Ahhh Berlin, the city where anything is possible. This was my first stop on my month long travel around Germany, and boy did it not disappoint. From the street fashion, to the museums, to the currywurst, everything was spectacular. Not to mention the crazy exclusive techno clubs. I was lucky enough to get into the popular KitKat Club, and boy was that an experience.
Table of Contents
How to get to Berlin
I flew to Berlin on Norse Atlantic Airways, a new Norwegian airline that just launched summer 2022. They were offering cheap one way tickets from JFK to BER so I decided to give them a try. The flight was non-stop and the plane was very comfortable with a USB charger and TV screen for each seat. My ticket cost about $155 and I added a carry on bag for an additional $25 at the time I purchased my ticket bringing the total to about $180 for the one way ticket. The flight from JFK left at 12:30am and was not delayed. I brought my Osprey Fairview 55, and took the detachable day pack as my personal item and the larger bag as my carry on. The larger bag was slightly bigger than the dimensions Norse had provided for their carry on, but no one seemed to be checking at the gate so I was able to bring it on with no problems. It also fit in the overhead bins so I had no issues.
I would highly recommend Norse Airlines for future travels. I had a great experience and plan to use them for my flight back to JFK.
Hostels in Berlin
I stayed in two hostels for the 3 nights I spent in Berlin. The first hostel I arrived at is called The Circus Hostel and I stayed here for 1 night. I would have liked to stay here for another 2 nights however they were sold out and I was late in booking. I moved to St Christopher’s Inn Alexanderplatz for the next 2 nights.
The Circus Hostel
The Circus Hostel was very clean and comfortable. I stayed in a 10 bed mixed dorm and the beds were extremely comfortable. The beds didn’t have the privacy curtains but they did have their own USB ports and a light. The lobby area has a bar and restaurant and the location of the hostel is in close proximity to several food options and ATMs. The hostel was also very close to the metro station making it very easy for me to arrive from the airport.
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St Christopher’s Inn at Alexanderplatz
St Christopher’s Inn at Alexanderplatz was also a very comfortable hostel, however, the beds were not as comfortable as the Circus hostel. The pillows here were a little hard and uncomfortable, but the beds did have the privacy curtain. I stayed in the 16 bed mixed dorm and it was actually not as crowded as I thought it would be. The room was divided in two with 8 beds on each side. The shared bathrooms were outside the rooms and were generally clean. Overall, I had no complaints with this hostel. Of course a lot of the travelers I met were in Berlin to experience the techno clubs so many would come in very early in the morning and it would get a bit loud sometimes, but with ear plugs it wasn’t that bad.
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Meininger Hotel Berlin Mitte Humboldthaus
I came back to Berlin a few weeks later and stayed at Meininger Hostel Berlin Mitte Humboldthaus. This was a quiet and clean hostel. I stayed here for 2 nights and didn’t spend too much time here since I was meeting up with my parents for the marathon. The location was very central to everything and in close proximity to the metros. I stayed in the 8 bed dorm that had a bathroom inside. The lockers were a little small to hold my bigger backpack but I left it out next to my bed with no problems. Meininger Hostels are typically very good and reliable so I would recommend staying here.
Things to do in Berlin
Museums
There are several museums in Berlin due to its rich history. Below are some museums listed.
- Museum Island: This complex of five museums on an island in the Spree River includes the Pergamon Museum, the Neues Museum, the Alte Nationalgalerie, the Bode Museum, and the Altes Museum. It houses an extensive collection of art and artifacts from various cultures and time periods.
- Jewish Museum Berlin: This museum is dedicated to the history and culture of Jewish life in Germany, with exhibitions covering topics such as Jewish religion, history, and contemporary life.
- Topography of Terror: This museum is located on the site of the former Gestapo headquarters and documents the history of Nazi terror and the Holocaust in Germany.
- Deutsches Historisches Museum: This museum covers the history of Germany from its earliest days to the present, with exhibits on topics such as politics, society, culture, and science.
- Museum für Naturkunde: This museum is home to one of the largest collections of natural history specimens in the world, including fossils, minerals, and animals.
Walk Around
Every city I visit, I like to spend the first day just wandering around the city getting myself familiar with where everything is, what it looks like and just to get a general vibe. Listed below are the places I saw on my walk around the city.
- Reichstag Building
- Brandenburg Gate
- Bebelplatz
- Gendarmenmarkt
- Checkpoint Charlie
- Berliner Fernsehturm – ride to the top or get tickets for their brunch or dinners
- Rotes Rathaus
- Berlin Cathedral
- Charlottenburg Palace
- Berlin Wall Memorial
- Viktoriapark – a nice park a little further from center city, but beautiful
Techno Clubs
Getting into KitKat Club
During my time in Berlin, I did have a chance to go to a techno club called Kitkat Club and oh man, I had a blast. For this club the dress code was fetish, kinky, latex, or pretty much anything extravagant or out-of-the box. The vibe of the whole place was very chill and cool, and I didn’t feel awkward at all stripping down. I didn’t have many clothing options so I decided to wear my black bikini, with black floppy pants, and a black cardigan on top. I went with 3 other people, two of who did not make it past the first bouncer because they were wearing the wrong clothing. The second bouncer told me that I need to take off my pants and my sweater once I’m inside. So once we were inside, there was a coat check area which is really a “clothes” check area because this is where you strip down. Phones are also not allowed here so I had to check that in as well.
Inside KitKat Club
Once we went inside, the vibe was soooo chill. There was nothing weird about being basically naked in a club. Everyone was wearing very minimal clothing or sometimes nothing at all. There was a bar area, a pool area, a dark room area and the DJ area. The main lobby area had body painting for 5 euros, which I decided to do on my chest. After this point I was walking around topless with only my bikini bottoms on and it felt so freeing. The DJ area was where everyone was dancing and enjoying the music. The pool area seemed like the area where everyone would just chill and hangout and maybe make out, this is where I spent a good amount of time just talking and meeting new people. The dark room was where people were hooking up. Overall, KitKat Club was a great experience I would recommend to anyone that would be open minded to experiencing.
Other clubs
Below is another list of clubs that I would want to try out next time I am in Berlin:
- Berghain
- Anomalie Art Club
- Ritter Butzke
- Sisyphos
- Tresor
2022 Berlin Marathon
I ended up only staying 4 days in Berlin before continuing on with my trip to other parts of Germany. But I knew I would be coming back because my dad was running the Berlin Marathon! A lot of the roads were closed to cars for the marathon but all the metros were running as normal. The marathon started near the Reichstag Building and ended by the Brandenburg Gate. My mom and I met up somewhere in that area and tried to track down my dad while he was running to cheer for him.
My dad ran a great marathon, but I would say the highlight for me was seeing Eliud Kipchoge beat his own World Record for the marathon. The man is a beast and it was incredibly to see him finish the marathon and witness such a historical record in person.
Where to Next?
From the great food, sad history and KitKat Club, visiting Berlin was an enriching experience. Berlin quickly turned into one of my favorite cities in the world and I’m sure I will be back some day. My journey took me to Hamburg where I was to meet up with one of my travel friends that I haven’t seen in almost 2 and a half years. Hamburg, here we come!
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