Berlin, Germany — Travel Tips
Getting There By Air
Flights to Berlin are served by two airports at present, both woefully ill-equipped for a modern European capital, though there is light at the end of the tunnel - Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (BBI) is currently being constructed on a site south of Schönefeld Airport, and is scheduled to open by 2012. In the meantime, Lufthansa, British Airways and BMI offer flights to Berlin's Tegel Airport from the UK, while budget airlines easyJet and Ryanair fly from the UK to Schönefeld. Prices remain stable year-round, though it's far easier to get cheap flights if you avoid flying in the summer months and at weekends throughout the year. Flights to Berlin from London take just under two hours.
Berlin-Tegel (Otto Lilienthal) (TXL)
Tel: 0180 500 0186.
Website: www.berlin-airport.de
Berlin-Tegel is located in northwest Berlin, 8km (5 miles) from the city center.
Airport facilities
The airport offers a poor selection of expensive snack bars, a bistro, a champagne bar and a restaurant. Other facilities include a post office, bank/bureau de change, ATMs, florist, newsagents, duty-free shops, left luggage, 24-hour first aid, tourist information and clothing shops. There are Mercure and Holiday Inn hotels near the airport. Car hire is available from Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz, Nationalcar and Sixt.
The LSG conference center (third floor) has four function rooms, as well as a media center. Secretarial and translation services can be arranged. The GSS Airport Service Center (opposite gates nine and 10) provides fax services for public use. There are also four business lounges in the airport, located in the Airport Gallery, above the main hall.
Transport to the city
The JetExpressBus TXL, operated by Berlin's public transport provider, BVG (tel: (030) 19449; www.bvg.de), leaves the airport for Berlin Hauptbahnhof, Unter den Linden and Alexanderplatz (journey time - 30 to 40 minutes) every 20 minutes. Taxis are plentiful at the airport and there is a taxi rank immediately outside the arrivals' hall. The fare into Berlin is approximately €25.
Berlin-Schönefeld (SXF)
Tel: 0180 500 0186.
Website: www.berlin-airport.de
The airport (still referred to as Schönefeld despite being well on the way to becoming Berlin Brandenburg International Airport), is located in the southeast of the city, 18km (11 miles) from the city center. By 2012, a brand-new terminal will open here, Tegel will close, and this will become Berlin's sole airport.
Airport facilities
The airport has very mediocre facilities at present: a restaurant, some bars, bank/bureau de change, ATMs, newsagents, duty-free shop and first-aid facilities. Services available 24 hours a day include left luggage, snack bar and hotel reservations. There are Airport hotel and Albergo hotels located near the airport. Car hire is available from Avis, Budget, Europcar, Hertz and Sixt. As well as one business lounge on the second floor in Terminal A, conference rooms are available at the Konferenzzentrum Flughafen Berlin-Schönefeld GmbH, a 10-minute walk from the terminal.
Transport to the city
The easiest way for visitors to get to Berlin's city center is with the AirportExpress Schönefeld train, which is operated by DB (tel: 0180 599 6633; www.bahn.com) and runs daily every 30 minutes. The train terminates at Hauptbahnhof (journey time - 30 minutes). The airport station is located 0.5km (0.3 miles) from the airport. The station is also served by S-Bahn trains 9 and 45, as well as some mainline and local rail services. Bus 171 connects the airport with the U7 U-Bahn line at Rudow. Taxis are available 24 hours a day and cost approximately €30 (journey time - 30 minutes).
Approximate flight times to Berlin
From London is 1 hour 45 minutes; from New York is 8 hours 25 minutes; from Los Angeles is 11 hours 45 minutes; from Toronto is 8 hours 30 minutes and from Sydney is 21 hours 55 minutes.
Getting There By Road
Germany is covered by an excellent and extensive system of major roads and motorways. There are no tolls or speed limits on the Autobahnen (motorways) but a maximum of 130kph (81mph) is recommended. Speed limits are 130kph (81mph) or 100kph (62mph) on major and minor roads outside the cities and 50kph (30mph) in built-up areas. Traffic drives on the right and the minimum age for driving is 18 years. Foreign drivers require proof of insurance and their national driving license. A Green Card is strongly recommended. A country identification sticker is compulsory. Leaded petrol is unavailable; unleaded petrol with a lead additive can be found at some petrol stations. The Allgemeine Deutsche Automobil Club - ADAC (tel: 0180 510 1112; www.adac.de) provides breakdown services throughout Germany. In the Berlin area, Auto Club Europa - ACE (tel: 0180 233 6677; www.ace-online.de) can also offer assistance.
