Travel | iHeartBerlin.de

iHeartBerlin on the Road – Our Favorite Destinations in 2014

As much as I love Berlin, there is one thing I love even more: travelling! When I look back I think this year was the one with the most amount of travelling in my entire life. I feel truely lucky to live in a time and place where international travel is so easy and comfortable. I grew up in the GDR so for my parents this was a completely different story. Lucky for me the wall came down when I was seven so from that time on I already made trips with my family to the Canary Islands, Scottland and the US.

Those of you who follow me on Instagram must have been wondering why I call my account iheartberlin at all, because I think I posted more photos from my travels than I do from Berlin (shame on me!). But in the end just because I cherish the opportunity to discover new places doesn’t mean I heart my own city any less. A few of my travels I already featured here on the blog such as my ski trip to Hovden, the visit to Buenos Aires Fashion Week, our art tour to Luxembourg and our amazing week in New York. But there were so many more trips I haven’t spoken about yet that I want to do it here before the year ends.

I think all of the places I chose for this round-up are beautiful and worth a visit. Some of them are great to escape the cold winter in Berlin, and some will be perfect for the pre-season in Spring to enjoy some early summer sun. Enjoy some of my photos from trips to Turkey, Brazil, Austria and Italy after the jump.

Berlin is always there – A Weekend in Deauville

by Lia | Art, Travel

photo: Kristine Thiemann

The days are getting shorter, it’s cold outside and we are facing at least three months of Berlin winter.

So a few weeks back, I jumped to the opportunity of a little getaway weekend in France. A couple of days in Paris and a few relaxing nights in Deauville near the ocean sounded simply perfect. Little did I know about all the extravaganza the tiny village had in store for me, even a piece of Berlin crossed my path on the nomadic coast… read more…

10 Amazing Things to do in New York City

by Frank | Travel

Some Berliners like to climb the Brooklyn bridge and replace the American flags with white ones when they are in New York. When we went to the Big Apple recently, we were maybe not quite as progressive.

I have to admit that I avoided going to the states after my last visit 12 years ago. But despite my general disinterest in this country I always knew that I had to give New York City another try, especially since my last visit is almost 20 years in the past. And boy am I glad that I finally did it. I was amazed by this city, much more than I expected to be. Everything seems to be bigger, better, faster, stronger – and I’m not even exaggerating. It almost felt a bit odd when I returned to Berlin afterwards and everything almost seemed small and ordinary to me.

New York is an extreme city, but much like Berlin it’s totally up to you what you make of it. And thanks to our local guide and good friend Archer we managed to make something really great out of it and had a phantastic time there. To share some of our excitement with you we compiled a list of 10 amazing things to do in New York that will hopefully inspire your next trip.

Berlin Escapes: An Opera Trip to Verona

by Frank | Music, Theater, Travel

photo: Roberto Bolle at Arena di Verona by Luciano Romano

In the summer months it’s always noticeable that there is a little less going on in town than usual. Even the Berlin visitors are taking little excursions to other European places and before you stay here and get bored maybe you should also plan your next short trip. Today we have one suggestion for you: The beautiful city of Verona in Northern Italy. It’s not only the home of the fictional tragic couple of Romeo and Juliet, but also one of the most charming Italian cities to visit and only such a short flight away from Berlin.

The romantic, historic city is a total contrast to the rough urban landscapes of Berlin. One historic building aligns itself with the next and you will quickly feel like you are lost in another time. Among the many highlights of the city the one location that is going to be in every “Top 10 Things to do in Verona” lists (I checked…) is the Arena di Verona. Find out more about it after the jump.

Hotspot for Contemporary Art: Luxembourg

by Claudio | Art, Travel

Lee Bul at Mudam

Luxembourg was never really on my radar when speaking about fancy art travel destinations. But as we attended the opening of the Luxembourg Design City Biennale we had to re-adjust our mindset about the small state between Germany and France. We spend a couple of wonderful days and enjoyed not only high class contemporary art at one of the most beautiful museums of the world, the Mudam, but also indulged in delicious food and breath-taking panoramas. Since Luxembourg is just a one hour flight away from Berlin it is the perfect weekend escape. After the jump you find our little art and travel guide with our favourite spots in town.

