When visiting Berlin, those traveling on a shoestring can find plenty of ways to save money on their trip, as well as hundreds of great activities that are absolutely free of charge.

Berlin is a lot more affordable than you think! Read on to find out more.

Related: Our favorite budget hotels in Berlin

12 Berlin budget tips

1.  Save with a tourist card or transit pass

If you plan to visit any museums or sights that charge an entry fee, the Berlin Welcome Card might work well for you. The card covers all public transportation and offers discounts on everything like museums, restaurants, and tours, as well as many other attractions.

You can buy the ticket for either 48 hours (€19.80), 72 hours (€26.70 or €40.50 for free entry to museums on Museum Island) or five days (€34.50). The Berlin Welcome Card can also be purchased online before you arrive and comes with a free city map. If you would like a ticket that is also valid in Potsdam (ABC region), you have to pay just a few euros more.

If you’d rather take it easy and not hit up too many of the museums, a regular BVG public transportation pass might be the better option. A regular adult seven-day ticket costs only €29.50 and a day ticket (valid for 24 hours from time of purchase) costs €6.90. Student discounts and children’s tickets are also available. For more information about ticket prices, click here to visit the BVG English website.

2. Avoid pricey bus tours with public transport

While commercial sightseeing tours will set you back at least €14, you can reach any of the major sights these tours cover by taking public transportation in Berlin. Especially good for hitting the big sights is bus lines 100 and 200 that ride right past the big attractions, all for the price of a normal transport ticket. Both lines will take you past such famous sights as the Berlin Cathedral (Dom), down Unter den Linden to Brandenburg Gate, and on to Tiergarten. Bus 200 also passes through Potsdamer Platz and the embassy quarter. Both lines use double-decker buses, which offer great city views.

If you have the Berlin Welcome Card or a BVG day or week ticket, feel free to hop on and off as often as you like. For BVG travel information in English, click here.

The lobby of BaxPax hostel in Kreuzberg. Photo: EuroCheapo

3. Sleep cheap with couchsurfing, hostels or a budget hotel

If you’d like to meet some open-minded locals and don’t mind crashing on someone’s couch, couchsurfing can be a great super-cheapo option. Berlin has a very active couching surfing community where you’ll likely find the perfect host for your needs.

If you prefer a bit more privacy, Berlin has many inexpensive hostels and hotels that we list on EuroCheapo. Kreuzberg is home to several of the best, including Die Fabrik (doubles starting at $60), an arty hostel housed in a restored factory building from the turn of the 20th century, and BaxPax (many twin rooms under $50), a backpacker’s paradise boasting billiards and spontaneous jam sessions.

If you want to take a break from hipsters and backpackers, venture further west to Charlottenburg to Hotel Pension Kima, a small hotel-pension with 13 rooms which, as they boast on their website, offers you “all the comfort and convenience of a home.”

Related: 33 Berlin hotels under $100 per night

Use a free app or take a free walking tour to explore sites like the Berlin Wall. Photo: Craig Nelson

4. Take free guided tours and use free iPhone apps

Several tour companies offer free tours that last between two to three hours long. New Berlin Tours and Original Berlin Tours both offer no-fee tours covering Berlin’s major highlights and historical sights. Alternative Berlin offers free walking tours that take you off the tourist strip and into the funky heart and history of alternative Berlin. Whichever you choose, be sure to give a generous tip to your guide!

If you brought your iPhone along (and you’ve figured out how to avoid huge data charges), you can also download several free apps like Street Art Berlin or The Berlin Wall.

Keep your eyes peeled for discount markets like Aldi. Photo: Mike Mozart

5. Buy snacks and drinks at cheapo grocery stores

An adventure unto themselves, grocery stores in Berlin are also the best place to buy snacks and beverages. Stock up on chips, bakery goods, produce, beer, and soft drinks at a fraction of the price you’d pay at most snack bars or convenience stores. Various chains have different price points, so be sure to stick with Lidl, Aldi, and Netto for the best deals.

