DESTINATION GUIDE SERIES BERLIN ELITE GUIDE TO BERLIN HIGHLIGHTS OF BERLIN 3 ONLY ELITE 4 Elite Traveler has selected the most exclusive VIP experiences CONCIERGE RECOMMENDATIONS 5 We asked Berlin’s top concierges to share their personal recommendations SONY CENTER, POTSDAMER PLATZ for the perfect day in the city WHERE TO ➤ STAY 8 ➤ DINE 15 ➤ BE PAMPERED 18 BERLIN SKYLINE WHAT TO DO ➤ DURING THE DAY 19 ➤ DURING THE NIGHT 21 ➤ FEATURED EVENTS 25 ➤ SHOPPING 26 LOCAL ART: ‘LIMIT’, ANTON BURDAKOV NEED TO KNOW ➤ PRIVATE JET TERMINALS 30 ➤ USEFUL INFORMATION 31 ➤ EXCLUSIVE TRANSPORT 31 ‘VERSUS’ AT THE CHAMELEON THEATER TRAVELER DESTINATION GUIDE SERIES ELITE DESTINATION GUIDE | BERLIN www.elitetraveler.com 2 HIGHLIGHTS OF BERLIN Don’t miss out on Berlin’s wealth of attractions, adventures and experiences ith an eye toward the future, ‘remaking’ itself, and today you’ll find the Berlin has now bloomed into a modern ‘Wwith resolve in our hearts, let us city in better shape than ever. metropolis, and this new lease of life remember history, and answer our destiny, is infectious. The streets are alive with and remake the world once again.’ Brand new shops, bars, hotels and young, creative types lured here by the restaurants have transformed Berlin from freewheeling spirit, and for art and music Those were the words of Barack Obama battle ground to consumer haven, while there are few better cities to visit right now. as he addressed Berlin in 2008, and they the noblest relics of the past have been go some way to capturing the spirit of the restored to their former glory. Passionate and iconoclastic, Berlin is like place. Sat on one of history’s fault lines, the teenage sibling of Munich or Frankfurt, the German capital has become adept at A building site for much of the nineties, and will reward those who love a surprise. HOTEL ADLON KEMPINSKI BERLIN OLYMPIC STADIUM HOTEL ADLON KEMPINSKI DFB FOOTBALL CUP FINAL VIP contact: Oliver Eller, General Manager MAY 12, 2012 Phone: +49 (0) 30 22 61 12 00 VIP contact: Deutscher Fussball-Bund Email: [email protected] Phone: +49 (0) 69 67 88 0 Address: Unter den Linden 77 Email: [email protected] Website: www.kempinski.com Address: Olympic Stadium, Olympischer Platz 3 During its hundred year history, the Adlon has weathered some pretty major Website: www.dfb.de storms and has always emerged with its dignity intact. Kaiser Wilhelm II was Perch in a chic VIP box for the final showdown of Germany’s top teams. the hotel’s first guest, and since then a pantheon of well-known heads has Each year, 80,000 football fans fill Berlin’s Olympic Stadium for one of the rested on its pillows. Queen Elizabeth II, Albert Einstein and Charlie Chaplin are biggest matches in the European game. The winner will qualify for the just some of the names in the guest book, and it was from an Adlon balcony that UEFA Europa League and for a nation of football enthusiasts, that’s a big Michael Jackson famously displayed his baby to the world. The hotel’s phoenix- deal. The setting alone is phenomenal—constructed for the 1936 Olympics, like revival in the last decade has garnered all kinds of praise, and it remains the famous stadium was revamped for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, and tourists the grande dame of Berlin refinement. swarm to the hallowed turf even when the pitch is empty. KAUFHAUS DES WESTENS KAUFHAUS DES WESTENS VIP contact: Ursula Vierkötter Phone: +49 (0) 30 21 21 0 Email: [email protected] Address: Tauentzienstrasse 21-24 Website: www.kadewe.de The largest department store in mainland Europe, it takes a seasoned shopper to take on Kaufhaus des Westens (Department Store of the West). Its eight floors brim with exclusive goods, and you could spend a lifetime plumbing its every nook and cranny. Known affectionately as ‘KaDeWe’ (pronounced kah-day-vay), the store opened in 1907 but was destroyed in World War II when a US fighter plane crashed through the atrium. To boost Berliners’ morale, reconstruction began almost immediately, and the 1950 reopening was a major coup for the crippled city. Today you’ll find a temple of consumption like no other, and a foray through its halls is a rare treat indeed. ELITE DESTINATION GUIDE | BERLIN www.elitetraveler.com 3 ONLY ELITE Elite Traveler has selected the most exclusive VIP experiences FLOATPLANE ‘DUCK 01’ FLOATPLANE LUNCH FLIGHT VIP contact: Commander Frank Hellberg Phone: +49 (0) 30 53 21 53 21 Email: [email protected] Website: www.air-service-berlin.de Taking off and landing on water, a floatplane is one of the most thrilling and graceful ways to fly. Starting on the Spree River near the city center, Air Service Berlin will welcome you with a flute of Gosset champagne by the riverside. Once snugly onboard the floatplane, you’ll take off from the river and soar high above the urban hubbub, over the old town of