Berlin offers a lot regarding culture, food and history for the first-time visitor or for those who have been time and time again and simply want to visit the best museums in Berlin again. Here is our guide with some top tips, to the best museums in Germany’s capital city.
Five museums, one ticket
An island of museums awaits you at Berlin’s Museum Island which boasts five museums which are all covered by one entrance ticket. The museums included are the Pergamonmuseum, the Bode-Museum, the Neues Museum, the Alte Nationalgalerie and the Altes Museum.
The Pergamonmuseum
The Pergamonmuseum (Pergamon Museum) was designed by architect Alfred Messel and is known as the top museum in Berlin as it is the most popular with visitors, with approximately one million people walking through its doors per year. Currently undergoing work to add a fourth wing, visitors can still view the Ishtar Gate and Processional Way, the Roman Market Gate of Miletus and the Museum of Islamic Art collection.
Bode-Museum
The Bode-Museum is located on the northern tip of the island and has exhibitions of sculptures from the Medieval to the 18th century and it also has a Byzantine Art and Numismatic Collection.
Neues Museum
Construction on the Neues Museum, or New Museum in English, was started in 1841, when it was designed by Prussian master builder and court architect Friedrich August Stüler. At the time the design caused a sensation within Berlin society because of the building materials used and the fact that steam was used to power it. The museum was badly damaged during the Second World War and it wasn’t until 1999 that restoration work was started to bring it back to its former glory.
The Alte Nationalgalerie
The old National Gallery is the best place in Berlin to see German art. Also designed by Friedrich August Stüler, its design was inspired by the Acropolis in Athens, with its structure built upon a plinth overlooking the other museums on the island. Originally opened in 1876, it has a fantastic collection of artwork in Berlin. From neoclassical sculptures and paintings to Romanticism, Impressionism and modern works of art, the museum’s collection includes works by Manet, Monet, Renoir, Karl Friedrich Schinkel and Karl Blechen.
Altes Museum
The Altes Museum is the oldest of the five museums and was opened in 1830. It has a neoclassical façade with an expansive entrance, a rotunda and ionic columns which were rare at the time for a public building. Its permanent collection has works from Ancient Greece to Roman times as well as a special collection of Etruscan Art, the biggest collection found outside of Italy.
The Egyptian Museum of Berlin
The Egyptian Museum of Berlin also deserves a mention thanks to its collection which includes the Bust of Nefertiti and the Papyri collection which dates back over 5,000 years. Its collection also includes sculptures of pharaohs and high officials, coffins and literary and private texts all stored in the library of ancient Egypt at the museum. Events and tours regularly take place in addition to normal visits so check out their website before you go.
Berlin hotels for the best museum experience
For those wanting to visit Berlin’s best museums, the ideal place to stay is at the Catalonia Berlin Mitte, just 15 minutes’ walk from the museums and 15 to 20 minutes from Alexander Platz and the Spree River. With a raw industrial design, it has a dedicated breakfast room, a cocktail bar, restaurant and outside terrace and smart screen TVs and a minibar in each room.
