During night of August 12th, 1961, the National People’s Army began cordoning off the streets and rail lines towards West Berlin. The GDR government then allowed a wall to be built along the sector borders. In trying to get over the border, which is 167.8 kilometres long, that between 136 and 209 people were killed according to current research.

The Berlin Wall fell on 9 November 1989, twenty-five years ago this year. Since then Berlin has reinvented itself and has developed into a young, dynamic and cosmopolitan city that is particularly popular with international artists and creative people. Today the city boasts 175 museums, three opera companies, 150 theatres, a world-renowned club and subculture scene and more galleries than any other European city. Themes include the division of the city, the Cold War and the events leading up to peaceful reunification in 1989-1990. Berlin visitors will also have the chance to gain some insight into the history of Berlin as a divided city and the significance of the Wall for the city's residents. Events will include guided cycling tours along the Wall Trail, visits to the former watchtowers, the East Side Gallery and a tour of former East Berlin in a real East German Trabant car.
The high point will be in the autumn during the weekend of 9 November. A special light installation will be set up along the former course of the Wall as a "symbol of hope for a world without walls". Made of thousands illuminated, helium-filled balloons, a border made of light will run for twelve kilometres across the city centre for the entire weekend: from the former border crossing at Bornholmer Straße through the Mauerpark (Berlin Wall Park), along Bernauer Straße, past the Berlin Wall Memorial, then to the river Spree near the Reichstag , the Brandenburg Gate and Potsdamer Platz, Checkpoint Charlie and finally to Kreuzberg and along the Spree to the Oberbaumbrücke.

Berliners and visitors will be invited to stroll along the course of the Wall to remember and visualise the extent of the former division. At five spots, the white balloons will be released into the air as a commemoration of the opening of the Berlin Wall 25 years ago and to reclaim the symbol of the peaceful revolution of 1989. Spectacular images of the events surrounding the anniversary will go around the world. If the weather cooperates, the light installation will even be visible from outer space.

Would you like to know where the Berlin Wall once stood? And are you interested in discovering the traces of a once-divided city? To mark the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Wall, visitBerlin and its cultural partners have published the brochure "The Wall. Berlin's most thrilling breakthrough".

Complete historical Overview for the Fall of the Berlin Wall 1989

Over four chapters, this brochure tells the story of the Berlin Wall from the start of construction in 1961 to its fall in 1989 and the subsequent development of Berlin to a world-class city. The brochure also tells readers about the most important memorials and information centres. A folding map shows the former course of the Wall.

It also serves as a guide for walks through the city centre, takes readers to the locations of Wall remnants, former watch towers and other historical places of interest. In addition to a calendar of events marking this anniversary year, the brochure also provides a lot of information about the events surrounding the actual anniversary on 8–9 November 2014.

To purchase a copy please click on History of the Berlin Wall


Berlin WelcomeCard: Travel, Safe and Experience Berlin

The Berlin WelcomeCard is the perfect companion for your trip to the capital. With prices starting at €18.50, the pass will give you free travel on public transport and also includes more than 200 discount offers from tourist attractions. Order your Berlin WelcomeCard online at visitberlin.de. or just buy it in one of the Berlin Tourist Info Offices, at Berlin's airports, in 350 hotels or at the sales points of the BVG (Berlin Public Transport), the S-Bahn and Deutsche Bahn (German Rail).

Allied Museum

Aeroplanes and military trains – large spectacular exhibits commemorating the work of the protective forces.


The Allied Museum tells the history of the Western Powers in Berlin. The buildings are located in the centre of the former U.S. sector and originally housed the cinema and the library of the U.S. garrison. With a permanent exhibition and regular special exhibitions, the Museum honours the dedication of the United States, the United Kingdom and France to Berlin and Germany from 1945 to their withdrawal in 1994. The focus lies on the history of the Berlin Airlift and the Cold War era. Among the most prominent exhibits is a restored segment of the Berlin espionage tunnel, built by American and British Intelligence Service in order to tap the lines of soviet communication in East-Berlin. The Museum also deals with everyday life in the American, British and French sectors. In the open-air area some of the Museum’s outstanding large military objects are exposed, as for example a British “Hastings” aircraft from the time of the airlift, a railroad car from the French military train, and the original famous guardhouse of Checkpoint Charlie on Friedrichstrasse.

Checkpoint Charlie

The best-known border crossing and a favourite setting for spy thrillers
It is the scene of several thrillers and espionage novels ranging from James Bond's "Octo-pussy" to "The Spy Who Came in From the Cold" by John le Carré.




