Dahlem and Grunewald: museums, gardens and forests in south-west Berlin

Dahlem at a glance

Dahlem belongs to the Steglitz-Zehlendorf district. It developed in the early 20th century as a garden suburb and scientific centre; the Freie Universität, founded in December 1948, has its main campus here. Dahlem remains quiet, with villas, tree-lined avenues and few tourists: that is its charm. The sights are fairly far apart, so you need to combine walking and public transport.

The places to see

Check the hours before you go: several are revised each season, and the Botanisches Museum in the botanical garden is closed until about 2027.

The museums

The Allied Museum is the easiest to fit in: it is free and tells of the occupation, the airlift of 1948-1949 and the Cold War, with a Hastings transport plane in a hangar and pieces of the Wall in the garden. Allow 1.5 hours.

The Brücke-Museum is the only one in the world devoted to the Expressionist group "Die Brücke", born in Dresden in 1905 and dissolved in 1913. In a low building at the edge of the forest, it shows works by Kirchner, Heckel, Schmidt-Rottluff, Nolde or Pechstein on rotation. There is a café in the neighbouring Kunsthaus Dahlem.

The Museum Europäischer Kulturen (Arnimallee 25) brings together objects, costumes and traditions of European cultures. It is part of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin; check its hours and prices on the museums' website.

The botanical garden and Domäne Dahlem

The botanical garden is the main stop: a garden of 43 hectares and nearly 20,000 species, with a glass tropical pavilion from 1907 among its 15 greenhouses. Allow 2 to 3 hours.

Domäne Dahlem, Königin-Luise-Straße 49, is a former farming estate turned into a museum of agriculture and food. The grounds are free to enter; the museum costs €5 (€3 reduced) and the Saturday-morning organic market draws locals. The restaurant (Landgasthaus) serves seasonal dishes. Children enjoy the farm animals: see also our guide to Berlin with children.

Jagdschloss Grunewald and the forest

The Jagdschloss Grunewald, on the shore of the Grunewaldsee, is the oldest palace in Berlin preserved in its original state: a Renaissance hunting lodge, built from 1542, which houses a collection of paintings by Lucas Cranach the Elder and the Younger, about 30 works. It opens from mid-April to the end of October Tuesday to Sunday, and only at weekends from November to March, with a €6 ticket.

Around it, the Grunewald forest offers trails, swimming lakes such as the Schlachtensee and Krumme Lanke, and the path to the Teufelsberg and its former listening station. For swimming, see our guide to the lakes around Berlin.

A one-day itinerary

1. Morning: Allied Museum from 10:00 (1.5 hours), then the Brücke-Museum by bus (1 hour).
2. Lunch at the café of the Kunsthaus Dahlem or at Domäne Dahlem.
3. Afternoon: botanical garden (2 to 3 hours), from the greenhouses to the Italian garden.
4. If time allows: a stop at Domäne Dahlem (museum Wednesday to Sunday) or, in summer, the Jagdschloss Grunewald.

Getting there and getting around

From the centre, the U3 serves Dahlem-Dorf and Oskar-Helene-Heim, and the S1 serves Botanischer Garten; allow 30 minutes to 1 hour depending on where you start. Buses 115, X10 and X83 link the sights. An ABC-zone ticket covers the whole trip; see our transport in Berlin guide. For accommodation, Dahlem is too far out: stay in the centre, see where to stay in Berlin.

Going further

To complete the south-west, see Charlottenburg Palace and the parks and gardens of Berlin, or the excursion to Potsdam.