Checkpoint Charlie
The most famous crossing point of the Wall
From 1961 to 1990 Checkpoint Charlie was the crossing point for foreigners, diplomats and Allied soldiers between East and West Berlin. Today a replica of the guard house stands on Friedrichstraße, with the famous sign “You are leaving the American sector”.
In October 1961 Soviet and American tanks faced each other here with live ammunition, one of the most dangerous moments of the Cold War. The name comes from the NATO alphabet: Alpha was the crossing at Helmstedt, Bravo at Dreilinden, Charlie the third one in central Berlin. The original guard house is now in the Allied Museum in Dahlem; the one on the street is a replica.
Around the crossing there are several exhibitions: the private Wall Museum “Haus am Checkpoint Charlie” with escape stories and escape vehicles, the open-air gallery with photos and texts about the division, and the BlackBox Cold War. A few steps further is the asisi Panorama “The Wall”.
The junction is busy during the day, especially between 11 am and 4 pm. For quiet photos, come in the morning. From the checkpoint it is about five minutes along Zimmerstraße to us, past the Trabi Museum and the Weltballon.
Our tip
Walk along Zimmerstraße instead of Friedrichstraße: fewer souvenir stalls, more Wall history, and our café at the end.
Opening hours and prices change; current details are on the official website.
Frequently asked
How do I get from Checkpoint Charlie to the Weltballon?
From the junction of Friedrichstraße and Zimmerstraße, walk west along Zimmerstraße for about 350 metres. The balloon is at the corner of Wilhelmstraße, our café right next to it.
Is there an entrance fee for Checkpoint Charlie?
The replica guard house and the open-air exhibition are free. The museums around the checkpoint charge admission.
Where can I get an affordable coffee near Checkpoint Charlie?
At Typisch Berlin, Wilhelmstraße 42, five minutes on foot. Berliner from €2.20, cake €3.50, bratwurst €4.90, with Wi-Fi and toilets.
Also nearby
- right next door
Weltballon (World Balloon)
Tethered balloon, 150 metres above Berlin
The Weltballon is the big white tethered balloon you can see from half of Berlin. It takes off at the corner of Zimmerstraße and Wilhelmstraße, right next to our café.
Read more - approx. 5 min walk
Topography of Terror
Documentation centre on the former Gestapo and SS site
Between Niederkirchnerstraße and Wilhelmstraße stood, until 1945, the headquarters of the Gestapo, the SS and the Reich Security Main Office. Today a documentation centre with open-air grounds tells the story of the perpetrators of National Socialism. Admission is free.
Read more - approx. 5 min walk
Trabi Museum
The car of East Germany, up close
The Trabi Museum on Zimmerstraße shows the Trabant in all its versions: saloon, estate, open “Kübel”, racing version and conversions. Plus original adverts, brochures and stories about waiting years for your own car.
Read more - approx. 5 min walk
asisi Panorama “The Wall”
360-degree view of divided Berlin in the 1980s
In a rotunda right at Checkpoint Charlie, artist Yadegar Asisi shows a panorama of divided Berlin on a fictional autumn day in the 1980s. You stand in Kreuzberg and look over the Wall into East Berlin.
Read more
Coffee before, cake after
Typisch Berlin, Wilhelmstraße 42, right at the Weltballon. Daily from 09:00, two floors, Wi-Fi, toilets, terrace. Berliner from €2.20.
