Bremen Travel Forum

Hi,

I went to DB's website to search for the timetable for my departure from Bremen to Berlin on the 27/12/2008. However, i was unable to get any information. Is it that the timetable is only out until 13/12/2008 and so i was unable to get my search for 27/12?

Also, I am thinking of purchasing the Happy Weekend ticket as i will be travelling with a group of 5. Will this ticket cover the cost of all 5 of us to Berlin from Bremen as well as the local public transport?

Many thanks!

The timetable changes once a year in mid December - this year on the weekend Dec 13/14. The new timetable is not yet out. It should be online by early November. We are all desperately waiting for it... All you can do is try again in 2 or 3 weeks.

The Happy Weekend ticket covers all local trains operated by DB. This includes the S-Bahn in Berlin because it is DB owned, but not U-Bahn and bus. Local transport is not covered.

The timetable does indeed change on the 13th, and the new train times should start to become available over the next days. However, changes are usually minor, so if you want to have an idea of the schedule you can just do a timetable search for a date this side of december 13th.
If you consider purchasing a "happy weekend" ticket you should take in to account that this ticket is only valid on regional trains, and while these will get you from Berlin to Bremen this will take about twice as long as taking IC or ICE trains.

The timetable will change in December, however, usually there are only slight differences. The new timetable will be out by end of October/early November.

The Happy Weekend ticket is valid for up to five people, but only on one day of the weekend - despite the name - and only in local trains. The trip will be about 6 hours.

Public transport in Bremen is covered by the ticket, in Berlin only in the trains of the S-Bahn and the BVG.

Timetable from 14.12.2008 will be online from early November. However, there will not be many significant changes.

To get an idea of possible connections you can try a similar weekday prior to 13.12.

Happy Weekend ticket is only valid on local transport (not ICE/IC/EC), so the journey will take 5-6½ hours with 3-4 changes each way. You to use "Means of transport: only local transport" when you search DB website.

In Berlin you can use transport provided by DB, S-Bahn and BVG.

You should definitely go for the Schoenes Wochenende (Happy Weekend) ticket, as with 5 people travelling together it is still the bargain it once used to be and it is also a great way to get to know a lot of dull stations as you will have to change trains rather often :-) Just to clarify that, your group can generally use all public transport there is in Berlin with this ticket (any train, underground train, tram, bus, public ferry). Only in the very outskirts of the city do buses and trams run that are not operated by the local public transport authority (BVG) and where the Schoenes Wochenende ticket is thus not valid.

Thank you all for your help.

Also, I would like to know if I can actually purchase the Happy Weekend ticket on the spot at the Bremen station and how much more would it cost?

Btw, does 6 hours cover the transfers from bremen to Berlin? And do the tranfers mean i have to get off the train and get onto another train? (sorry, it'll be the first time i go to germany!)

> I would like to know if I can actually purchase the Happy Weekend ticket on the spot at the Bremen station
Yes. It's rather a hassle to buy it in advance. Shop for this is only in German, no change, no refund.

> and how much more would it cost?
price is always the same
HappyWeekendTicket (SchönesWochenendeTicket) is
EUR 35,00 if bought from ticket machines
EUR 37,00 if bought at the counter

In case you want to travel directly from Bremen Airport to Berlin buy the HappyWeekendTicket (HWT) from one of the ticket machines there. HWT covers also the trams and buses in Bremen.
You'll need cash (bank notes) to get it from a ticket machine at the airport.
If you buy from a DB ticket machine at a train station you can also pay by credit card.

> Btw, does 6 hours cover the transfers from bremen to Berlin? And do the tranfers mean i have to get off the train and get onto another train? (sorry, it'll be the first time i go to germany!)

DB timetable
http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en
From: Flughafen, Bremen (for Bremen Airport)
From: Bremen (for Bremen Hbf, the main railway station)
To: Berlin
and select as means of transport "only local transport" if you like to use the HWT.

As the timetable for 27.12.2008 is not yet online, you could choose a more recent date to get an idea about the travel time and changes. There will be anyway only minor changes on this.

Click on the departure/destination stop names to get the details for a connection: where to transfer, the platform numbers, etc.

The new timetable is out, earlier this year than in the years before. You can check the trains for end of December now.

Thank you all so much! I really appreciate it. I shall go check it out now! =)