Emergency breakdown services
ADAC (tel: 0180 222 2222); ACE (tel: 0180 234 3536).
Routes to the city
The A10 is an orbital motorway that encircles Berlin. The A111 and A115 connect this to the A100 - which wraps part way around the Western center - from the north and south, respectively. The main roads leading to Berlin from outside the orbital are the A24 (from Hamburg), A9 (from Leipzig and Munich), the A113 (from Dresden), A12 (from the Polish border) and A2 (from Hanover, from where the A7 connects to the A5 toward Frankfurt am Main in the south).
Driving times to the city
From Hamburg - 3 hours 15 minutes; Dresden - 2 hours 25 minutes; Frankfurt am Main - 5 hours 50 minutes.
Coach services
Eurolines (tel: 0870 514 3219 in the UK only; www.eurolines.com) international coach services cover 500 destinations including Paris, Strasbourg, Vienna and London, and more locally, Frankfurt, Hamburg and Hanover. Berlin Linien Bus (tel: (030) 861 9331; www.berlinlinienbus.de) also runs these national and international services. Buses on both international and domestic routes arrive at the Zentraler Omnibusbahnhof (ZOB) Messedamm in Charlottenburg, near the International Congress Center (ICC). Information and tickets are available from the DTG Ticket Center, Kaiserdamm 30 (tel: (030) 306 7210) and at the ZOB Reiseburo (tel: (030) 301 0380; www.zob-reisebuero.de).
Getting There By Rail
Berlin benefits from a modern, extensive rail service.
Rail Services
Berlin is part of the InterCityExpress (ICE) network, with super-fast trains to Hanover and Frankfurt am Main. ICE trains also go to Hamburg. An expanding web of high-speed trains also serves destinations across Western Europe. Supplements are incurred for travel on ICE, IC and EC trains. The main railway station is Berlin Hauptbahnhof, Europaplatz, Europe's largest station linking east/west and north/south lines in the city center. Facilities include tourist information, lounge, bank, restaurant, food halls, café, shops, newsagents, pharmacy, hairdresser and left luggage. Gusundbrunnen station to the north provides rail links to the Baltic. The other major mainline stations are Bahnhof Lichtenberg, and Ostbahnhof, in east Berlin. Some mainline services also stop at Bahnhof Spandau, to the west, and Bahnhof Sudkreuz, in the south.
Rail Operators
Deutsche Bahn (tel: 0180 599 6633; www.bahn.com), Germany's national rail service provider, operates a comprehensive and efficient rail service, including high-speed InterCityExpress (ICE) trains.
Connections
Approximate journey times for trains to Berlin are: from Hamburg - 1 hour 40 minutes; Hanover - 1 hour 40 minutes; Frankfurt am Main - 3 hours 40 minutes.
Getting Around in Berlin, Germany
Public Transport
Berlin has a highly integrated transport system comprising U-Bahn (underground), S-Bahn (commuter rail), bus and tram services, with easy connections to regional and mainline rail services.
There are nine U-Bahn lines, 15 S-Bahn lines and 27 tram routes (the latter in east Berlin only). Bus services crisscross the city. Tickets are priced for either two or three zones - almost all visitors will use the AB tariff (though note that Schönefeld Airport lies just within zone C). The City Tour Card combines transport in zones A and B and an advantage card for around 50 tourist attractions.
Taxis
Taxis in Berlin are plentiful, cheap and scrupulously honest. It is standard practice to simply round up the price to the nearest euro, though for longer journeys, add a couple. Taxis can be ordered from Taxi-Funk Berlin (tel: (030) 443 322) and Würfelfunk (tel: (030) 210 101).
Driving in the City
Berlin has an excellent public transport system, so it should not be necessary to drive in the city. The city center is now a 'Particle Free Emission' area and drivers must display a specially approved sticker or risk a fine. The ticket is available from Umwelt Plakette (www.umwelt-plakette.de).
Car Hire
All of the major car hire firms are represented in Berlin and all have multiple locations throughout the city. Some of the most central are Avis (tel: (030) 230 9370; www.avis.com) and Europcar (tel: (030) 240 7900; www.europcar.de). Drivers must be over 23 years old and require a valid national driving license.
Bicycle Hire
Bicycles are plentiful in Berlin - the flat terrain and extensive network of bicycle paths make cycling in the city a pleasure. Bicycle hire is available from Berlin by bike-Fahrradstation (tel: 0180 510 8000; www.fahrradstation.de), which has offices throughout the city.
