Museum Island

Some of Berlin's top museums may go unnoticed since they are located on an island. Museumsinsel is nestled in the heart of the city, accessed only by huge bridges. The island is one of the capital's only three UNESCO World Heritage sites.

This ancient collection of five world-class museums exhibits everything from the famed bust of Egyptian Queen Nefertiti to great European paintings. Each museum was erected during the reign of a different Prussian monarch and reflects the style of the time. The legendary Pergamon has undergone multiple long-term restorations and will reopen in 2024.

Along with the museums, the reconstructed Berlin Palace is now under construction and will house the Berlin Ethnological Museum and the Museum of Asian Art. Museum Island was designed from the outset to be not just a site where the art of all types and epochs is brought together, but also an inner-city environment for tourists to linger. The Colonnade Courtyard combines all of these planned functions: as a public garden, it is a pleasant place to spend time, but it also showcases sculptures to pique visitors' interest in the Alte Nationalgalerie's enormous collection. In this sense, the Colonnade Courtyard serves as both an open-air museum and a recreational place.

Location: Museum Island, Berlin, Germany