Germany: Birds & Art in Berlin & Brandenburg

Deutscher Dom, Gendarmenmarkt, Berlin © mkrberlin/Shutterstock

The German capital is a bustling world city, full of architectural and artistic treasures—and blessed with an abundance of readily accessible green space and wild habitats, a combination that makes Berlin and its surroundings a first-rate destination for the birding traveler.

Fully a third of Berlin’s land area is occupied by forests, parks, lakes, and fields, with more than thirty formal nature reserves within the city limits. Autumn finds the resident birds joined by a wide variety of migrants and winterers, from noisy troops of Common Cranes to nervous flocks of passerines. All this wildness goes on just a stone’s throw from the great museums and architectural landmarks of the old imperial capital, which is now the leading city in Europe’s largest and most influential democracy.

Our relaxed tour, based in the center of Berlin, takes full advantage of the city’s natural and cultural heritage, with visits to sites commemorating both the bright and the dark sides of German history and excursions in search of the area’s wealth of bird species.

The city itself will absorb much of our attention, but we will also venture into the countryside of Brandenburg, where we will look for Red Kites, wintering geese, and even the rare (and often elusive) Great Bustard, all in a landscape that more closely recalls Poland than the more westerly portions of Germany.

Based at a single hotel with no changes, we’ll have plenty of opportunity to explore Berlin and its surroundings at our leisure, taking full advantage of all that this once-again world-class city has to offer.