Walking Berlin's Nazi History: A Self Guided Audio Tour

Berlin was the political center of Nazism, and its streets carry the weight of that history. On this self-guided philosophical audio tour, you'll examine how ordinary people, institutions, and ideology made the destruction of humanity possible. The tour starts at the Brandenburg Gate, where you'll reflect on the Prussian mindset of obedience that preceded Nazism. From there, you'll walk past the Reichstag building, where 96 parliamentary members were murdered after the Nazis used the 1933 fire to suspend civil liberties and crush political opposition. You'll pass through the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe, Peter Eisenman's disorienting field of slabs, and visit the nearby Memorial to the Homosexuals Persecuted Under Nazism. The tour ends at the Topography of Terror, built on the former Gestapo and SS headquarters, a site that existed for decades as a racing track before historians and activists literally dug it into public memory.

1. 1

   Brandenburg Gate

   Pass by

   Stand at the Brandenburg Gate and reflect on the Prussian mindset of obedience that preceded Nazism. Here you'll begin a philosophical exploration of how ordinary people and institutions made the destruction of humanity possible.

2. 2

   Reichstag Building

   Pass by

   Walk past the Reichstag building, where 96 parliamentary members were murdered after the Nazis used the 1933 fire to suspend civil liberties and crush political opposition. Read the names of these murdered parliamentarians on the fragmented iron memorial outside.

3. 3

   The Holocaust Memorial - Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe

   Pass by

   Pass through Peter Eisenman's disorienting field of slabs, a memorial that unsettles as you move through it. Along the way, find the Stolperstein for Martha Liebermann, wife of Germany's foremost Jewish painter, who fled into death to avoid deportation.

4. 4

   Stop 4

   Pass by

   Enter the enclosed space of the Sinti and Roma Memorial, a place built for quiet reflection. Listen to a violin composition by a Romani descendant of survivors as you take in the site.

5. 5

   Topography of Terror

   Pass by

   Arrive at the Topography of Terror, built on the former Gestapo and SS headquarters. Discover how this site existed for decades as a racing track before historians and activists literally dug it into public memory.

6. 6

   Stop 6

   Pass by

   Stand before one of the few surviving examples of Nazi architecture in central Berlin, a building of exaggerated neoclassical scale and symmetry. Once the Ministry of Aviation and later the seat of the East German government, it now serves as Germany's Ministry of Finance.

7. 7

   Platz des Volksaufstandes von 1953

   Pass by

   Look at the East German mural on the building, then down at the memorial set into the floor beneath it. Here you'll learn about the People's Uprising of June 1953, when thousands of workers rebelled against the East German state.

• Wheelchair accessible
• Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
• Service animals allowed
• Public transportation options are available nearby
• Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
• All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.