Berlin

Getting to Berlin is very straightforward.  Berlin has two commercial international airports. Tegel Airport (TXL) is situated within the city limits. Schönefeld Airport (SXF) is located just outside Berlin's south-eastern border in the state of Brandenburg. Berlin also has excellent rail service from most major European cities and of course, the German federal highway system, the infamous Autobahn, provides [high-speed] access to Berlin.

Once in Berlin, taxis are ubiquitous and you can find an Uber driver with the click of a button on your smartphone. Mass transit in Berlin includes bus, tram, and light rail. All are fairly easy to use with many English subtitles and English directions.

There are hundreds of hotels, B & B’s, and private apartments as well as a few hostels in downtown Berlin.  It is really up to you what kind of experience you want and how much you are willing to pay.  Lodging cost should not be a major consideration in selecting Berlin as a destination city because even the thriftiest traveler should be able to find something reasonable.

We stayed at the Hotel am Steinplatz, Autograph Collection and enjoyed the amenities as well as the central location.

 There are literally thousands of restaurants and trendy bars to experience in Berlin. Here are some of the places that we enjoyed and would recommend:

•  Reinhard's am Kurfurstendamm - This was definitley the best Schnitzel that we had while in Germany.

• Monkey Bar - This trendy rooftop bar overlooks the zoo.

• Berlin TV Tower - The food and service were passable, but the view was outstanding.

Berlin has many destination-worthy attractions. When we visited, these are some of the highlights that we saw over a couple of days of touring:

• East Side Gallery

• Topography of Terror Museum

• Brandenburg Gate

• Checkpoint Charlie and Cold War Museum

• Holocaust Memorial

• Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church

• Charlottenburg Palace

• Berlin TV Tower

• Hitler's Bunker (Fuhrerbunker) 

You might also consider a private or semi-private tour guide to get your bearings of the city and to see some of the highlights while skipping lines.

Unfortunately, we didn't keep track of our expenses in Berlin so we don't have any hard data to share. Our recollection is that Berlin wasn't particularly expensive or inexpensive. It's probably comparable other large European cities.