Willy Brandt Berlin-Brandenburg International Airport
By Cruise Ship at the Port of Warnemünde
This chapter covers Berlin’s airports; its main train station (Berlin Hauptbahnhof), including train connections to other German destinations and beyond; its bus depot; and the cruise port at Warnemünde.
Berlin’s airport situation is in flux. The completion of Willy Brandt Airport has been delayed for years; in the meantime, two older airports—Tegel and Schönefeld—do their best to handle Berlin’s heavy flight load. When heading to the airport, be very clear on which one you’re flying from.
In addition to being well-served by Lufthansa and other big, traditional airlines, Berlin is also a destination for many budget airlines. These include EasyJet (www.easyjet.com), Air Berlin (www.airberlin.com), Eurowings (www.eurowings.com), Condor (with several long-haul routes, www.condor.com), WizzAir (with a handful of direct flights to southeastern Europe, www.wizzair.com), TUIfly (www.tuifly.com), and Ryanair (www.ryanair.com). For more on cheap flights, see here.
This state-of-the-art airport (airport code: BER), 11 miles south of central Berlin, has been under construction since 2006. Overdue and over budget, the airport may open sometime in late 2018...but, as cynical locals say, “If you believe that, you still believe in Santa Claus.”
In case it’s open for your visit, here’s the scoop (subject to change, of course): The airport is planned to connect to the city center by fast and frequent Airport Express trains (ignore the S-Bahn, which doesn’t go directly to the city center). The airport station (Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg Bahnhof) sits directly under the terminal. A train (2/hour, 25 minutes, direction: Dessau or Nauen) will likely run to Alexanderplatz (for Prenzlauer Berg and Scheunenviertel hotels, 25 minutes), then continue to Zoologischer Garten (for City West hotels, 40 minutes). Additional trains are planned to connect the airport to the main train station, via Potsdamer Platz (2/hour, 30 minutes). Any train into the city center costs €3.40 (ABC zone ticket, buy at machine and validate it before boarding). A taxi to the city center costs about €35.
Tegel (airport code: TXL), just four miles northwest of the center, serves as Berlin’s “main airport” until Willy Brandt finally opens. Smaller and older than you’d expect for the airport of a huge city, it’s limping along as well as it can. The easiest way to get downtown is by bus (follow the little bus icons to exit D).
To reach my Prenzlauer Berg or Scheunenviertel hotels, hop on bus #TXL, which stops at the Hauptbahnhof, then heads south down Friedrichstrasse before turning east on Unter den Linden, which it follows all the way to Alexanderplatz. Hop off just before Alexanderplatz—at the Spandauer Strasse/Marienkirche stop—then walk about five minutes north up Spandauer Strasse to Hackescher Markt. This is close to most Scheunenviertel hotels, and an easy ride on tram #M1 to most Prenzlauer Berg hotels.
To reach City West hotels, take bus #X9 directly to Zoologischer Garten (a.k.a. Zoo Station), or slower bus #109 by way of Ku’damm to Zoologischer Garten.
Any bus is covered by an AB zone transit ticket (€2.80 single ticket, buy from machine, validate before boarding). A taxi from Tegel Airport costs about €30 to Alexanderplatz or €20 to City West.
Most flights from the east and many discount airlines arrive at Schönefeld (airport code: SXF), 11 miles south of downtown and next to the under-construction Willy Brandt Airport. From the arrivals hall, it’s a three-minute walk to the train station, where you can catch a regional express train or S-Bahn into the city. The S9 line is especially handy for Prenzlauer Berg and Scheunenviertel hotels: From the Schönhauser Allee stop, tram #M1 runs south along Kastanienallee, then all the way to Hackescher Markt. You can also take Airport Express RE and RB trains directly to Ostbahnhof, Alexanderplatz, Friedrichstrasse (near some Scheunenviertel hotels), Hauptbahnhof, and Zoologischer Garten (handy for City West hotels; train runs 2/hour, direction: Nauen or Dessau). Either train is covered by an ABC transit ticket (€3.40, buy at machine and validate before boarding). A taxi to the city center costs about €40.
Virtually all long-distance trains pass through the Berlin Hauptbahnhof (“Berlin Hbf” on schedules)—a massive, state-of-the-art temple of railroad travel in the heart of the city. Below are tips on how to make your way from the station to your hotel, and a partial list of the many destinations you can reach from here.
