City Sightseeing Berlin: HOHO Bus – All Lines (A+B) & Icebar

Berlin sightseeing gets a fun twist here: you spend the day above street level on an open-top double-decker, then step into Icebar Berlin, where the room is kept at -10 degrees Celsius and even the furniture is made of ice. The bus covers two routes and 26 stops, so you can see both central Berlin and the old Wall districts without piecing every journey together yourself.

I like the 360-degree views from the upper deck, especially around Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag, and Unter den Linden. I also like the freedom to get off at places such as Checkpoint Charlie, Bernauer Strasse, and the East Side Gallery, then rejoin the route later. The main catch is timing: the buses run only every 25 to 40 minutes, and the Icebar requires a separate timed entry that cannot be shifted reliably.

The ticket costs $48 per person and covers either 24 or 48 hours, depending on the option you choose. That can be solid value if you use both routes and make several stops, but it is less compelling if you only ride once around Berlin. The Icebar is a memorable extra, though it is closed Mondays and has limited hours on weekdays.

Key points at a glance

• Two routes, two sides of Berlin: The Classic Tour covers central sights, while the East Berlin and Wall Tour reaches Bernauer Strasse and the East Side Gallery.
• 26 stops for flexible sightseeing: You can use the bus as a moving city introduction or as transport between selected landmarks.
• Icebar entry with three drinks: Your admission includes three complimentary drinks inside a frozen room containing 69,000 kilos of ice.
• Commentary in 13 languages: Audio is available in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Hebrew, Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, Russian, Polish, Arabic, and Turkish.
• Open-top views come with weather risk: The upper deck gives you the best sightlines, but Berlin weather can make the lower deck more practical.
• A careful timetable matters: The A-Tour runs every 25 minutes, while the B-Tour runs every 40 minutes, and the Icebar uses fixed time slots.

Start with a citywide look from the upper deck

A hop-on hop-off bus works best on your first day in Berlin, when you want to understand how the city fits together. Berlin is spread out, and its major sights sit in several distinct areas. The bus lets you see the broad shape of the city before deciding where to spend more time.

The Classic Tour takes about 120 minutes if you stay aboard for the full loop. The first departure from Stop 1 is at 9:30am, the last departure from Stop 1 is at 3:30pm, and buses come about every 25 minutes. That frequency is useful, but you should still allow extra time at popular stops. Missing a bus can mean a wait of nearly half an hour.

The open top is the main attraction during the ride. You get wide views instead of the narrow sightlines of a normal city bus, and the upper deck gives you a clear look at Berlin’s grand avenues and landmark buildings. Headphones and audio commentary are included, with 13 language choices. The commentary gives the ride structure, though you should not expect a live guide walking beside you.

The bus accepts both mobile and printed vouchers. The activity is wheelchair accessible, but pets and smoking are not allowed. Your exact starting point can vary with the option booked, so check the meeting details before setting out.

The Classic Tour links West Berlin and the old center

The A-Tour is the best choice for a first overview. It connects shopping streets, Cold War locations, ceremonial buildings, museum areas, and the main central sights in one broad loop.

The route begins around Tauentzienstrasse and KaDeWe, useful starting points if you are already in West Berlin. KaDeWe is one of the city’s best-known department stores, while Tauentzienstrasse gives you a busy commercial entrance to the tour. From there, the bus moves toward Lützowplatz and Potsdamer Platz.

At Potsdamer Platz, look for the historic traffic light display mentioned in the stop name. The square offers a strong contrast between Berlin before the Wall, the empty border zone during the Cold War, and the modern district rebuilt after reunification. It is a good place to hop off if you want architecture and city planning rather than a single monument.

The next stops include Gropiusbau and Checkpoint Charlie. Checkpoint Charlie was a major crossing point through the Berlin Wall during the Cold War. The bus cannot replace a longer visit on foot, but it gives you an easy way to reach this important location and place it within the larger story of divided Berlin.

Gendarmenmarkt follows, one of central Berlin’s most impressive squares. The route then passes Neptunbrunnen and reaches Alexanderplatz, where the city feels more open and modern. Alexanderplatz is one of the strongest transfer points on the route, but it can also be crowded and confusing. Keep track of the stop name and direction before wandering away from the bus.

