East Berlin 3-Hour Guided Tour: City of Shadows East Berlin 3-Hour Private Tour: City of Shadows
ID: GYG49735-67180
Category:
Country: Germany
Duration:
03:00 hours
Description
Travel back in time and experience life behind the Iron Curtain on a 3-hour guided tour of East Berlin. Explore some of the monuments still standing from before the fall of the Berlin Wall, such as the “Palace of Tears” and the former HQ of the Stasi.
Take an historical 3-hour tour behind the Iron Curtain and learn about life in East Berlin before the fall of the Berlin Wall.
In the company of an historian guide, you will explore surviving monuments of the East German regime, including the infamous Berlin Wall and Stasi headquarters. Your guide will reveal the links between modern Berlin’s built environment and its dark and hidden history, now shrouded in mystery and nostalgia.
Start at the Brandenburg Gate, near the grandiose monument of the former Soviet Embassy, built from the rubble of World War II as a bold declaration of Stalin’s ambition to control all Berlin. Continue to Friedrichstrasse train station, a key crossing point between East and West Berlin. When families were torn apart by East Germany’s iron¬fisted immigration laws, they said their sad goodbyes in the office known as the “Palace of Tears.”
Farther along, the Berlin Wall memorial allows you to experience the notorious Death Strip, and hear stories of East Berliners whose attempts to escape led to their tragic deaths. At the former Stasi headquarters, you will learn how its feared leader, Eric Mielke, recruited a massive network of spies and created innovative surveillance techniques.
Finally, visit Alexanderplatz, the center of public life in East Berlin, rebuilt in the 1960s. This symbol of East German pride was the setting for the demonstrations that led to the regime’s downfall in 1989, and brought 40 years of Communist rule to an end.
Highlights
- Go behind the Iron Curtain and learn about life in East Berlin before the fall of the wall
- Discover surviving monuments from the Communist regime, including the Stasi headquarters
- Learn about the mass demonstrations that took place in Alexanderplatz
- Visit the mournful the “Palace of Tears” on Friedrichstrasse
- See the memorial to the Berlin Wall
- Marvel at Stalin's grandiose monument to control all of Berlin
Guiding languages
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
• Tour guides are all professors, doctoral students, historians, journalists, art critics or published authors
You are required to bring and wear a mask
You must present either proof of full vaccination, proof of a Covid-19 infection in the past 6 months, or a negative test taken no more than 24 hours before the activity starts
Hotel pick-up and drop-off
When should I book?
To guarantee availability book as soon as possible. Early booking is worth consideration especially if you planning the trip during high season like public holidays or weekends.
Cancellations
This excursion you can cancel with no cost up to 48 hours before the start of the trip. If you cancel it after 48 hours or not show up on the excursion you will still be charged the full price of the activity. Being late on pick-up or departure will be considered as not showing up.
