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Getting Around By Air
Internal services are operated by Lufthansa (www.lufthansa.com), Air Berlin (www.airberlin.com), Germanwings (www.germanwings.com) and several other regional airlines. Frankfurt/M is Germany's major air travel hub, and all airports in the Federal Republic of Germany can be reached in an hour or less from here. Connections by air operate daily between Berlin, Bremen, Cologne/Bonn, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt/M, Hamburg, Hanover, Munich, Nuremberg, Stuttgart and Westerland/Sylt (summer only). The majority of western airports offer daily flights to Leipzig and several flights a week to Dresden.
Getting Around by Water
Regular scheduled boat services operate on most rivers, lakes and coastal waters. Besides scheduled services, special excursions are also available on all navigable waters.
The KD German Rhine Line (tel: (0221) 208 8318; www.k-d.de) covers the Rhine and Moselle rivers, and has comfortable ships that operate daily from April to late October. In conjunction with the Sächsische Dampfschiffahrt, the KD also organises cabin cruises on the Elbe between Meissen and the Swiss border, via Dresden. Lake Constance is served by regular steamers, pleasure boats and car ferries between the German, Swiss and Austrian shores. The Lake Constance Adventure Passes (Bodensee-Erlebniskarte) (www.bodensee-erlebniskarte.info, German only) give free travel on many vessels in the Lake Constance area, as well as discounted admission to attractions. The pass is valid for seven or 14 days. Getting Around by Rail
InterCity and high-speed ICE connections (www.bahn.de) run every one or two hours to around 30 destinations (mainly in Germany but also to Austria, Belgium, The Netherlands, France and Switzerland). ICE express trains operate on numerous routes within the country. German National Railways (Deutsche Bahn; www.deutschebahn.com) operates tens of thousands of passenger trains each day.
Rail Passes
A range of Bahncards is available from Deutsche Bahn, offering a number of different discount schemes for travel within Germany, and varying advance purchase discount options are also offered.
InterRail's One-Country Pass: offers travel for three, four, six or eight days in one month within Germany. Travel is not allowed in the passenger's country of residence. Travellers under 26 years receive a reduction. Available from Rail Europe (www.raileurope.co.uk/inter-rail). Getting Around by Road
Traffic drives on the right. Germany is covered by a busy modern network of motorways (autobahnen).
Bus: Buses serve villages and small towns without railway stations. There are few long-distance services. Europabus (www.romantischestrasse.de) runs services on special scenic routes. Car hire: Self-drive cars are available at most towns, airports, and at over 40 railway stations - all major international car hire companies are present in Germany. Regulations: Traffic signs are international. Speed limits in Germany are 50kph (31mph) in built-up areas and 100kph (62mph) on all roads outside built-up areas. Unless otherwise indicated, there is theoretically no maximum speed limit on Autobahns, but 130kph (81mph) is recommended. The minimum driving age is 18. Emergency breakdown service: The Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil Club (ADAC) (emergency tel: 0180 222 2222, in Germany; www.adac.de) is the principal national assistance network. In almost all cases, the number to dial for emergency services is 110. Documentation: Insurance is mandatory. EU nationals driving their own vehicles are advised to obtain a Green Card. Members of the EU, the USA and Australia do not need an international driving licence to drive in Germany. Getting Around Towns and Cities
All urban areas have efficient bus services, complemented in a number of larger cities by trams, and underground or suburban trains. In most larger cities, tickets for a local transport journey have to be purchased from ticket machines before boarding the suburban train (S-Bahn), underground (U-Bahn), bus or tram. Ticket inspections are frequent, with on-the-spot fines for miscreants. Taxis are widely available in the main cities, and operate from designated ranks. They can be advance booked by telephone.
Berlin: The city's excellent public transport includes an extensive network of buses, underground and S-Bahn in three travel zones. In the eastern part of the city, tram services and the ferries of the Berliner Verkehrs-Betriebe, BVG (Berlin Public Transport) (tel: (030) 19449; www.bvg.de), in conjunction with east Berlin's White Fleet, provide further services. Day and longer period passes are available covering all services. Taxis are generally available throughout the city (tel: 0800 263 0000, in Germany; www.taxi263000.de). Frankfurt: An extensive tram network and bus services serve the Rhine-Main region, operated under the auspices of the Rhein-Main Verkehrsverbund (tel: (01805) 768 4636; www.rmv.de). As in Berlin, 24-hour passes for all types of public transport are available, as is a large fleet of cream-coloured taxis. The central taxi booking number is (069) 230 001. Munich: The Bavarian capital has some trams, plus comprehensive bus, underground and suburban rail services. Services are operated under the aegis of the Münchner Verkehrs-und Tarifverbund (tel: (089) 2103 3282; www.mvv-muenchen.de). Again, taxis are widely available. Taxis can be booked on (089) 21610 or 19410. Note: Pedestrians should be aware that it is an offence to cross a road when the pedestrian crossing lights are red, even if there is no traffic on the road. Offenders can risk on-the-spot fines. Journey Times
The following chart gives approximate journey times (in hours and minutes) from Berlin to other major cities and towns in the Federal Republic of Germany.
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