Berlin

Berlin sits high in the Usulutan hills in coffee country, a town that grew on the crop in the late nineteenth century and keeps buildings from that period around its plaza. In recent years murals have been painted through the streets, covering house walls with scenes of coffee picking, local life and landscape, which has become the town's calling card and a reason for visitors to walk the streets. Coffee is still processed here and mills can be visited in season. A geothermal power station on the flank of the Tecapa volcano nearby uses the same heat resource as the vents at Alegria. Viewpoints on the edge of town look south over the coastal plain.

What you actually see

• The street murals - the painted house walls through the town.
• Coffee mills - the processing works, active in harvest season.
• The plaza buildings - the nineteenth-century coffee-era architecture.
• The plain view - the outlook south from the town edge.

When to go

November to February for the coffee harvest, when the mills are working; November to April generally for the dry season. The town is cool year round. Weekdays are quiet.

Honest expectations

Mill visits need arranging and only run in harvest season. The murals vary in quality and condition. The town is small with limited facilities. Cloud frequently covers the view.

Nearby

Alegria lies east; Usulutan is south on the plain.