Identity card
Area code 49 (Germany), 30 (Berlin)
Time difference : none
How to get there
AirBerlin The second German airline, founded in 1978 in Berlin, operates 12 flights a week from Paris with fares starting at e44.99. Although the on-board service remains simple, newspapers are distributed free of charge. From 2012, it will finally be possible to collect miles as airberlin plans to join the Oneworld alliance. At present, the company offers its own topbonus programme, in addition to a solution for businesses.
Tel. : 0 826 967 378
Internet : www.airberlin.com
Lufthansa : The German airline offers 9 weekly flights from Paris.
Tel. : 0 892 231 690
Internet : www.lufthansa.com
Air France : The French carrier operates 29 flights a week from Paris.
Tel. : 36 54
Internet : www.airfrance.com
Easy Jet : The low-cost carrier offers 14 weekly flights.
Tel. : 0 899 65 00 11
Internet : www.easyjet.com
Hotels
Concorde hotel Berlin : The Concorde Berlin is truly a hotel designed for business travellers. Internet access is free; the business centre is open day and night, and the sixteen meeting rooms can be used to organise all kinds of events. The Club Étoile, on the 10th floor, offers secretarial and concierge services. Guests on the "executive benefit from a priority check-in/check-out service. The hotel, which opened five years ago, offers 311 rooms, including 44 suites. Trendy restaurants and boutiques, as well as extravagant architectural projects, flourish just a stone's throw away. The Ku'damm district, "showcase for the West which was shunned just after reunification, celebrates its 125th anniversary this year and is regaining its former prestige.
Augsburger Strasse 41
Tel. : + 49 30 800 999 0
Fax : + 49 30 800 999 99
Internet : www.berlin.concorde-hotels.com
Adlon Kempinski The Adlon Kempinski: If there's a legendary palace in Berlin, it's the Adlon Kempinski, whose windows open directly onto the Brandenburg Gate. This elegant 1900s building is one of the city's four Leading Hotels of the World.
Unter den Linden 77
Tel. : + 49 30 2261 0
Fax : + 49 30 2261 222
E-mail : hotel.adlon@kempinski.com
Internet : www.kempinski.com/en/berlin/hotel-adlon/
Other major business hotels
Grand Hyatt Berlin
Marlene-Dietrich-Platz 2
Tel. :+ 49 30 25 53 12 34
Fax : + 49 30 25 53 12 35
E-mail : berlin.grand@hyatt.com
Internet berlin.grand.hyatt.com
Swissôtel Berlin
Augsburger Straße 44
Tel. : + 49 30 220 10 0
Fax : + 49 30 220 10 2222
E-mail : berlin@swissotel.com
Internet : www.swissotel.com/berlin
Intercontinental Berlin
Budapester Straße 2
Tel. : + 49 30 2602 0
Fax : + 49 30 2602 2600
Internet : www.berlin.intercontinental.com
Hilton Berlin
Mohrenstraße 30
Tel. : + 49 30 20230
Fax : + 49 30 2023 4269
Internet : www.hiltonhotels.com/fr_FR
Kempinski Bristol Berlin
Kurfürstendamm 27
Tel. : + 49 30 8843 40
Fax : + 49 30 883 6075
E-mail : reservations.bristol@kempinski.com
Internet : www.kempinskiberlin.de
The Westin Grand Berlin
Friedrichstraße 158-164
Tel. : + 49 30 20270
Fax : + 49 30 20273362
E-mail : info@Westin-Grand.com
Internet : www.starwoodhotels.com
Sofitel Berlin Gendarmenmarkt
Charlottenstraße 50-52
Tel. : + 49 30 203 750
Fax : + 49 30 203 75100
E-mail : h5342@sofitel.com
Internet : www.sofitel.com
Budget hotels
Motel One The German hotel chain, launched in 2002, is expanding at breakneck speed in the capital, where it will soon have eight establishments. The concept: very, very low prices (from €59 for a single room), a recognisable design spirit and strategic locations, such as Alexander Platz, Potsdamer Platz and Ku'Damm, with a unit waiting to open near the main railway station.
Motel One Ku'Damm - Kantstraße 7 - 11a
Tel. : + 49 30 315 17 36 0
Fax : + 49 30 315 17 36 10
E-mail : berlin-kudamm@motel-one.com
Internet : www.motel-one.com
Arte Luise Kunsthotel Art Hotel: This unusual and very Berlin-style "art hotel", whose windows look like framed paintings, is housed in a palace dating from 1825. Each room has been designed by a different artist. All good value for money. To the east of the city, in the former Jewish quarter of Oranienburg, now an alternative district.
