Germany is such
a compact country that, unless you're going from Munich to Hamburg,
taking the train will probably be the more convenient, economical, and
(in my opinion) fun
mode of transport. In general, domestic air travel is geared
mainly toward business travelers and therefore flying is not generally a
popular means of travel within Germany. However, you will most
likely arrive in and depart from Germany by air, and you may need to
make a short hop from your initial arrival point (probably Frankfurt) to
some other destination, or vice-versa, so here's what you'll need to
know.
SIDEBAR:
Overcoming jet lag
Airports
There are over
a dozen major commercial passenger airports (Flughafen) in Germany, with Frankfurt
being the biggest. Altogether, over 150 million people traversed
the top 20
German airports in 2004, with over 50 million of those at Frankfurt alone.
Munich, Düsseldorf, and Berlin-Tegel also had over 10 million passengers
each, with Hamburg and Stuttgart fast approaching that threshold. After much
debate, a new airport to consolidate Berlin's three airports is being
built adjacent to the existing Schönefeld Airport and will join the
ranks of Germany's busiest when it opens in 2011.
Frankfurt airport
(Photo by Fraport AG)
Airports in
Germany are operated by government-franchised private companies.
The major airports feature the typical duty-free shops, restaurants, bars,
car rental agencies, conference centers, banks, post offices, and
medical facilities. Frankfurt's airport even boasts such services as a
supermarket, dentist, kennel, and casino.
 Arriving
Arriving in
Germany is fairly simple and straightforward. If you arrive on an
international flight, you will be directed from the arrival gate first
to passport control (Passkontrolle). If you are from the US or other non-European
nation, use the "Non-EU National" line. After having your passport
stamped, you will then proceed to baggage claim. Once you collect
your bags, you proceed through the customs area (Zoll). If you have
something to declare, use the lane with the red sign. Otherwise,
proceed through the lane with the green sign where you will alight in
the landside area of the terminal. If you are meeting someone,
this is likely where they will be waiting for you.
If you are the
one meeting someone who is flying in, remember that the airside section
of German airports is highly secure and only ticketed passengers and
airport workers are allowed in the gate areas and concourses, so you
will have to meet your party in the landside area of the airport.
To do so, check the arrivals board (marked Ankunft) when you get
to the airport to determine which arrivals exit your party will be
using. Then wait near there for them. If the green lights
next to the flight on the arrival board are flashing, it means that the
flight has arrived. Alternatively, you can plan to have your party
meet you at a designated meeting point (Treffpunkt).
Check-in counters
at Frankfurt airport
(Photo by Fraport AG)
 Departing
While arriving
is pretty easy, flying out of a German airport is much more elaborate.
First, you should plan on arriving at least 90 minutes before your
flight (two hours is better.)
When you arrive at the
airport for an outbound flight, you will first need to check the flight
information displays (marked Abflug) for two pieces of information: the check-in counter
(Schalter)
numbers and the gate number (Flugsteig), as well as the current status of the
flight. If the green lights next to your flight are flashing, it
means they are now checking-in passengers for that flight.
In Germany,
ticketing and check-in counters are numbered. The numbers are
usually located above the counter. You must use one of the
counters noted on the flight information display for your flight.
Usually, several counters handle check-in for all flights for an
airline, but sometimes specific flights must check-in at a specific
counter.
Security is
very tight, especially for international flights, and you will have to
go through several layers of security checking. Be prepared to
play "20 questions" with several airline and airport security personnel.
You will be asked repeatedly about your luggage and travel plans.
Unfortunately, sometimes the questioning takes on the rather rude tone
of an interrogation, but just answer their questions accurately and be
on your way. Don't worry if you don't speak German-- you will be
questioned in English.
Once you find
your counter, you will begin the security screening and check-in
process. Often, there will be someone at the head of the line
who asks you all the relevant security questions. You will then proceed
to the ticketing and baggage check-in. From there, proceed toward
the designated concourse or entry area for your gate. You will then encounter
the first hurdle: the main security checkpoint (Sicherheitskontrolle). Only
ticketed passengers are allowed past the security checkpoint, so you
will be asked to show your boarding pass. Then, go through the
metal detector and baggage x-ray area. If you are on an
international flight, you will then be required to show your passport to
an immigration officer. From here, you can now
proceed to your gate. In Germany, only passengers on the next
flight leaving from a gate are allowed into the gate waiting area (Warteraum),
and once you are in the gate waiting area, you cannot leave, so take
care of any last-minute shopping or other needs (you know what I mean) before your enter the
waiting area. At this point, you will be asked for your boarding pass and might have to answer
yet one more round of security questions. From the waiting area, you will either board the plane directly or board a bus
that will transport you to the plane located away from the terminal.
