From the UK For British travellers, air is the only sensible way to reach Berlin. Direct flights from London, Birmingham and Manchester operate several times a day, but Scotland still has no direct link to Berlin, so travel from there has to be via Amsterdam or another UK airport. Londoners are spoilt for choice with flights leaving from London City, Gatwick, Heathrow and Stansted. Most serve Tegel Airport in the western part of Berlin, but the budget airlines from Stansted usually fly to Schönefeld, to the southeast of the city. A few flights go to Templehof, including one from London City. It is the airport closest to the city centre but which has the fewest regular services. It is worth seeing just for the terminal, one of the few buildings in Berlin bequeathed by the Nazi era. In 2007, it is hoped Schönefeld will have expanded sufficiently to take all the air traffic for Berlin, and the other two airports will then close. Air Berlin flys to Tegel and Ryanair, which has taken over the former buzz route, will fly from 1 May 2003 to Schönefeld. Fares can be as low as £40 return. Fares vary very little throughout the year, but fewer rock-bottom fares are offered over Christmas, Easter and around trade fairs. Now that scheduled carriers have decided to fight back, they often offer comparable fares to those of the low-cost carriers. For a ticket on a scheduled airline between the UK and Berlin, it should normally be possible to travel for around £150 return. From Europe Most European capitals have direct flights to Berlin, as do the larger cities in western Germany. Berlin followed Frankfurt as a target for low-cost airlines but now has an increasing number of these services on both domestic and international routes. For example, Ryanair flies within Germany. Fares from other parts of Germany can be E50 return. Always check airport taxes when booking; they vary greatly from airport to airport so a different routing may well save considerable sums of money. For those with time and patience, searching websites will probably provide the cheapest source of airfares on their own. However, buying tickets through travel agents will not cost much more and could well cost less when included as part of a package. From North America There are very few long-haul flights to Berlin so travellers from America and Asia have to change planes en route, usually in Western Europe. Fares of US$600 round trip from the East Coast are available for much of the year but expect to pay much more in mid-summer and over Christmas/New Year. Always check taxes before booking and see how they compare with those from a neighbouring airport. Airport information http://www.berlin-airport.de covers all three Berlin airports. It has terminal plans, schedules, arrival/departure information and details of public transport links. It will work out routes from each airport within the city. Airport information also from T 0180 50 00 186. Tegel airport has one terminal; a check-in desk and departure area is allocated to each flight. There are no toilets airside. The airport has a BVG office. BVG, the Berlin transport authority, runs all buses, trains and trams in Berlin and Potsdam. Their Tipinfo guide will provide an instant printed routing to any address in the city with the timings included. Explanations are in English. The office sells travel passes and individual tickets; it also has free leaflets. The Berlin Tourismus Marketing, the Berlin Tourist Board, has an information counter close to the BVG one, and can book hotel rooms and give details of sightseeing tours. Buses No X9 and No 109 are the choice of most travellers leaving the airport since they pass most areas where hotels are located. No 128 is better for those heading north or east. All pass many U-Bahn stations but the U-Bahn itself does not serve Tegel. No 109 takes 30 minutes to reach Zoo Station, the No X9 about 20 minutes as it makes fewer stops. The TXL express bus goes to Mitte. One-way tickets (E2.10) are valid for two hours so cover transfers. The airport closes overnight so there are no problems with public transport, which always covers the earliest departures and the latest arrivals. Taxis are all metered and are plentiful at the airport. A taxi from Tegel will cost about E20 to Zoo Station, about E30 to Mitte. A tip of 5-10% is normal. The Essbahn is the best place to linger when a flight is delayed. It is outside the terminal, beside the departure point for buses into town. The name is a pun on the German word “essen” which means “to eat” and S-Bahn which is the name of the overground railway. The café operates from a converted railway carriage and serves spiced-up German food. Come here for a curry or salsa sausage before the milder in-flight catering.
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Berlin - £5.99
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