Related: A Guide to Germany’s discount grocery stores

Grab a bottle of beer from the nearest shop and sip it anywhere! Photo: Diego

6. Enjoy a “Fusspils” (beer on the go)

“Fusspils”, “Gehbier”, “Handbier” or “Dose to go” – Berliners have many words for it, but they all mean the same thing: drinking a bottle of beer while on the go. Pop into Netto, buy a light Pilsner or dark Dunkelbräu for under €2, then enjoy it while strolling down the street, taking the U-Bahn, or hanging out in the park, anywhere. Berlin has no restrictions on casual public drinking, which is nice for tourists looking for more buzz for their buck.

Take a hike through lush Grunewald Forest. Photo: Rae Allen

7. Get lost in the woods

Although some might think of Berlin as your typical concrete urban jungle, the city is actually one of the greenest in Europe, with 18% of its surface covered in actual forest. If you need a break from big city living, do some wild boar and deer spotting at the two largest forests in the city, Grunewald and Spandauer Forest.

In Grunewald, you can also enjoy a beautiful view over the Havel river and Wannsee from Grunewald Tower (Grunewaldturm) or take a peek at Berlin’s oldest palace, the Renaissance hunting lodge Jagdschloss Grunewald. Spandauer Forest is home to three quagmire wetlands, many rare types of plants and birds and the “ice cellar” (Eiskeller), an area that is sometimes up to 10 degrees colder in the winter than any other part of the city.

You can reach Grunewald from the S-Bahn station Grunewald, and Spandauer Forest from buses such as the M45 leaving from the U/S Bahn station Rathaus Spandau.

8. Picnic in the park

If you’re not sure you want the full-on forest experience, Berlin is also home to hundreds of green spaces where you can relax in the sun with a nice picnic lunch and an inexpensive bottle of wine. Aside from the ever lovely Tiergarten, another great park to check out is Gleisdreieck Park, a relatively newcomer that integrates an old train depot into an urban green space and recreation area. The park also connects Kreuzberg to Potsdamer Platz and the government quarter.

The famous airport-turned-park Tempelhofer Park is a great place to relax with your bargain Fusspils while watching rollerbladers and kite surfers strut their stuff. If you’re spending time in the former East, check out the famous Märchenbrunnen (Fairy Tale Fountain) in Volkspark Friedrichshain.

Related: Explore these four great parks in Berlin

9. Snack on local treats

Stulle is Berliner slang for the simple sandwiches sold at bakeries all over the city, usually made up of a bread roll, lettuce, a tomato slice, and either two cold cuts or cheese. Priced mostly between €2-3, they can be an easy, cheap meal that you can enjoy anywhere.

If you’ve got a sweet tooth, check out Rumkugeln (soft, chocolate cake balls with rum flavoring) or Quarkbällchen (deep fried sweet dough) which both run for about one euro.

Get out and see the city on two wheels for a cheap way to get around. Photo: Craig Nelson

10. Rent bikes a little off the tourist path

Truly a biker’s paradise, one of the best ways to see Berlin is atop a Fahrrad (bicycle). Although you can rent bikes all over the city, you can save a lot by going off the tourist path. While most hotels and hostels will charge you between €12-20 per day to rent a cycle, if you look around neighborhoods like Friedrichshain, Prenzlauerberg, or Kreuzberg, you can definitely find smaller shops charging €8 or less.

M’eierrad in Kreuzberg even offer bikes at the unbelievable price of only €3 a day!

11. Know your classic cheap eats

The most common Berlin cheap eat staples include currywurst, falafel, döner, and, of course, pizza. Although the prices may vary slightly from neighborhood to neighborhood, in most cases they will all cost under €5.

Though the price may stay the same, there is definitely a difference in quality: As a rule of thumb, any Imbiss (snackbar) attached to an U-Bahn or S-Bahn station is likely to be extra greasy. For currywurst, two of the best locations are Curry 36 in Kreuzberg and Konnopke’s in Prenzlauerberg. Two great falafel locations are Dada Falafel in Mitte and Mo’s Kleiner Imbiss in Kreuzberg.

