Berlin, the capital of Germany and the country's largest city, is also a major center of politics, culture, media, and science. Noted for its cultural flair, Berlin is home to the world famous Berlin Opera and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, while its diverse art scene encompasses hundreds of galleries, events, and museums, including those on Museum Island, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Despite the devastation of WWII, and following decades of decay to the east of the infamous Berlin Wall, the city has been rebuilt in a way that celebrates its successes while acknowledging a dark past. Berlin offers an eclectic mix of new and classic architecture, dynamic entertainment, shopping, and a wide variety of sports and cultural institutions. To get the most out of your sightseeing, be sure to refer often to our list of the top tourist attractions in Berlin.

• The current population of Berlin in 2020 is 3,562,000, a 0.14% increase from 2019.
• Berlin is over 9 times the size of Paris, BUT it only has 1/5 of Paris’ density (4K inhabitants per square Km as opposed to 21K inhabitants per square Km in Paris).
• There are 180 museums in Berlin.
• In 1848, Berlin proved itself to be way ahead of its time by banning smoking in the street. Now it is one of the few cities in Western Europe where smoking in bars is still the norm
• The Berlin Zoo is not only the most visited Zoo in Europe but also hosts 1,380 different animal species and over 18,662 animals. The Zoo is said to have the largest stock of animals in the world.
• Berlin has more bridges than Venice – around 1,700 of them. It is also said that Berlin has more waterways than Amsterdam, Stockholm and Venice COMBINED. 
• Berlin is home to 3 UNESCO world heritage sites. The Museum Island, Sansoussi Palace and Parks in Potsdam and the Modernism Housing Estates.
• Berlin is considered by many as Germany`s greenest city with over 44% of its area made of waterways, woods, rivers and green areas.
• Berlin is home to the longest open air gallery in the world with a little over 1.3 Km. The East Side Gallery showcases over 100 murals from artists from all over the world. Perhaps the most famous is “The Fraternal Kiss”.
• Berlin-born tinkerer Konrad Zuse invented the world's first programmable computer in 1941, making him the father of the modern computer.

Germany's capital, Berlin, is both a city and a federal state (Land). At the state level, the position of Governing Mayor of Berlin corresponds to that of a Minister President of one of the other federal states (Länder). The representatives of the state government are elected by the Berlin House of Representatives. The governing mayor nominates the senators. The Berlin state government comprises of the governing mayor and 10en senators.

The economy of Berlin is dominated by the service sector, with around 84% of all companies doing business in services. Important economic sectors in Berlin include life sciences, transportation, information and communication technologies, media and music, advertising and design, biotechnology, environmental services, construction, e-commerce, retail, hotel business, and medical engineering.

Berlin has developed a highly complex transportation infrastructure providing very diverse modes of urban mobility. 979 bridges cross 197 kilometers of inner city waterways, 5,334 kilometers (3,314 mi) of roads run through Berlin, of which 73 kilometers (45 mi) are motorways. Long-distance rail lines connect Berlin with all of the major cities of Germany and with many cities in neighboring European countries. Regional rail lines provide access to the surrounding regions of Brandenburg and to the Baltic Sea.