Getting There By Air:Hannover-Langenhagen Airport (HAJ) Tel: (0511) 977 1223/4.
Website:
www.hannover-airport.de Hannover airport is located 11km (7 miles) northwest of the city, at Langenhagen.
Airport facilities: Currency exchange is available at
Travelex and at banking machines in Terminal A and C. Other facilities include travel agencies, tour operators, a post office, car parking, general and duty-free shops, bars and restaurants. Representatives
of car hire companies
Avis,
Budget,
Europcar,
Hertz,
National Car Rental and
Sixt are located in the P1 car park. The airport conference center (tel: (0511) 977 2877) provides fully equipped conference rooms for up to 60 delegates.
Transport to the city: A transfer service is available to and from the airport and back. Local bus 470 and express bus 60 (see
Public Transport) travel to Hanover's main station at regular intervals daily (journey time - 30-40 minutes). A suburban rail link (S5), built for Expo 2000, connects the airport and the central station (journey time - 15-20 minutes). The service runs every 30 minutes (website:
www.gvh.de). A taxi to the city center costs about €20 (journey time - 20 minutes). See websites:
www.flughafen-taxi-hannover.de or
www.taxi-service-hannover.de). Conference rooms are also available at the Holiday Inn hotel (tel: Tel: (0511) 77070; website:
www.hannover-airport-holiday-inn.de), next to the terminal.
Approximate flight times to Hanover: From London is 1 hour 40 minutes; from New York is 13 hours 30 minutes; from Los Angeles is 15 hours; from Toronto is 11 hours and from Sydney is 21 hours 20 minutes.
Getting There By Road:Germany has an excellent network of
Autobahnen (motorways, prefixed ‘A' followed by up to three numbers) and
Bundesstrasse (major roads, prefixed by ‘B'), and unlike many other countries, all are completely toll-free. Traffic drives on the right. Speed limits are 130kph (81mph) or 100kph (62mph) outside built-up areas and 50kph (30mph) in built-up areas. There are no speed limits on
Autobahnen, although individually marked speed limits appear on a large percentage of motorway miles. A maximum of 130kph (81mph) is recommended. Seat belts must be worn at all times and children under 12 years can only travel in the front seat with a child restraint. The legal maximum alcohol to blood ratio for driving is 0.05%.
The minimum age for driving is 18. Foreign drivers require a valid International Drivers License and proof of insurance - a Green Card is strongly recommended. A country identification sticker must be displayed on the vehicle.
General information on traveling by car in Germany can be obtained from the
Allgemeine Deutsche Automobil Club (
ADAC)
(tel: (0180) 510 1112; website:
www.adac.de), which also provides a breakdown service throughout the country.
Emergency breakdown services: ADAC (tel: (0180) 222 2222) or
ACE (tel: (0180) 233 6677).
Routes to the city: The A7 (Hamburg-Kassel) skirts Hanover to the east. The A2 (Berlin-Dortmund) passes the city to the north. These motorways are linked by the A37 (east) and the A352 (west).
Approximate driving times to Hanover: From Hamburg - 1 hour 30 minutes; Dusseldorf - 3 hours; and Berlin - 3 hours 15 minutes.
Coach services: Deutsche Touring GmbH (tel: (069) 790 3501; website:
www.touring.de) provides services between Hanover and international destinations including Paris, Strasbourg, London, Bologna, Krakow, Prague, Moscow, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Barcelona and Madrid. The main coach/bus station, Zentraler Omnibusbahnhof, is located directly behind the Hauptbahnhof, Ernst-August-Platz (tel: (0511) 16680).
Getting There By Rail:The national service provider,
Deutsche Bahn (
DB) (tel: 11861; website:
www.bahn.de) is responsible for the modern, extensive and highly efficient rail network. Services include high-speed
InterCityExpress (
ICE) trains between major cities in Germany,
InterCity (
IC) and
EuroCity (
EC) trains, which serve cities in Germany and Europe respectively, and
InterRegio trains, which link different regions of the country.
The main station, Hannover Hauptbahnhof, Ernst-August-Platz is an important junction on the
ICE train network and was given a major facelift for
Expo 2000. Facilities include shops, numerous eating and drinking outlets, a bank, travel agent (tel: (0511) 286 1319), car hire from
Avis,
Budget and
Europcar, and two trade fair information counters (tel: (0511) 324 948).
