The river that runs through the middle of Berlin, past Museum Island, the Reichstag and the longest surviving stretch of the Wall.
Slide under the red-brick Oberbaum Bridge, watch the Cathedral dome float by from the open deck, and see the city drift past with a cold drink in your hand.
Landwehr Canal closed to cruises until 1 November 2026. Stern und Kreis lists a canal closure from 13 October to 1 November that affects the bridges tour; check your date. Operator noticeAs of 28 October 2026
The route, spelled outWhich sights each boat really passes
Real guest ratingsLive figures from GetYourGuide
Free cancellationUp to 24 hours before on most cruises
Live guide or audio guideWe say which, for every boat
Cruises
Choose your Spree boat tour
In the centre, the one-hour loop with a live guide in English and German. Either side, the long trip west to
Charlottenburg and the full loop through the Landwehr Canal and past the East Side Gallery. Every card opens a full tour page.
Past the Chancellery and Bellevue Palace, then out to Charlottenburg Palace and back through the quiet Westhafen canals. Commentary is German on board, with an audio guide for everyone else.
What's included
Round trip of about 2 hours 15 minutes from Friedrichstraße
A real person on the microphone, in German and English, while a glass-roofed boat loops past Museum Island and the Reichstag. The roof closes in seconds when it rains.
What's included
One-hour round trip from the pier opposite Berlin Cathedral
Live commentary in German and English
Glass panorama boat with a roof that opens in warm weather
The whole city in one loop: the East Side Gallery and Oberbaum Bridge, the green Landwehr Canal through Kreuzberg, then back past the Reichstag. More than 50 bridges and three locks.
What's included
Round trip of about 3 hours 15 minutes from Jannowitzbrücke
Live commentary in German
Audio guide in 11 other languages, including English
Open deck and enclosed saloon, drinks served to your seat
Three questions sort it out. Which part of the river do you want to see? Do you need a live guide in English,
or is an audio guide fine? And do you have one hour or an afternoon?
Several central piers, including Friedrichstraße and Jannowitzbrücke, are reached by stairs only. The self-drive
boat is priced per boat for up to eight people. Stern und Kreis sells the bridges tour direct from EUR 32.90.
Before you book
One river, three different trips.
Every Spree cruise looks the same in the photos: a white boat, a blue sky, the Cathedral dome. They are not the same trip.
The route decides what you see, and the routes split three ways.
The one-hour loops stay in Mitte. They run between Museum Island, the Nikolaiviertel and the government quarter by
the Reichstag, then turn. They are cheap, short and pretty, and they never reach the East Side Gallery. The long trip west
leaves the centre behind for Bellevue Palace, Charlottenburg and the quiet Westhafen canals. The eastern loops start
near Jannowitzbrücke or the Oberbaum Bridge and run along 1.3 km of the Wall (from the water you see its river side; the famous murals face the street). The longest of them, Stern und Kreis's bridges tour,
also threads the green Landwehr Canal through Kreuzberg.
1,316
Metres of the Berlin Wall still standing along the Spree at the East Side Gallery,
painted by 118 artists in 1990. You only see it from a boat whose route goes east.
Mitte loopWest to CharlottenburgEast Side & canalSelf-drive
Berlin Cathedral from the water: the view every Mitte loop is built around.
01
Who is talking?
On most big boats the live commentary is German. English comes through an audio guide.
02
When do they run?
The main season is spring to autumn. A few boats run in winter, with closed saloons.
03
How long?
One hour for Mitte, two to two and a half for the west or the solar catamaran, three and a quarter with the canal.
04
Step-free?
Rarely. Many piers have stairs; the solar catamaran is the barrier-free choice.
On board
How a Spree cruise runs
An hour on the classic loop, up to three and a quarter on the full canal tour. This is the shape of it.
01
Find your pier
Each company has its own landing stage. Be there 15 to 30 minutes early: boats leave on time.
Arrive 15 to 30 min early
02
Pick your deck
The open deck has the views and the sun; the saloon has tables, the bar and shelter from rain.
Seats are first come
03
On the river
Commentary from a guide or the audio system as you pass the sights. Bridges are low: stay seated when the crew says so.
1 to 3.25 hours
04
Back to the pier
Most cruises are round trips and finish where they started, so plan the next stop from there.
Season, prices, the commentary question and getting to the pier: one tab each.
April to October: the full timetable, open decks and the most departures.
March and November to December: the glass-roofed 1-hour boats keep running, from March to December.
