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Germany : Berlin - June 2010

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June sees Berlin at its very best, with the city calmly basking in glorious sunshine while it readies itself to receive the flood of summer tourists. With green parks, buzzing café terraces and excellent festivals, it’s a great month to simply cycle around town. Jeroen van Marle hops on his bike to find out where the party is

Getting around

Tempelhof Airport is located in the southcentral borough of Tempelhof- Schöneberg.

Train: The airport is connected to the city centre by U-Bahn line 6, which can be picked up from Platz der Luftbrücke station. The journey takes 10 to 15 minutes and tickets cost €2,10.
Taxi: The trip into the city centre takes around 15 minutes and costs about €12.
Tourist information: There are offices at the Brandenburg Gate and the main railway station (0025, visitberlin.de).

MITTE

Simply meaning ‘middle’, the aptly named city centre has seen incredible change since the Iron Curtain was drawn aside two decades ago. Grey and dull for decades, it has retaken centre stage with flair. Tiergarten, the city’s main park bordering Mitte, hosts one of Europe’s most outrageous events on 19 June when half a million people celebrate Christopher Street Day (csd-berlin.de) and flatbed trucks laden with gay and lesbian revellers circle the city. Expect bare buttocks and a huge party in the park.

Sleep soundly – The new Soho House (1 Torstrasse, tel. , sohohouseberlin.com, rooms from €100; reduction for members) resides in a wonderfully renovated Bauhaus building. It offers a restaurant, bar, library, cinema, rooftop pool and spa. Soho House is a private members club but if you book into a room you will have full access to its delights.

Must eat – Surrounded by streets full of trendy shops, Monsieur Vuong (46 Alte Schönhauser Strasse, tel. ) is a golden oldie that serves fresh and fantastic Vietnamese food to hungry Berliners. There are no reservations – be prepared to queue.

Dance the night away – The Aqualounge bar inside the Radisson Blu (3 Karl-Liebknecht-Strasse) has great live Jazz music on Thursday evenings – while on other evenings you should visit simply to stare at the massive fish tank in the hotel lobby.

PRENZLAUER BERG

On a low hill northeast of Mitte, this old neighbourhood was spared in the war, underwent rapid investment in the late 1990s and is now characterised by beautifully renovated apartment buildings and a glut of trendy young people nursing their babies and hangovers. There’s a wide range of quality restaurants, bars and clubs, though a Sunday morning stroll along the calm, tree-lined avenues is perhaps the best way to take in ‘Prenz’l Berg’.

Must eat – Lamenting the dismal state of Tex-Mex food in Berlin, a handful of ambitious foreign entrepreneurs created Maria Bonita (33 Danziger Strasse, maria-bonita.com – no phone), a small but excellent Mexican takeawaycum- snackbar-cum-restaurant serving only the real deal. The food is as spicy as it’s supposed to be, and the menu changes regularly so there’s always a reason to come back.

Must drink – If this district feels overwhelmingly youthful, pop into the rustic, barrel-filled tavern Weinstein (33 Lychener Strasse), where a more mature crowd can be found sipping large quantities of quality wine and eating solid, tasty food.

Dance the night away – Inside the historical Kulturbrauerei complex, Soda Club (36 Schönhauser Allee) is a favourite for salsa lovers, while on weekend nights the five dance floors feature an amazing variety of music and people.

KREUZBERG

Locals are starting to moan that Berlin’s left-wing, immigrant neighbourhood is going down the drain now that gentrification is creeping in, but the district remains delightfully lively. The free Bergmannstrassenfest jazz festival that’s held from 25-27 June is a great reason to visit, with over 50 bands playing on three street stages.

Sleep soundly – ÏMA Loft Apartments (12-14 Ritterstrasse, tel. , imalofts.com, rooms from €55), inside a factory that’s been converted into a ‘design village’, has fresh and functional suites and apartments, as well as a bistro and bike rental.

Must drink – Reopening in June after a lengthy renovation, Café am Engelbecken (Michaelkirchplatz) is the perfect lakeside spot to sip a coffee or cocktail, or to try some healthy snacks. It’s hard to imagine that this was once the death strip beside the Wall.

Dance the night away – Parties and gigs at Wild at Heart (20 Wiener Strasse) are loud, fun and wild, with punk bands making the walls vibrate and bringing smiles to the faces of the pale kids dressed in black.

Compiled by Jeroen van Marle