Berlin Wall

On Bernauer Strasse, the Berlin Wall Memorial is made up of an original section of the wall and a gun turret. Visit the memorial and various portions of the wall on a small-group tour to learn about the area's history among other travelers, or on a private historian-led tour for an in-depth, personalized experience. Bike tours, Segway tours, and walking tours are all great ways to see the wall's various remaining sections spread across the city, as well as Checkpoint Charlie, the infamous border-crossing spot between the two sides.

• The Berlin Wall Memorial features a visitor center, where you can get an overview of Berlin wall sites and watch a historical film, plus the Documentation Center with its exhibits and the Chapel of Reconciliation, where prayers services are held.

• The longest and most interesting remaining stretch of the wall is the open-air East Side Gallery, set on Mühlenstrasse featuring murals painted by international artists in 1990 and again in 2009.

• Because Berlin's reunification was so successful, it can be difficult to tell the difference between east and west in many parts of the city. Look for the double row of cobblestones to guide you along certain sections of the wall’s course.

The almost 100-mile-long (160-km) Berliner Mauerweg is a multi-use path that runs along the former wall, with 40 multilingual information stations posted along the way. In other parts of the city, lengths of the wall are covered in psychedelic graffiti, like that at the East Side Gallery on Mühlenstrasse. Sections of the wall also remain near the former site of the Gestapo headquarters.

The Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Strasse is open daily from 8am to 10pm. The visitor center is open Tuesday through Sunday from 9:30am until 6 or 7pm, depending on the season. The East Side Gallery is always available to visit, and the Museum Haus am Checkpoint Charlie is open daily from 9am to 10pm.

It's ironic that Berlin's most popular attraction, for the most part, no longer exists. Because the Berlin Wall disappears and reappears around the city, you can see several of the German capital's most important landmarks as you visit the wall. Museum Island, Potsdamer Platz, and the Brandenburg Gate can be seen easily on a bicycle tour, weather permitting.

Yes, you can tour the Berlin Wall. While much of it was demolished, there are still preserved areas of the original wall, such as the mural-adorned East Side Gallery. There are also memorials and museums that tell the story of the wall's construction and fall, such as the Berlin Wall Memorial.

Yes, a visit to the Berlin Wall is highly worthwhile, especially given its immense significance as a symbol of the Cold War’s impact. Exploring the remaining sections and its murals, memorials, and museums offers travelers an invaluable opportunity to learn about decades of division between East and West Berlin.

The East Side Gallery stands out as one of the best parts of the Berlin Wall to visit. It’s one of the world’s longest open-air galleries and it also represents the longest unbroken stretch of the wall that’s still standing. Visitors come to see murals by more than 100 artists.

The best time to visit the Berlin Wall is typically early morning. This is when the crowds are smaller and you have a better chance of unobstructed photos, particularly at places like the East Side Gallery—where murals such as the Fraternal Kiss draw significant crowds waiting to take photos.

On a tour of the Berlin Wall, you would see remnants of the wall, such as the East Side Gallery, as well as memorials, historical sites, outdoor exhibits, and museums that reveal the attraction’s rich history. Popular stops include The Wall Museum and the Berlin Wall Memorial at Bernauer Strasse.

Yes, most outdoor sections of the Berlin Wall are wheelchair-accessible, such as the outdoor exhibition along Bernauer Strasse. The East Side Gallery is wheelchair-accessible too, but only on the upper paths and not along the bank of the River Spree. Most museums are accessible, but it’s worth checking before you visit.