For thrill-seekers, the Berlin Hi-Flyer hot air balloon lifts you 150 metres into the Berlin sky with historical commentary from the pilot. It starts at the corner of Wilhelmstr. and Zimmerstr on Sun-Thu 10am-10pm, Fri-Sat 10am-12.30am, for 19 euros, 10 euros concessions. www.air-service-berlin.de
on the Spree in summer are enchanting. MS Spreekrone starts at Schlossbrücke next to Schloss Charlottenburg for a three-hour tour at 10:20am and 14:20am for 14.50 euros.
Eat-the-world offers culture & food tours. Every Saturday and Sunday, native guides traverse legendary, multi-cultural Kreuzberg taking their guests through authentic Berlin far from the well-beaten tourist track. Every tour includes delightful samples of classic restaurants and smaller diners, as well as an insight into Berlin life – history, culture, architecture and entertainment. Tickets online: www.eat-the-world.com
Insider Tours offers a decent delve into Berlin ’s history, packing everything you need to know into 3.5 hours. Also bike tours, Third Reich and the Iron Curtain tours. The main tour starts daily at 10am and 2.30pm daily from McDonald’s outside Zoo Station or at 10.30am and 3pm from Coffeemamas at Hackescher Markt S-Bahn Station. 12 euros, 9 euros concessions. www.insidertour.com
for an easy, quick and cheap way to see many key sights. Bus numbers 100 or 200 from outside Zoo Station make their way to Alexanderplatz and Prenzlauer Berg respectively, taking in sights such as Unter Den Linden and Potsdamer Platz along the way. More info at www.bvg.de
A ‘run-it-yourself’ guided English audio tour. Once you put on the Stadt im Ohr headphones and get walking you can take it completely at your own pace, stopping for a coffee whenever you want. For your money (7.50 euros), you get a truly in-depth 80-minute (without breaks) architectural and historical introduction to a section of Berlin. The two guides (one from the East, one from the West) are bubbly and friendly. Perhaps the tour’s greatest asset is not the technology but the fact that the organisers clearly wanted to avoid the usual routes. Dubbed ‘Mitte Schritte’ (‘Mitte steps’), it sticks to the northern centre of the former East. This also means you can go on a standard tour and then take the audio tour with very little overlap. Stadt im Ohr: Mitte Schritte audio tour, available at Alex Rent-a-Bike, Panoramastr. 1A, Alexanderplatz, Mitte. Cost: 7.50 euros (leave a copy of your passport as a deposit), open 8:00-21:00 daily, www.urban-sounds-to-go.com
Discover Berlin while running or riding a bike. Tours through the Tiergarten Park, new government quarter, Unter den Linden including the ‘Forum Fridericianum’, Third Reich-Tour with Holocaust memorial, Hitler’s bunker and Wilhelmstrasse. Daily between 7:00 and 20:00, throughout the year. Prices from €15 per hour. Advance booking required. For more info visit: www.sightjogging-berlin.de
The Air Service Berlin company which operates the Hi-Flyer also offers city sightseeing helicopter rides, taking off from Tempelhof Airport , and even water plane and Candy Bomber air trips across the city. Information also in English at www.air-service-berlin.de .
