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.
The balloon is tethered by a steel cable and rises to around 150 metres. A flight takes about 15 minutes and the open gondola holds up to 30 people. From the top you see Potsdamer Platz, the TV tower, the Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag and, on a clear day, the Teufelsberg. Operation depends on the wind: in gusty weather the balloon stays on the ground, so check the operator Air Service Berlin before making a special trip.
The location is no coincidence. The Berlin Wall ran here, and Zimmerstraße was part of the border strip. Standing in the gondola you look straight down at the former death strip between Mitte and Kreuzberg and at Checkpoint Charlie a few hundred metres to the east.
For us the balloon is simply the neighbour. The queue sometimes reaches our door, and people who have just landed often come in for a coffee and a Berliner. The gondola is open, so dress warmly in winter and warm up with us afterwards.
Our tip
Grab a coffee first, then queue. When it is windy, check online or call ahead to see whether flights are running.
Opening hours and prices change; current details are on the official website.
Frequently asked
How far is the Weltballon from Typisch Berlin café?
About 50 metres. The balloon takes off at the corner of Zimmerstraße and Wilhelmstraße, and our café is right next to it at Wilhelmstraße 42.
How high does the balloon go and how long is a flight?
The balloon rises to about 150 metres and a flight lasts around 15 minutes. It is secured by a steel cable and only flies in calm weather.
Is there a café near the Weltballon with toilets and Wi-Fi?
Yes, Typisch Berlin right next door has guest toilets, free Wi-Fi and seating on two floors.
Also nearby
- approx. 5 min walk
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”.
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.
