Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [87]
* * *
Still, Charlottenburg’s long-time draws are in no danger of disappearing. Catch a cabaret at Bar jeder Vernunft, Anna Netrebko at the Deutsche Oper or international jazz greats at A-Trane. Shopaholics can get their kicks on Kurfürstendamm, ‘royal’ groupies continue to delight in Schloss Charlottenburg and, though now fully grown, polar bear Knut still delights visitors with his antics at the Berlin Zoo. City planners are also keeping their fingers crossed that Great Wheel Berlin, the world’s largest Ferris wheel, which is expected to go live in 2010, will retrain some of the spotlight on Charlottenburg.
SCHLOSS CHARLOTTENBURG
The grandest of Berlin’s surviving nine former royal pads is Schloss Charlottenburg (Charlottenburg Palace; Map; 320 911; www.spsg.de; Spandauer Damm; day pass adult/concession €12/9; Richard-Wagner-Platz, then 145). It consists of the main palace and two outbuildings in the lovely Schlossgarten (palace park). Each building charges separate admission, but it’s best to invest in the Tageskarte that gives you an entire day to see everything except the Neuer Flügel (New Wing). Come early on weekends and in summer. A palace visit is easily combined with a spin around the trio of nearby museums, described below.
The Schloss began as the summer residence of Sophie Charlotte, wife of King Friedrich I. Their baroque living quarters in the palace’s oldest section, the Altes Schloss (Old Palace; 320 911; adult/concession incl guided tour or audioguide €10/7; 10am-6pm Tue-Sun Apr-Oct, to 5pm Nov-Mar), are an extravaganza in stucco, brocade and overall opulence. Highlights include the Oak Gallery, a wood-panelled festival hall draped in family portraits; the lovely Oval Hall with views of the gardens; Friedrich I’s bedchamber, with the first-ever bathroom in a baroque palace; and the fabulous Porcelain Chamber, smothered top to bottom in Chinese and Japanese blue ware. Head upstairs to admire the paintings, vases, tapestries, weapons, porcelain and other items essential to a royal lifestyle in the old apartments of Friedrich Wilhelm IV.
The most beautiful rooms, though, are the flamboyant private chambers of Frederick the Great in the Neuer Flügel ( 320 911; adult/concession incl audioguide €6/5; 10am-6pm Wed-Mon Apr-Oct, to 5pm Nov-Mar), designed by star architect du jour Georg Wenzeslaus von Knobelsdorff in 1746. The austere neoclassical ones of his successor, Friedrich Wilhelm II, in the same wing, pale in comparison.
Adjacent to the Neuer Flügel, the Schinkel-designed Neuer Pavillon (New Pavilion; 3209 1443; call for hrs and admission costs) served as a summer retreat of Friedrich Wilhelm III and now houses paintings from the Romantic and Biedermeier periods. Closed for renovation during our visit, it should have reopened by the time you’re reading this.
In fine weather, a spin around the sprawling Schlossgarten (palace park) with its shady walkways, flower beds and manicured lawns is a must. In the northeast corner, you’ll stumble upon the pint-size palace called Belvedere ( 3909 1445; adult/concession €3/2.50; 10am-6pm Tue-Sun Apr-Oct, noon-4pm Tue-Sun Nov-Mar), now an elegant setting for porcelain masterpieces by the royal manufacturer KPM.
Across the carp pond awaits the sombre Mausoleum ( 3209 1446); adult/concession €2/1.50; 10am-5pm Tue-Sun Apr-Oct), where various royals, including Emperor Wilhelm I and his wife, are entombed in fancy marble sarcophagi.
SCHLOSS AREA MUSEUMS
South of the palace, the Museum Berggruen (Map; 3269 5815; www.smb.museum/mb; Schlossstrasse 1; adult/concession/under 16yr €8/4/free, last 4hr Thu free; 10am-6pm Tue-Sun) exhibits major classical modern art with a special focus on Picasso,