Berlin Travel Forum

Hi Everyone,

I hope you can help me with this--a writer from the New York Times needs some assitance with an article about money-saving tips on the metros of several European cities, specifically London, Paris, Rome, Berlin, and Barcelona. If you have any and are interested in speaking with him, please email me so I can have him contact you, and of course, please share them here as well! Where Berlin and Barcelona are concerned, he is also looking for tips about safety and navigation as well.

As always, thanks, everyone!

In Berlin (and elsewhere in Germany) a local public transport ticket covers all types of local public transport. Even a single ticket. You can use any combination of types of public transport you need to make your trip. Covered are in Berlin
- regional trains (RegionalBahn RB and RegionalExpress RE trains)
- S-Bahn
- U-Bahn (metro)
- trams
- buses
and even some ferries. Thus no turnstiles, but plain clothed ticket inspectors and hefty fines if caught without a valid ticket.

There are tickets for the zones "Berlin AB" (= all of Berlin) and tickets for "Berlin ABC". In Zone C there are e.g. Schönefeld Airport or the city of Potsdam.

How to save:
- day ticket (makes sense from 3 trips onwards)
- mini group day ticket (for 3-5 persons cheaper than day tickets per person)
- 7-day ticket
also an option are the Berlin Welcome Card and the CityTourCard Berlin which both cover local public transport plus giving discounts to a number of attractions.
http://www.berlin-welcomecard.de
http://www.citytourcard.com/c/cms/front_content.php?changelang=2&idcat=1&id=
Both come in a 48 and 72 hours version. More flexible than the (calendar) day tickets.

BVG site has maps, a timetable and lot's of more information (all in English)
http://www.bvg.de/index.php/en/Bvg/Start

Navigation:
Double decker bus lines #100 and #200 connect many sights in central Berlin and are thus ideal for tourists. Generally by bus and trams you can see something of the city.
S-Bahn runs on the "Stadtbahn" railroad (the west-east railroad through the centre of Berlin) elevated. The north-south lines run however through a tunnel in the city centre.
U-Bahn (U = Untergrund = underground). Despite the name it does not always run underground. Esp. the lines U1 and U2 run elevated through parts of the city centre.
http://www.berliner-untergrundbahn.de/st-101.htm
http://www.berliner-untergrundbahn.de/st-205.htm

Safety
Berlin is pretty safe. Definitely safer than the other 4 cities listed.
Of course the usual precautions for any big city should be observed. E.g. not to walk a single women through a dark park in the mid of the night.