Berlin In 2 Days: Fast-Paced Itinerary (Plus A Slow Travel Alternative)

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So I’ll be the first to admit that this trip was anything BUT slow travel-focused. The truth is, my son was with me and I had 2 full days to make a good impression of Berlin on him. We were considering the idea of him going to college there, so I wanted him to have a great time. So while I typically promote slow travel here, this itinerary does not reflect that. However, after I share what we did, I will give you a slow travel itinerary so you can enjoy Berlin at a much slower pace.

If you only have 2 days in Berlin, you can see highlights like the Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate, Berliner Dom, and even fit in a river cruise, with plenty of good food along the way. Prefer slow travel? Focus on Old Town, Brandenburg Gate, and a leisurely walk through a breathtaking cathedral as well as a river day instead.

Practical Tips Before You Go

We were there July 9-12, 2025. We arrived late on the 9th around midnight, and left in the early morning on the 12th. So that gave us 2 full days to enjoy the city.

My first mistake (which I will help you avoid), is where we stayed. While the accommodations were okay (definitely nothing spectacular, but they served their purpose), we were pretty far removed from all the places we wanted to be, so I ended up paying a small fortune to take Uber several times. I definitely recommend staying in the city center or close to the Brandenburg Gate. But let’s start with your transportation options.

Getting Around Berlin

No matter where you stay in Berlin, there is something called a Berlin WelcomeCard (48h, Zones AB), which is €13 per person, and gives you unlimited U-Bahn, S-Bahn, tram, and bus use. Most destinations in this itinerary are accessible via public transit (5–15 min between most stops). I recommend that you purchase this before you go, online. Otherwise, Uber is plentiful in Berlin.

I will say, there are also apps you can use to rent bicycles and scooters that you will see sprinkled around the city. People just park them randomly when they are done with them, and you can rent through the app to start scooting or biking around the city. It’s a great option if you have a helmet. Although, I will say that we didn’t see anyone wearing helmets while riding these bikes or scooters. But it is something you agree to when you rent.

BVG Jelbi – The All-in-One Berlin Mobility App

• What it does: Combines public transport (U-Bahn, S-Bahn, buses, trams), e-scooters, e-bikes, regular bikes, carsharing, e-mopeds, and taxis into a single app.
• Why it’s great:
  • Access providers like Nextbike (bikes), Lime, Voi, Bolt (e-scooters and e-bikes), Miles, Sixt Share (carsharing), and Emmy (e-mopeds) — without switching apps.
  • Plan multimodal trips and purchase public transit tickets seamlessly.
  • Over 70,000 vehicles available across Berlin.
    Google Play
    Apple
    The Verge

If You Prefer Single-Provider Apps

• Nextbike – Great for classic and e-bike rentals. Start rides with QR code; costs about €1.50 to unlock.
  Wikipedia
  nextbike.de
• Lime – Use exclusively for Lime’s scooters and e-bikes. App-based unlocking and location tracking.
  Berlin.de
• Voi – Similar to Lime; rent their e-scooters or e-bikes via their standalone app.
  nextbike.de

Berlin In 2 Full Days

Arrival

As mentioned, we got there late. Thankfully, Berlin has a ton of places that are open late. So if you also arrive late, a good place to stop is either Burgermeister or Witty’s Currywurst (€8–12 per person). They are next to the Spree River which you can walk along after if you are there early enough.

Full Day 1 – Berlin Wall, Food Halls & Street Culture

Breakfast: We grabbed coffee and delicious grilled cheese sandwiches (yes, for breakfast) at Masha’s Bagels. It’s a fantastic little coffee house-style deli with lots to eat. Definitely worth a stop. Truly the best grilled cheese sandwich I’ve ever had!

After breakfast, the first place we went to was the Berlin wall, and I have to admit, I didn’t know for sure if we had found it at first. Up close, it looked more like an art installation than a wall. But after stepping back a bit, it was indeed the wall, so we strolled along, admiring all the artwork.

Lunch: We went to the Markthalle Neun food hall (€10–15 per person) and got “build-your-own” burritos. (I know we were in Germany, but we missed Mexican food. You can’t really get it here in Spain.)

We spent a good portion of the afternoon wandering around and admiring the graffiti. Berlin is truly a graffiti capital. It’s definitely their art form of preference, and it shows. I had a much harder time finding surfaces without graffiti, than with it. But I like well-done graffiti, so I enjoyed it.

