Germany

Traveling

Entry requirements

Passport and visa service

Consult the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs website (Auswärtiges Amt)

Diplomatic representations

Consult the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs website

Organizing your trip

Means of transport recommended in town

Recommendation

Taxis are very easily available day and night at reasonable rates. You can ask your hotel or restaurant to order you a taxi. To get a bill, ask: "eine Quittung, bitte." Drivers usually speak English. In large cities, the tramway network (Strassenbahn), metros (U-Bahn), the express metro network (S-Bahn) and buses are less expensive alternatives to taxis.

Maps of urban networks

Plan of the Berlin metro and simulation of itineraries
Plan of the Munich metro
Plan of the Hamburg metro
Plan of the Frankfurt metro
Plans of other German metros

Means of transport recommended in the rest of the country

Recommendation

Choose the ICE (InterCity Express) train between the main cities: Frankfurt - Berlin (4 hours), Frankfurt - Cologne (1 hour 15mn), Berlin - Leipzig (1 hour), Berlin - Hamburg (1 hour 30 mn). On these links, the motorway network, often saturated, cannot compete with the train. Do not hesitate to take the plane for the links between Munich - Hamburg, Munich - Berlin or Stuttgart - Berlin.

Rail companies

The Deutsche Bahn website

Airlines

Traveling by yourself

Recommendation

The motorway network (Bundesautobahn) is practical because it is free for cars. There is no speed limit but a lot of maintenance work causes repeated slowing down. Plan extra time to be sure to make your appointment. Getting fuel is no problem.

Road maps

Viamichelin
Mappy
Falk
Meine Stadt

Find an itinerary

Viamichelin
Mappy

Visiting

Different forms of tourism

Historical

There are many places for tourists to visit:
- historic city centers: Regensburg, Würzburg, Goerlitz ;
- museums: Pinakothek in Munich, museum island in Berlin,
- palaces : Sans-Souci at Potsdam, Charlottenburg in Berlin,
- cathedrals : Cologne, Berlin, Aachen,
- the banks of the Elbe
- the remains of the Berlin wall.

Cultural

Operas, concert halls, theaters, festivals, museums, art galleries, open air cinema.

Nature

Castles, parks and gardens

Near Berlin, at Potsdam, the park of Sans-Souci palace covers nearly 300 hectares. You should also visit the zoological garden (Zoologischer Garten) in Berlin, the park of the palace of Nymphenburg in Munich, the Herrenhausen royal gardens in Hanover.
For further information: Nature parks

Altmühltal, Eifel, Saar Hunsrück, Schiefergebirge, the Swabian and Franconian forest, Schwalm-Nette, the Black Forest Center/North, Südeifel, the island of Usedom

National Parks

Eifel, Kellerwald-Edersee, Lakes of Schleswig-Holstein, Lakes of Hamburg, Lakes of Lower Saxony, Jasmund, Western Pomeranian Bodden Landscape Park, Müritz, Unteres Odertal, Harz, Hainich, Saxony Switzerland, Bavarian forest, Berchtesgaden

Religious

Aachen, Cologne Cathedral, Berliner Dom

Thermal

Aquatic parks, health resorts and spas

Beach

Many lakes: Constance, Müritzsee, Chiemsee, Schwerin, Starnberg ; very long rivers: Rhine, Danube, Main, Weser and Elbe; the Baltic and North Sea coasts; the canals in Brandenburg and in Mecklenburg.

Winter sports

The Bavarian Alps, Allgäu, Black Forest, Harz, Thuringe forest, and Saxony are all skiing areas. The highest summit is the Zugspitze 2962 m in the Bavarian Alps.

Outdoor activities

Cycling, walking, canoeing, climbing, rollerblades.

Shopping

The biggest store in Germany is in Berlin: KaDeWe Kaufhaus of the West. Also in Berlin, do not miss Friedrichstrasse. All the large cities in Germany have pedestrian areas which offer a wide choice of stores.

Tourism organizations

German Tourism Board

Living conditions

Health and safety

Health precautions

No vaccination requirements.

International hospitals

In general you can communicate in English in German hospitals (in Berlin, for example, the university hospital La Charité).

For further information on sanitary conditions

German Ministry of Health

For further information on safety conditions

The Current Travel Warnings of the US State Department
The advice of the Canadian Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Emergency numbers

Time difference and climate

Time and time difference

It is %T:%M %A in Berlin (GMT+1 in winter, GMT+2 in summer)

Summer time period

Summer time from March (last Sunday) to October (last Sunday)

Map of the time zone

Type of climate

The country has a continental climate with wide variations in temperature between the seasons. The northern regions have a milder climate of the oceanic type. The southern regions have a continental climate with more rain. In summer, the anticylones bring hot, sunny days, but the nights are cool. In winter, the days are short.

For further information

German Meteorological Agency (Deutscher Wetterdienst)

Average annual temperatures and rainfall

Eating

Culinary specialties

German culinary specialties vary according to the region where you are:

- Wurst (the famous sausages), Schinken (an immense variety of pork meats, about 1 500 sorts);
- Brot (the famous German breads, more than 200 kinds);
- Sauerkraut : sauerkraut garnished, for example, with knuckle of pork, "Eisbein mit Sauerkraut"

Note also: Spätzle (a type of pasta) a specialty of Bade Wurtenberg, Meatballs (a Berlin specialty) and desserts (Apfelstrudel, Stollen, Mohnkuchen - poppyseed cake)

Drinks

Germany is the world's second producer and first exporter of beers (to about 140 countries) with 1 800 breweries. It produces about 5 000 different beers. Germans drink little still water and prefer sparkling water. Another favorite drink is Apfelschorle, apple juice diluted with lemonade. Another refreshing drink is Radler, beer diluted with lemonade.

Dietary taboos

There are no dietary taboos in the country. Nevertheless, a certain number of Germans are vegetarians.

Paying

Domestic currency

Euro

ISO Code

EUR

To obtain domestic currency

ATMs take most credit cards. In addition, there are plenty of them, easily accessible, in airports, town centers and all over the country.

Possible means of payment

Cash payments are very widespread, and credit cards are taken more and more, although some restaurants will only take cash. In the same way, some restaurants only take the "EC" card (a payment card, issued by German banks, which is not a credit card). In addition, payment by cheque in shops or restaurants is never possible.

 

Speaking

Official language

German.

Other languages spoken

Most Germans have a very good knowledge of English. Quite a few of them speak French. Moreover, Italian, Spanish and Russian are also spoken, if less frequently.

Business language

Used a lot. The languages used in business are German and English.

Getting some knowledge

Use the travlang website. To take lessons, consult the Goethe Institutes website.

Free translation tools

Dico Leo - Translation and pronunciation.

Useful resources

To find an accommodation

Berlin.de Berlin.de All Berlin apartments http://www.mitwohnzentrale.de http://www.wg-gesucht.de http://www.aohostels.com http://www.circus-berlin.de Hotel reservation

To find an apartment

Short term furnished appartment agency
Agency

Immobilien scout 24 - private individuals' adverts
Adverts of the regional newspaper Berliner Zeitung
Adverts of the regional newspaper Tagesspiegel
Adverts of the national newspaper FAZ

To find a job

Job scout
Monster
Jobpilot
Manpower
National Daily FAZ

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