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Travel Blog

Berlin: A Sample of Nightlife in Germany's Alternative CapiTal

8/7/2015

4 Comments

 
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Tily Travels.
Aaah, Berlin, the land where it makes no sense to enter a club until 1 AM, and where the nightlife is 'life'.
This article is available as a mobile app. Go to GPSmyCity to download the app for GPS-assisted travel directions to the attractions featured in this article.
The one thing that always attracted me to Berlin is the city's vibrant alternative culture, so when in town I tried to visit a variety of different nightclubs and discovered there is something for everyone in Berlin.​
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Tresor sign at the tunnel entrance.

TRESOR

Mitte.
Kopenicker Str. 70, 10179 Berlin, Germany.

tresorberlin.com

My favourite nightclub in Berlin. 
Two words come to mind when thinking about Tresor: Techno & Viking. This venue is everything I ever imagined I'd find in Berlin and then some. Set in an abandoned power plant and over two rooms, Tresor plays a mixture of House and Experimental Electro upstairs, and the crazy Industrial Techno downstairs in the main room; a caged vault accessed via a 30-meter tunnel. 

We went there on a Friday night and had a great time. I didn't want to leave! Entry was 10 euros, and regardless of their bar-token system (where if you return your glass to the bar staff you get 50c back), the drinks are cheap, priced around 3-4 euros. Apart from sitting in the cubbies upstairs at the Globus bar to chill out for a while, we spent most of our time downstairs in the vault. The sound in this room is incredible, as you enter it smacks you in the face.

If you're unsuccessful at Berghain, Tresor is the perfect alternative, and somewhere I plan on returning to each time I am in the city.​
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Globus bar/ Tresor - Tily Travels.
with Paul upstairs at Globus Bar.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Tresor vault - Tily Travels.
Tresor Vault/ Main Room.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Tresor vault - Tily Travels.
Tresor Vault/ Main Room.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Inside the Tresor vault - Tily Travels.
with Paul, Vault/ Main Room.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Tresor vault - Tily Travels.
Tresor Vault/ Main Room.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Tresor stamp - Tily Travels.
Tresor stamp. "Your luck."

WATERGATE

Mitte.
Falckensteinstrasse 49, 10997 Berlin, Germany.
water-gate.de
Watergate is a split levelled, two-roomed nightclub overlooking the River Spree and considered one of the most prominent electronic venues in Berlin. In comparison to the City's other clubs, Watergate is very stylish in design and is known for its wall to wall LED light installation covering the main dancefloor. 

We arrived at the club around 4 AM. Watergate is rumoured to be quite hard to get in to. However, there was no line out the front, and we gained admission easily. Entry was 15 euros. The main floor upstairs was busy, so we headed downstairs to the Waterfloor and met up other travel buddies. There were plenty of available couches downstairs, and since Tresor got the best of Paul earlier in the evening, he sat on a lounge the rest of the night while I ordered shots and danced on the dance floor with the others.

Progressive, deep house and minimal techno tunes play on the Waterfloor and dancier, fluffy house, dance and trance tracks play upstairs in the main room (which is tiny.) 
 
They have a strict no photo policy. If you even attempt it, you'll have a security guard waving his hands blocking your photo within a second, so I didn't get any photos of our Watergate adventures, only a picture from outside.

I enjoyed this venue. It was among the three clubs recommended to me (along with Tresor and Berghain) and did not disappoint. 
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Main room at Watergate - Tily Travels.
Watergate, main room - Photo via Pinterest.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Outside Watergate - Tily Travels.
Outside Watergate.

CASSIOPEIA

Friedrichshain.
Revaler Str. 99, 10245 Berlin, Germany.
cassiopeia-berlin.de
This venue is all sorts of amazing. Set in an old, multi-level industrial hall, Cassiopeia is an alternative clubber's playground. Beer garden's, a skate park, open-air cinema and rock climbing tower all feature outside while inside holds two floors which play a variety of music depending on what night of the week you go. Reggae, Dancehall, Trap, Funk, Soul, Jazz, hip-hop, punk & heavy metal to name a few.

