The remarkable comeback of Berlin
BERLIN has reclaimed
its historic space as
Germany’s shop front,
echoing its cosmopolitan
past and consolidating its
spot as Europe’s top-third
tourist destination, says
visitBerlin ceo, Burkhard
Kieker.
“The city is benefiting
from the growing trend of
tourists wanting to live like
a local. Berlin is full of FITs
from all over the world who
come here to experience
its fascinating culture and
vibrant nightlife.”
Last year, 13,5m tourists
visited Berlin, 4,1% more
than in 2017, which was
a weak year following the
2016 Christmas market
terror attack and Air Berlin’s
collapse, when the city lost
a third of its air capacity
overnight.
EasyJet and Eurowings
filled the gap and put tourism
growth back on track.
Overnight stays grew by 5,5%
to 32,9m in 2018. Berlin is
particularly popular amongst
international guests: 5,4m
overseas visitors (up 5,9%)
stayed 15,1m nights (up
7,9%) in 2018.
A comeback story
Burkhard says: “Berlin was
effectively taken out of
history for 60 years, starting
with the Nazis, who quashed
all cultural life, followed by its
WWII destruction and Cold
War division. Berlin only came
back to life when the Wall
came down in 1989, but its
revival took 15 years, during
which aircraft flew empty and
250 000 jobs were lost when
the economy of the former
East Germany collapsed.
Around 2004, artists and
clubs moved in and started
revamping many of the old
ruins in what became known
as ‘creative disruption’,
creating a dynamic and
interesting space. Berlin
today appeals especially
to the young and welleducated.”
Berlin 365/24
The Berlin365/24
international cultural
campaign promotes the
city as always open and
worth visiting. It highlights
its cultural and event
diversity. Under www.365-
24.berlin, it has provided
a framework for more than
100 cultural events. The
hashtag #Berlin365 has
resulted in more than
10 000 images on Instagram
and has reached 1,5m users
on Twitter. There is also an
online cultural calendar on
visitBerlin.de.
About Berlin
The free About Berlin app
from visitBerlin tells the
stories of 250 historic
locations, providing new
insights, suggested tours and
multimedia content. The app is
available in English.
Air access
Burkhard says the delayed
opening (since 2011), of
the Willy Brandt Berlin
International Airport has been
a serious blow for the city, but
the airport is now scheduled
to open in October 2020.
A new terminal is being
built to increase the airport’s
capacity to 28m passengers
a year. Existing Schönefeld
Airport will remain open until
2025, which means Berlin’s
air capacity will then total
40m passengers per year.
Tegel airport will be closed
down and will be turned
into a ‘smart city’ hub for
urban technologies. The
capital’s former Tempelhof
Airport has been turned
into a 400-hectare public
park. Its 1936 hangars have
been turned into venues for
fashion shows and theatre
performances. The roof of the
1,2km-long terminal building
is to become the ‘highline of
Berlin’, a public recreational
space and urban garden.
Celebrating the fall of the Wall
MORE than a million people
are expected to visit Berlin
during the weekend of
November 9 to celebrate
the 30th anniversary of
the fall of the Wall, says
Burkhard Kieker from
visitBerlin. “It’s the most
important event of the year
for Berlin. The fall of the
Wall is a world event of
great symbolic meaning.
“People want to celebrate
this occasion within
Berlin’s atmosphere of
freedom and tolerance.
Especially in the context of
re-emerging nationalism,
the 30th anniversary is
seen as an event inspiring
courage within Europe and
the world,” he says.
A citywide festival will be
held from November 4-10.
Berlin’s ‘Path to Revolution’
will be commemorated
through large-scale openair exhibits at seven key
historic sites: Gethsemane
Church, Alexanderplatz,
Schlossplatz, Brandenburg
Gate, Kurfürstendamm, East
Side Gallery and the former
Stasi headquarters.
Visitors will be taken on a
course through the events
of the time, including
successful escape attempts
starting in the summer of
1989, GDR-wide protests
and demonstrations, the fall
of the Wall, the storming of
the Stasi headquarters and
the first free elections in
the GDR in March 1990.
In addition, more
than 100 events,
including concerts, panel
discussions, eyewitness
interviews, readings, film
screenings and poetry
slams are planned.