Rail services: ICE services run to Hanover from Berlin and Hamburg and also to Bremen, Cologne, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Mainz, Stuttgart and Munich. There is also non-stop service to Paris (journey time - 7 hours 30 minutes). The
CityNightLine between Berlin and Zurich stops at Hanover (website:
www.citynightline.ch). During international trade shows, selected
ICE trains,
IR trains and regional trains stop at Hannover Messe/Laatzen station, at the Messegelände (trade grounds), in the southwest of the city.
Getting Around:
Public TransportThe city's exemplary transport system is run by the
Üstra Hannoverische Verkehrsbetriebe AG (tel: (0511) 16680; website:
www.uestra.de), and consists of
buses and
Stadtbahnen -
trams that travel underground in the city center and on special designated tracks in the suburbs.
Urban transport is integrated with regional services, including
Deutsche Bahn (tel: (01805) 194 195; website:
www.bahn.de), which operates five
suburban train (S-Bahn) lines, as well as
RegioBus Hannover (tel: (0511) 368 880; website:
www.regiobus.de). The umbrella organization,
Grossraum-Verkehr Hannover (
GVH) (tel: (0511) 1668 3000; website:
www.gvh.de) oversees the entire system.
Single tickets are valid for up to one day on all transport and prices are based on zones covered. Day, group, concession and multi-tickets are also available. Tickets are available for purchase using pre-paid cards (
GeldKarte from banks or
PayKarte from
Deutsche Telekom) from automated
Tix dispensers at bus and tram stops - tickets bought in this way are slightly cheaper and will eventually replace tickets purchased with cash from the driver or from other ticket outlets.
The GVH
Tages Einzel Ticket (whole-day card) offers unlimited daily travel within one zone. The
Hannover Card, available from tourist information and other outlets, allows free travel on
GVH buses, S-Bahn trains and trams in the Hanover ticket zone and discounts at tourist attractions (see
Sightseeing). One- and three-day cards are available.
TaxisTaxis are beige Mercedes and tourists can safely hail these on the street or call for one in advance. Radio taxi companies include
Flughafen-Taxen Hannover (tel: (0163) 640 7232
or (0177) 248 7311; website:
www.flughafen-taxi-hannover.de) and
Taxengemeinschaft Langenhagen (tel: (0511) 730 101; website:
www.taxi-service-hannover.de). After dusk, tram and bus drivers will often order taxis for single women passengers, on request. These meet the passenger at the relevant bus stop. Drivers normally stick to the efficiently regulated meter system. A tip of 10% is expected.
Driving in the CityDriving conditions in Hanover are now among the best in Germany. Wide, five-lane-streets in the city center make driving very easy and prevent congestion.
Given the excellent public transport system, in most cases it is advisable for drivers to park and ride. In the city center, 24-hour parking is available at Friesenstrasse/Lister Tor, Hbf/Raschplatz, Rundestrasse/Hbf, Leonhardtstrasse (Schweizer Hof), Schmiedestrasse, and Opernplatz (Opern/Kroepcke), Osterstrasse, Koebelinger Markt, Klagesmarkt and Marstall.
Up-to-date information on driving conditions and transport in the Hanover region is available from
Move GmbH (tel: (0511) 3535 4232; website:
www.move-info.de).
Car HireIn addition to the outlets at the airport, cars can be hired from
Avis (tel: (0511) 322 610; website:
www.avis.de),
Europcar (tel: (0511) 363 2993; website:
www.europcar.de),
Hertz (tel: (0511) 353 6609; website:
www.hertz.de) and
Sixt (tel: (0511) 352 1213; website:
www.sixt.com), all of which have offices at the main railway station. Drivers must be a minimum of 19 years old and have held a full driving license for at least one year, although some companies hire out very small cars (such as the Smart Car) to 18-year-olds. Payment is in cash or by credit card, on presentation of a valid license (an International Driving Permit is preferred).
Bicycle HireBicycles can be hired from
Pro Beruf Fahrradwerkstatt (tel: (0511) 633 293; website:
www.pro-beruf.de/ausb_fahrr.html) and from
Fahrradstation (tel: (0511) 353 9640) at the main railway station. Hanover is reasonably bicycle friendly, with a number of designated cycle routes.
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