Berlin transforms at night, and places that look inconspicuous during day time can become real hot spots for club kids and bar hoppers. Famous for its unique charm, the area between Treptower Park and Ostkreuz offers everything you could possibly dream of for a crazy night out in Berlin – and all of this within walking distance. Once a rather industrialized area, clubs and cultural institutions were the first to enhance its value – and let me tell you, they did. Now the corner between Stralauer Allee, Markgrafendamm, and Elsenbrücke is one of the most demanded areas when it comes to nightlife. And just on the other side of the bridge, there are a bunch of other clubs between Flutgraben and Schleusenufer.
These two areas offer plenty of cool options to spice up your weekend! Dozens of clubs, bars, and cultural institutions, which originally gave the area its vibe, invite you to explore and let loose. Here is a curated list of our favorite spots around Friedrichshain – Treptow – Kreuzberg.
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by Claudio | Bars, Clubs, Friedrichshain, Kreuzberg
Even though it seems there is very little good news these days, we have something great to announce that will really bring some joy to some of you. Kreuzberg just got a brand new nightclub: Marktlokal Klub! The district that is so famous for its nightlife and bar scene but oddly has so few actual clubs is finally getting a new one. Located at Markthalle 9 in the basement of the Marktlokal restaurant the new nightlife spot follows suit with Berlin’s tradition of having clubs in basements.
I instantly had to think back to places such as ZMF in Mitte (the original location from the makers of the iconic Griesmühle) or the famous Fuchs & Elster at Weserstraße (the original club from the Klunkerkranich team). In Kreuzberg, for instance, there were the two cute Kellerclubs Kleine Reise at Spreewaldplatz and St. Georg next to Ritter Butzke, both of which served as earlier locations for the Pornceptual party. In addition to that, there were countless places all over the city, that didn’t even have proper names, or at least I don’t remember them, as they were often lowkey hidden underneath restaurants or bars. I really like these smaller, intimate clubs, because they often have the best crowd and are never shy to surprise you with the most fun vibes.
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by Frank | Clubs, Kreuzberg, Party
photo: Fahimi Bar.
Now that the cold and dark evenings make the concept of a Wegbier by the canal a rather unpopular idea, bars with their cozy and inviting interiors are a tempting alternative. In this post, we’ve collected some of our favorite spots in Kreuzkölln. They’re all more or less within a walking distance from each other, so don’t get discouraged if one of them is too full and simply enjoy your stroll through one of Berlin’s most famous nightlife areas!
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by Michalina | Bars, Kreuzberg, Neukölln
We can’t believe that we are writing this, but after 1,5 years of lockdown, Berlin’s indoor clubs will finally be allowed to re-open without mask requirements and distancing rules. The Berlin Clubcommission announced the news yesterday after the Senat of Berlin lost a court case about it and decided to not challenge it any further. From Friday, September 3rd onwards, clubs will be allowed to re-open their indoor dance floors. Of course, there is a catch because we are still in the middle of a pandemic: Entry will only be allowed to vaccinated and recovered people. Especially since the enforcing of mask rules at outdoor parties has been reportedly causing some friction in the nightlife scene lately, that last bit seems to be a relief for many.
The news is of course welcome, not only for the struggling nightlife makers but also for hungry party-goers that have been starved of their favorite activity. We feel you. But they don’t come without some concerns.
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by Frank | Clubs, Party
It feels like Berlin’s nightlife has been on hold for so long now, we can’t even remember how a club looks and smells on the inside. While the few clubs blessed with an outdoor area are shyly and quietly hosting some open-air parties this summer giving at least a small part of Berlin clubbers a bit of dancefloor magic, the majority of clubs that only have indoor dancefloors (which are about 75%) are now shut down for over a year.
Of course, this has totally created an imbalance. For the clubs, because those that don’t have the luxury of outdoor space are clearly at a disadvantage here, but also for clubbers because since there are so few options for legal parties that many organizers decided to keep their events on the low, or even if they publicly announce them, tickets sell out within hours which leaves many willing ravers without access to all the fun. This, too, seems pretty unfair.
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by Frank | Pandemic, Party
If we can’t dance in Berlin clubs, at least we can watch a documentary about clubbing there, right? With the corona regulations operating a club has become really difficult and this is threatening the one thing that has put Berlin on the map worldwide in the last couple of decades. While everything is back open again after the endless lockdown, clubs are still the one type of place that is still not allowed to open. It’s not that that is not understandable – but it doesn’t make it any better or fair for the people behind it.
The new documentary Clubkultur by filmmakers Leonie Gerner and Andrea Schumacher for Hauptstadt.tv shines a light on the importance of the Berlin club scene with various interviews with club owners, nightlife artists, DJs, and musicians, but also politicians and the Berlin Clubcommission. We also get to see a lot of footage from some wild Berlin nights that make us super nostalgic and that feel like they are from a distant time decades in the past.
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by Frank | Clubs, Movies, Pandemic, Party
photo: Birgit & Bier.
Despite many different efforts and many alternative concepts, it’s the Berlin club scene that is probably suffering the most from Berlin’s cultural landscape during the pandemic as the majority of the places have been locked down now for over a year. While their future is in the balance and a re-opening for indoor partying is not really inside, at least a political movement has managed that they are recognized as places of culture which makes a big difference for them when it comes to taxes and funding.
But the Berlin nightlife scene has always been inventive, so pretty much like last year after the first lockdown where the few clubs that have the luxury of an outdoor area came up with alternative usage concepts such as beer gardens to be able to partially re-open over the summer, the same thing is happening right now with the first clubs already open again for guests.
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by Frank | Clubs, Pandemic, Party
photo: Burg Schnabel.
Yesterday has been a historic moment for Berlin. In what can only be described as the best news of the week the Berlin building and planning committee has declared clubs as cultural spaces putting them in the same category as theaters and operas, and no longer places of entertainment such as casinos and brothels.
This is a milestone accomplishment that was made possible by the work of a parliamentary forum titled #Clubkultur consisting of members from Berlin’s ruling parties SPD, Die Linke, and Grüne in collaboration with members of the CDU that fought for this for over a year. Only the political parties AfD and FDP voted against this (take note, dear voters…) which is no surprise, but also didn’t matter enough to stop this.
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by Frank | Party
Even though clubs have been closed for over a year now, surprisingly, we haven’t really run short on news about Berlin’s famous nightlife places. From photography projects on clubber outfits, empty dancefloors, or outdoor raving, to virtual clubs and nightlife activism – there is always something to write about. And we are glad to keep the spirit alive this way, even though we’re all really craving for a party right now.
Artist and illustrator Nicola Napoli has also dedicated some of his time during the lockdown to work on a new nightlife-related piece. He’s blessed us already with various party-themed artworks in the past, but his most notable work might be the iconic line at Berghain that he first came out with back in 2014. It was one of our most successful articles of the time and it prompted a collaborative event and exhibition that we hosted together with him showcasing a new elaborate 10-meter long artwork.
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by Frank | Art, Party
A great way to support your local artist community and look smart at the same time is investing in some books! In this post, you’ll find an assortment of recent publications from or about Berlin, representing all kinds of genres – some will broaden your knowledge about the city, while others are simply too fun to miss. Prepare to impress your visitors with a cool Berlin book on your shelf (once dinner parties are a thing again!).
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by Michalina | Books
