in 2011 and 2013. For many years, the area was a wild wasteland used by Berliners as a recreational area - and by construction companies as a logistics area. Drive through the park until you reach Yorckstraße. Turn left there.
Viktoriapark
Cycle along Yorckstraße to Katzbachstraße - and turn right there. Cross the next intersection to the left - and visit Viktoriapark on Kreuzberg.
Kreuzberg
The Kreuzberg is the highest elevation in Berlin's city centre at 66 metres. Pedal or push to the top. There you'll find a Schinkel monument to the victory over Napoleon - and a fantastic view over the city. Also worth seeing: the artificial waterfall. Make your way back to Katzbachstraße.
EUREF Campus and Gasometer
Follow Monumentenstraße until you have passed the Old St. Matthew's Cemetery. Incidentally, some well-known personalities lie in the cemetery, such as the musician Rio Reiser or the Brothers Grimm. Turn left into Hohenfriedbergstraße and then right on Kolonnenstraße. Once you have passed the Julius-Leber-Brücke S-Bahn station, follow Feurigstraße on the left. The gasometer is already in sight, drive towards it. At the foot of the Gasometer is the EUREF Campus.
Tempelhof Airport
Leave the EUREF Campus in the direction of Torgauer Straße and continue parallel to the tracks to Südkreuz S-Bahn station. From there, also continue parallel to the tracks to Alfred-Lion-Steg. Drive according to the route description through the garden city Neu-Tempelhof to Tempelhof Airport. Here you have the opportunity to visit the exhibition and the observation deck of the THF Tower. Or even a performance by the Luftschloss Tempelhofer Feld. From May to September, the open-air theatre offers, among other things, theatre evenings, music, the children's music festival and numerous plays for the little ones in the open air.Tempelhof Airport was one of the first commercial airports in Germany in 1923. The current buildings date from the 1930s. Air traffic was discontinued in 2008. Since 2010, the 303-hectare former airfield has been a publicly accessible recreation area and bears the name "Tempelhofer Feld".
Tempelhofer Feld
Drive onto Tempelhofer Feld at the height of Peter-Strasser-Weg. The largest inner-city open space in the world stretches out before you. Cross it completely and turn left at the end of the runway. Leave Tempelhofer Feld via the Oderstraße Ost entrance and head towards Columbiadamm.
Volkspark Hasenheide
From here you drive through the Volkspark Hasenheide. The park was opened in 1678 as a hare enclosure. Turnvater Jan built Prussia's first gymnastics centre in 1811. You leave the park on the opposite side.
Graefestraße
Cross the street "Hasenheide" and enter Graefestraße. This street is the heart of the Graefekiez - with many small shops and bars. There are plenty of opportunities to shop and eat here.
Insider tip: Kadó liquorice factory: at Graefestraße 20, liquorice fans will get their money's worth: discover your favourite liquorice among the 500 different liquorice specialities. Continue until you reach the Planufer on the Landwehrkanal.
Admiralbrücke
Turn left - and cycle along the Landwehrkanal until you reach the Admiralbrücke. On warm summer evenings, Berliners and visitors to Berlin meet here to end the day in a relaxed atmosphere. Continue along the Landwehr Canal to Urbanhafen.
Urbanhafen
The Urbanhafen was an important inland harbour that was dismantled in 1964. Today only restaurant and excursion boats anchor here. The most conspicuous building is the high-rise of the Urbank Hospital. The green spaces around Urbanhafen are popular recreational areas. You can continue parallel to the Landwehr Canal until you reach the Baerwald Bridge. Turn right here. Follow Prinzenstraße until you reach the Prinzenstraße underground station above ground. Turn right here and ride a short distance parallel to the elevated U-Bahn line.
Jewish Museum and Berlinische Galerie
Turn right onto Lindenstraße. After a few minutes you will reach the Jewish Museum. Not far from here you can also visit the Berlinische Galerie. Then return to Lindenstraße and turn into E.T.A-Hoffmann-Promenade directly opposite the Jewish Museum. You will reach Friedrichstraße and turn right.
Checkpoint Charlie
If you keep going straight, you will reach Checkpoint Charlie, a former border crossing between East and West Berlin. There is also a museum to visit here. From Checkpoint Charlie it is not far back to Anhalter Bahnhof. Turn into Kochstraße and then left onto Wilhelmstraße. Turn onto Anhalter Straße, at the end of which is the station.