Germany’s capital has undeniably retained its edge. As soon as I had landed down into Berlin Airport from London Southend Airport – just one hour and 40 minutes apart – I could spot a Berliner from their fashion alone. With a quick glance across the airport while walking towards the taxi that would take me to Hilton hotel, I clocked their collective style: punk, effortless, and eclectic.

As I would discover during a whistle-stop visit to the city organised by easyJet Holidays, it is a place where old meets new, and the glitzy sits alongside the shabby, edgy chic. 

Dining on my first night at Lutter and Wegner, just three minutes’ walk from the hotel in the city’s central district, I encountered my first bite in Berlin: a traditional cream of Beelitz pumpkin soup for starters, then the Brandenburg roast, and caramelised Kaiserschmarrn for dessert.

Truly delicious, the pumpkin soup was velvety smooth and perfectly savoury, the duck Brandenburg roast came with cranberry red cabbage, and the Kaiserschmarrn – I learned – is a shredded pancake served with plum compote and vanilla ice cream.

While dining in the intimate-feel restaurant, first established in 1811, I noticed the avant-garde decor around me. There are the wine cellars exuding old-world charm mixed in with modern art and quirky lampshades.

Then nearby was the Bellboy Bar, which serves outlandish cocktails – including one where waiters come by with a 1950s pram. While sipping from my “Keep Clean” cocktail of vodka, blossom and elderflower – served in a mini bubble bathtub with a rubber duck beside it – I saw flashing lights in the right side of my eyes. 

I was told this is where you go for the loos, and so I went, finding myself in a strobe-lit lift where the door closed behind me, seemingly blocking the only way out.

To my right, an old black telephone was fixed to the wall so I played around with the buttons until the opposite lift door opened to reveal a completely different section of the bar. Following the sign to the ladies, I found myself in a pink-tiled bathroom with a Barbie-like vanity mirror, walls adorned with neon lights that said “Hello Gorgeous” and a glitzy disco ball.

To my surprise, as I looked up to where a mirror should be while washing my hands in the basin, I saw a man looking back at me. Taking a moment to register what had just happened, as the man smiled at my reaction, I realised there wasn’t a wall to separate the ladies from the men’s bathroom.

And that, really, sums up Berlin in a nutshell – a city full of surprises where things aren’t what they seem and an ongoing unification that mixes the old with the new.

Come the morning, I was hungry to learn more. I jumped on a hop-on and hop-off bus for a on-the-move view of the city’s main attractions. Most notably, taking the City Circle route, I came across the infamous Berghain nightclub where tales of debauchery prevail; many queue for hours outside to be turned away by the indiscriminate bouncers.

Then there’s the East Side Gallery, which is famous for the 1.3km preserved section of the Berlin Wall – now the longest open-air art gallery featuring over 100 murals. 

As the day turned to dusk, I found myself on a culinary tour operated by Fork and Walk in the trendy Prenzlauer Berg district. Shown around by the friendly Dimi, we stopped off at Häppies, which serves the most delicious sweet and savoury steamed buns I’ve ever tasted in my life. I was blown away. 

It all came to a close at the vibrant kiosk SPÄTI GATE 1, where Berliners pop in and have a drink. So, just like a local, I grabbed myself a beer. There I learned that, unlike many more buttoned-up European cities, drinking alcohol on the streets of Berlin is both legal and socially acceptable. So I took a beer for the road. 

Where to stay?

easyJet holidays offers three nights at the five-star Hilton Berlin on a room-only basis for £236 per person, including flights from Southend Airport on February 6, 2026.

The Hilton Hotel, Berlin, is located next to the Stadmitte U-Bahn (underground), which on the U2 line is just one stop away from Potsdamer Platz station where Cirque de Soleil ALIZE is performed: on Wednesdays, 6.30pm; Thursdays at 7.30pm; Friday and Saturdays at 4pm and 8pm; and Sundays at 1pm and 5pm. 

Alternatively, you can walk from the Hilton Hotel through the city centre to the Theater am Potsdamer Platz, which a 10 to 15-minute walk.