Checkpoint Charlie

What makes it special

A replica of the guard hut at the third Allied checkpoint, the crossing for foreigners and West German mission staff, stands in the middle of Friedrichstraße. It was unveiled in 2000, and its sacks are filled with concrete. The real hut was removed in a military ceremony in June 1990.

The Americans kept their post an impermanent structure in the middle of the road, first in wood and later a metal container, to show that the United States did not recognise the city's division.

In 1961, at the height of the Berlin Crisis, American and Soviet tanks faced each other across this street for sixteen hours, until the Soviet tanks pulled back.

Above the hut, a tall mast carries portrait photographs of a Russian soldier and an American soldier, part of an artwork by Frank Thiel. The famous "You are leaving the American sector" sign is also a copy.

At the crossing, the Wall Museum has told the stories of escapes under, on and over the ground since the 1960s.

Visiting

From the pavement on Friedrichstraße, look at the replica hut and the two portraits on the mast above it. Expect a queue if you want a photo at the hut.

Then walk to the corner of Zimmerstraße, where the Berlin Wall Foundation's outdoor exhibition, Crossing the Iron Curtain, stands in front of the Asisi Panorama. Its five themed islands cover the crossing and its international connections.

Finish in the Wall Museum, which spreads over three floors and is open 10am to 8pm every day. Buy tickets at the counter, or online and print them at home.

Inside, look for the original of the sector sign that the copy outside reproduces.

The last Allied guard hut stands in the open-air grounds of the AlliiertenMuseum at Clayallee 135, open Tuesday to Sunday.

Guided or on your own

You can do this one on your own, with the Berlin Wall Foundation's audio walk round Checkpoint Charlie and the streets around it. It is called "The Building of the Wall in 1961. A Tracing in Berlin Mitte", and you play it from the foundation's website or through the BerlinHistoryApp on your phone.

Tips

The Wall Museum is mostly reading, with a few objects among the panels, and there is no fixed way round it. Pick the escape stories that interest you first, and leave the remaining rooms if your attention runs out.

The hut stands in the roadway of Friedrichstraße, one of the city's main traffic routes, so watch for cars when you step out for a photo.

A card game being played near the crossing is a scam. Walk past and do not stop to join in.