If you’re döner-ed out after a few days, try another Turkish specialty like Pide (diamond shaped bread stuff with meat or feta), Gözleme (filo dough with feta, meat or spinach filling) or Lahmacun (“Turkish” pizza). Other options for cheap eats are burger joints (there lots to choose from in Kreuzberg and Neukölln) and Chinese or Indian restaurants scattered around town.

Go shopping at a Turkish market. Photo: Neil H

12. Shop at local markets

Although some farmer’s markets in Berlin are more upscale, most of them offer fresh produce, meat and fish at reasonable prices. They also usually have a large selection of food stands where you can get a quick lunch for €5 or under.

Most neighborhoods have a traditional Saturday market, but some are also open on Wednesdays, like the Winterfeldt Market on Winterfeldplatz in Schöneberg. For a taste of Turkish Berlin mixed with a nice dose of Berliner hipness, come by the Turkish Market on Maybachufer in Kreuzberg, open Tuesday and Friday from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.

The Marheinike Markthalle in Kreuzberg is an indoor market open every day but Sunday. Although the produce is mostly too expensive for the budget traveler, they have over 10 food stands, including Thai, Greek, a creperie and rotisserie chicken, all at a nice price.

More ways to save in Berlin

Looking for more ways to save when visiting Berlin? Read these articles from our blog, and check out this list of recommended budget hotels.

The post Berlin: 12 simple ways to save big on your trip appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Big shows with hefty price tags, including Patti Smith, Prince, Stevie Wonder, Arcade Fire and more, will hit the capital’s dozens of stages this season. But there are so many smaller and cheaper venues throughout the city that you won’t have a hard time catching up-and-coming acts for little—or even nothing.

Here’s a rundown of our favorite venues that sing the Cheapo tune:

Be Worldly

Housed in a funky 1950s building dubbed the “pregnant oyster” by locals, the Haus der Kulturen der Welt (S-bahn: Hauptbahnhof; U-bahn: Bundestag) hosts dozens of free or inexpensive acts from far-flung corners of the world.

The multi-kulti (German slang for multicultural) Wassermusik Festival (July 22-August 13) features live music outdoors (or, in the case of rain, inside). This year’s theme—the Danube, the Nile and the Amazon—dictates the diverse acts, which hail from Hungary, Peru, Uganda and beyond. Tickets are €10. After the concert, you can take a relaxing—and cost-free—stroll through the expansive Tiergarten park.

Jazz-a-ma-tazz

Berlin’s most famous jazz club, Quasimodo, shuts its doors July and August, but A-Trane (S-bahn: Savingyplatz) and B-Flat (S-bahn: Hackeschermarkt) sweat out the summer. Both venues offer the occasional free concerts; B-Flat shows are rarely more than €10 (€8 if you’re a student).

Open-Air

Berlin’s most beloved summer hangout, Badeshiff (U-bahn: Schlesisches Tor, €4), doubles as a music venue in July and August. Badeschiff is a swimming pool floating atop the Spree River in the funky district of Treptow, just east of bar-lined Kreuzberg. During the day, it’s the place to cool off and recover from a night on the town. After 8 p.m., it’s the place to catch some inexpensive tunes before hitting the bars again. Performers include singer-songwriters and DJs. Shows start at 8 p.m. and cost €4.

If you do feel like shelling out for a full-price concert, check out Comet Club (S-bahn and U-bahn: Schlesisches Tor) for shows under €20 and O2 Welt (S-bahn: Ostbahnhof), Huxelys Neue Welt (U-bahn: Hermannplatz), Arena (S-bahn: Treptower Park) and Magnet Club (U-bahn: Schlesisches Tor) for pricier options.

Don’t forget to check out Zitty, Tip and the English-language Ex-Berliner for comprehensive event listings. If you’re trying to decipher German, look for the word frei (free).

