Built for the 1936 Berlin Olympic games when Adolf Hitler was in power, Germany’s largest stadium retains its original architectural style, complete with hulking columns built from stones lugged from the Alps. After lengthy debate about whether the city should remove or preserve the structure, the latter strategy won out and renovations were competed in 2004. Today, visitors can take tours to learn about the stadium’s dark origins, or see Berlin’s Hertha football team play on its home turf.

This building was part of Le Corbusier’s large-scale residential project Unité d’Habitation, first realized in Marseille, France, which aimed to provide communal housing for millions of people displaced after the war. The property was equipped with a kindergarten, medical facility, and a garden, demonstrating the Swiss-French architect’s goal of creating a city within a city. The apartment building was meant to be a symbol of German modernization in the postwar period and remains a landmark example of postwar modernist architecture in the German capital.

Located on the 10th floor of the 25hours Hotel, this cocktail bar offers sweeping views over the Berlin Zoo and Tiergarten park. It’s part of the Bikini Berlin complex, a series of structures including a cinema, the hotel, restaurants, and shops that some say are ushering in a new era of hip in the drab former heart of West Berlin. The Bikini Berlin mall, which opened in 2014, features local design stores, pop-up concept shops, and a view into the baboon cage of the zoo next door. Just across the street is the memorial church, Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtnis-Kirche. Heavily bombed in the war, its 1963 redesign incorporated the damaged structure as a reminder of the country’s past.

Completed in 1963 by German architect Hans Scharoun, this futuristic concert hall took Berlin by storm. Today, it remains one of the quirkiest buildings among a smattering of new high-rises near Potsdamer Platz—a previously desolate area on the border of East and West Berlin. Placing music at the center of the design, the Philharmonie’s sloping, angular interior leads to a large concert hall that’s shaped like a fishbowl and features 360-degree seating. A chance to hear the world-class Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra in this acoustically-advanced space is a treat, to say the least. Insider tip: There are free concerts in the Philharmonie lobby on Tuesday afternoons at 2 p.m. To snag tickets, arrive at least 15 minutes beforehand.

This mixed-use building is a prime example of architect Frank Gehry flaunting his signature brand of postmodern whimsy. With a facade of limestone to match that of the nearby Brandenburg gate, the building features a large interior courtyard with a curved glass ceiling and floor. Its theatrical four-story-high curved structure is coated in stainless steel and appears to rest in space, and cheekily conceals a conference room.

Locally known as the “banana bunker” for its post-WWII role as a storage unit for tropical fruit shipped from Cuba, this massive bunker was purchased by the Boros family in 2003, who now shows its massive collection of contemporary art in site-specific exhibitions that rotate every few years. Guided tours provide a look at the collection of works by big names in the art world—such as Ai Wei Wei—and offer plenty of anecdotes about the building itself and how its role has changed over time. Be sure to book via the website well in advance, as tickets sell out early.

Berlin is home to three opera houses—more than any other city in Europe. The Staatsoper is located on the main boulevard and reopened in 2017 after over seven years of renovations. As a result, opera-goers now experience enhanced acoustics, as well as the charms of the original Baroque interior. The boulevard itself is worth a stroll for its unique architecture, such as Humboldt University (Unter den Linden 6), Alte Bibliothek (Bebelplatz), and others—most of which were envisioned by Prussian king Frederick the Great in his 18th-century urban development plan for central Berlin.

With its 2001 extension designed by American architect Daniel Libeskind, this museum dedicated to German-Jewish history provides a powerful experience for museum-goers. Using reinforced concrete, Liebeskind achieved a design that demonstrates absence and emptiness—a representation of the disappearance of Jewish culture in German society. The zig-zag structure—with sloping paths that lead to dead ends, or voids lit only by a slit of light—creates a feeling of somber hopelessness. Similarly powerful—and disorienting—is the Jewish Memorial by Brandenburg Gate (Cora-Berliner-Straße 1), designed by German architect Peter Eisenman.

Located on “museum island,” an area named for its abundance of (you guessed it) museums, the Neues Museum holds a cache of ancient art and artifacts  ideal for anyone interested in learning about the history of humanity—or just taking in some stellar interiors. The original 19th-century building was heavily bombed during the Second World War and reopened in 2009 after extensive renovations by British architect David Chipperfield. Also worth a visit is the nearby Pergamon Museum, which houses full-scale buildings reconstructed from ruins in the Middle East, like the Ishtar Gate of Babylon.

Although it was built in the 1920s, Tempelhof Airport is perhaps best-known as Hitler’s airport for the extensive renovation it underwent in the ’30s. In the late ’40s, it became the drop-off point for U.S. soldiers delivering supplies to war-torn West Berlin, and in 2015, the airport’s hangars began to house refugees. The building’s controversial history feels miles away when enjoying a day on the airstrip, which is now a local park. Popular with bikers, runners, and picnickers, this 950-acre green space in the center of the city is also home to a variety of local gardening projects.

Located in the former Jewish quarter of the city’s chic Mitte district, formerly East Berlin, this large Art Nouveau complex of eight interconnected courtyards is home to a variety of clothing boutiques, restaurants, a theater, and cinema, and is best accessed through the first courtyard (Rosenthaler Strasse 40). Outside of the main complex, don’t miss the small alley next to Cafe Cinema (Rosenthalerstrasse 39). It’s flush with Berlin’s signature street art, and features a tiny theater (Central-Kino), the Neurotitan shop with books and prints by local illustrators and artists, and the Anne Frank Center, celebrating the neighborhood’s Jewish heritage.

Rising from the ashes of the legendary club Bar25, which closed its doors about a decade ago, this recently opened complex along the Spree river flaunts Berlin’s signature ramshackle Peter-Pan-on-LSD-style, yet with a slightly more grown-up feel. Multi-room club Kater Blau offers plenty of tunes, while fine-dining restaurant Katerschmaus serves adventurous pan-European cuisine in an offbeat environment. Also located on the grounds are a coworking space, wine shop, yoga studio, hair salon, and a riverside terrace.

Housed in a brick 19th-century market hall, this revamped building has become a center for urban food experimentation in the heart of Berlin’s Kreuzberg neighborhood. It hosts a variety of permanent food stalls, such as Sironi italian bakery, Big Stuff Smoked BBQ, and Heidenpeters, a local craft beer company. Aside from a variety of specialized food events held on the weekend, the flagship event is Street Food Thursday, a weekly gathering of dozens of rotating vendors offering everything from Sicilian arancini to Japanese Takoyaki.

Located in a sparsely populated area of central Berlin, this former East German power plant-turned-techno club has come to epitomize Berlin’s hedonistic nightlife culture. While Berghain is famous for its relatively random, highly selective door policy and its primarily gay fetish parties, those who make it in can dance in the cavernous high-ceilinged interior, which still retains much of the rawness of the industrial space it once was. For a quieter night, visit the Berghain Kantine, the establishment’s music venue, and its adjacent beer garden.

This 1.2-mile avenue was the showcase boulevard of Germany under Soviet rule and features both housing built for the proletariat (prefab buildings made of concrete slabs), as well as the two special buildings found at this intersection. While they may look both ominous and somewhat bland by today’s standards, these monoliths were considered opulent in East Germany, due to their tiered “wedding cake” design, and were reserved for the East German elite. Toward the end of the boulevard, near Alexanderplatz, striking modernist buildings still in use, like Kino International and Kafe Moskau, provide an interesting contrast to the prefab look.