From there, the Classic Tour heads toward Lustgarten and Unter den Linden, Berlin’s ceremonial boulevard. This is a good stretch for staying on the upper deck. You get a succession of major buildings rather than a single stop, and the audio commentary helps you identify what you are seeing.

The Brandenburg Gate is the tour’s essential stop. It is one of Berlin’s defining symbols, and the bus gives you a useful first look before you explore it on foot. The nearby Reichstag is another highlight. If you want photographs, the open deck offers a broad view, but crowds, trees, and traffic can affect your angle.

The route continues to Hauptbahnhof, the main railway station, then the Siegessäule, or Victory Column. The bus also stops near the Zoo and Elefantentor, Café Kranzler, and Kurfürstendamm 236 before returning through the western part of the city. These stops make the A-Tour more than a monument circuit. You also see Berlin’s shopping districts, transport hubs, and everyday city spaces.

The B-Tour gives Berlin’s Wall story more room

The Trendy East Berlin and Wall Tour is shorter but more focused. A complete ride takes about 60 minutes. It starts at 9:30am, runs until 4:30pm from Stop 1, and buses arrive roughly every 40 minutes.

That longer wait changes how you should use the route. I would not treat it as a casual hop-off line unless you have plenty of time. Instead, pick one or two stops that matter most to you, then plan around the timetable.

The route begins at Rotes Rathaus, near the Neptune Fountain, and continues toward Oranienburger Strasse and Krausnickstrasse. These stops place you near central East Berlin and offer a different feel from the formal spaces around Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag.

Bernauer Strasse is the heart of this route. The area is closely tied to the Berlin Wall, and the stop near Café Bar Central gives you access to the Wall memorial area. Mauerpark, at Bernauer Strasse 45, is another named stop. This part of the city is especially useful if you want more than a quick photograph of a remaining Wall section.

The bus then returns toward Alexanderplatz and stops near the Park Inn Hotel. It continues along Karl-Marx-Allee, with the Computerspielemuseum listed as a nearby point of interest. Karl-Marx-Allee is notable for its broad boulevard and East German-era urban design, so it offers a strong change from the older central monuments.

The final stops are the East Side Gallery near Mercedes-Benz Arena and Ostbahnhof. The East Side Gallery is one of Berlin’s most recognizable stretches of preserved Wall, covered with large murals. It is also one of the best places on this ticket to pause and walk. The route’s combination of Bernauer Strasse and East Side Gallery gives you two different Wall experiences, one tied to division and remembrance, the other to public art and reunification.

How to use 24 or 48 hours wisely

The 24-hour option is enough for a focused first look. You can ride much of the Classic Tour, get off at Brandenburg Gate or Checkpoint Charlie, and use the B-Tour for one selected Wall stop if the schedules fit.

The 48-hour option makes more sense if you prefer a slower pace. You can use the first day for the central route and the second for East Berlin, rather than spending your whole visit watching the clock. It also gives you a better chance to recover from a delayed start, poor weather, or a missed bus.

For the best views, sit upstairs when the weather is comfortable. Keep a jacket handy, since the upper deck can feel much colder than street level. If conditions are unpleasant, the lower deck protects you, but your views will be more limited.

At $48, the ticket earns its keep through repeated use. If you ride both routes, hop off several times, and use the bus to link distant areas, you are getting transport and orientation in one purchase. If you only remain on board for a single loop, public transport or a shorter sightseeing product may offer better value.

Icebar Berlin adds a chilly second act

The Icebar is not a casual stop you can squeeze in at any moment. It uses a timed ticket, and admission later than your booked slot is not guaranteed. Plan this part before you start hopping on and off, especially since the Icebar is closed Mondays.

Opening hours are Tuesday through Friday from 5pm to midnight, with last admission one hour before closing. On Saturday and Sunday, it opens at 4pm and also closes at midnight. The evening schedule makes it a natural follow-up after sightseeing, but you must leave enough time to reach the venue for your assigned entry.