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A network of leafy lanes and avenues perched on a barely perceptible hill (“berg”) just northeast of the center, this district offers such a perfect mix of cafés, restaurants, boutiques and charming architecture that it sometimes has a “this-is-too-good-to-true”, movie-set vibe to it. If Woody Allen were to make a film in Berlin, this is where he’d shoot it.

“Prenzlberg” emerged as a bustling, working class industrial hub in the 19th century—and still has the rows upon rows of (now-restored) tenement houses, complete with ornate stucco details and flower-bedecked balconies, to prove it. Also adding a historic touch are the restored and repurposed red brick factories studding the area. (The Kulturbrauerei cultural center, a former beer brewery, is an essential stop on a tour of the district.)

Ideal city living in the Kollwitzkiez

One century later, the district gained fame as the home base of East Germany’s poets, novelists, dissidents and intellectuals, who gathered around Köllwitzplatz, a triangular park named after the leftist artist and anti-war protestor, Kathe Köllwitz. (Her work is honored over in western Berlin’s Kathe Köllwitz Museum.) The district was grimy then, but the apartment buildings had survived the war relatively unscathed.

Fast forward to this century, and an over-sized bronze statue of Kollwitz is still watching over the park. But now, instead of gray, rundown façades, she faces swing sets and awning-shaded tables marking the cafés and bars along Kollwitz Strasse, Knaack Strasse and Wörther Strasse, the district’s three most genteel streets.

On Saturdays, a market, the Markt am Kollwitzplatz, takes over the square. Overflowing with gourmet food and hand-crafted clothing, it makes this corner of Berlin an urban paradise. After a stroll through the market, it’s practically mandatory to stop at Kaffeehaus SowohlalsAuch, a café-bakery famous for its cakes. Sit outside, even if it’s a bit chilly—blankets draped over the chairs will keep you warm.

This idyllic square is just one indication that this once-rundown neighborhood has morphed into the reunified city’s most appealing “Szeneviertel” (scene). Some Berliners grumble that well-to-do yuppies—many of whom add stylish little tykes to their brood—transformed the once-bohemian, left-leaning district into a pretentious playground for affluent, western German transplants, but the area retains a touch of alluring grittiness, especially along wide avenues like Schönhauser Allee, Prenzlauer Allee and Danziger Strasse.

A laid-back itinerary

The best way to tour the district is to start at the U-Bahn Senerfelder Platz. Walk north on Kollwitz Strasse to reach Kollwitzplatz. Continue north onto Knaack Strasse to reach the Kulturbrauerei (nearby, on Schönhauser Allee 44a, underneath the U-bahn tracks, is the famed Currywurst kiosk, Konnopke’s).

If you have time, keep heading north, across Danziger Strasse, to explore the mellow streets surrounding another classic Prenzlauer Berg square, Helmholzplatz. Bordered by Lynchener Strasse, Raumer Strasse, Duncker Strasse and Lette Strasse, it’s well stocked with shops and café-restaurants.

In addition to the Kulturbraueri, the district’s Cheapo-friendly sights include the redbrick Wasserturm (Watertower, between Knaack Strasse und Belforter Strasse), which served as one of the city’s first concentration camps, and the Jüdischer Friedhof (Jewish Cemetery, Schönhauser Allee 22-23), one of Germany’s largest historic Jewish resting places. The Zeiss Grosplantarium ( Prenzlauer Allee 80) offers inexpensive tours of the stars.

The post Favorite Place in Berlin: Prenzlauer Berg appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.

Keeping warm the glühwein way

For guaranteed warmth, employ our favorite weapon against the cold: Glühwein.

Sold in festive mugs at the city’s dozens of Christmas markets, this spiced, hot wine warms you from the inside out. It costs about €5, including a deposit for the mug. Trust us, however: This giddiness-inducing beverage is worth the splurge. It’s like holiday spirit in a glass.