Dinner: There are so many restaurants around Berlin that it’s pretty much impossible to not stumble into one when you get hungry. We had a Curry Wurst (also the name of the restaurant) at one stop, but were still hungry after, thanks to all the walking we were doing. So we stopped by a grocery store and picked up a baguette and some delicious cheeses from a BioMarkt. (A German health food store).

Optional Activities:

• Street Culture & Youth Vibe – East Side Gallery (Free) – RAW-Gelände Art Complex (Free)
• Graffiti Workshop (€25–35, Register in advance)
• There is a package lottery machine in the square here. You put in 10 euros and pick your package (like any vending machine), and it spits it out. These are basically lost packages that were never claimed. People line up for this thing because you never know what you’re going to get. I ended up with some nice new socks and slippers, and my kiddo ended up with a new radio.

Wish We Had Done This

Next time I go, I’ll make it a point to go here:

• Sunset Mocktails: Monkey Bar (€6–10) for the views. Plus, it’s right over the monkey exhibit of the Berlin Zoo. So it’s a fun place to stop

We were pretty tired after all that walking, so we grabbed an Uber back and went to bed early.

Full Day 2 – Old Town, Landmarks & River Cruise

I was really looking to ramp things up on day two, so we munched on the last of our cheese and baguette, and then took an Uber back into the city and went to the Old Town. It’s not big, but it’s definitely worth a visit. I had the best ice cream of my life there. It was aperol spritz flavor! Crazy good!

For lunch, we stopped for sushi for lunch in the old town at a place called, Cyclo. It was amazingly good. I highly recommend their avocado rolls. Delish! Just know that they do not speak much English, so a little German will go a long way here. They do try though! I think they speak it better than they understand it when it’s spoken to them.

Then we went to the Brandenburg Gate which was epically amazing to see in person. It truly leaves an impression. Completed in 1798, it was originally the gate marking the start of the road from Berlin to Brandenburg an der Havel.

Today, it’s a symbol of peace and unity, but also of Germany’s divided history.
During the Cold War, it stood in the “no man’s land” between East and West Berlin, right by the Berlin Wall. After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, it became a powerful symbol of German reunification. It’s an incredibly popular tourist attraction, and if you want photos without people in them, you’ll have to get up mighty early.

From there, we walked to the Berliner Dom Cathedral. I wasn’t able to go in because I needed to stay outside with Izzy, but my son went in and thoroughly enjoyed it. Judging by his photos, it was totally worth every penny to get in.

Then we rushed to meet our boat where we took a leisurely, 1-hour ride up and down the Spree River. It was a wonderfully relaxing end to the day and provided us with some truly beautiful views. We grabbed dinner on the boat and just relaxed. They had amazing bratwurst!

Other Options To Try:

• Reichstag Dome (Free, Registration required)
• St. Marienkirche Cathedral (Free)
• Museum Visit: Museum Island (€12–20 per adult depending on museum)
• Spy Museum (€12 student / €16 adult, register online recommended)

Tips And Reminders

1. Book the Berliner Dome Cathedral ASAP (slots fill quickly). We got lucky and were able to just walk in and buy a ticket. But it’s not always that easy.
2. Bring water bottles to avoid paying for drinks constantly
3. Try brunch as a late breakfast + lunch combo to save time & money
4. Most places take cards, but some street vendors prefer cash
5. Public bathrooms can be hard to find and usually cost €0.50–€1

Slow Travel Berlin: Alternative 2-Day Plan

Slow travel is all about staying in one place for a longer amount of time, or doing less in whatever time you have there. That said, if this is a short trip like what we did, I would definitely cut down on a few things.

For the first day, I would spend at least a half day in the Old Town. Taking picture, eating food, and just enjoying the old world ambiance. You could also include Brandenburg Gate in the same day. Those two things together would make for a nice, relaxed day, where you still feel like you got to see some amazing things.

For the second day, I would see the Berliner Dome Cathedral. Make sure you leave time to really spend some time here, and if you are able, don’t miss climbing the tower. The views are amazing!

Then enjoy lunch, and end your day with a Spree river cruise. If you happen to be traveling with your dog, know that they can go on many of the cruises, but cannot go into the cathedral. So plan accordingly. Izzy went with us everywhere except the cathedral, where I waited outside with her.

Trip Notes

If I made this trip again, I would definitely stay smack in the middle of the city near Brandenburg Gate. The city is very walkable, but you’ll be walking for a while. So bring good shoes. Berlin offers both intensity and calm, depending on how you approach it. Make your trip whatever you want it to be!