Zoo Station

Zoo Station was the main railway station in the former West Berlin. It takes its name from the neighbouring Zoo, and is usually just known as Bahnhof Zoo.

As well as S-Bahn and regional lines it is served by the underground lines U2 and U9.

Timetable

The following links take you directly to DB's real-time departures and arrivals timetables for Berlin Zoo:

• arrivals timetable for Zoo Station
• departures timetable for Zoo Station

Fare Zone

Zoo Station is in VBB fare zone A.

Facilities

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If you're looking for a place to store luggage in western / central Berlin, Zoo Station is the place to go. It has a large number of coin-operated luggage lockers as well as a left-luggage service. As the station has lost most of its intercity traffic, you will almost certainly never have a problem finding a free locker.

Otherwise the station has the usual facilities. A "WC Center" offers toilet and shower facilities. There is a Bahnhofsmission for travelers in difficulty.

A plan of the station in PDF format is available here (German only).

Note: there used to be a post office within the station which was open until late in the evening. This has long vanished, although it may still be mentioned in some guidebooks.

History

Bahnhof Zoo, opened in February 1882, was originally a local station on the Stadtbahn cross-city railway line. Between 1934 and 1940 the station was rebuilt, expanding capacity to meet demand from the growing population in the west of the city. Following the Second World War Bahnhof Zoo became the only major station on the Stadtbahn to be located within West Berlin, and became the main station. Especially during the 1970s and 1980s it became somewhat dilapidated, and gained a reputation as a hangout for junkies and underage prostitutes.

It received its first U-Bahn connection in 1902 with the opening of what is now the U2. In 1961 the U9 was added, reinforcing the station's position at the heart of West Berlin's transport network.

Following reunification the station became even more important, being the first stop for trains entering Berlin from western Germany. It has been renovated several times and while the surroundings still attract a somewhat dodgy clientel, the station is clean and fairly modern.

Since the opening of the new Berlin-Hauptbahnhof its role has however diminished, as long-distance (InterCity) trains no longer stop there.

In Germany the station is notorious as the setting for the book Christiane F. – Wir Kinder vom Bahnhof Zoo, which chronicles the life of Christiane Felscherinow between 1975 and 1978, a teenager who through her drug addiction became involved with the drug and prostitution scene around the station.

Trivia

The station was the inspiration for the U2 song "Zoo Station", which in turn inspired U2's Zoo TV tour and the album Zooropa.

Zoo Station is also celebrated by German singers and groups: rock band The Scorpions used it as the inspiration for their song The Zoo, while Nina Hagen wrote Auf'm Bahnhof Zoo.

To match the name Zoologischer Garten ("Zoological Garden") there is also a station called Botanischer Garten ("Botanical Garden"). There is also a Tierpark station at Berlin's other zoo, the Tierpark.

Lines

Next stations from Zoo Station
Ernst-Reuter-Platz	[U2	Wittenbergplatz
Kurfürstendamm	[U9	Hansaplatz (Station)

Next stations from Zoo Station
Savignyplatz	S3	Tiergarten
Savignyplatz	S5	Tiergarten
Savignyplatz	S7	Tiergarten
Savignyplatz	S75	Tiergarten

Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church (0.3 km), Kurfürstendamm - Ku'damm (0.3 km), Kurfürstendamm (Station) (0.3 km), Hugendubel (Tauentzienstraße) (0.4 km), Europa-Center (0.4 km), Irish Pub (Europa-Center) (0.4 km), Paraguayan Embassy (0.4 km), Zoo (0.5 km), Uhlandstraße (Station) (0.6 km)