After considerable doubts, my faith has once again been restored in my fellow travellers.

Not for those in the know the romance of Paris or the overpriced hustle and bustle of London, oh no. Instead Berlin has come out on top in the latest travel awards as voted for by the readers of the Guardian and the Observer.

From a shambles of a city literally torn in half through its role as the epi-centre of the Cold War, Berlin has reinvented itself in less than two decades into one of the coolest capitals on the planet.

Being a bit of a history buff, Berlin was inevitably going to rank up there as one of my top destinations for a long weekend away.

From the grandeur of the Brandenburg Gate to the newly-refurbished Reichstag, complete with glass roof which allows German citizens and curious tourists alike to look down on democracy in progress, to the darker scenes of the iconic Cold War relic Checkpoint Charlie and the moving Holocaust memorial, centuries-worth of history is around every corner in Berlin.

To make things even better, as I discovered on my last trip to the city, it's now possible to take a tour of all the major sites in the back of a Trabant, the staple car of the Communist East Germany, complete with a friendly and knowledgeable driver and guide, though a good travel insurance policy is advised given that they are often better qualified to recite facts than to negotiate the city centre rush hour.

However, what makes Berlin so great, as those who voted for it in this latest set of awards will no doubt testify, is that it is so much more than a museum, but manages to be home to some of the most cutting-edge art and music scene in all of Europe alongside being one of the most picturesque of all the capitals.

While the shopping and art galleries are definitely great, it is at night when Berlin truly comes into its own and cements its reputation as being the trend-setter of Europe.

Indeed, so dynamic is the nightlife of the city that it's difficult to keep up with what's hot and what's not, with bars falling out of favour quicker than any guide book can update its top tips, meaning that the savvy traveller always checks out the internet before planning a night out.

Though trends may come and go, what's pretty clear is that it is the eastern side of the city, currently undergoing a period of renovation after years of neglect, which is where it's all happening, with temporary art galleries, bars and nightclubs being set up in old warehouses or derelict apartment blocks, only to shut when they become too well known.

With many cities resting on their laurels, Berlin just keeps improving and I wouldn't be surprised if it becomes a fixture at the top of destination lists for many years to come, though it would be nice for it to remain one of Europe's best kept secrets.