Monday 13 January 2020

A day trip from Szczecin to Berlin

When we were looking at things to do in Szczecin, we noticed how close the city was to Berlin - and as we had a few days away, we decided that a day trip was on the cards. We booked our coach tickets through FlixBus online and in advance, and then we were ready to go! Here's the lowdown on our trip from Szczecin to Berlin...


Getting from Szczecin to Berlin


Our coach from Szczecin to Berlin was booked for 5am; this would see us arriving in the German capital at around 7.30am, with plenty of time for breakfast and getting our bearings. The coach leaves from the main railway station in Szczecin; if you're looking at the station face on, the coach station is to the left. We walked there from our apartment, which took around 20 minutes, but the trams in Szczecin were running at that time so that's worth knowing, I think.

We arrived in Berlin at the main coach station, and headed straight to Kaiserdamm - the nearest U-Bahn station, just a few minutes walk away and easily found on Google Maps. Here we bought ourselves an all-zone day ticket for the trains, as we had plans to be here, there and everywhere during our time in the city - these cost us around €7 each, and they were well worth it. Just remember to validate them when you get on the train!


What we did in Berlin


Holly had found us a really cool place for breakfast, the Steel Vintage Bikes Cafe (Wilhelmstr 91). It wasn't the cheapest place ever, but it had such a nice vibe and the food was lovely. I had a Swiss Melt sandwich and some sort of homemade raspberry lemonade - Holly opted for scrambled eggs and an iced coffee, for the caffeine. We stayed here in the warmth until it was time to head to the Brandenburg Gate for our walking tour!



I had booked our free three-hour walking tour online with Sandemans Tours. We met at the iconic Brandenburg Gate where our guide was waiting, and then off we went. As walking tours go (I've done one before, and Holly has done loads) it wasn't amazing - I didn't feel as though I learnt anything, and all of the places we visited were places we could easily have gone on our own. The only exception to that is the site of Hitler's bunker, which we never would have found otherwise - it's now a car park with apartment buildings around it, and there's no signpost or anything because Germany don't want to glorify what Hitler did which is fair enough...



We decided to cut off from the walking tour at Checkpoint Charlie, as we wanted to take photos with the Christmas tree and the part of the Berlin Wall that's there but the tour was moving a bit quickly for our liking. As there was only a few stops left we decided to abandon it, and I think we made the right decision!



Our next stop was the German Spy Museum, recommended by my brother and Alice - we absolutely LOVED it. There was sooooo much information about spies and double agents throughout history, loads of interactive experiences and everything was just fascinating. Great for kids, too! We got in at the student price, despite "leaving our cards at home", but I'd definitely pay full price as it was so much fun.



The last thing on our list was to visit some Christmas markets. There are SO MANY Christmas markets in Berlin, so I let Holly choose - she really wanted to go to the Charlottenburg Palace markets, so we got an S-Bahn train there using our day tickets. The palace is about 10 minutes on foot from the station, and you really can't miss it. It was getting dark, and the palace was lit up beautifully - the markets were also full of fairy lights, and it was so pretty. The stalls had all your typical Christmas market items: baubles, knitted socks, honey, candles, ornaments etc. There was a brass band, parades of angels and plenty of food stalls too. We both had hot pork sandwiches and they were absolutely delicious. Then I had some churros and Holly got some roasted nuts - absolute winner.



We had an hour or so to spare until we had to get the train back to the coach station, so we found a little bar nearby to get a beer and sit down after all the walking we'd done so far. It was nice to chill and reflect on the day which had, until then, been incredibly successful. Then we got our train back to the coach station, and got on the coach, and had a lovely nap - only to be woken up by a man with a gun at border control. Asking for our passports. Which we had forgotten to bring with us... Everything was fine in the end, but it was easily the scariest 20 minutes of my life!

It's soooo easy to take a day trip from Szczecin to Berlin, and you can do so much in one day. Have you ever done a one-day trip to another city? Let me know!



12 comments:

  1. This sounds amazing - I love the sound of the spy museum! x

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  2. You sold me! I'm hearing more and more how awesome this area is. I should put it on my bucket list. Thanks for the ideas.

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  3. I got excited at free three hour tour until you said you didn't learn much. Thanks for your honesty. I'm one to take both free and paid tours so it's good to know if they are worth it.

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  4. The Spy Museum sounds amazing, I bet there's so much to learn too. I really must add it to the list xx

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  5. I did a one-day trip to Berlin twice back when Flixbus used to have their amazing sales and it's honestly a city I could keep coming back to over and over again. I haven't been to the Spy Museum, but I'm definitely going to add it to my list!

    Dominika | Into the Bloom

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  6. I would honestly love to visit Berlin, I've heard nothing but rave reviews about it but I'm yet to go! It's a shame the walking tour wasn't great, I think you were definitely right to branch off. The Spy Museum sounds so fun, I'd love to go there! Also that's so scary about the border control haha! I'm glad you got out of that unscathed!
    Beth x Adventure & Anxiety

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  7. Berlin is honestly one of my favourite places to visit, the food is always absolutely amazing and I love the culture. The spy museum looks amazing x

    Kayleigh Zara ��✨ www.kayleighzaraa.com

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  8. Oh wow its just so nice! I loved Berlin when we went!

    Erin || MakeErinOver

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  9. Berlin is one of my fave places. All i did was work

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  10. My sisters have been to Berlin and raved about it. This post has convinced me even more.. I need to go!
    Rosie
    Loverosiee.co.uk

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  11. The bike cafe is so cool, my dad would love a place like that as he's obsessed!

    Gemma Louise

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