20 November to 20 December 2026: Stern und Kreis runs a winter city tour from Friedrichstraße, Fridays to Sundays.
January and February: the quietest months on the river, with few departures. Check your date before planning around it.
One-hour loops through Mitte: from $24 to $28.
West to Charlottenburg, 2 hours 15: from $34.
Solar catamaran, 2.5 hours, or the bridges tour, 3.25 hours: from $40.
Dinner cruise with Prosecco: from $90.
Self-drive electric boat: from $66 per boat for up to eight people.
Live guide in English: the 1-hour cruise opposite Berlin Cathedral (German and English).
German live, audio guide for the rest: the Stern und Kreis boats, including the bridges tour and the trip west.
Audio only: the solar catamaran (7 languages) and the Hemingway (German and English).
No commentary: the self-drive boats, which head east from the Oberbaum Bridge. Bring your own playlist.
Friedrichstraße: S and U Friedrichstraße, about 5 minutes on foot to the piers.
Opposite the Cathedral: Anna-Louisa-Karsch-Straße, near U Museumsinsel and S Hackescher Markt.
Jannowitzbrücke: right by S and U Jannowitzbrücke.
Oberbaum Bridge: Stralauer Allee 3, near U Warschauer Straße and S Warschauer Straße.
Mitte loop1 hourMuseum Island, the Nikolaiviertel, the Reichstag and back. No East Side Gallery.
West loop2 h 15Bellevue Palace, Charlottenburg and the Westhafen canals.
East & canal2.5 to 3.25 hOberbaum Bridge, the East Side Gallery and, on the bridges tour, the Landwehr Canal.
Bridges960 to 2,100The count visitBerlin gives for the whole city, depending on what counts as a bridge.
On boardBar + toiletOn the big sightseeing boats. Bring nothing for the self-drive boat but a picnic.
Refund24 hoursFree cancellation up to a day before on most cruises here.
Where it happens
Where the boats leave
Central piers, one company each
Main piers: Friedrichstraße, opposite Berlin Cathedral, Paul-Löbe-Haus, Jannowitzbrücke, Stralauer Allee
Berlin has no single boat terminal. Each company runs its own landing stage along the Spree, and two piers a few
hundred metres apart can belong to different firms. Check the exact address on your ticket, and allow time for
stairs: the stages sit below street level, on the river wall.
Mitte loops: Friedrichstraße, the Cathedral, the Reichstag
Full loop with the canal: Jannowitzbrücke
Solar catamaran and self-drive: by the Oberbaum Bridge
The Spree ends in the Havel, and the Havel is where Berlin's boat trips get green. Weisse Flotte's 90-minute loop from Potsdam harbour passes Babelsberg Park, slides under the Glienicke Bridge and turns at Pfaueninsel. Take the S7 or a regional train out for a half day.
Berlin turned its back on the Spree for most of the 20th century. For 28 years part of it was a border. Today it is the
easiest way to see the centre in an hour, and a boat is the best seat.
A river that was a border
The Spree runs about 400 km from the hills of Saxony and ends in the Havel at Spandau. Through the middle of Berlin it was, for
long stretches between 1961 and 1989, part of the line between East and West. The Oberbaum Bridge was a border crossing. The
bank where the East Side Gallery now stands was the eastern side of the Wall, and the river beside it belonged to the East.
People died trying to swim across. When you pass that stretch on a boat, you are on water that was guarded.
After 1990 the riverbanks filled up again. The government quarter by the Reichstag, with its glass parliament buildings and
footbridges over the water, went up on the Spree bend right beside the old border line. That is why the newest buildings in the
centre face the river: they were designed to be seen from it.
The government quarter, built after reunification on the bend where the Wall ran.
Mitte loop, west loop, east loop
Think of the river in three pieces. The middle piece is Mitte: Museum Island, Berlin Cathedral, the Nikolaiviertel and the
government quarter. The one-hour cruises live here: the hour from Friedrichstraße, for example, turns at the Lutherbrücke
near Bellevue and heads back east as far as the Nikolaiviertel. West of that, the river bends past Bellevue Palace to Charlottenburg; the long Stern und
Kreis trip goes there and comes back through the Westhafen and Spandau ship canals. East of Jannowitzbrücke come the East Side
Gallery, the Oberbaum Bridge and the Molecule Man in the water near Treptow.
The honest small print: the cheapest cruise is not a shorter version of the long one. It is a different
piece of river. If the East Side Gallery or Kreuzberg is the point, a $24 loop through Mitte will not show you either. Each of our
tour pages puts the route first.
