5 Tips for Berlin Budget Travel

Berlin has a rebellious streak and a refreshingly low tolerance for pretense. This is a city where you can sip beers in dive bars for a price not seen in other Western countries since the Wall fell, wander Cold War relics for free, and feel the full weight of Europe’s 20th-century turmoil without blowing your travel budget.

More so than any capital city in Western Europe, I’m convinced you can see the best of the city for less than €30 a day (post-accommodation cost). It requires a bit of forward-planning but you won't be skimping on any of the major sites.

Looking for some tips for Berlin budget travel?  Here are five ways to maximise your Euros.

1.  Ride Your Own Tour Bus For the Cost of a Day-Pass

Sounds obvious right? Berlin's public transport is amongst the most frequent and comprehensive in Europe.

Pick up a 24-hour BVG day ticket (AB zones) for €10.60 and you have access to Berlin’s U-Bahn, S-Bahn, buses, and trams. For context a single ticket is €3.80 so you've made your money back by your third ride.  

Download the BVG app for easy purchase and route maps.

But Berlin has a couple of secret weapons – namely two buses (100 and 200) which run past a greatest-hits list of historic and cultural sites. Take a look right here.

Start at Zoologischer Garten with and grab a front seat upstairs on Bus 100. You'll cruise past Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, the Tiergarten, Bellevue Palace, the Reichstag, Museum Island and Alexanderplatz (Marienkirche - pictured - and the TV Tower) - all for the cost of your transit pass. 

Return via the 200 bus and the attractions around Potsdamer Platz, including the Holocaust memorials and the Brandenburg Gate.

Hop on and off as you see fit, both run every 10 minutes between 9am and 10pm.

2.  Free Attractions That Don’t Feel Like Budget Travel

Berlin’s soul lives in its public spaces and, perhaps unsurprising given its history, most are free (or donation-based).  Here’s a few of the most memorable.

Reichstag Dome (Booking Required – 100 bus)

The glass dome, designed by Norman Foster, atop the German parliament is a masterclass in transparency - literally.

Wind your way up the spiraling ramp as audio guides explain Berlin’s skyline.

Book your visit online at bundestag.de/en/visittheBundestag, ideally a few days in advance, and ring ID for entry.

Gedächtniskirche (Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church – 100/200 bus)

A gaping wound of a building, left bombed in WW2 and broken to remind future generations of the cost of war. Step inside to see the haunting mosaic remains of the original 1890s church, sitting beside a 1960s blue-glass modernist chapel (complete with bungee-jumping Jesus!)

Bernauer Strasse Wall Memorial

Perhaps Berlin’s most moving Wall site. This open-air museum preserves a full section of the former death strip - guard tower, border strip, and all. The street was literally divided in two in 1961 with familes and friends cut off from each other for nearly three decades.

Stories of desperate - and sometimes exceptionally daring - escapes and brutal crackdowns are told clearly and respectfully. Climb the watchtower for a sense of perspective.

Holocaust Memorials (near Potsdamer Platz – 200 bus)

Just south of the Brandenburg Gate, 2,711 concrete stelae form a wave-like grid you can walk through.

Eerie, powerful, and free to explore. Beneath it is an underground Information Centre (easily missed but seek it out) that’s also free and thoughtfully curated.  Smaller but no less moving is the Memorial to Homosexual Victims of the Nazi directly opposite.

Topography of Terror & Checkpoint Charlie

Built on the site of the former Gestapo HQ, this exhibition chronicles the horrors of Nazi rule with clinical precision. Outdoor and indoor exhibitions are both free. 

It doesn’t flinch and is far from comfortable reading but understanding this dark period is intrinsic to comprehending the moder city. A short stroll from Checkpoint Charlie (charge to enter the museum)

East Side Gallery (between Ostbanhof and Warschauer Strasse)

Hands down my favourite place in Berlin and one I return to every time I come back to the city.

This 1.3km stretch of the Berlin Wall is now a riot of murals, painted by international artists from the 1990s up to now, with regular updates made. 

The infamous kiss between Gorbachev and Honecker (East Germany’s last leader) and the Trabi - the quintessential East German car - bursting through the wall are the most famous but the whole stretch is simultaneously profound, funny and political.

3.  Plan Ahead for More Discounts

Berlin pioneered the Free Walking Tour now common in many global cities and now has multiple vendors offering tours around Berlin's most prominent sites - most start at or around the Brandenburg Gate.