Ground
transportation
Besides rental cars, there are usually a plethora of
public transportation options to get from the airport to the central
city or beyond. Listed below are the major German commercial passenger
airports with connection information to the central railway
station (Hauptbahnhof, "Hbf"), city center, or other
important destinations. The major international
airports are marked in red. Because you will most likely encounter
Frankfurt's airport in your travels to Germany, I have included a
special write-up on it below the other listings. All
information was correct as of the time of publication (late 2005) and is
subject to change without notice. Check the websites of the
individual airports (links at the bottom of this page) for up-to-date
information. Be sure to see my pages about
renting a car,
urban public transport,
taxis, and rail transport for
further details of using those transportation options.
|
City/Airport |
Location/
Approx Travel Time |
Transport options |
Berlin
Tegel/Otto Lilienthal
(TXL) |
8 km NW
20 min. |
 |
Bus 109 and X9
to Bahnhof Zoo every 5-10 min. |
|
|
JetExpressBus TXL
to various city locations every 10-20 min. |
 |
24-hour service,
approx. €20 |
|
Berlin
Schönefeld
(SXF) |
20 km
SE
1 hour |
 |
Bus 163 or 171 to Airport station, then S-Bahn S9 or
Airport Express to central Berlin or S45 to Westkreuz station
every 20-30 min. |
|
|
Bus 171
to Rudow station, then U-Bahn U7 to Berlin |
|
|
RE and RB regional services
from Airport station |
|
|
Bus 163 or 171 to Berlin |
|
|
24-hour service
to Berlin, approx. €30 |
|
Berlin
Tempelhof
(THF) |
6 km S
20 min. |
|
|
U-Bahn
U6 every 5-10 min. |
|
|
Bus
119 every 5-10 min. |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €10 |
|
Bremen
Neuenland
(BRE) |
3 km S
20 min. |
|
|
Tram 6 to Hbf every 10 min. |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €10 |
|
Dresden
Klotsche
(DRS) |
9 km NE
20 min. |
|
|
S-Bahn
S2 to Hbf every 20 min |
|
|
Bus 77 to Infineon Nord station, then Tram 7 to Hbf |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €15 |
|
Düsseldorf
Lohausen
(DUS) |
8 km N
20 min. |
|
|
S-Bahn
S7 to Hbf every 20-30 min. (from station under terminal) |
|
|
Main line rail services from Airport station (reached
via SkyTrain) |
|
|
24-hour service
to Düsseldorf (approx. €16), Essen (approx. €30),
Duisburg (approx. €31), and other area towns |
|
Frankfurt
Rhein-Main
(FRA) |
See
special section below |
Hamburg
Fuhlsbüttel
(HAM) |
9 km N
25 min. |
|
|
Bus 110 or "Airport Express" to Ohlsdorf station, then
S-Bahn S1 or S11, or U-Bahn U1 to Hbf every 10 min. |
|
|
"Airport Express" to Hbf every 15 min. |
|
|
Bus 52 to the Altona station every 30 min. |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €20 |
|
Hannover
Langenhagen
(HAJ) |
11 km
N
20 min. |
|
|
S-Bahn
S5 to Hbf every 30 min. |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €20 |
|
Köln/Bonn
Konrad Adenauer
(CGN) |
14 km
SE of Cologne
25 min. |
|
|
S-Bahn
S13 to Köln Hbf every 15 min. |
|
|
ICE mainline and RE regional services from Airport
station |
|
|
Bus 670 "Airport Express" to Bonn Hbf every 30 min. |
|
|
24-hour service
to Köln (approx. €25), Bonn (approx. €40) and
other area towns |
|
Leipzig/Halle
(LEJ) |
12 km
NW of Leipzig
30 min. |
|
|
"FlughafenExpress"
to Leipzig Hbf and Halle Hbf every 30 min. |
|
|
Mainline services from Airport station |
|
|
24-hour service
to Leipzig and Halle,
approx. €35 |
|
München
Franz Joseph Strauss
(MUC) |
28 km
NE
45 min. |
|
|
S-Bahn
S1 or S8 to Hbf every 20 min. |
|
|
Lufthansa AirportBus to Hbf every 20 min. |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €50 |
|
Nürnberg
(NUE) |
7 km N
15 min. |
|
|
U-Bahn
U2 to Nürnberg Hbf every 15 min. |
|
|
Bus 32 to Thon, then Bus 30 to Erlangen |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €20 |
|
Saarbrücken
Ensheim
(SCN) |
16 km
E
20 min. |
|
|
Bus 27 to Brebach, then the "Saarbahn" tram to Hbf every
hour |
|
|
Bus R10 to Hbf every hour |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €20 |
|
Stuttgart
Echterdingen (STR) |
14 km
S
30 min. |
|
|
S-Bahn
S2 or S3 every 15 min. |
|
|
24-hour service,
approx. €30 |
|
Frankfurt International (Rhein-Main) Airport
Frankfurt airport
terminals
(Photo by Fraport AG)
Serving over 52 million
passengers in 2005, Frankfurt Rhein-Main
Airport (FRA), also known as Frankfurt International Airport, is not only Germany's busiest airport, but also the
busiest airport in Continental Europe (in a dead heat with Paris' CDG
and behind London's Heathrow for all of Europe) and one of the ten busiest airports in the
world. In addition to being the world hub for Lufthansa, Rhein-Main is
served by over 125 other airlines with about 700 daily departures to over 300 destinations
in 112 countries.
