With a rapidly changing architectural landscape, three opera houses, over 150 performance stages, 200 art galleries, 170 museums, and more pubs, bars and clubs than any other city in Germany, Berlin is Europe's new cultural and entertainment powerhouse. Trips to the capital can be filled with walking tours, plays, art gallery openings and more than a few people-watching sessions on the city's grand avenues or public squares.
Go-Today (tel. 800/227-3235; www.go-today.com) has a six-night Berlin City Special including air and hotel starting at $749. Travel dates at the $749 price are from November 1 to December 14, 2006 and from January 4 to March 7, 2007; with a booking deadline of November 16, 2006. Flights are from New York City JFK or Newark direct to Berlin. Accommodations are at the tourist class Park Inn Berlin-Alexanderplatz Hotel near the Berlin Opera House notable for its socialist architecture and as the setting of filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder's 1920's era Berlin Alexanderplatz (www.subcin.com/fassbinder.html). Formerly Berlin's most popular square, the Alexanderplatz (www.aviewoncities.com/berlin/alexanderplatz.htm) was recently considered an architectural eyesore and elicited a competition to spruce it up with more modern buildings. The locals simply call the centrally located square and area "Alex." The metro station here serves as a hub for connections throughout Berlin. The Go-Today package allows you to upgrade hotels to more luxurious properties, but all packages include hotel and service taxes in the price. Other U.S. departure points are available: Philadelphia (add $30), Boston (add $40) and Chicago or Houston (add $80). If you're interested in a land-only tour of Berlin, Go-Today also has a $189 three-night stopover trip with a December 2, 2006 booking deadline.
Combining the cultural capitals of Central Europe into one trip, Gate One Travel (tel. 800/682-3333; www.gateonetravel.com) has a ten-day tour visiting Berlin, Munich, Salzburg and Prague. Starting in Berlin or Munich and ending in the city where you didn't start, this trip connects the cities in a semi-circle making an additional stop in Cesky Krumlov, a UNESCO World Heritage site that looks almost exactly as it did centuries ago. This fully-guided trip includes round-trip airfare from the U.S., eight nights in hotels such as the Don Giovanni in Prague, all transfers, sightseeing per itinerary, travel around Europe in a luxury motor coach, an English speaking guide, all local guides in your destination cities, daily breakfast, one big dinner, and three lunches. Costing approximately $1,899 per person with double occupancy, this trip departs on April 4, 2007 and continues through the spring, summer and fall. Booking by December 15, 2006 can save you up to $290 for an April 18, 2007 departure.
Maupintour (tel. 800/255-4266; www.maupintour.com), the excellent tour provider with first-class trips and packages to destinations all over the globe, has a Berlin City Getaway with departures through the fall and winter. The three-night, land-only city trip includes three nights in the five-star Hotel Westin Grand, airport transfers in a private car, a half-day sightseeing tour, a full American breakfast everyday, and all hotel service charges and taxes. Cost of the trip is $725 per person based on double occupancy. The hotel is in the eastern part of the city near the Pergamon Museum.
European Destinations (tel. 877/267-2247; www.europeandestinations.com) has a seven-day, six-night combination trip that pairs Berlin with Amsterdam. Starting at $775 per person out of Los Angeles, the package includes round-trip airfare, three nights in Amsterdam, three nights in Berlin, daily breakfast, and train transportation between the two European cities. These prices should be good from now through March. Other U.S. gateways are available for departure such as New York ($795) and Miami ($815).
The above packages do not include air security taxes or departure fees.
For an up-close look at Berlin's still emerging, world-renowned, art scene, check out Auguststrasse and Oranienburger Strasse in the Mitte (Central) district. Set amidst a maze of passageways and small lanes, this bohemian outpost contains more than 40 art galleries showcasing art from Germany, America, China and elsewhere. The Arndt and Palmer Gallery (tel 030/280 81 23; www.arndt-partner.de), which opened seven years ago anchors the busy, chic, young at heart neighborhood. Walking these streets and touring these galleries is akin to maneuvering through an outdoor free museum of modern, experimental and traditional art. Bars and pubs, almost as prevalent as the art galleries, dot the area. The Mitte hops day and night.
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