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Transportation
by air
Berlin has three airports but there are two major airports: Schönefeld and Tegel.
Tempelhof is just a national airport. It is located five kilometres (three miles) from the city center and is adjacent to the U-Bahn station Platz der Luftbrücke. From there are quick connections of 10 to 20 minutes to the city centre.
Tegel Airport is situated in northwest Berlin, approximately eight kilometres (five miles) from the city centre. This airport primarily serves Western European destinations and North American destinations. Buses to various destinations leave every 5 to 10 minutes.
You can get there with a lot of buses from “Zoologischer Garten”, “Jacob Kaiser Platz”, “Beusselstraße” or “Kurt-Schumacher-Platz”.
A taxi rank is situated immediately outside the arrivals' hall.
Schönefeld Airport lies 24 kilometres (15 miles) from the city centre. It used to be the primary airport for whole Berlin. In 2011 it will be the hugest and most modern airport in Europe (more information: www.berlin-airport.de English version available).
Now the airport handles flights mainly to Eastern Europe and Asia, as well as many charter flights to sun destinations.
The easiest way to get to the city center is with the AirportExpress Schönefeld train. The train departs every 30 minutes (from Monday to Friday between 5.10 am and 1.40 am and on Saturday and Sunday between 05.40 am and 01.40 am) and stops at four stations in East Berlin before terminating at Bahnhof Zoo.
A free shuttle bus, departing daily from 4.30 am to 11.30 pm, connects the airport and the station. But if you walk it’s just 10 minutes from station to the airport.
The airport is also served by S-Bahn trains (on weekend and public holidays all the time, for more information look at the point: public transport) and some mainline and local rail services. Taxis are available 24 hours a day.
The journey time in the city centre for trains and taxis is approximately 30 minutes.
For further information about getting there with the public transport visit the website: www.bvg.de (English version available)
by train
The German railway (Deutsche Bahn) runs an efficient and reliable network that covers destinations throughout Germany and the rest of Europe. A direct express train connects Berlin’s Schönefeld Airport and Berlin as well as the main cities in Germany.
There are a lot of different trains: the Intercity Express (ICE) (offers a fast connection to the main cities and destinations) with it’s varieties, the Intercity (IC) and the Eurocity (EC). Furthermore there is the “Regional Express” (RE) which connects Berlin and it’s region around (makes more frequent stops at the smaller stations).
Berlin’s “Hauptbahnhof”, “Berlin Ostbahnhof” and “Berlin Wannsee” are the three stations where the ICE stops. At other big stations like “Berlin Alexanderplatz” and “Berlin Friedrichstraße“ just the IC, EC and RE stop.
At every big station trams, buses and taxis are available in the area immediately outside the main building. Furthermore the commuter railway (S-Bahn) and metro are available at every station.
For national and international tickets: www.deutsche-bahn.de and
Germany is covered by an excellent and extensive system of motorways (named ''A'' for Autobahn) and major roads (prefixed ''B''). There are no tolls on the Autobahnen. On some routes are no speed limits but a maximum of 130km/h (81mph) is recommended. The main roads leading to Berlin fare the A24 (from Hamburg), A2 (from Hanover), A9 (from Leipzig and Munich), A13 (from Dresden) and A12 (from the Polish border). A10 is an orbital motorway that circles the entire city (Berliner Ring).
Parking can be problematic on Saturday, particularly in the shopping areas. In the city centre petrol stations are rare but if you go in the surrounding of the centre you can find a lot of them.
Legal Information
It is an offence to drive whilst under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The maximum blood alcohol level permitted by law is 0.5%
Drivers found exceeding the limit have their licenses confiscated on the spot and a court decides whether or not to withhold this permanently.
Speed Limits
In cities and villages the maximum speed limit is 50 km/h (31 mph).
The speed limit on non-autobahn (major roads) is 100 km/h (62 mph) but you have to be attentive of the advices.
Seat Belts
German law requires the wearing of seat belts front and rear. Children up to 12 years and under are not allowed to travel in the front passenger seats of family cars. For children up to six years you have to use a child's car seat and children up to 1.50m need a raised seat.
Driving with Lights
By law, drivers must use dipped headlights during the hours of darkness or poor visibility caused by rain, fog or snow. It is an offence to drive using only side or parking lights.
To travel by bus to or away from Germany/Berlin could be a less expensive alternative to the train. The Central Bus Station (Zentraler Omnibusbahnhof ZOB) is located in west Berlin.
With this public transit bus companies you can travel to or from Berlin:
Berlinien Bus (www.berlinienbus.de) - English version available
Daily there depart coaches to over 250 destinations.
Online booking possible.
Gullivers Reisen GmbH (www.gullivers.de) - English version avilable
Gullivers reaches Europe's major cities.
Online booking is possible but there are no timetables or price lists, so it's better to book in an office or via e-mail.
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