Luisenstraße 19
Tel. : + 49 30 28 448 0
Fax : + 49 30 28448 448
E-mail : info@luise-berlin.com
Internet : www.luise-berlin.com
Conference centre
Messe Berlin GMBH The 26 halls of the Berlin Exhibition Centre are the capital's largest trade fair and congress venue. The venue is directly linked to the ICC Berlin congress centre, with its 80 conference rooms for up to 5,000 participants.
Messedamm 22
Tel. : + 49 30 3038 0
Fax : + 49 30 3038 2325
E-mail : central@messe-berlin.de or icc-berlin-sales@messe-berlin.de
Internet : www.messe-berlin.de or www.icc-berlin.de
Restaurants
TV Turm Alexanderplatz The restaurant on the famous television tower may not be the best restaurant in town, but it's certainly the highest in Berlin. On the menu: venison from the surrounding forests, as well as perch fillets from nearby lakes, and above all a 360° view. Breathtaking.
Panoramastraße 1a
Tel. : +49 30 24 75 75 0
Fax : + 49 30 242 59 22
E-mail : info@tv-turm.de or reservierung@tv-turm.de
Internet : www.tv-turm.de
Dressler This gourmet brasserie evokes the atmosphere of 1930s Berlin, Art Deco and cosy. The cuisine is an interesting and refined Franco-German fusion. There is also another Dressler restaurant in the Charlottenburg district.
Unter den Linden 39
Tel. : + 49 30 204 44 22
Fax : + 49 30 204 50 659
E-mail : info@restaurantdressler.de
Internet : www.restaurant-dressler.de
Information
Berlin Tourismus & Kongress : The Berlin Convention and Visitors Bureau has a detailed, multilingual website.
Am Karlsbad 11
Tel. : + 49 30 25 00 25
E-mail : info@visitberlin.de
Internet : www.visitBerlin.de
Berlinonline: Official website of the city of Berlin
Karl-Liebknecht-Straße 29
E-mail : info@berlin.de
Internet : www.berlin.de
Berlin Partner A body designed to encourage new businesses to set up in Berlin.
Fasanenstraße 85
Tel. : + 49 30 39980 0
Fax : + 49 30 39980 23
E-mail : internet@berlin-partner.de
Internet : www.berlin-partner.de
Industrie Und Handelskammer Berlin The Berlin Chamber of Commerce and Industry also offers advice on setting up a business.
Fasanenstraße 85
Tel. : + 49 30 315 10 0
Fax : + 49 30 315 10 166
E-mail : service@berlin.ihk.de
Internet : www.ihk-berlin.de
Ubifrance Germany
Königsallee 53-55 - Düsseldorf
Tel. : + 49 211 300 41 0
Fax : + 49 211 300 41 177
Internet : www.botschaft-frankreich.de
Franco-German Chamber of Commerce
18, rue Balard - 75015 Paris
Tel. : 01 40 58 35 35
Fax : 01 45 75 47 39
E-mail : info@francoallemand.com
Internet : www.francoallemand.com
Practical Guide
Berlin Cartoville Gallimard (2011): admittedly, it doesn't contain many addresses, but the concept is very useful, as the whole city is laid out in several maps that you can keep in your pocket. What's more, the latest 2011 version has just been published in January.
Berlin, Wallpaper City GuidePhaidon (2011): the latest version of this fabulous little guide has just been published in English! The French version dates from 2007, but is still very much up to date.
Berlin, Petit Futé (2011-2012) : Le Petit Futé has also just released its updated version of the City Guide Berlin. With a detachable map to boot.
Berlin Top 10, Hachette (2010): the new version, published in summer 2010, provides an overview of the city's must-see places, by theme and district, with lots of illustrations. The clever feature is the map of the metro integrated into the hardback cover.
Berlin Evasion, Hachette (2010): one of the few guides to offer, in addition to a handful of good addresses, easy-to-follow walking routes that allow you to really get to grips with the city. The small detachable map is very practical.
Berlin, Lonely Planet (2009): a comprehensive guide, district by district, with a detailed section on the history of the city. A detachable map is also included.
Berlin Week-End, the Michelin Green Guide (2009): the weekend version of the Green Guide is concise and easy to carry, with good addresses, a few "starred sites" and a detachable map.
