Hello everybody!
I seem to get a few days off in the end of this month and want to travel somewhere, almost anywhere. Found a good conenction to Berlin and am thinking about it. I have travelled a lot, but have never been in Berlin. I don%26#39;t (yet) feel that much enthusiasm towards Berlin because of lack of experience and knowledge, but I%26#39;ll be happy to change in that perspective. How safe is it for a girl (40) to travel and be alone in Berlin? I will travel alone because I need to stress down and be by myself in peace and quite for a few days. And I CAN relax even if surrounded by millions of people, if I only can be myself and don%26#39;t need to talk to anybody. How is the weather in the end of February? I have of course read the forecasts on world.weather, but still want to check the real experiences of others. And how is for instance the hotel Agon Lichtburg that the travel agent suggested? I want to live close by, so that I can walk. I don%26#39;t want to be depending on public transport. WOuld Thursday-Sunday be sufficient? What would be the best way to spend these days? Thank you in advance for advice!
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Berlin is generally a safe city for a woman travelling alone, although always use common sense.
It is rather cold at the end of February, but I suspect you already know that and prepared for it.
Agon Lichtburg is at the centre of West Berlin - because of historical reasons there is no one centre in Berlin and to reach sites you will need in any case to use public transportation. Having said that, I think that budget hotels like Agon Alexanderplatz, Arena, Motel One Alezanderplatz - are much closer to most sites and you can walk to many.
Berlin is a large city with plenty to see. Four days will give you the basic overview of the city, and hopefully, this small taste will also encourage you to come back soon...
What I would do:
- Day I - take a walking tour like Insider Tours
http://www.insidertour.com
Afternoon: Reichstag Dome
- Day 2 - 4
Charlottenburg Castle
KaDeWe Department Store
More walking tours
Museums (the pure %26quot;basic%26quot;: Jewish Museum, Pergamon, Egyptian Museum, Gemaeldegalerie)
The Hackescher Hoefe area and the little streets around it
Nikolai Quarter and the streets around it
A bit of shopping. e.g. Alexa
A bit of strolling in Prenzlauer Berg/Charlottenburg/Kreuzberg
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According to the new Lonely Planet Magazine Germany is in the top 10 safest places in the world to visit.
I%26#39;ve been to Germany 6 times, haven%26#39;t made it to Berlin yet but I%26#39;ve always felt safe walking around and never felt nervous.
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%26gt;I want to live close by, so that I can walk. I don%26#39;t want to be depending on public transport.
Wherever you stay you will be depending on public transport. Berlin is not a compact city, it is widespread and unless you are ready to walk for hours each way you will be dependent on public transport.
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once you are there, please do not miss the heavily underrated zitadelle in berlin-spandau:
http://www.zitadelle-spandau.de/
have fun - tom
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I also like to get away solo to de-stress...Berlin is a challenge to visit because it is huge and spread out. Definitely buy a good Berlin guidebook which covers the many parts of the city and also get to understsand their subway system. I had Fodor%26#39;s City Pack Berlin, but there are many more which cover each district...good armchair travel!
You will want to use their underground system (U-Bahn) to get around at least some of the time.
I really liked using the Berlin Welcome Card, which gives you a 72-hour pass on local U-Bahn and trains, including Spandau, as mentioned before. It also has some discoutns, though not all are really useful.
Weather can be bitter cold (or surprising mild) sometimes. When I was there last May, it was chilly and rainy. I planned a lot of %26quot;inside%26quot; itinerary: Charlottenburg Palace, Museum Island,etc., as already mentioned on the nice itinerary posted before mine.
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Thank you for all the good advice! Berlin sounds like a fascinating city! I was also thinking about Prague, but just learned that it doesn%26#39;t work with the plane connection after all. I will think about Berlin some more during the weekend. And of course I%26#39;m prepared to use public transport in a big city like this, but I don%26#39;t want to be depending on it all the time. I think I expressed myself a little bit unclearly there in my previous post. I appreciate to live in some kind of center with at least some sights or acitivies within walking distance. Well, if it won%26#39;t be BErlin this time, it will for sure be some time. Have a good weekend!
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There%26#39;s always Paris!!! :-)
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Oh, I hope you make it to Berlin. It really is a great city and there is so much to do there. We did walk all over the place, but also took the metro and rode around on the bus#100, which seems to go everywhere. We did like the Insider Tours a lot and they do give you a good orientation of the city, so that you can easily find your way around afterwards. If you find a place sort of near the Tiergarten, you will not be too far from a lot of places to visit. Our Berlin destination expert can steer you in the right direction though, as I am not familiar with the neighborhoods.
I felt very safe in Berlin. Have fun on your weekend getaway.
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Hi there:
I%26#39;m in Berlin every few months for business and always feel totally safe and confident anywhere (subway, etc). I%26#39;m a 37 year old female. As always, you need to watch out but not more than in any other city (actually, probably less). I think everyone covered everything else.
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As people have already pointed out you will have to use public transport sometimes as it is a very large city (spread out).
However, as Lylou has already pointed out, staying in former East Berlin (east of Tiergarten to Alexanderplatz) you will have more sights grouped together that you could walk to.
Another budget option I have used several times when travelling alone is Etap Hotel Potsdamer Platz (actually on Anhalter Strasse by Anhalter Bahnhof S-Bahn stop and on bus route to KaDeWe and Zoo in the west); it%26#39;s very central, on the northern limits of Kreuzberg, by Mitte.
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