The Landwehr Canal
Built between 1845 and 1850 to plans by the landscape architect Peter Joseph Lenné, the Landwehr Canal runs 10.7 km from the
Osthafen to Charlottenburg, cutting south through Kreuzberg and past Potsdamer Platz and the Museum of Technology. It is narrow,
lined with trees and crossed by dozens of low bridges. Of the cruises on this site, only the bridges tour from Jannowitzbrücke takes it,
through three locks, which is why that trip runs to more than three hours. It is also the canal where Rosa Luxemburg's body was
thrown in January 1919; a memorial stands on the bank.
The Landwehr Canal: narrower, greener and quieter than the Spree in Mitte.
Live guide or audio guide
On most of the big sightseeing boats the live commentary is in German. Visitors in other languages get an audio guide, through
headphones or their own phone. That works, and one guest praised the translation for covering every point they passed. If you want
a person who answers questions in English, book the 1-hour cruise from the pier opposite Berlin Cathedral, which has a live guide
speaking both languages. And if you would rather have no commentary at all, rent a self-drive electric boat by the Oberbaum
Bridge: no licence is needed, the price covers up to eight people, and the sailing area runs east towards Treptow.
The Oberbaum Bridge, once a border crossing, now the gateway to the eastern routes.
Straight answers to what people ask most about boat tours on the Spree.
Is the Berlin boat tour worth it?
Yes, for about $24 to $40 and one to three hours of sitting down. You see Museum Island, the Reichstag and the government quarter from the angle they were built to be seen from, and it rests your legs between museums. It is worth less if you pick the wrong route: the 1-hour loops never reach the East Side Gallery. More in is a Berlin boat tour worth it.
Yes. Riverside paths run through most of the centre: past the Reichstag and the government quarter, round Museum Island and Monbijou Park, and east along the East Side Gallery to the Oberbaum Bridge. A full loop along the Spree through Mitte is about 14 km. Our Spree walk guide has the route.
Can you swim in the River Spree in Berlin?
Not in the city centre. Swimming in the inner-city Spree has been banned since 1925, and in 2026 the ban still stands, including the Spree Canal by Museum Island. To swim on the river, use the Badeschiff, a floating pool in Treptow, or one of the lakes. Details in swimming in the Spree.
How long is a Spree boat tour?
One hour for the classic loops through Mitte, about 2 hours 15 minutes for the trip west to Charlottenburg, 2.5 hours on the solar catamaran and about 3 hours 15 minutes for the full loop with the Landwehr Canal.
Do Berlin boat tours have English commentary?
Usually through an audio guide. On most of the big boats the live commentary is German, and you get English, French, Spanish and more through headphones or an app. The 1-hour cruise opposite the Cathedral has a live guide speaking German and English.
Which boat tour passes the East Side Gallery?
The ones that start or turn in the east: the bridges tour from Jannowitzbrücke and the solar catamaran from the Oberbaum Bridge. From the water you see the river side of the Wall; the famous murals face Mühlenstraße. The self-drive boats head east and do not pass it. See the East Side Gallery guide.
Where do Berlin boat tours leave from?
From piers in the centre: Friedrichstraße and Am Weidendamm, the bank opposite Berlin Cathedral, the Paul-Löbe-Haus by the Reichstag, Jannowitzbrücke, and Stralauer Allee by the Oberbaum Bridge. Each tour page gives the exact pier. Several piers are reached by stairs only.
Do Berlin boat tours run in winter?
Some do. The glass-roofed 1-hour boats run from March to December, and Stern und Kreis runs a winter city tour from Friedrichstraße on Fridays to Sundays from 20 November to 20 December 2026. In January and February the choice is thin. See winter boat tours 2026-27.
Can I bring food and drink on board?
On the self-drive electric boats, yes: bring a picnic. On the big sightseeing boats you usually cannot bring your own, and drinks and snacks are sold at the bar or served to your seat.
Are Berlin boat tours wheelchair accessible?
Some are. The solar catamaran is listed as barrier-free. Many central piers, including Friedrichstraße and Jannowitzbrücke, are reached only by steps, and the 1-hour live-guide boat and the Hemingway are not wheelchair accessible. Ask the operator before booking.
Can I cancel a Spree boat tour?
Most tours here cancel for a full refund up to 24 hours before. The dinner cruise and the Hemingway listings show conflicting terms, so read the cancellation line at checkout before you pay.
Ready to book
Pick your route, pick your deck.
Central piers, a bar on board and free cancellation up to 24 hours before on most cruises.
Most reviewed long trip
★ 4.42 hours 15 minutesFree cancellation
