The western suburbs - The Rough Guide to Berlin - page 150

original Checkpoint Charlie booth is kept, and the verdant woodlands of the
Grunewald , which eventually reach the banks of the huge Havel lake. Here, the Wannsee
bay is famed for its large sand beach as well as for being the location of the Wannsee
villa , where a Nazi conference sealed the fate of millions of Jews. At the northern end of
the Havel, where it joins the Spree, lies Spandau , where the small-town feel is enhanced
by the presence of its Zitadelle , one of the world's best-preserved Renaissance forts.
ARRIVAL AND GETTING AROUND
Thanks to the e cient U- and S-Bahn systems, it's possible to reach Berlin's western edges in 45min, but once there the
main form of public transport is often the bus - the double-deckers are great for sightseeing.

10

The Westend The Westend is well served by trains,
though buses rival them for speed and reveal a lot more of
the city on the way. From Bahnhof Zoo #M49 heads to the
Funkturm, then on to Theodor-Heuss-Platz before heading
along Heerstrasse to S-Bahn Heerstrasse for the Georg-
Kolbe-Museum, and on to the Flatowallee stop for the
Olympic stadium. From there you have a choice of U- and
S-Bahn stations to whizz you back into the centre.
The Wannsee Most destinations around the Wannsee are
best reached by public transport from S-Bahn Wannsee,
from where various buses radiate. The sole exception is the

Strandbad Wannsee which is a 10min walk from S-Bahn
Nikolassee, one stop earlier on the line from central Berlin.
Cross the main road outside S-Bahn Wannsee and you're a
couple of minutes' walk through a park away from regular
ferries (which are part of the BVG public transport system
and included in the price of a BVG day-ticket) to Alt-Kladow
on the opposite side of the lake.
Spandau The hourly ferry across the Havel, linked with
bus #X34 or #134 from Alt-Kladow, also makes a
picturesque way of getting to Spandau.

Schloss Charlottenburg
Spandauer Damm 10-22 • The various parts of the Schloss can be visited and paid for separately, but combined day tickets are the best
value (€16), if you wish to see all of it • T 030 32 09 11, W spsg.de • U-Richard-Wagner-Platz or bus #M45 from Bahnhof Zoo
Commissioned as a country house by the future Queen Sophie Charlotte in 1695 (she
also gave her name to the district), Schloss Charlottenburg was expanded and added to
throughout the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries to provide a summer residence
for the Prussian kings; master builder Karl Friedrich Schinkel (see p.57) provided the
final touches. Approaching the sandy elaborateness of the Schloss through the main
courtyard, you're confronted with Andreas Schlüter's statue of Friedrich Wilhelm, the
Great Elector, cast as a single piece in 1700. It's in superb condition, despite (or perhaps
because of ) spending the war years sunk at the bottom of the Tegeler See for safekeeping.

Altes Schloss
Tues-Sun: April-Oct 10am-6pm; Nov-March 10am-5pm; guided tours only (in German), last tour 1hr before close, free English audio-
guides available • €12, €16 combined ticket for all of Schloss Charlottenburg attractions
Immediately behind the statue of Friedrich Wilhelm is the entrance to the Altes
Schloss (Old Palace), which includes the apartment of Friedrich Wilhelm IV and the
Baroque rooms of Friedrich I and Sophie Charlotte. To see these you're obliged to go
on the conducted tour , which traipses through increasingly sumptuous chambers and
bedrooms, filled with gilt and carvings. Look out for the porcelain room , packed to the
ceiling with china, and the chapel , which includes a portrait of Sophie Charlotte as the
Virgin ascending to heaven.

Neuer Flügel
Wed-Mon: April-Oct 10am-6pm; Nov-March 10am-5pm • €8 including audio-guide, €16 combined ticket for all of Schloss
Charlottenburg attractions
It's just as well to remember that much of the Schloss is in fact a fake: a reconstruction
following wartime damage. his is most apparent in the Knobelsdorff-designed Neuer
Flügel (New Wing) to the right of the Schloss entrance as you face it; the upper rooms,
such as the elegantly designed Golden Gallery, are too breathlessly perfect, the result of