Our favorite Christmas markets in Berlin

Germany’s capital isn’t as famous as Dresden, Munich, and the Ore Mountains for its annual Christmas markets (roughly late November–Dec. 31; opening times vary), but it doesn’t hurt to check out one or two of the more than 20 markets that spring up in the city every year.

Because most markets are free (or inexpensive) to enter, they’re a Cheapo-friendly way to spend the evening. Snacks, which include sausage roasted over a wood grill, fresh gingerbread, potato pancakes, roasted chestnuts, and much more, won’t break the bank, either. If you’re in the market for gifts, you can often score handcrafted items—from knit scarves and mittens to handmade jewelry—for reasonable prices.

In addition to our three favorite markets, detailed below, check out the Berlin tourist office’s complete list of the city’s 22 markets.

Très Elegant Market: Gendarmenmarkt

The classiest of Berlin’s Christmas markets occupies Gendarmenmarkt (S- and U-bahn: Friedrich Strasse, Brandenburger Tor, €1), an elegant square in Mitte, between Friedrich Strasse and Unter den Linden. Lined with neat rows of pitched white tents adorned with golden lights, the market features craftsmen who produce delicate wooden combs, birdcages, precious stone jewelry, and more on the spot.

Kitschy Fun Market: Winterwelt am Potsdamer Platz

The expansive Winterwelt am Potsdamer Platz (S- and U-bahn: Potsdamer Platz) is stocked with red and white striped stands hawking the usual food and handicrafts. You can also take a twirl on a small iceskating rink (entry is free; ice skate rental is €2.50) or, if you reserve ahead, play a round of “Eisstockbahn,” a wintry version of bowling.

Illuminated with environmentally-friendly LED lights, this market is touristy but atmospheric. Don’t forget to pop into the Sony Center, which is decorated with some 41,000 icy blue lights.

Cozy Market: Lucia Weihnachtsmarkt in der Kulturbrauerei

Nestled in the expansive courtyard of a red brick beer brewery-turned-cultural complex in Prenzlauer Berg, the Lucia Weihnachtsmarkt in der Kulturbrauerei (U-bahn: Eberswalder Str.) is a quaint affair with a Finnish vibe. Look for Finnish Glühwein, honey, and textiles. If you happen to visit on a Sunday, wander over to Kollwitzplatz (Dec. 13 and 20) to check out its small, weekly market, which specializes in organic food and gifts.

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With the oldest of the three, Humboldt, in the midst of a 200th-anniversary celebration, it’s a great time to get in touch with Berlin’s collegiate side. German schools aren’t really known for their wild celebrations, so don’t expect to stumble across raucous soccer matches or wild kegger parties while touring the two most visit-worthy campuses.

Instead, FU and HU boast historic buildings, memorable museums, ultra-contemporary libraries, and tasty, Cheapo-friendly “Mensas” (cafeterias).

Humboldt Universität zu Berlin

Founded in 1810 by the education innovator Alexander von Humboldt, HU is regarded as the first “modern” university because it offered courses in diverse subjects, such as chemistry and physics, in addition to standard classes on the humanities.

Since its debut, the university’s (now faded) halls have hosted dozens of star students and faculty, including the economist Karl Marx, the folklorists Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, the philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel, and the physicist Albert Einstein.

A statue of Humboldt guards the central building (Unter den Linden, S-bahn: Unter den Linden), a gorgeous 19th-century palace on Berlin’s monument-studded main drag, Unter den Linden. After browsing the used book stalls set up in the front yard (Mon.–Sat.), pop inside the entrance hall to marvel at the marble-bedecked East Germany-era staircase. It features a gilded quote by Marx.

Stroll through the back courtyard to reach the university’s newest building. Designed by the Swiss architect Max Dudler, the streamlined Brüder Grimm Zentrum (Brothers Grimm Center, Geschwister-Scholl-Str. 1/3, S/U-bahn: Friedrich Str.) houses the university’s central library.