Europe’s biggest, mostly underground train station is where the national train system meets Berlin’s S-Bahn—unique for the way its major lines come in at right angles. Note that many arriving trains (especially regional ones) stop at multiple Berlin stations, one of which may be more convenient to your hotel than the Hauptbahnhof. Before you arrive, figure out which station is best for you.
Orientation: The gigantic station has five floors, but its open layout makes it easy to navigate...once you understand the signage. The main floor, at street level, is labeled “EG” (for Erdgeschoss), or level 0. Below that are UG1 (level -1) and UG2 (level -2), while above it are OG1 (level +1) and OG2 (level +2). Tracks 1-8 are on UG2, while tracks 11-16 and the S-Bahn are on OG2. Shops and services are on the three middle levels. Enter and exit the station on level EG: The Washingtonplatz entrance faces south (toward the Reichstag and downtown, with a taxi stand). The north entrance is marked Europaplatz.
Services: On the main floor (EG), you’ll find the TI (just inside the north/Europaplatz entrance) and the “Rail & Fresh WC” facility (public pay toilets, near the Burger King and food court). Up one level (OG1) are a 24-hour pharmacy and lockers (directly under track 14).
Train Information and Tickets: The Deutsche Bahn Reisezentrum information center is up one level (OG1), between tracks 12 and 13, (open long hours daily). For those staying in western Berlin, the info center at the Zoologischer Garten station is just as good—and much less crowded.
EurAide is an English-speaking information desk with answers to your questions about train travel around Europe. It’s located at counter 12 inside the Reisezentrum on the first upper level (OG1). It’s American-run, so communication is simple. This is an especially good place to make fast-train and couchette reservations (generally open Mon-Fri 11:10-18:50, until 20:00 May-July and Sept, check website for specific hours, closed Jan-Feb and Sat-Sun year-round; www.euraide.com).
Shopping: The Hauptbahnhof is home to 80 shops with long hours—some locals call the station a “shopping mall with trains” (many stores open Sun). The Kaiser’s supermarket (UG1, follow signs for tracks 1-2) is handy for assembling a picnic for your train ride.
Getting into Town: Taxis and buses wait outside the station, but the S-Bahn is probably your best bet for connecting to most hotels. It’s simple: S-Bahn trains are on tracks 15 and 16 at the top of the station (level OG2). Trains on track 15 go east, stopping at Friedrichstrasse, Hackescher Markt, Alexanderplatz, and Ostbahnhof; trains on track 16 go west, toward Zoologischer Garten and Savignyplatz (best for City West hotels). Your train ticket to Berlin covers any connecting S-Bahn ride (but for the U-Bahn, trams, or buses, you’ll need an additional ticket).
To reach most hotels in northern Berlin’s Prenzlauer Berg neighborhood, it’s fastest to take any train on track 15 two stops to Hackescher Markt, exit to Spandauer Strasse, go left, and cross the tracks to the tram stop. Here you’ll catch tram #M1 north (direction: Schillerstrasse), which trundles north through Rosenthaler Platz and up Kastanienallee to Eberswalder Strasse. (For Rosenthaler Platz hotels, it’s even more direct to hop on tram #M8, which leaves from in front of the Hauptbahnhof’s Europaplatz entrance.)
For Scheunenviertel hotels, you’ll also take the S-Bahn from track 15. Some of these hotels are closer to the Friedrichstrasse station (first stop), while others are closer to Hackescher Markt (second stop).
To reach City West hotels, catch any train on track 16 to Savignyplatz, where you’re within a five-minute walk of most recommended hotels.
Bus #TXL to Tegel Airport leaves from in front of the Europaplatz exit.
The Berlin Hauptbahnhof is not well-connected to the city’s U-Bahn (subway) system—yet. The station’s sole U-Bahn line—U55—goes only two stops, to the Brandenburger Tor station, and doesn’t really connect to the rest of the system. It’s part of the extension of the U5 line beneath Unter den Linden to Alexanderplatz, which is scheduled to be finished in 2020. For now, transit junkies find the U55 an interesting ride on Europe’s shortest subway line.
