Brandenburg Gate

Completed in 1791 as a city gate topped by Johann Gottfried Schadow's four-horse Quadriga chariot, the Brandenburg Gate has witnessed the full sweep of German history, Napoleon's triumphant march through it, its use as a Nazi backdrop, its isolation within the Berlin Wall's death strip during the Cold War, and the euphoric crowds who gathered here the night the Wall fell in 1989. With nearly 190,000 reviews and perfect scores across must-see, culture, and aesthetics in this dataset, it's Berlin's single most essential stop, sitting at the head of Pariser Platz and Unter den Linden.

It's equally striking lit up at night as it is in daylight, and its open plaza accommodates enormous crowds without feeling cramped. Almost every visitor to Berlin passes through or by it at some point.