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The Spree beside the Bode-Museum on Museum Island, with an ICE train crossing the Stadtbahn bridge, the Fernsehturm and the Rotes Rathaus behind

Where to stay in Berlin

Photo: Roy Zuo, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Places to stay in Berlin

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About Berlin

Berlin charges a City Tax of 7.5% on the price of every paid overnight stay of less than six months, business trips included. Holiday flats must show a district registration number in the listing, and street parking in the inner districts is paid by the hour in zones set by each district.

Germany. Guide last checked .

Facts and rules

Last checked . Each fact links to its source.

Airport
Berlin Brandenburg (BER) in Schönefeld, 18 km south-east of the city centre and about 26 km by road from the Brandenburg Gate. Source
City Tax
7.5% of the price of a paid overnight stay, without VAT and without other services such as breakfast. The lodging business owes it and may pass it on in the price. Business stays are taxed since 1 April 2024. Source
Long stays and the City Tax
The tax covers lodging made available for less than six months. The old exemption for stays of more than 21 days ended on 1 January 2025. Source
VAT on lodging
7% on rooms let for short-term stays; other services in the price, such as breakfast, stay at the standard 19%. Source
Holiday flats
Letting housing as a holiday flat needs a district permit, and every listing must show the district registration number. A whole main residence can be let while the occupant is away; a second home normally on at most 90 days a year. Source
Fines on hosts
EUR 1,500 to 2,500 per flat per month for a holiday let without a permit, EUR 1,000 for an advert without a valid registration number, EUR 2,000 when repeated, and up to EUR 500,000 in serious cases. Source
Registration form
Foreign guests in hotels and other commercial lodging sign a registration form on the day of arrival and show a valid passport or identity document; the form can also be completed electronically. Source
Residence registration
Anyone who moves into a flat registers within 14 days. Someone who lives abroad and stays in Berlin at most three months does not have to. Source
Parking zones
Paid street parking in zones set by each district, with fees and hours on the Senate geoportal; Handyparken by app, SMS or call. Resident permits need a registration in the zone, and guest permits are issued only in individual cases. Source
Entry
No visa for UK and US citizens: up to 90 days in any 180-day period. EU citizens move freely. Source
Schengen border
90 days in any 180 across the Schengen area. The EU Entry/Exit System has been fully operational since 10 April 2026. Source
Currency
Euro (EUR). Source
Emergency numbers
112 for ambulance and fire, 110 for the police. Source

Areas of Berlin

Mitte seen from Fischerinsel: the Spree and Mühlendamm bridge, St. Nicholas Church, the Rotes Rathaus, the Fernsehturm and Berlin Cathedral in evening sun
Photo: ArildV, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Mitte

The historic centre of old Berlin, with Museum Island, St. Mary's Church, the Rotes Rathaus, the Fernsehturm and the Brandenburg Gate on Unter den Linden. It suits a first visit on foot and short trips built around the museums and sights.

BER airport
about 25 km
Brandenburg Gate
about 2 km

Car and parking

Paid zones cover the centre: EUR 4 an hour, Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 22:00, around Alexanderplatz and Unter den Linden, where parking near the Gendarmenmarkt is limited to four hours; around Hackescher Markt EUR 4 an hour every day, 9:00 to 24:00. It is the only zone in Mitte that charges on Sundays (via GetCar).

Cobbled crossing of Wörther Straße and Rykestraße in Prenzlauer Berg, with tenement blocks, autumn trees and cars parked along the kerb
Photo: Helge Høifødt, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Prenzlauer Berg

The southern and most urban part of the borough of Pankow, once home to East Berlin's counterculture and a site of the 1989 peaceful revolution, since gentrified. It suits a quieter base in flats north of Mitte.

BER airport
about 27 km
Brandenburg Gate
about 5 km

Car and parking

The Pankow zones around Kollwitzplatz, Helmholtzplatz and the Mauerpark charge EUR 2 to 3 an hour, Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 24:00, according to the Senate geoportal.

The red-brick Oberbaum Bridge over the Spree seen from the east, with warehouse buildings on the Friedrichshain bank under a cloudy sky
Photo: Lukas Beck, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Friedrichshain

A former East Berlin district named after the Volkspark Friedrichshain, bordering Mitte, Prenzlauer Berg, Kreuzberg and Lichtenberg, and counted among the city's trendy districts. It suits nightlife and a younger trip.

BER airport
about 23 km
Brandenburg Gate
about 6 km

Car and parking

The zone around Boxhagener Platz and Ostkreuz charges EUR 4 an hour, Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 24:00; the geoportal shows no paid zone at Frankfurter Tor on Karl-Marx-Allee.

The Landwehr Canal in Kreuzberg looking west from Mehringbrücke, with apartment buildings on the left and the elevated U-Bahn line on the right
Photo: Leonhard Lenz, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Kreuzberg

The half of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg south of Mitte, one of West Berlin's poorest areas in the Cold War and now known for its arts scene and a large community of Turkish descent. It suits food, bars and street life.

BER airport
about 23 km
Brandenburg Gate
about 5 km

Car and parking

The zones around Bergmannstraße and Görlitzer Park charge EUR 4 an hour and those around Oranienstraße EUR 3, all Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 22:00, according to the Senate geoportal.

Charlottenburg Palace with its green dome and gilded railings, seen across the cobbled forecourt under a clear sky
Photo: Michielverbeek, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Charlottenburg

A town founded in 1705 and part of Berlin since 1920, best known for Charlottenburg Palace, the largest surviving royal palace in the city, and its museums. It suits shopping on the Kurfürstendamm and a West Berlin base.

BER airport
about 31 km
Brandenburg Gate
about 7 km

Car and parking

The lowest rates of the six areas: EUR 2 an hour around Savignyplatz and the Kurfürstendamm, Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 22:00, and around the palace, Monday to Friday 9:00 to 20:00 and Saturday to 18:00.

A tree-lined cobbled street in Böhmisch-Rixdorf by Richardplatz in Neukölln, with cars parked along it and low houses under lime trees
Photographed in 2020. Photo: Rainer Halama, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Neukölln

The inner-city quarter that grew around the village of Rixdorf, with 163,184 inhabitants in 2026, shaped by workers and immigrants and now by a younger culture and nightlife. It suits a longer, local stay and the shortest drive from BER.

BER airport
about 19 km
Brandenburg Gate
about 8 km

Car and parking

The zones near Hermannplatz, the Maybachufer and Weserstraße charge EUR 4 an hour, Monday to Friday 9:00 to 20:00, with Saturdays free; the geoportal shows no paid zone around Richardplatz.

Guides

Questions

How much is the City Tax in Berlin?

7.5% of the price of the overnight stay, without VAT and without extras such as breakfast. It applies to private and business stays alike, and since 1 January 2025 there is no exemption for stays of more than 21 days.

How can a guest check that a Berlin holiday flat is legal?

The listing must show the registration number issued by the district office, 17 characters of numbers, letters and special characters. Hotels and guesthouses that give their company details do not need one.

Where can a guest park in central Berlin?

In the paid zones, at the machine or by Handyparken. In Mitte most central zones charge EUR 4 an hour, Monday to Saturday 9:00 to 22:00, and the Senate issues guest parking permits only in individual cases.

Do UK and US visitors need a visa for Berlin?

No. They can stay up to 90 days in any 180 across the Schengen area, and the EU Entry/Exit System, fully operational since 10 April 2026, records their fingerprints and photo at the border.