Inside, the temperature is kept at -10 degrees, and the bar contains about 69,000 kilos of ice. Ice sculptures give the room its character, while the cold turns a normal drink into a short event. Three complimentary drinks are included, which improves the value of the $48 package if you were already interested in trying the Icebar.

The drink detail is worth noting. A bartender’s suggestion of nougat vodka was singled out as a particularly good choice, so it may be worth asking about it when you arrive. The included drinks do not replace a meal, and food and other drinks are not part of the package unless specified.

The Icebar ticket is non-refundable, even though the bus portion allows cancellation up to 24 hours in advance for a full refund. That difference matters. You can change your general plans within the cancellation window, but you should treat the Icebar time as fixed once selected.

Who gets the most from this ticket

I would recommend this experience to first-time visitors who want a broad introduction to Berlin without building every journey around the city transit map. Families and mixed-age groups may also find the format useful, since each person can choose to stay on the bus or get off at a landmark.

It is also a good fit if you want both major central sights and Wall-related locations in one product. The two routes reach places that are not close together, including Checkpoint Charlie, Bernauer Strasse, Karl-Marx-Allee, and the East Side Gallery.

I would be more cautious if you prefer detailed museum visits or long walks through individual neighborhoods. The bus gives you an overview, not a deep visit at each stop. The 40-minute frequency on the B-Tour can also feel slow if you miss a departure.

The Icebar makes the package more distinctive, but only if its schedule fits your plans. Someone visiting on Monday cannot use that part, and anyone with a tightly packed evening may find the fixed slot restrictive.

Practical details that affect your day

You can reserve now and pay later, which helps if your Berlin schedule is still shifting. Free cancellation is available up to 24 hours before the activity for a full refund, but the Icebar time slot remains non-refundable.

Bring either a mobile voucher or a printed one. Since the starting point may vary by booking option, confirm the stop before leaving your hotel. Also check the day’s bus hours carefully, since the last departure times differ between the Classic and B-Tours.

The tour is offered for 24 or 48 hours, and the exact starting times depend on availability. The A-Tour’s longer loop and more frequent buses make it the easier route for flexible sightseeing. The B-Tour is more specialized, so use it with a plan.

Should you book City Sightseeing Berlin with the Icebar?

Book it if you want a broad first look at Berlin, value the ability to hop off at major sights, and like the idea of ending the day with a cold drink in an actual ice room. The strongest use of the ticket is combining both bus routes with several carefully chosen stops, not simply riding around once.

Skip it if you are staying only briefly, dislike fixed schedules, or mainly want long visits inside museums and historic sites. The price is reasonable for active use, but the value drops quickly if you miss buses or cannot attend the Icebar slot. For most first-time visitors with one or two days to organize, it is a practical overview with a memorable, slightly silly, and very cold finish.

FAQ

How long is the hop-on hop-off ticket valid?

You can choose a ticket valid for either 24 or 48 hours. Check availability for the starting times connected with your selected option.

Which routes are included?

The ticket includes the Classic Tour, also called the A-Tour, and the Trendy East Berlin and Wall Tour, also called the B-Tour.

How long does each bus route take?

The Classic Tour takes about 120 minutes for a full ride. The Trendy East Berlin and Wall Tour takes about 60 minutes.

How often do the buses run?

The Classic Tour runs about every 25 minutes. The East Berlin and Wall Tour runs about every 40 minutes.

Which languages are available for the audio guide?

Audio commentary is available in English, Spanish, French, German, Italian, Hebrew, Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, Russian, Polish, Arabic, and Turkish.

What does the Icebar ticket include?

Entry to Icebar Berlin and three complimentary drinks are included. The bar is kept at -10 degrees and contains about 69,000 kilos of ice.

When is Icebar Berlin open?

It is open Tuesday through Friday from 5pm until midnight, and Saturday and Sunday from 4pm until midnight. It is closed Mondays. Last admission is one hour before closing.

Can I change the Icebar entry time?

The Icebar uses a timed entry ticket, and admission later than your booked time is not guaranteed. The Icebar ticket is non-refundable.