Of all night's I went on a Tuesday - 80's/90's pop night. YAY!! (internal screams) however, luckily it was toward the end of our night, and I had shifted into sing-a-long mode, so the Spice Girls and Backstreet Boys were probably just what this drunk girl needed at the time.

Even though I wasn't a fan of the music, this venue was insane, and I'm looking forward to going back to Cassiopeia (on a different night of the week) and seeing what else it has to offer.

Australia needs a venue like this!
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Cassiopeia - Tily Travels.
Cassiopeia cinema, climbing wall and beer garden. Photo via top10berlin.de
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Cassiopeia dancefloor - Tily Travels.
Cassiopeia downstairs dancefloor.

COOKIES

Mitte.
Friedrichstrasse 158, 10117 Berlin, Germany.
(Corner Unter Den Linden & Friedrichstraße)
cookies.ch
A two roomed venue complete with a wedding chapel and sex room. What more could you need?... (Possibly a hazmat suit!?)

Upon entry we entered the smaller room, hip-hop & R&B was playing and the room was packed with people. We stupidly thought that this was the only room for about 10 minutes until the glisten on the wedding chapel caught my eye, the sex room caught the guys' eyes, and we all made off to investigate. I didn't peak in the room labelled "sex" for fear that what could have been seen, could not be unseen. However, the boys tell me it was pretty tame, filled with couches and beds. â€‹
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Wedding chapel at Cookies - Tily Travels.
Quicky proposal in the Chapel.
Once going upstairs we found the main (and larger room) and spent the rest of the night in there. Techno, House and Electro played as we all drank like fish while dancing and laughing the night away.

The only thing I disliked about Cookies was having my camera taken by a patron; They handed it back to the bar, however, stole my memory card, so I lost a lot of Berlin memories.

Unfortunately, Cookies has closed.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Upstairs at Cookies - Tily Travels.
Upstairs/ the main room.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - at Cookies - Tily Travels.
Frankie, Mark & James.

MATRIX

Friedrichshain.
Warschauer Pl. 18, 10245 Berlin, Germany.
matrix-berlin.de
I'd heard many good things about this club and was keen to check it out so went here on my last night in Berlin with my friend Amanda. I probably should have researched as this nightclub was not what I expected. 
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - at Matrix with Amanda - Tily Travels.
On the dance floor with Amanda.
The club attracts a young crowd, and the music was very poppy/ top 40's dance. However, the nightclub is located only 1-minute walk from Plus Hostel, Amanda's accommodation, so we decided to stick it out. Once the Jagerbombs started flowing the music became more bearable, and we had a great night.

​If I was under 20, I would probably love this club, but as for now I probably wouldn't head back here again unless I had to.​
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - at Matrix with Amanda - Tily Travels.
with Amanda.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Matrix sign - Tily Travels.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - with Yoav at Matrix - Tily Travels.
with Yoav - Kept running in to him everywhere.

A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Berghain - Tily Travels.
Berghain - Photo via Wikipedia.

BERGHAIN

Friedrichshain.
Am Wriezener Bahnhof, 10243 Berlin, Germany.
berghain.de
This Techno Institution and one of the world's most famous nightclubs; made infamous by their doorman, Sven Marquardt, would have to be one of, if not the, hardest club to get into in the world. On the night we tried some punters didn't even get within 20 meters of the front door before being hand motioned to turn around and not even bother.

Due to bad planning and no research, we arrived at Berghain approx 1 AM on Monday morning; 5 hours before they closed. Our group of 9 split up immediately. We tried. We all failed. The first three rejected, myself and Paul failed, another three then dismissed. The worse thing was we didn't even get rejected by Sven, it was his night off work, and we dealt with one of his short, bald henchmen instead. 
Bayden, the most "German" looking of all of us was the last to attempt. He managed to get more than the word "no" out of the doorman and was told if we had have arrived at 9 pm we would have been let in.  

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to try my luck again at Berghain as I left Berlin before the club opened the following weekend.

Next time, Gadget!
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Inside Berghain - Tily Travels.
Photo via Pinterest.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - No photos sign at Berghain - Tily Travels.
No Photos.

