Outside Berlin, Berlin – Off the Beaten Path

Outside Berlin

The area surrounding Berlin offers many options for day trips. The S-Bahn trains makes getting out of the city for the day a breeze.

Potsdam Day Trip

Potsdam is a popular day trip out of Berlin. The city was first mentioned in 993, gained its town charter in 1345, and was chosen in 1660 as the hunting residence of Frederick William I. It was the center of the Prussian state until 1918. While Sanssouci is the main attraction, there are several more palais and other attractions to visit. Potsdam can easily be reached by train or subway (U-Bahn). Some visitors regard an interior tour at Sanssouci as a waste of time and money, suggesting that you admire the outside gardens and spend your money on some Bratwurst and Gluhwein!

The Adult Education Center in Potsdam is named after Albert Einstein, who had numerous connections to this city. There has been an “Einstein Tower” in Potsdam since 1921, and an “Einstein Institute” since 1924. Einstein himself had a summer house in Caputh, near Potsdam, starting in 1929.

Eisenhüttenstadt

An 80 min train ride from Berlin, it’s the first planned socialist town in Germany. Guided tours are available through the local tourist office. While not the traditional German architecture, the apartment blocks in the inner city, dating from the 195os, are being renovated and restored as Germany’s largest conservation site. To learn more about life in the town from the 1950s  until 1989 visit The Documentation Center, which has a permanent exhibit on “everyday life in the GDR.”

Werder / Havel

Spend a day away from cars, houses and traffic jams in this charming little town outside Potsdam. Though it’s situated on an island, you can easily get to by S-Bahn from Berlin. Relax and enjoy the apple trees, old houses, cobblestone streets, fish restaurants and gorgeous scenery.

Sachsen-Hausen

The remaining buildings of the Sachsen-Hausen concentration camp are now open to the public as a museum. The museum features artwork by the inmates, documents and artifacts documenting life in the camp, and the administrative buildings from which the entire network of concentration camps were run.

Editor’s note: The information contained on this page was compiled using real traveler reviews about outside Berlin.