Reichstag

The Reichstag is the seat of the Bundestag, the German federal parliament, which makes it Berlin's rough equivalent of the US Capitol. What most visitors come for is the glass dome that Norman Foster added during the 1990s rebuild: a spiral ramp winds up the inside, and from the top you look out over the government quarter and, through the glass floor, down into the plenary chamber.

Visiting the dome is free, but you have to register online in advance and bring the same photo ID you registered with. Slots go fast in summer, so book this before you book anything else. The building itself dates from 1894, burned in 1933, sat as a shell through the division of the city, and only became the parliament again after reunification.

The Reichstag anchors the government quarter, a cluster of modern federal buildings along a bend in the Spree river. The Bundeskanzleramt, the chancellor's office, is a short walk west, and the eastern edge of the Tiergarten park starts right across the street.

For transit, Berlin Hauptbahnhof, the main train station, is roughly a 10-minute walk, and Brandenburger Tor station, served by both S-Bahn and U-Bahn, is closer still. Honestly, you will not need a train here: the gate, the memorial and Unter den Linden are all walkable from the front lawn.