Karl-Marx-Allee: socialist boulevard from Kino International to Frankfurter Tor

The 1950s 'Stalinallee' was East Berlin's showpiece: more than 2 km of housing palaces in a mix of socialist classicism and the Prussian Schinkel school, scene of the workers' strike of 17 June 1953. The walk runs east from the 1960s modernist section at Schillingstraße past the fountain at Strausberger Platz to Henselmann's domed towers at Frankfurter Tor. Start at U Schillingstraße (U5), end at U Frankfurter Tor (U5).

Best time: Wednesday to Sunday afternoon, when Café Sibylle is open (10:00-18:00); stay on for a film or a drink at the Kino International

The route, stop by stop

1. 1
   Kino International

   Opened in 1963 as the GDR's premiere cinema, with panorama windows in the upstairs foyer looking down the avenue. It reopened on 26 February 2026 after restoration and now has 506 seats. Karl-Marx-Allee 33. 10 min outside, or come back for a film.

   Josef Kaiser's 1963 GDR premiere cinema on Karl-Marx-Allee, with wood-panelled walls, a single huge auditorium under a wave-shaped ceiling and the Panorama Bar's glass wall over…

2. 2
   Café Moskau

   Opened on 18 January 1964 as a showcase Soviet restaurant, with a model of the Sputnik satellite on the roof and a large mosaic on the facade. Now an event venue, so admire it from the street. Karl-Marx-Allee 34. 5 min.

3. 3
   Strausberger Platz

   The gateway to the 1950s section, designed by Hermann Henselmann in 1952-55, with the two towers Haus des Kindes and Haus Berlin. Fritz Kühn's ring fountain in the middle shoots a central jet 18 m high. 10 min.

4. 4
   Café Sibylle

   A café in the ground floor of the boulevard at Karl-Marx-Allee 72, open Wednesday to Sunday 10:00-18:00, with a free exhibition on the street's history during café hours. Stop for coffee and cake. 30 min.

   A 1950s 'milk bar' on Karl-Marx-Allee with its original wall paintings, big windows onto the boulevard and a free exhibition on the history of the former Stalinallee. One of the…

5. 5
   Computer Games Museum

   The computer games museum at Karl-Marx-Allee 93a, open daily 10:00-20:00; entry is by time slot. 60 min if you go in.

   Over 300 exhibits of gaming history inside a Karl-Marx-Allee building: playable arcade machines, re-created 1980s and 1990s living rooms, Pong, the giant joystick and the…

6. 6
   Frankfurter Tor

   Henselmann's twin towers of 1953 close the 1950s boulevard; their domes were modelled on Carl von Gontard's domes at the Gendarmenmarkt. From here Boxhagener Platz is 10 min south.

Walking directions

More walks in Berlin

• Mitte classics: Reichstag to Museum Island3.5 km · 3 h
• The Wall and Prenzlauer Berg on a Sunday3.8 km · 3 h 30 min
• Kreuzberg to Neukölln food graze: bakeries, canal market and street food5 km · 4 h
• East Side Gallery and Friedrichshain's Boxi4 km · 3 h
• West Berlin: Charlottenburg Palace to Kantstrasse5.5 km · 4 h
• Tempelhofer Feld to old Rixdorf4.5 km · 3 h
• Schöneberg: Nollendorfplatz to the Rathaus where Kennedy spoke4 km · 3 h 15 min
• Wedding: flak tower, crematorium culture and Bruno Taut4.2 km · 2 h 30 min
• Britz: Taut's Horseshoe Estate and the old village1.1 km · 2 h
• Treptower Park: Soviet memorial, sky cannon and the Insel der Jugend0.9 km · 1 h 45 min