As Germany is one of the biggest countries in Europe, traveling around here may be challenging within a limited period of time and budget. In the following content, you shall find the best tips for transportation to Germany as well as connections within Germany to prepare yourself before exploring this multicultural and versatile city.
Flying in and out of Germany
A couple of the best online search engine tools for comparing flight fares within Europe, including Germany, are Google Flight, Skyscanner or Momondo. Google Flight lets you have the freedom to see price ranges on any date and recommends the best prices from a particular city to any other around the world.
Traveling between Germany and other European countries is usually cheap and fast with Ryanair. Book your flight at least 6-8 weeks before your planned departure and try to avoid landing at the small isolated airports. If you are traveling from Northern Europe, go for Norwegian or Scandinavian Airline. Wizz Air usually offers tempting deals and frequent passengers will be notified if they stay subscribed and comply with all of their strict luggage and check-in policies. Air Berlin is the third largest discount airline in Europe. Germanwings has good connections between big cities in Germany. Some of the other low-cost airlines to/from or within Germany are AirBerlin, EasyJet, Lufthansa, etc.
City-to-city Train
Deutsch Bahn is the biggest national train company in Germany. As you do not have lots of alternatives traveling by train, especially with fast ICE (Intercity-Express) and night trains, it is usually more expensive than going by buses. Train prices don’t fluctuate significantly and you can get the ticket from a vendor machine at any main station with the same price as that booked online. There are last-minute deals once in awhile.
Hop on a car to move quickly from one city to another
Blablacar is a cheap and fun way to travel around as you get a chance to communicate with local drivers, instead of traveling alone when you do so by train. It works quite simply. You only need to search for anyone with the same route, message or call the driver. Blablacar is to be avoided if your schedule is not flexible. There’s always a high chance that the driver cancels his ride a day before or in the last minute.
You might be interested in these Airbnbs!
Getting around on foot
Google Map is one of the most useful tools for getting around the city alone by foot. Simply mark the important touristic attractions or sites you want to visit on your Google account’s map, download the latest offline map one day before your trip and enjoy wandering around on your own.
If you are not a fan of like getting lost in a foreign city, it’s always recommended to join a free walking tour. These tours can be found easily in many cities of Germany with many association such as Europe New Sandemans, Frankfurt free walking tour or Can You Handle It, etc.
Berlin Tour Guide
Matti Geyer
I was born in Berlin the year before the wall fell and thus had the fortune and privilege to grow up in a city that was growing up itself. In 2008, I decided to turn my passion for this amazing city into a career by becoming a tour guide. Both my parents lived in East Germany: My dad became a teacher, until refusal to join the Communist party ended his career, whilst my mom worked as a tour guide for tourists from the Soviet Union. In a way, I am following in her footsteps, although our tours would be incredibly different. For instance, my mom failed her first test tour, when she didn’t refer to the Berlin Wall by its official East German propaganda term ‘antifascist protection barrier.’On my tours, I am always happy to share personal family stories about what it was like growing up in such an exciting and ever-changing city. I have a Bachelor’s degree in English and History from the University of Potsdam and a Master’s degree in European Studies from the Viadrina Frankfurt/Oder.When I’m not guiding, I work as a journalist at one of Berlin’s biggest radio stations or spend time with my wife and son. I have also lived in New York City and in Brussels, where I worked at the Goethe-Institut and the European Parliament, respectively. I speak fluent English with hardly any accent. I am a member of the Berlin Guides Association. I am looking forward to showing you around this amazing city – on and off the beaten track – and to sharing its fascinating anecdotes, stories, and secrets! I am also a big fan of Potsdam, and am always happy to take people there as well!
Tours by Matti
Berlin Tour Guide
Asaf Leshem
My name is Asaf and I am a professional tour guide. I hold a Ph.D. in Dark Tourism and interpretation of history. In Berlin I guide tours on such topics as the Cold War, the Third Reich, Berlin's Jewish Heritage, Berlin and Brandenburg's Prussian History, and more. I also guide in Potsdam, and I am certified to guide in the Memorial and Museum Sachsenhausen. I am also an enthusiastic runner and cyclist. For repeating visitors, looking for unique experiences outside the city, I guide special cycling tours in Brandenburg's northern lake district, and in the Spreewald Biosphere Reserve.
Tours by Asaf
Berlin Tour Guide
Tina
Born and raised in Australia, I studied psychology at the University of Queensland but had always loved reading modern history books. I came to Berlin for a nerdy history vacation in 2017, fell in love with the city and decided to make it home. I offer tours of Berlin and its surrounds which are rich with history and packed with energy. I don’t just show my guests Berlin's sights; I also explain the history behind them in an accessible and engaging way and help my guests to connect with the city’s spirit and uncover its real soul. Not sure what to do in Berlin? In addition to my Tips on Trip101, you can find lots of ideas on my Instagram. Every Thursday I post a highlight Story called "Tina's Tips" where I suggest events in Berlin for the coming week, like comedy, live music, gallery tours, dance parties etc.
Tours by Tina
Local tram, bus and train
If you are not into exploring a city on foot, getting a bus or tram for commuting may be useful. Taking a local S or U train to get around big cities like Berlin, Frankfurt and Munich is useful, though the downside is that you cannot see the sights as much as if you walk. Download the Deutschbahn application and use it to check your planned schedule. You need to have Internet connection for this.
Travel cheaply around Germany by bus!
Traveling by bus is strongly recommended if you are planning to spend a lot of time in Germany. A highly recommended site for searching buses is BusRadar, which shows the best connections and cheapest deals of the biggest bus companies in Germany. Bus fares are way much cheaper than train or plane. You can get as good deals as a 5 EUR one-way ticket between the northernmost city of Germany (e.g.Hamburg) to Bavaria, as well as from Germany to bordering countries.
A couples of good company with cheap deals are Flixbus, Postbus, Megabus, Eurolines, etc. Their buses usually offer Wi-Fi connection, comfy seat, availability to bring hand luggage and one extra luggage. Though getting around Germany by bus is cheap, it usually takes long time and you should book in advance during peak seasons and big holidays such as Christmas or New Year’s Eve. Otherwise, prices normally stay the same even one day before your planned departure date.
History
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