Vendors include Sandeman's, who also offer a Jewish-themed free tour, The Original Free Berlin Tour, which at 3.5hrs covers more sites than any other, and Walkative, whose free tours include Alternative Berlin and Communist Berlin. Bring comfortable shoes!

It's worth noting that "free" shouldn't stop you tipping your guide - you'll still come in considerably under the paid version.

If you're staying in town for longer and you're a museum geek, the Berlin Museum pass is a worthwhile investment -  €30 for 3 (consecutive days) access to over 30 museums, including the excellent Jewish Museum and National Galleries. Be aware many museums are closed on Mondays.

The same goes for your accommodation - it's hardly revelatory to suggest booking in advance but in Berlin it really pays dividends. Because public transport is so good (including night buses and trains), budget-conscious travelers should be less concerned about location. Four of the best 'comfortable but budget options' are:

• Titanic Comfort Mitte: The most central option of the bunch, comfortable modern rooms. From £60/€72/$80 p/n

• Schulz East Side Gallery: Complete with family rooms and attached beer garden and bakery. From £60/€72/$80 p/n

• Holi City Apart: Further out of the city but easily accessible by S-Bahn, Newly refurbished. From £52/€62/$70 p/n

• Meiniger Tiergarten: Ensuite 6-person dorm rooms, clean and central. Next to supermarket. (Place in dorm) from £24/€28/$32 p/n

4.  Dive into The Old East’s Drinking Scene

Remember the days you could get a pint for €3?  Think you’d have to go back to the 90s for that?

Not in Berlin.

Jump on the U8 to Schönleinstrasse and you’re in the heart of Berlin’s rough-and-ready dive bar

scene.  They’re smoky (one of the less pleasant quirks of Berlin’s ‘anything goes’ culture), often cash only with a clientele that’s the epitome of life’s rich tapestry. 

A few suggestions to get you started:

• Bei Schlawinchen – Open 24/7, cluttered with taxidermy and kitsch that hasn’t changed since the GDR disappeared.  Beers start at €3

• Bierhaus Urban – Dark by design, live blues at night, locals who will strike up conversations with everyone.

• Ä Bar – Funky, candlelit, with Berlin indie vibes and solid drink prices.

• Tante Lisbeth – Think 1970s living room meets punk rock. You'll like it I promise.

Nurse your beer slowly - Berlin’s not in a rush - and you’ll end the night with a full memory card and still have change jingling in your pocket.

If you’re looking for a wider guide to where to drink in Berlin, check out my ‘Five Best Offbeat Berlin Bars’ blog. Especially if you’re in the mood for a urinal of Pilsner (no, really.)

5. Budget Food You’ll Actually Enjoy

You’ve probably guessed by now that Berlin’s biggest strength is that it doesn’t do pretension.   Or if it doesn, I’ve never found it.

That extends to its food to – while you’re here, it’s mandatory to try currywurst (yep, sliced sausage with a spicy ketchup and sprinkled curry powder), with either pommes (chips/fries) or Broetchen (a white crusty roll). 

You’ll find these sprinkled all over the city – if you’re ticking off your tourist sites, pop by Curry At The Wall, in between the Topography of Terror and Checkpoint Charlie, where you’ll get change out of €10 for currwurst and a drink.

Berlin also does Turkish and Middle Eastern Food better than anywhere else in Europe. At Maroush near Wittenbergplatz (Bus 100 again!) you can get a heaping plate of falafel, hummus, salad, and pita for under €7.

For every kebab type under the sun (but better than anything you’ve had at home), head to Kreuzberg, Berlin’s largest Turkish district (U-Bahn Hallesches Tor), where you’ll eat elbow-to-elbow with locals and late-night partiers alike. A lot of places are cash only so plan accordingly.

If you’re in an even less formal mood and the weather’s good, just grab your choice of pastry-based goodness (mine’s a Kaesebretzel thanks) from one of the literally hundreds of bakeries in the city and head to Tiergarten (once again, on the 100 bus route) and find a shady spot.

Berlin Budget Travel - The Breakdown

I first came to Berlin over 20 years ago, as a student on a very tight budget, staying in dorms and counting every cent.  Unlike other cities I visited at a similar time (cough, cough Barcelona), Berlin was a revelation when it came to budgeting, which meant that a good time could be had without needing a second job back home to pay for it.

Whilst it’s undoubtedly become more expensive in the time since, I struggle to think of many other cities in Western Europe where you could fill several days of sightseeing on a budget that would be blown in a single meal in London.  Hopefully these 5 tips for Berlin on a Budget prove useful - let me know your own tips in the comments.