Discover your neighbourhood Berlin-Neukölln

Berlin-Neukölln is one of Berlin's most exciting districts, somewhere between quaint and hipster. Ready to discover it?

Marle

6 minute read

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Updated on 5 Aug 2024

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Living

Berlin-Neukölln is one of the most vibrant districts in Berlin. This smaller "city" in the middle of Berlin is where urban creative minds have carved out a place for themselves somewhere between quaint and hipster. The district of Berlin-Neukölln is somewhere between club culture and culture shock. What was once a problem district is awakening a cultural scene with its upbeat mood, one in which a neighbourly vibe will quickly make you feel at home.

To truly feel at home in Berlin-Neukölln, you should discover the corners of the Berlin district. Join us as we walk you through the Schillerkiez, Maybachufer and Weserstraße and show you the things you need to do in Neukölln. Ready for 10 spots you can't miss as a newcomer to Berlin-Neukölln?

Did you know that almost 330,300 people live in Berlin-Neukölln? For comparison: that's exactly as many inhabitants as Bonn (near Cologne) has.

This would put the Berlin district among the 30 largest cities in Germany.

But what exactly is part of Berlin-Neukölln? The district is made up of the districts of Neukölln (North Neukölln), Britz, Buckow, Rudow, and Gropuisstadt.

In earlier times, the district was part of West Berlin and was separated by the Berlin Wall from the neighbouring district of Treptow, which belonged to East Berlin.

Jackpot! You've picked the most vibrant part of Berlin as your new home base. Berlin-Neukölln has been buzzing for years, and the creative scene has now made a place for itself among experimental restaurants and bars that range from quaint to hipster.

It's a district between club culture and culture shock.

This metropolis in the middle of Berlin was once one of the most problematic districts, yet its affordable cost of living has attracted creative minds that have revived a cultural scene in Berlin-Neukölln. Once you wander off the main streets, you'll find yourself among enchanted gardens, cobblestone alleyways and historic half-timbered houses.

Let us walk you through Berlin-Neukölln and show you some of the places you need to know as a new Berliner.

In the concrete urban jungle, hardly anyone expects a 2.4-hectare park that adds a little royal touch with its well-tended flowerbeds, a fountain and orangery. There are even free concerts here on summer evenings.

For a bit of a royal feeling at breakfast, try the lemon café in Körnerpark: surrounded by well-kept, delicate greenery, there are plenty of lemony things to discover here in the light-flooded garden house, but also tasty cakes.

Once you're fully refreshed, turn left from Körnerpark and walk along Thomasstraße through Berlin's Schillerkiez district. Between Hermannstraße and Tempelhofer Feld, the Schillerkiez in Berlin has an almost village-like atmosphere with a range of cafés, bars and restaurants unlike any other neighbourhood in Neukölln.

Let's move on to the next stop. Walk up Hermannstraße, turn right into Rollbergstraße and you'll almost see it: the KINDL - Centre for Contemporary Art.

You won't always find art exhibitions in ordinary museums in Berlin; what you'll find instead are rather unusual exhibition venues. If you've already spotted the Boros Collection in the bunker in Berlin-Mitte, you can't miss the Kindl Brewery in Berlin-Neukölln. For years, the imposing building in Neukölln stood empty, but now a collector couple has placed art in the former production halls.

In place of beer production, you'll now find

1,600 square metres of exhibition space for painting, sculpture, installation and performance form film and video presentations.

Well, not quite: in summer you can still drink beer in the in-house beer garden.

After the cultural programme on contemporary art, move on and you'll be at the next location in just a few minutes. Take a stroll up Mainzerstraße and then turn into Flughafenstraße. You'll see the next stop on the corner: Trude Ruth & Goldammer.

A true Berlin gem without frills: the Neukölln corner pub Trude Ruth & Goldammer is dark, rustic, but all the more cosy. With a typical Berlin charm, the pub calls you in to linger.

Amidst low-cost and brand-name alcohol, there's a vast selection on the drinks menu. Their friendly bar staff make you feel at home, and if you ask nicely, they'll even give you some nuts.

Let's move on! Grab a rental bike, which is a dime a dozen in Berlin, and pedal from Flughafenstraße up Columbiadamm to Tempelhofer Feld.

