Full steam ahead for Berlin’s ‘new centre’ – with three new metro stations and many venues opening in the city’s cultural heartland. When planning an event here, you can choose from a wealth of truly exceptional locations. These are our Top 5 for 2021!
Berlin’s special character? Everything new and different – yet still packed with history. And that is much in evidence in the congress capital’s new, old centre with historic locations given a makeover and everything conveniently connected by a new metro line. Once terminating at Alexanderplatz, the U5 metro line has now been extended to the Rote Rathaus city hall, the Unter den Linden boulevard and, sind 9 July 2021, the Museum Island. An ideal time for event planners to hold an event in Berlin’s new centre!
Outdoors – yet in the heart of the city. On the site of Berlin’s former City Palace, the stunning design of the new Humboldt Forum incorporates three impressive spaces for open-air events. Set at the heart of the Humboldt Forum, the Schlüterhof courtyard is inspired by baroque architecture and named after Andreas Schlüter, the City Palace’s original architect. The Passage, the second internal public space, combines elements of the baroque and contemporary and connects the southern Schlossplatz square with the Lustgarten to the north. The Spree Terraces rise from the riverbank directly at the waterside – a perfect place to relax and enjoy. Officially inaugurated on 9 June 2021, these three new urban spaces are open to the public twenty-four hours a day.
The James Simon Gallery is the Museum Island’s new entrance complex. Designed by David Chipperfield Architects, it is named after James Simon, one of the most important patrons of Berlin’s museums. Until 12 September 2021, this venue is hosting the first major temporary exhibition with loans from around the world on the old Egyptian city of Akhmim. Depending on the exhibition architecture, event organisers can use various rooms in this entrance complex as well as the courtyard as an event location for up to 1500 guests.
After extensive refurbishment and construction work, the library also reopened in 2021 and now offers three event rooms for up to 300 guests. This historic building has its roots in the former ‘Electoral Library at Cölln on the River Spree’. Today, with holdings going back to 1660 and earlier, this is one of the world’s leading libraries. The State Library, with over 11 million books, also hosts events at its second building on Potsdamer Straße – just a few steps from the New National Gallery (Neue Nationalgalerie).
After nearly six years of renovation and modernisation, the New National Gallery will be opening again in August 2021. Designed in glass and steel by renowned architect Mies van der Rohe, the New National Gallery was unveiled in the late 1960s as the first building on Berlin’s Cultural Forum. This impressive structure, in the tradition of Bauhaus architecture, is hosting exhibitions of masterpieces of twentieth-century art. It also offers special tours and events for several hundred guests indoors or up to 3500 guests on the spreading outdoor terrace.
After comprehensive refurbishment, the Friedrichswerder Church, close to the Humboldt Forum, reopened in autumn 2020 as a branch of the Old National Gallery. Designed by Schinkel in the early nineteenth century, this red brick church now shows sculptural works from the neo-Gothic period. The high lancet windows, some still with their original stained glass, flood the single nave interior with light and make this a perfect location for dinner events with up to 100 guests.
Our tip: Find out more about Berlin’s museums as event locations right here in our blog!
Germany’s congress capital is home to around 200 museums, memorial sites and collections. Some are also available as venues for meetings and events. Here, we present museums for events amidst baroqu...
We set off once again to look for extraordinary locations for your next event in Berlin. This time, our BCO Museum and Location exploratory tour took us to Berlin’s art and cultural venues. Find ins...