Köpenick and the fields and forests beyond, and land on the lake by Huberthushöhe Castle. More champagne will greet you, followed by a three course lunch at the enchanting lakeside restaurant. After a leisurely meal, you’ll take to the skies again and return to Berlin with the calming hum of the plane. DRAG RACING NITROLYMPX ANNUALLY IN AUGUST VIP contact: Jutta Halter, Hockenheimring Hospitality Manager Phone: +49 (0) 62 05 95 00 (general) / +49 (0) 62 05 95 01 95 (hospitality) Email: [email protected] Address: Hockenheimring Motodrom, 68766 Hockenheim Website: www.hockenheimring.net / www.nitrolympx.com In the south of Germany near the city of Mannheim, the Hockenheimring racetrack hosts the very best of German motorsport. Each year, 50,000 motor fans descend on the Hockenheimring for the Drag Racing Nitrolympx, a breathtaking display of four-wheeled power. Reaching speeds of up to 300mph, ‘dragsters’ race two at a time from a standing start, in a straight line, for a quarter of a mile. The fastest accelerating vehicles on earth, these cars can achieve 0 – 60 mph in less than a second and need parachutes to stop them after the finish line. Celebrities and business leaders bustle for a spot in the South Grandstand, where the VIP suites offer service fit for a king. If you visit on the Saturday you’ll see the notorious Night Show, a frenzy of motor stunts and pyrotechnics. For a very good hotel in Mannheim, Elite Traveler recommends the Steigenberger Mannheimer DRAG RACING NITROLYMPICS (www.mannheim.steigenberger.de). HOPPEGARTEN RACECOURSE VIP contact: Harriet Roske, Bunker International Group Phone: +44 (0) 20 73 68 42 82 Email: [email protected] Website: www.hoppegarten.com / www.bunkerinternational.com The largest and most illustrious racecourse in Germany, the Hoppegarten has long been a haunt for Berlin’s elite. When he wasn’t unifying Germany, the Iron Chancellor Bismarck could be found trackside, having a flutter and quaffing the bubbly. Today, the great and the good mingle in the new Club Stand, while chefs from gourmet restaurant Aigner work their magic behind closed doors. Contact Harriet Roske and watch the drama unfold from a VIP table or a sofa in the private bar. After the race, wander past the old red brick pavilion and see the silverware presented under the shade of ancient oaks. Of the ten race days throughout the year, the most extravagant are Ladies’ Day in June and the Grosser Preis von Berlin in July. RACING AT THE HOPPEGARTEN RACECOURSE ELITE DESTINATION GUIDE | BERLIN www.elitetraveler.com 4 CONCIERGE RECOMMENDATIONS We asked Berlin’s top concierges to share their personal recommendations for the perfect day in the city DOINA KOCHERHANS ANNE RABER HEAD CONCIERGE, HOTEL DE ROME Phone: +49 (0) 30 46 06 09 0 Website: www.hotelderome.com After a sumptuous breakfast at the Hotel de Rome, rent bikes and visit the organic market at Kollwitzplatz. Walk along the fashionable Kastanienallee to Hackescher Markt and drop in on some art galleries and trendy boutiques. Head past Museum Island and Berlin Cathedral and back to the Gendarmenmarkt for lunch at Borchardt, before jumping on your bikes to ride along Unter den Linden to the Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag, the Holocaust Memorial, and Potsdamer Platz. Spot leftovers of the Berlin Wall near Checkpoint Charlie, and check out the stylish shops along Friedrichstrasse, by which time you’ll be more than ready for a spa treatment back at Hotel de Rome. Once refreshed, head to Kreuzberg for a Korean meal at Kimchi Princess, followed by drinks at Luzia, Würgeengel, or any of the nightspots on Mariannenstrasse. For the real night owls, clubbing at Watergate is a must. BEST RESTAURANTS Parioli Cuisine: Mediterranean Address: Behrenstrasse 37 DOINA KOCHERHANS Grill Royal GUEST EXPERIENCE MANAGER, HOTEL LUX 11 Cuisine: Steakhouse Address: Friedrichstrasse 105B Phone: +49 (0) 30 93 62 80 0 Website: www.lux-eleven.com Cantina Tausend A trip to the top of the Fernsehturm (TV Tower) is a must for breathtaking Cuisine: Asian and Ibero-American views of Berlin. Lux 11 is just minutes away from shops, museums, Address: Schiffbauerdamm 11 galleries, restaurants and nightclubs, so guests are spoilt for choice. For clubbing, Weekend is always busy and its rooftop terrace is a city hotspot. BEST SHOPPING The Corner BEST RESTAURANTS For: Exclusive fashion for men and women. Schönbrunn Address: Französische Strasse 40 Cuisine: Mediterranean Address: Am Friedrichshain 8 BEST TO DO Take a day trip to the beautiful town of Potsdam. Grill Royal Cuisine: Steakhouse Chill out at the Badeschiff (outdoor pool) Address: Friedrichstrasse 105B Address: Eichenstrasse 4. White Trash Cuisine: German, Tex-Mex and American diner classics ANNE RABER Address: Schönhauser Allee 6/7 BEST SHOPPING Adidas Originals Store For: Urban footwear and fashion.