Within a minute of summer, groove and ease from the viral video by Oumi Janta, you'll want to put your roller skates under your feet and float smoothly to music over the asphalt of Tempelhofer Feld.

After an extensive jam skating session, it's on to the next spot. Grab your bike and either soak up some fresh air in the Volkspark or ride back to Columbiadamm and turn left into Hermannstraße until you pass Hermannplatz. Around Hermannplatz it's still apparent that Berlin-Neukölln is a problem district and has to deal with drugs, alcohol and crime. However, now you continue up Kottbusserdamm until you arrive at the Soultrade Recordstore.

Lots of dance tunes to shake your hips to at home! At Soultrade you'll find true treasures from soul to hip hop, jazz, downbeat to disco and boogie.

Found what you're looking for? Then get in the mood for dancing at the next stop. From the Soultrade Recordstore, walk up Kottbusser Damm, past Indian supermarkets and lots of wholefood shops until you almost reach the Landwehrkanal. On the right-hand corner, you'll see the Ankerklause.

The legendary jukebox in the Ankerklause supplies a truly wild mix of music. Just the thing to get you in the mood for a little dancing!

On the covered terrace above the Landwehrkanal, you can sit out in almost all weathers - all with a view of the water. For late risers, you can have breakfast or a midday snack here until 4 pm. The daily menu changes weekly and offers simple, but good and affordable cuisine.

If you don't settle down in the cosy Ankerklause, you can go on to pick up a few gems! Along the Maybachufer you might even discover the weekly market, where you feel like you're in an oriental bazaar. Go shopping for delicious spices or vegetables here if you feel like it, otherwise, take a turn on Hobrechstraße and then Sanderstraße. Welcome to vintage heaven!

At Vintage Galore you're in Swedish bliss! Here you'll find Scandinavian-style second-hand furniture adding the vintage vibe for your room in Berlin-Neukölln. Spruce up your room with well-preserved, individual and high-quality wooden furniture.

Have you got hungry? Then continue on Sandstraße towards Friedelstraße and turn left onto Pflügerstraße.

In Berlin-Neukölln, the smell of freshly fried falafel or the chicken on Sonnenallee draws in your nose. But there's more than just kebabs, chicken and falafel: the Knödelwirtschaft is a two-star establishment that puts all its skills into Knödel (German dumplings).

Now that you're well-fuelled, you might fancy a drink, don't you? Turn right up Fuldastraße and bang, you're already on Weserstraße.

Right on the border with Kreuzberg, in Kreuzkölln, you'll find Weserstraße in the heart of this so-called hybrid neighbourhood. There's one bar lined up after the next, and with the casual down-to-earthiness and shops with granny furniture and no wallpaper, you'll discover exactly the Berlin charm.

You can treat yourself to a classic beer from the Späti and sit on a bollard, bench or kerb among all the other Berliners. If you're more in the mood for a bar, head to TiER at the beginning of Weserstraße. A pioneer of cocktail culture, where you can make yourself comfortable on the 70s furniture and simple wooden sets. A relaxed bar without etiquette, but with all the better cocktails.

Fancy a change of scenery? On Weserstraße you'll find Silver Future, a classic for drag shows and affordable drinks. Straight people are also welcome at Schwuz, the biggest gay club.

Or why not check out one of the hip rooftop bars? Then turn right into Wildenbruchstraße, past Sonnenallee and up Erkstraße, and you'll see the Neukölln town hall on the right on Karl-Marx-Straße. From here you can already see the Arcades, on whose roof you will find the Klunkerkranich.

Let's be honest, the Klunkerkranich has become quite mainstream, but once you've made it to parking deck number 6 of the Neukölln Arkaden in what' probably the slowest lift in all of Berlin, you'll love the little world of gardens and wood that's been created here. In the daytime, you can soak up the view of Berlin's rooftops, and in the evenings there are concerts and club nights in the hut - all on a parking deck. Herbs grow in raised beds and are used in the cocktails.

The later the hour, the longer the queue at the entrance. On the other hand, the Klunkerkranich, deservedly very popular, boasts a stunning panoramic view over Neukölln and Kreuzberg all the way to the Rotes Rathaus and, in good weather, even further.

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