Freie Universität

Nestled in Dahlem (U-bahn: Dahlem Dorf), a leafy suburb southwest of the center, “the Oxford of Germany” is newer, bigger, and more highly-regarded than Humboldt. In fact, HU is still fuming about the fact that FU beat it out for a spot on the exclusive list of German Centers of Excellence, a distinction awarded to the country’s best schools.

In addition to its trio of fantastic museums—the Asian Art Museum, the Ethnological Museum, and the Museum of European Cultures—FU boasts an impressive library of its own.

Opened in 2005, Sir Norman Foster’s cerebral Philologische Bibliothek (Philological Library, Habelschwerdter Allee 45) is literally shaped like a brain. Step inside the so-called “Berlin Brain” to find a curvaceous central chamber that plays host to nearly a million books.

If you find yourself in need of a study break, head to one of the campuses many Mensas for a cheap and filling meal. The best of the bunch, the bright orange Mensa FU II (Otto-von-Simson-Str. 26), is right next door to the library.

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Here are six of our favorite freebies in the German capital:

The Reichstag

The official seat of the German Parliament, the Reichstag affords you (at no cost!) one of the best views of the city from its famous dome and roof terrace. Wait times can be hefty, so we’ve found it’s best to visit at night (the building stays open until midnight, although the last entry is at 10 PM). Take a quick elevator ride to the top and snap a bunch of photos. A free brochure, available as you enter the building, offers a pictorial guide to the Berlin skyline. (So, that’s the new train station!)

Brandenburg Gate

This majestic gate, called “the trademark of Berlin” by the local authorities, was built by King Wilhelm II in 1788. The Gate has seen a lot. It has survived conquests, bombings, and oppressive regimes. The monument sits at the end of the mighty Unter den Linden, and has recently received a city-sponsored cleaning. We think the best time to view this beauty is at night, when its majesty shines under soft lights.

Checkpoint Charlie

Checkpoint Charlie, the name for the passport control for visitors going between East and West Berlin, is today a major tourist draw. There’s no charge for hanging out next to the original booth once manned by Soviet and American soldiers. Located along busy Friederichstrasse, today guards smile, pose for photos, and answer questions from tourists. Across the street, several creative vendors charge €5 for a “legitimate” stamp for your passport. Ah yes, nostalgia… (Watch out for the Segueways—see photo above.)

The Wall

There are two good spots to see what’s left of the infamous Berlin Wall. The East Side Gallery (in Kreuzberg), where artists like Keith Herring have painted over old pieces of the Wall as part of a public exhibit, is the cheerier of the two locations. This part of the Wall bursts with color, celebrates freedom and shows off the graffiti talents of many Berliners and friends of Berliners. For a more somber and realistic take on the Wall, visit the piece that’s still up near the Topography of Terror exhibit (below), in Mitte near Checkpoint Charlie.

Topography of Terror

OK, it sounds ominous (and well, it is), but this exhibit—in Mitte—is one of the most comprehensive one-stop shops for facing the magnitude of World War II, Berlin’s role in it, and the Holocaust. Placards with black and white photos show Hitler’s rise to power, the resurrection of the Wall, and many more key historical moments. Explanations and timelines accompany the photos and follow a clear path that leads you parallel to old S.S. Nazi police baracks. It’s a tad creepy, if you really let your mind go there. But, well worth a visit.

The Holocaust Memorial

The newly-opened “Monument to the Murdered Jews in Europe,” designed by architect Peter Eisenman, opened in 2005 and consists of 2,711 concrete slabs arranged on sloping ground. Walking through the enormous memorial can be somber, disorienting, and dizzying. An underground information center is open daily (except Monday). The outdoor monument is open and free to the public at all times.

Cheap eats

Berlin is full of cheap eats. You can hardly walk down the street without bumping into a bargain-priced doner-kabap. In any case, save a couple of euros for a good currywurst and Beck’s beer at the end of the day. You’ll need a breather after a day of intense sightseeing.

The post Free things to do in Berlin appeared first on EuroCheapo's Budget Travel Blog.