The highlight of the week
will be a city-wide music
festival on November 9 –
the day the wall fell – with
artists whose sounds and
stories are connected to
the events of 1989/90,
or whose work stands for
freedom and the breaking
down of walls.
An impressive finale is
planned where the same
song will be played on
several stages in the city.
Oktoberfest – how to book accommodation
SO YOUR client wants to
wet his whistle at this
year’s Oktoberfest and is
looking to you to find him
accommodation?
Get cracking! With
6,4m revellers visiting
the Oktoberfest each
year and spending
€400m (R6,3bn) on
accommodation, Munich
hotels are expensive and
book up a year in advance
in some
places.
Price hikes
Hotel rooms can cost up
to 77% more during this
time, according to the
HRS hotel portal.
Attending Oktoberfest
with a tour group is
the best bet to get
a room close to the
Theresienwiese (Wiesn),
the meadow where
the fest happens over
the two weeks from
September 21 to October
6. Otherwise, look for
hotels that are close
to the Wiesn or within
walking distance of a
U-Bahn, S-bahn, tram or
bus stop. Alternatives
include Airbnbs, hostels,
couchsurfing, housesitting
and a campground near
the Wiesn.
Austria’s hidden gems
AUSTRIA has many
little-known gems that
shouldn’t be missed, says
Austria Connection md,
Inge Dobihal.
• Hallstatt in the
Salzkammergut
lake district is one
of Austria’s most
picturesque villages. It
dates back 2000 years
when salt was mined
here. The old salt mine
can still be visited today.
A recently built Sky Walk
offers magnificent views.
• Hellbrunn Castle near
Salzburg has fascinating
‘trick’fountains, built
400 years ago by
archbishop Markus
Sittikus, who had a
wicked sense of humour.
He’d invite guests for
lunch around a stone
table in the garden,
sneakily turn a knob
and enjoy their surprise
when fountains of water
sprang from the centre
of each seat, except for
the archbishop’s!
• The hotel & spa in
Bad Blumau and the
Hundertwasser House
in Vienna are some of
the interestingly shaped
buildings designed
by Friedensreich
Hundertwasser, a
painter, philosopher,
ecologist and architect,
who strived to live in
harmony with nature.
He pioneered nonconformism through
buildings where nothing
was straight, where
plants grew on roofs
and trees sprouted from
balconies.
• Swarovski Crystal World
in Wattens near Innsbruck
features art and multimedia installations,
including a crystal giant
with a waterfall cascading
from his mouth and a
crystal dome made from
595 mirrors.
• The snowbombing
festival is Europe’s
largest popular music
snow-show. It’s held at
Mayrhofen ski resort from
April 4 to 14 and features
sloping-sided stages,
igloo raves, street parties
and enchanted forests.
Oberammergau is selling out fast!
PACKAGES for the
Oberammergau Passion
Play in 2020 are selling
out fast and agents
are advised to make
bookings as soon as
possible, advises Austria
Connection’s Inge
Dobihal.
“2020 may still seem to
be far away but tickets are
heavily booked already.
Many of the departures
are sold out. Interested
clients should be made
aware that bookings
should be done as soon
as possible,” she warns.
Many tour operators
have included
Oberammergau in
their 2020 European
itineraries, and booking
with a tour operator offers
the benefits of guaranteed
departures and tickets.
Austria Connection offers
seven itineraries, ranging
from five to 15 nights,
adding Oberammergau
to its Eastern European
packages, including one
to Croatia and Slovenia.
Take note!
Agents should take note of the following notice on the official Oberammergau Passion Play website:
“Consumers affected have made us aware of ticket offers for the Passion Play 2020 via the ticket
provider Viagogo. On this online ticket marketplace, tickets for the Passion Play 2020 are offered at
prices that are many times higher than the regular ticket prices with a reference stating that shows
were ‘sold out’ or ‘only a few tickets were left’. On certain show days, tickets are offered for shows that
Viagogo cannot even dispose of (yet). We state our position on this issue as follows: Single tickets
(without overnight stay) will be offered by us at prices between (depending on the category) €30 (R484)
and €180 (R2 904) in the online shop only from the second half of 2019 onwards. Consumers will then
have the opportunity to buy tickets at regular prices. More than 50% of seats, in some cases 100% of
seats, will be available for such single tickets. The information provided by Viagogo is therefore incorrect.
We are currently taking legal action against the provider for dishonest and misleading advertisement.
