The white façade
A neoclassical front of 1786 among the trees, seen well from the gate.
W. Bulach — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Ansgar Koreng — CC BY-SA 3.0 de · A.Savin — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Rüdiger Stehn from Kiel, Deutschland — CC BY-SA 2.0
Bellevue Palace is a white neoclassical building in the Tiergarten park, and the official residence of the President of the Federal Republic of Germany. It was built in 1786 as a summer palace for a Prussian prince, and became the presidential seat after the war. An important note: the palace is not open to visitors. It is a working government building, seen only from outside through the railings. If the flag is flying on the roof, the president is inside. A visit here is brief: a photograph from outside, then on into the Tiergarten or towards the nearby Victory Column.
A neoclassical front of 1786 among the trees, seen well from the gate.
If the flag is up, the president is inside — a small detail few visitors notice.
Berlin's largest park surrounds it, with long paths running through to the Brandenburg Gate.
Spreeweg 1, 10557 Berlin
Victory ColumnThe Victory Column is a tall stone column in the middle of the Tiergarten park, 5 minutes walk4.5
TiergartenThe Tiergarten is Berlin's great lung: a 210-hectare urban forest at the capital11 minutes walk4.7
German Resistance Memorial CenterThe German Resistance Memorial Center occupies the Bendlerblock — formerly the G16 minutes walk4.5
Platz der RepublikPlatz der Republik is the wide green lawn stretching in front of the Reichstag. 16 minutes walk4.7
SpreebogenparkA public park on the bend of the Spree directly behind the Reichstag, in the hea17 minutes walk4.4No. It is the official residence of the German president and a working government building, with no tourist tours. The single exception is an open day held once a year, requiring advance registration. Otherwise it is viewed from outside only.
Not as a destination in itself. But it lies in the Tiergarten on the walking route between the Victory Column and the Brandenburg Gate, so passing it is natural. Give it twenty minutes within a longer walk rather than a special trip.
The Victory Column is minutes away and can be climbed for a small fee for a view over the park. The Reichstag and the Brandenburg Gate lie at the eastern end of the Tiergarten, about half an hour's walk through the park.