DRUIDE

Prenzlauer Berg.
Schonhauser Allee 42, 10435 Berlin, Germany.
druide_bar.com
Absinthe, Absinthe, Abssnnthhpf. Druide can be a hazardous place if you're not careful. The venue is small. However, the menu is vast. They carry the largest selection of Absinthe in Europe, with 170 different types on offer. They also have a mighty list of 300 cocktails on their menu, as well as standard mixers and beer. All of which are all available half price during 'happy hour' which runs from 6 pm - 9 pm daily. With plenty of comfy couches and seating around (which is probably exactly what you're going to need), Druide is a great place to start (or completely obliterate) your night.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Absinth shots at Druide - Tily Travels.
Absinthe shots.

DR. PONG

Prenzlauer Berg.
Eberswalder Str. 21, 10437 Berlin, Germany
drpong.net
The most random establishment I have ever walked into. - A dive bar! - The drinks were served in plastic cups, and the venue was very basic (almost fashionably derelict/ derelict) with one ping pong table in the front room, a foosball table and a bar with salvaged second-hand or third-hand (probably fourth-hand) sofas in the back room, and graffiti/ tags covering some walls.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Table tennis Dr Pong - Tily Travels.
Table tennis at Dr Pong.
You place a 5 euro deposit on a paddle to play table tennis (ping pong). All waiting players simultaneously walk around the table taking turns hitting the ball back and forth - you miss you're out. The final two competitors aim to be the first to reach 10 points and, therefore, be crowned the winner. 

YESTERDAY BAR

Prenzlauer Berg.
Metzer Str. 2, 10405 Berlin, Germany.
yesterdayberlin.wix.com
Yesterday bar is an excellent little place only a short walk from Senefelderplatz U-Bahn station, and just down the road from my accommodation at Wombats City Hostel, Berlin. Heavily decorated with 60's & 70's pop culture and memorabilia, this bar was very kitsch but very, very cool. I went during the week, and it wasn't busy, so there were plenty of places to sit, chat and enjoy a drink.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Yesterday Bar - Tily Travels.
Yesterday Bar.
60's, 70's and 80's rock was playing which was a nice change considering how many dance clubs are around.

LAST CATHEDRAL

Mitte.
Schonhauser Allee 5, 10119 Berlin, Germany

lastcathedral.com
Walking into this heavily themed Goth bar was like walking into a Vampires Lair. As you head down the stairs, you enter a room styled with antique gothic-style furniture, coffin-shaped tables, beer taps adorned with skulls and an oddly attractive goth bartender. I went mid-week, so the club was practically empty when we arrived. However, it was only 11:30 PM and seeing as going to a club before midnight in Berlin is considered a no-no, the place could have picked up after we left.
A Sample of Nightlife in Berlin - Last Cathedral - Tily Travels.
Last Cathedral.
After learning that Last Cathedral is part-owned by Rammstein, I really would have liked to have seen what it is like on the weekend. â€‹

This article is available as a mobile app. Go to GPSmyCity to download the app for GPS-assisted travel directions to the attractions featured in this article.

Alternative Berlin's 666 Anti Pub Crawl, Germany.
​BARS & NIGHTLIFE BERLIN
Alternative Berlin's 666 Anti Pub Crawl.
YAAM, the Young African Arts Market, Berlin, Germany.
BARS & NIGHTLIFE MARKETS BERLIN
YAAM, The Young African Arts Market.



4 Comments
Mathilde link
12/11/2018 12:51:30 pm

I love Berlin ! It's often underrated. It's a pity! It's one of the city in the world I would like to live in

Reply
Natalie Marie link
17/7/2019 05:05:59 am

Hi Mathilde,
Same, I could also live there easily. I love Berlin, one of my favourite cities in Europe :)

Reply
Gary Greenbaum link
14/7/2019 05:31:53 pm

Wow! this is a very helpful tip sis! :) I'm going to note all of this down.. :)

Reply
Natalie Marie link
17/7/2019 05:03:27 am

Hi Gary,
Glad you found the information insightful. Have a great time in Berlin! :)

Reply

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