For help buying tickets, stop by the EurAide office in the Hauptbahnhof (described earlier). Before buying a ticket for any long train ride from Berlin (over 7 hours), consider taking a cheap flight instead (buy it well in advance to get a super fare). Train info: Toll tel. 0180-699-6633, www.bahn.com.
From Berlin by Train to: Potsdam (2/hour, 30 minutes on RE1 train; or take S-Bahn from other points in Berlin, S7 direct, S1 with a change at Wannsee, 6/hour, 30-50 minutes—see here for details), Oranienburg and Sachsenhausen Memorial and Museum (hourly, 25 minutes; or take the S1 line from Friedrichstrasse or other stops in town, 2/hour, 50 minutes), Wittenberg (a.k.a. Lutherstadt Wittenberg, hourly on ICE, 40 minutes; also every 2 hours on slower regional train, 1.5 hours), Dresden (every 2 hours, more with a transfer in Leipzig, 2-3 hours), Leipzig (hourly direct, 1.5 hours), Erfurt (every 2 hours direct, 2 hours; more with transfer in Leipzig or Naumburg/Saale), Eisenach and Wartburg Castle (3/day direct, 2.5 hours; more with transfer in Leipzig or Erfurt), Hamburg (1-2/hour direct, 2 hours), Frankfurt (hourly, 4.5 hours), Bacharach (hourly, 5-6.5 hours, 1-3 changes), Würzburg (hourly, 4 hours, change in Göttingen or Fulda), Rothenburg (2-3/hour, 5.5-7 hours, 2-3 changes), Nürnberg (direct train hourly, 5 hours, more with changes, 6 hours), Munich (1-2/hour, 6.5 hours, direct train hourly, otherwise change in Nürnberg or Hannover), Cologne (hourly, 4.5 hours, night train possible), Amsterdam (3/day direct, 6.5 hours; wise to reserve in advance), Budapest (1 direct train/day, others with 1 change, 11.5 hours, some go via Czech Republic and Slovakia; if your rail pass doesn’t cover these countries, save money on a longer route via Vienna), Copenhagen (2/day, 8 hours, reservation required, change in Hamburg, 1/day direct departs at 11:30), London (4/day, 10.5 hours, 2-4 changes—you’re better off flying cheap, even if you have a rail pass), Paris (9/day, 8 hours), Zürich (1-2/hour, 9 hours, transfer in Hannover or Basel; 1 direct 11-hour night train), Prague (6/day direct, 4.5 hours, wise to reserve in advance), Warsaw (6/day direct, 6.5 hours; 3 more with 1-2 changes, reservations required on all Warsaw-bound trains), Kraków (1/day direct, 8 hours; more with transfer in Warsaw, 8.5 hours), Vienna (10/day, most with 1-2 changes, 1/night direct, 12 hours; some via Czech Republic, but trains with a change in Nürnberg, Munich, or Würzburg avoid that country—useful if it’s not covered by your rail pass).
Night trains run from Berlin to these cities: Cologne, Vienna, Budapest, Basel, and Zürich. A Liegeplatz, a.k.a. couchette berth (€15-36), is a great deal; inquire at EurAide at the Hauptbahnhof for details. Beds generally cost the same whether you have a first- or second-class ticket or rail pass. Trains are often full, so reserve your couchette a few days in advance from any travel agency or major train station in Europe.
The city’s bus station, ZOB (Zentraler Omnibusbahnhof), is west of Zoologischer Garten (Zoo Station), in Charlottenburg (Masurenallee 4-6, U2: Kaiserdamm or S41/S42: Messe Nord). FlixBus, Berlin Linien, and Eurolines all operate from here to locations around Germany and Europe (see here).
Many cruise lines advertise a stop in “Berlin,” but ships actually put in at the Baltic seaside town of Warnemünde—a whopping 150 miles north of downtown Berlin. By train, by tour bus, or by Porsche on the autobahn, plan on at least six hours of travel time round-trip between Warnemünde and Berlin. The easiest option is to book a package excursion from your cruise line. You can also book a tour with a local Berlin-based operator such as Original Berlin Walks; see contact information on here). Otherwise, several train connections run each day from Warnemünde’s train station to Berlin (roughly every 2 hours, 3 hours, transfer in Rostock).
For more details on visiting Berlin while on a cruise, pick up the Rick Steves Northern European Cruise Ports guidebook.