A Visit to the EcoSport Challenge Kick-Off in Düsseldorf

by Frank | Travel

Exactly a week ago I traveled to Düsseldorf’s assigned by Ford to join the kick-off event of the EcoSport Challenge. I have never been to Düsseldorf before, so I was glad for the opportunity to get to know another German big city. Especially the area of the Media Harbor where the event took place at the Hyatt Regency Hotel was quite interesting with lots of interesting pieces of architecture, the three buildings by star architect Gehry being the most amazing ones.

At the event all the 8 teams that will compete against each other in the coming weeks were introduced and I also got to meet the two hosts Alina from Frida Gold and Jan from VIVA. Both of them sat down with me to talk about Berlin, which is were they both live, as well as challenges and their upcoming projects. A little review and my interview after the jump.

Winter Escapes from Berlin: Istanbul

by Devid | Photos, Travel

photos: Starecasers

Winter holidays in the snow are just not my cup of tea. You won’t find me skiing in Hovden or spending a week in Kitzbühel any time soon. That’s probably because every memory I have of being in the snow consists of having flights cancelled, wet feet, or falling on my butt. But that’s fine, luckily there’s plenty of opportunity to indulge in a short holiday for slothful people like me. For example, I’m perfectly content with taking a city break to look around museums. That’s what I actually did a bunch of weeks ago; I packed my bag, took a flight to the fascinating Turkish city Istanbul and had the time of my life. Read why and how after the jump!

Winter Escapes from Berlin: Hovden

by Frank | Travel

While Claudio made his Winter escape to beautiful Kitzbühel I once again flew over to Norway. It was already my second visit to the Nordic country, last year I had the pleasure to visit Geilo. This year my destination was Hovden, a small town embedded into the snow-covered mountains in the center of the country.

Hovden is maybe not the most famous Winter destination, but it really surprised me in a positive way. While Geilo was clearly more family-oriented Hovden turned out to be a very youthful place with lots of cool young people, not only visiting there, but also living there. Being surrounded by this like-minded crowd of course made the whole experience much more enjoyable.

On this wonderful trip I got to know a few really nice young local people, got to taste the exquisite Norwegian cooking and made my first attempts on skis. I really had a blast and am happy to share my impressions with you after the jump along with some recommendations for Hovden.

Winter Escapes from Berlin: Kitzbühel

by Claudio | Travel

Even though winter is already gone here in Berlin and Spring is knocking on our doors inviting us out to stroll down the Spree or riding bikes through the city we have a wonderful Winter escape recommendation for you not to miss.

Actually it’s more a Spring escape, but never mind. Because any season you decide to escape the big city lights of Berlin for beautiful Kitzbühel will be most enjoyable. This little town has so much to offer that we repeated our trip from last year to get to know a much more sporty side of the idyllic mountain city. After the jump you will find some detailed recommendations and tons of beautiful mountain photos that will melt your arid city heart and make you wish to go for a skiing trip right away.

Winter Escapes from Berlin: Venice

by Claudio | Travel

Even if you are madly in love with Berlin as we are, you should always get yourself into different surroundings every once in a while. If you can’t imagine going into nature,there are a variety of exciting cities to discover, one of them being Venice in Italy which is pretty much the opposite of Berlin as a city. During the summer I had the feeling the whole city was actually venturing there to see the Biennale of Contemporary Art which takes place there every two years and is definitely worth a trip. But even without the Biennale going on Venice has a lot of great events like Carnevale or the film festival. It also has a magic of its own that can’t be compared to any other place on Earth.

Around Christmas I was invited by Anonimo Venenziano to be their foreign correspondent and to visit the city that I already know quite well off the beaten tracks. During my stay I collected 7 valuable reasons for you guys to visit Venice and the surrounding areas if you get a little Winter sick of staying in Berlin. Find my discoveries after the jump.

« Older Entries

Next Entries »