Living in Britz, Berlin

Britz is a residential neighborhood in the far south of the Neukölln district, light years away from the chaos of northern Neukölln. It's green, quiet and surprisingly well kept, a place you come to live and not to go out every evening. Here you'll find the Hufeisensiedlung, the Horseshoe Estate designed by Bruno Taut in the 1920s and today a UNESCO heritage site of modernist architecture. Add the eighteenth-century Schloss Britz with its park and the large Britzer Garten, and you understand why Britz is more village than metropolis.

Who lives here

Long-standing German families, many with Turkish and Arab roots, retirees, and a growing number of young workers and students pushed here by housing pressure. Fewer expats and less international scene than the north of the district: here mostly German is spoken. It's a neighborhood of stable people, those settling down.

What it's like during the day

Calm, domestic Kiez life. You stroll among the low houses of the Hufeisensiedlung, head to the Britzer Garten for the lawns, the little lake and the flowering gardens, or into the park of the Schloss Britz. The Gutshof Britz hosts exhibitions and events. It's all on a bicycle-and-pram scale, with quiet streets and plenty of greenery.

What it's like in the evening

Honestly, not much. Britz shuts down early: the odd neighborhood Kneipe, kebab and takeaway pizza, little else. For bars, clubs and real nightlife you head north, toward Hermannplatz and Sonnenallee, reachable in a few minutes. Those who choose Britz do so precisely to sleep well.

Getting around

The axis is the U-Bahn U7, with the Grenzallee, Blaschkoallee, Parchimer Allee and Britz-Süd stops: they take you straight to Hermannplatz and then to the center. There are no trams (it's a former-West area, where the lines closed in the 1960s). The parts furthest south depend on buses, including the M44 and the M46.

Eating and shopping

Easy, widespread shopping: Rewe, Edeka, Aldi, Lidl and several Turkish supermarkets with cheap fruit, vegetables and bread. For eating, good Turkish and Arab cuisine, honest kebab, bakeries. Don't expect fine dining: it's neighborhood food, genuine and everyday.

When NOT to pick it

If you want nightlife, an international scene and everything within walking distance, Britz will feel like the outskirts. The southernmost areas are far from the U-Bahn and depend on buses. And if you're after the vibrant, multicultural atmosphere of northern Neukölln, here everything is more sober and quiet.

But if you want a green, quiet neighborhood well connected by the U7, where you can breathe and live without spending too much, Britz is one of the most sensible choices in southern Berlin.