Brandenburg Gate: history, access and the best times to visit

Updated on October 1, 2026

Built from 1788 to 1791 by the architect Carl Gotthard Langhans, the Brandenburg Gate (Brandenburger Tor) closes off the western end of Unter den Linden, facing the Tiergarten park. Langhans took his inspiration from the Propylaea of the Acropolis in Athens. Johann Gottfried Schadow's Quadriga has crowned it since 1793. Cut off in the border zone while the city was divided, the gate reopened on 22 December 1989 and has symbolised reunification ever since. Access is free, day and night, and the monument is easy to combine with the [Reichstag](/fr/attractions/reichstag-berlin) and the [Holocaust Memorial](/fr/attractions/memorial-aux-juifs-assassines-d-europe), both a few minutes away on foot.

Highlights

The Quadriga

This chariot drawn by four horses carries the goddess of Victory. In 1806 Napoleon had it taken to Paris; the Allies brought it back to Berlin in 1814, after their victory. In the evening, the lighting brings out the sculpture.

Pariser Platz

The square on the east side, opening onto Unter den Linden, is lined with façades rebuilt after the fall of the Wall: the Hotel Adlon, the French Embassy, the US Embassy and the Academy of Arts (Akademie der Künste). The entrance to S+U Brandenburger Tor station is on this side.

The Wall years

From 1961 to 1989 the gate stood in the restricted zone, out of reach from both East and West. On 22 December 1989 it reopened in front of more than 100,000 people. A full restoration was completed on 3 October 2002.

The Raum der Stille

In the gate's northern gatehouse, this "room of silence" of about 30 m², open to everyone and tied to no religion, offers a quiet pause. It opens every day from 11:00 to 18:00 from March to October, closing earlier from November to February.

Infos pratiques

Tips

You can walk through the gate at any time, with no ticket. For a photo without crowds, come early in the morning or go round to the west side, on Platz des 18. März, which opens onto the Tiergarten. The area around the gate regularly hosts demonstrations, concerts and the New Year's Eve party, when access may be restricted. Bus 100, which links Zoologischer Garten with Alexanderplatz, stops at the gate and passes several central landmarks.

How to get there

Pariser Platz, 10117 Berlin (Mitte district). S-Bahn S1, S2, S25 and S26 and U-Bahn U5: S+U Brandenburger Tor station, under Pariser Platz. Buses 100 and 300: S+U Brandenburger Tor stop. The Reichstag is about 5 minutes' walk to the north, the Holocaust Memorial about 5 minutes to the south.