Things to do in Berlin & Potsdam

Berlin's landmarks start at the Brandenburg Gate, built in 1788–1791 and crowned by the Quadriga that Napoleon's army once took to Paris, a short walk from the Reichstag Building, where you can walk up the glass dome for views over the government quarter. The story of the divided city unfolds at the Berlin Wall Memorial on Bernauer Strasse, with its preserved border strip and an exhibition on the 'ghost stations', and along the Spree at the East Side Gallery, at 1,316 metres the longest surviving stretch of the Wall, with more than a hundred paintings. On Museum Island, see the bust of Nefertiti in the Neues Museum before the Alte Nationalgalerie, Altes Museum and Bode-Museum, then visit the Humboldt Forum inside the rebuilt Berlin Palace, with its Ethnological Museum, Museum of Asian Art and roof terrace, or ride up the Berlin TV Tower to its observation deck and revolving Sphere Restaurant. In Potsdam, Frederick the Great's summer palace of Sanssouci makes an easy day out, and in the run-up to Christmas the WeihnachtsZauber market on Gendarmenmarkt adds a stage in front of the Konzerthaus and heated craft tents where glassblowers and goldsmiths sell their work.

Good to knowThe Reichstag dome is free, but you must register in advance with every visitor's full name and date of birth, and original photo ID is checked at the entrance. Sanssouci Palace runs on fixed admission times, so buy online (limited same-day tickets are sold at the Historic Windmill visitor centre), and it closes on Mondays in winter; the Museum Island museums are closed on Mondays and the Humboldt Forum on Tuesdays. The Pergamonmuseum is fully closed for construction, but 'Pergamonmuseum. Das Panorama' and the James-Simon-Galerie stay open, and the East Side Gallery can be visited around the clock.