Starting on 22 September 1961 at most famous East German-West German border crossing, allied soldiers registered members of the American, British and French armed forces before their trip to East Berlin. Here foreign tourists were able to inform themselves about their stay.

Because of its role as a transition point for the members of the Allied forces, the Friedrichstraße border checkpoint in October 1961 was the scene of the so-called tank stand off. Today an installation by the artist Frank Thiel commemorates this incident as well as a plaque at the former border.

Nearby can also be found the "Berlin Wall Museum - Museum Haus am Checkpoint Charlie," which again had a replica of the first Allied guardhouse set up on the median strip of the Friedrichstraße.

The East German watch tower on Potsdamer Platz is now one of the last historical relics to become open to the public. The "panorama observation tower" originally stood between the Brandenburg Gate and Leipziger Platz and served as a base for border guards to monitor the chaotic terrain at the former "House of Ministries".

Construction of the massive, crenelated type BT 6 watchtower began in 1966. By the end of the GDR era, there were more than 200 of these towers along the Berlin border. The tower was staffed around the clock by two border guards. In 2001, it was moved to its present location near Stresemannstraße on Potsdamer Platz. Today, it is the only surviving watchtower of its kind. By prior arrangement, three or four people can climb the tower at the same time.

Deutsch-Russisches Museum Berlin-Karlshorst (German-Russian Museum)

A museum at the historical site of the surrender of the German Wehrmacht.
The German-Russian Museum was officially opened on May 10th, 1995, the fiftieth anniversary of the end of the war in Europe. It is meant as a memorial of the German-Soviet War 1941-1945, but also documents the pre-war history and political relations between the USSR, the GDR and the Federal Republic. It constitutes a complementary view of the Museum of the Allies, which focuses solely on the victorious western allied forces.

The German-Russian Museum is located at the site of the unconditional surrender of the German Army on 8 May 1945. The museum creates space for a critical examination of history and memory, for education and encounters as well as communication between Germans and Russians. In the topical presentation, “50th Anniversary of John F. Kennedy in Berlin”, the museum discusses the reaction of the USSR and the visit of Soviet president Khrushchev to Berlin.

Special exhibitions, presentations and guided tours offer plenty of opportunity to learn more about the history of German-Russian relations during the 20th century.


Just a quick footnote. Your Editor was working in Germany during the period preceeding the Wall coming down and after that major event. He actually crossed from West Berlin into East Berlin through Check Point Charlie.

Getting There

Berlin Tegel Airport is the current main airport of Berlin, built during the Berlin Airlift in 1948 and scheduled to close when Brandenburg Airport opens.

Reaching the Berlin center from Tegel is relatively easy with public transport. The U-Bahn and S-Bahn trains do not service Tegel directly, but city buses do, with connection points throughout the city. Buses labeled X9, 109, 128, or TXL all head towards central Berlin. The most common stop in the centre is Alexanderplatz, located in the heart of the Mitte district. The ride to Alexanderplatz generally takes 40 minutes and is direct. Buses come very regularly, in 2 to 3 minute intervals.

To get to the main train station (Hauptbahnhof/Hbf), the only direct bus is TXL. It will take approximately 25 minutes and it comes every 10 minutes. The last bus leaves Tegel at 11:07pm.

Berlin Schönefeld Airport was founded in 1934 and was the airport for East Berlin during the Cold War.

From Schoenefeld, with public transportation, you have 3 options: the regional train, the S-Bahn, and the bus. For regional trains, take the RE7, RB14, or RB22. For the S-Bahn trains, take the S45 or S9. The routes are direct and head straight into the city center, with many stops in between including Alexanderplatz and the Hauptbahnhof. For buses, take any bus labeled X7, 162, 163, 171, 734, 735, N7, or N60.

Bus stations are located right outside the arrivals hall and are marked by an “H.”

Prices of public transportation are based on the 3 zones – A, B, and C. Berlin falls inside zones A and B, and C mostly refers to the surrounding area of Potsdam. For a single (one-way) ticket from Tegel/Schoenefeld to Alexanderplatz or the Hauptbahnhof, it costs 2,10EUR. And there is a reduced fare of 1,40EUR for children aged 6 to 14. You can buy the tickets on the bus.

And of course, if you’re not on a budget, taxis are readily available and parked right outside the arrivals hall of both airports as well. If you need to pay with a credit card, check with the driver beforehand, as not all taxis accept them.

Berlin Brandenburg Airport is a new airport currently under construction adjacent to Schönefeld Airport. It will become the single airport serving the city. It is due to open in 2016.

For more information about visiting BERLIN please click on http://www.visitberlin.de or http://www.germany.travel