Use Eurostar, Thalys, ICE and Night Sleeper Trains from England to Germany

Fewer cheap tickets on low-cost airlines flights from England to Germany allow trains (Eurostar, Thalys TGV, ICE, CNL City Night Sleeper) and buses to compete even on London to Berlin route.

photo credit: austinevan

Trains and buses are clearly slower than flying when traveling between London and Berlin. However, a sharp decrease in the number of flight and indeed number of low-cost airlines flying between England / Britain and Germany means that prices have risen and trains and buses offering stronger price competition than even a few months ago. Trains from London to Berlin take at least ten hours and buses / coaches around 18 hours.

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Cheap and Fast Trains and Buses to Berlin’s Low-Cost Airline Flughafen

Trains and buses provide fast and cheap transportation to Flughafen Berlin-Schönefeld Airport (SXF) – a great way to save further with cheap tickets for flights on low-cost airlines.

photo credit: Secret Pilgrim

The fastest and cheapest way to travel to Flughafen Berlin-Schönefeld Airport (SXF) from downtown Berlin is by train. The Airport Express and S-Bahn trains S9 are generally the best way for foreign travelers to get to Berlin. Buses are generally less convenient from Schönefeld Airport but a few are useful when traveling to less central areas of Berlin or during late-night and early-morning hours.

• Berlin’s second airport – Tegel (TXL) – is to the north of the city. It is slightly closer to downtown but best reached on Jet Express Buses.

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The Cheap and Fast Jet Express Bus TXL and X9 to Flughafen Tegel

Public transportation is the cheapest and fastest way to Flughafen Berlin-Tegel Airport with JetExpressBus TXL and X9 running from Mitte, Hauptbahnhof, and Zoologischer Garten areas.

photo credit: Tim Pritlove

Buses are generally the best, fastest, and cheapest way to travel to Flughafen Berlin-Tegel Airport (TXL). The Jet Express Buses are particularly handy when traveling to Berlin-Hauptbahnhof, Mitte, Alexanderplatz, Prenzlauerberg, or Zoologischer Garten areas. Tegel Airport is generally the more convenient of Berlin’s two major airports. Berlin-Schönefeld (SXF) is to the south of the city and the preferred airport of low-cost airlines. However, note that Air Berlin mostly flies to Tegel.

Berlin-Tegel Airport is in public transportation zone B, thus an AB ticket is required to travel to most parts of Berlin. A taxi from Tegel-Airport to Berlin Hauptbahnhof is around €25 – expensive compared to the €2.10 currently required for an AB-zone ticket.

• Passengers transiting to Berlin-Schönefeld Airport require an ABC-zone ticket (€2.80).

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The Staatliche Museen zu Berlin Galleries and Cultural Collections

The National Museums in Berlin are amongst the top cultural collections and art galleries in the world. The Pergamon and Gemäldegallerie (Picture Gallery) are the most popular.

photo credit: Spigoo

The cultural and art collections of the 17 Staatliche Museen zu Berlin (National Museums) cover a wide spectrum of topics with astonishing quality. The museums are mostly located in four geographical areas in different parts of Berlin. Museums in a given area usually have a combination admission ticket. The four main areas are – Museum Island (Museumsinsel) , the Cultural Forum, Charlottenburg, and Dahlem. The Hamburg Bahnhof Museum of Contemporary Art is not in these groupings but also very popular with foreign visitors. »»»Continue reading…

Opening Hours, Admission Prices, Free Entry, Cheap Passes

Berlin’s excellent State Museums have amongst the best collections in the world. Opening hours are long, ticket admission prices low (free for under-16s & savings with museum passes) and sometimes free.

photo credit: jwalsh

The 17 State Museums in Berlin (Staatliche Museen zu Berlin) have wide-ranging, excellent-quality cultural collections and art galleries. Opening hours are long while ticket prices remain relatively low (although no longer the absolute bargain they were a few years ago). Museum passes offer excellent value, while most permanent collections can be seen for free on the final four hours of opening hours on Thursdays. »»»Continue reading…

Buses and Trains Train to Flughafen Tegel (TXL) and Schönefeld (SXF), Germany

Buses and trains allow for cheap and fast transportation from downtown Berlin (Mitte, Zoo, Hauptbahnhof) to Flughafen Tegel (TXL) or Schönefeld (SXF) airport.

photo credit: Mr. Siegal

Public transportation is the easiest, cheapest, and often fastest way to reach Berlin’s two airports: Tegel (TXL) and Schönefeld (SXF). Buses are mostly used to Tegel, while Schönefeld is usually reached by train. Taxis are of course easily available too but expensive. Small groups may find private airport shuttle bus services worthwhile but book in advance and do compare prices as services vary widely.

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Low-Cost Airlines Flying from London, Britain, Ireland to TXL and SXF in Germany

Cheap flights on low-cost airlines allow for low-priced tickets when flying from London, Manchester, Glasgow, Liverpool, Belfast, Liverpool, Bristol, Dublin, Cork to airports in  Berlin.

airberlin - Europe s Favorite Low-Cost Airline (Photo: airberlin.com)

Berlin currently has two major airports that are used for commercial flights. The most conveniently located airport is Flughafen Tegel (TXL) in the northern suburbs of Berlin. However, most low-cost airlines fly to Flughafen Schönefeld (SXF) to the south of Berlin. Fortnately, ground transportation is well organised and cheap to both airports. »»»Continue reading…

Cheapest and Best Bus Tour of the German Capital’s Top Sights

Public Bus 100 is an easy and cheap way to see Berlin’s top sights including the Reichstag, Brandenburg Gate, Unter den Linden, and the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage listed Museum Island.

Berlin Bus 100 in front of the Reichstag

Berlin is very flat and thus great for exploring on foot. However, at nine times the size of Paris, Berlin’s excellent public transportation system is a great help when exploring the city. Berlin uses double-decker buses and for visitors, Berlin bus line 100 and bus line 200 are great ways to see the major sights cheaply. Bus 100 and bus 200 pass directly in front of top sites or are within easy walking distance of the best-known sights in central Berlin. Visitors with a cheap transportation card, may enjoy taking bus 100 all the way to its terminus and then return to sights that are of particular interest.

• Bus 100 run so frequently that there is little reason to ever consult the schedules in advance.

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Cheap Bus Tour of the Top Sights in West and East Berlin

Public Bus 200 is a cheap way to tour the top sights in the former West and East Berlin such as Kulturforum, Potzdamer Platz, Unter den Linden, Museum Island, and Alexanderplatz.

photo credit: Siemar

Berlin’s double-decker public buses are great for sightseeing in the German capital. Many companies run dedicated city tours using open-top double-decker buses but public buses can also be used to see the most famous sights. Bus 100, which runs from Zoologischer Garten in West Berlin to Alexanderplatz, in the former East Berlin, is the best known and passes by almost all famous sights including the Reichstag and Brandenburg Gate (Bandenburger Tor). Bus 200 follows a slightly different route from Bus 100 but covers the same distance and continues further into the former East Berlin.

• Virtually all the top sights in Berlin Mitte can be seen from bus 100 and bus 200, or are within easy walking distance from a bus stop. These two buses offer great tours of Berlin, several times per hour, at the cheap price of the normal public bus fare.

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German Cultural, Architectural, and Natural Treasures

Quedlinburg Dom & Schloss (Cathedral & Castle)

Germany is a keen participant in UNESCO activities and takes the UNESCO World Heritage List very seriously. Presently, 32 German sites are on the UNESCO World Heritage List. These cultural, architectural, and natural treasures help explain German influence in humanity’s common heritage.

German sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List (in order of inclusion on the list) are:

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