Charlottenburg Palace in Berlin

Long before the graffiti and the Wall, nobody spoke of Germany but Prussia, an empire of palaces, power and dynasties. The greatest vestige of this era is Charlottenburg Palace, designed as a summer residence for Queen Sophie Charlotte.

The palace also hosts classical concerts and elegant dinners at the Orangery. For this reason, most tickets to Charlottenburg Palace include one of these experiences.

In addition, Charlottenburg Palace consists of two areas that can be visited: the interior and the gardens. Access to the gardens is free of charge and many visitors agree that the tour of the gardens is even better than the interior of the Palace.

Choose a guided tour to maximise the experience

When visiting such spectacular places as this, the best option is always to book a guided tour that will take you to discover the best of such an important palace as the Charlottenburg Palace and its gardens. The expert guide will accompany you on the tour to tell you about the historical details of the monument and you can skip the queues at the entrance and choose which rooms you want to see during the tour.

With a guided tour of Charlottenburg Palace and gardens you will enjoy a fully personalised activity in which you will learn all the details of this baroque palace built at the end of the 17th century as a summer residence for royalty. It is steeped in history and its incredible architecture is surrounded by a beautiful garden, also in French Baroque style.

Thanks to the expert guide, you will learn about its history and all the areas of both the palace and the gardens. Although there is no cost to visit the exterior, I recommend the full tour of the palace, as it will teach you to better appreciate this Prussian jewel, as well as its partial destruction during the British bombings in World War II and its heroic reconstruction during the Cold War, as a symbol of Prussian imperialism.

The concert at Charlottenburg Palace is worthwhile in its own right, which is why there is an exclusive type of ticket to enjoy the show. You can choose between four types of seats for the concert: VIP, A, B and C, depending on the distance from the stage, with category A being the best situated. The VIP category also includes a glass of champagne during the intermission of the concert.

During the concert you can listen to classical and late baroque music by composers such as Mozart, Bach and Handel performed by the Berlin Resident Orchestra. In addition to the quality of the music, the ambience is very special, as you will rarely have the opportunity to enjoy a concert in a sumptuous 18th century palace.

How to book

You can book this experience online at various ticket websites, but remember to book well in advance, otherwise it will be difficult to find availability. The ticket for the Charlottenburg Palace concert does not include hotel pick-up and drop-off, so you will have to make your own way to the palace (it is easily accessible by underground from the centre of Berlin). Also not included are the cloakroom (1 euro) and the hand programme (3 euros).

Inside the Palace

Whether you visit the interior of the Palace with a package that includes other experiences such as dinner or a concert, or whether you buy your tickets at the ticket office, there are several rooms and relics that are not to be missed:

In the gardens

How to get to Charlottenburg Palace

Charlottenburg Palace is located a little way from the centre of Berlin, so it is more than an hour and a half walk from, for example, the Brandenburg Gate. However, the Charlottenburg area is easily accessible by public transport (and, of course, in Berlin you always have the option of taking a taxi). The nearest metro stop is Richard Wagner Platz on the U7 line.

Opening times

The Palace is closed on Mondays, the rest of the year (except for specific exceptions or public holidays) the opening hours for visiting the interior are from 10am to 5pm from November to March and from 10am to 6pm from April to October.

When to go

In high season, you'll find queues from mid-morning onwards to access the ticket office. If you are travelling to Berlin during June, July and August, I recommend that you go early in the morning to visit Charlottenburg Palace to avoid queues and crowds. If you are booking the experience with dinner and concert, the best time to visit is at sunset.

Duration of the visit

The entire palace tour, including the gardens, will take less than a morning and there is no need to rush if you start early. Visiting the interior of the palace can take an hour and a half and for the gardens, the main attraction of the complex, you need to set aside a minimum of one hour. If you are booking the dinner plus concert experience, the full experience will last about four hours, and two hours if you buy tickets just for the concert.

The surrounding area

Eating in the area around Charlottenburg Palace can be a good idea since, being far from the centre of Berlin, the restaurants in the vicinity are not crowded with tourists. The neighbourhood itself (named after the palace) is also worth a stroll, especially in winter when it is decorated with Christmas lights.

Visit with children

Children under the age of 7 are free inside the palace, but the concert and dinner experiences are reserved for adults. Don't hesitate to take the little ones for a stroll in the gardens.

What to wear

If you've bought a ticket to see Charlottenburg Palace and attend a concert or dinner, you're probably wondering what to wear. Don't worry, you don't need to dress up, but I do recommend that you dress down a little and leave your trainers and jeans in the wardrobe.

Photographs

An important thing to know is that if you want to take photos inside the Palace, you will have to pay a special permit of three euros. If you don't, you may be noticed inside. If you are travelling with a companion, one permit is usually valid for both of you. In any case, the best photos of the palace are the ones you can take, free of charge, from the gardens and the surrounding area.

Audio guide

Visits with an expert guide are rare at this palace, but you do have the option of an audio guide in several languages. Here I recommend that you don't hesitate and use it to orient yourself during your visit inside the palace.

If you want to visit the gardens you don't need a ticket. If you just want to see the inside of the palace, you can buy tickets online at the ticket office from Tuesday to Sunday from 10am to 5pm in winter and until 6pm in summer. The approximate price of a full ticket (including the Old Palace, the New Wing and the Belvedere) is 17 euros for adults and 13 euros for students.

Charlottenburg Palace is one of Berlin's main points of interest, but it is not the only one. The cultural richness of the city is such that visitors have at their disposal, with the aim of saving costs during their trip, the Berlin Welcome Card, a card that you can buy for the period of time you choose and that will give you free or discounted access to the different museums and monuments of the German capital.

In the case of Charlottenburg Palace, you'll get a 25% discount with this card; in this article on Berlin Welcome Card you can check the rest of the advantages of this tourist pass. Another interesting tourist card is the Berlin Pass, of which you can find its uses and advantages here: Cruise Tickets in Berlin.