Transfers account for over half of the passenger count, making FRA one of
the world's most important international air hubs. Given these
superlatives, it should be no surprise that the gargantuan facility is
currently operating at capacity. A new runway in 2009 and a new
terminal in 2012 should help alleviate the current congestion and
provide room for the airport's continued growth. Also in preparation for the
future, FRA is the first commercial airport in the world to be certified
for the monster Airbus A380 superjumbo jet.
Beware that there is a second
"Frankfurt" airport, the much smaller Frankfurt-Hahn, which is used
exclusively by discount airlines. Calling it Frankfurt-Hahn
is a misnomer, however, as it is ridiculously located 70 miles west of
Frankfurt and is actually closer to Luxembourg than to downtown
Frankfurt.
Orientation
Located 9 kilometers southwest of downtown Frankfurt (about 15
minutes by rail, a little longer by car), the airport
is a monolith comprised of two terminals and a small city of support
facilities. Terminal
1, which opened in 1972 and got a much-needed expansion in the late '90s, is the larger of the two
with over 100 gates crammed into three
multi-level concourses (halls) labeled A, B, and C. There are five levels:
Level 0 is the underground regional rail station and shopping arcade, Level 1 is the arrivals/baggage
claim level,
Level 2 is the check-in and main departures level, Level 3 is an additional
international departures gate level in concourse A and the arrivals immigration area
in concourse B, and Level 4 is the level for the inter-terminal Sky Line train stations.
The
shiny new Terminal 2, which opened in 1994, has
40 or so gates in two concourses labeled D and E on three levels: Level 2 is the arrivals, check-in, and
European departures level; Level 3
is the international departures gate level, and Level 4 is the Sky Line train
station.
In addition to
the Sky Line, which whisks you between the terminals in about 2 minutes, there
is also a shuttle bus which takes about 5 minutes; catch it
in front of the terminals. You can also walk-- the end of
concourse C in Terminal 1 magically rounds a corner and becomes the end
of Terminal 2's D concourse-- handy if your gates are nearby, but a trek for just about everybody else (use the Sky Line instead.)
Gate
waiting area at Frankfurt Airport
Gates, arrival areas and check-in counters
carry the concourse letter followed by the number (i.e. Gate C5, Counter
A202, etc.) The letter is usually dropped from the numbers on signs at the
check-in counters, but not at the gates. When looking for your gate, follow the signs
for the lettered concourse first, then look for signs for the gate
number once you reach that concourse.
The terminals
are divided into the public landside area and the secure airside area.
To enter the secure area, you must have a valid boarding card and pass through the security screening. The airside
area of the airport is
further divided into two control zones: the "Schengen zone" for domestic
German and most European
flights, and the "transit zone" for international flights. (The Schengen Agreement allows for travel between most European countries
without passport controls.) To move between these zones, you must
go through the passport and customs checkpoints. Level 2 of
concourse A, the front half of concourse B, and level 2 of Terminal 2 are in the Schengen zone;
the remainder of the airport is in the international transit zone. The Sky Line
allows for transfers between the various concourses within the transit
zone, and a tunnel connects the Schengen zones of concourses A and B.
Both of these options allow you to remain within the respective zones so
that you do not have to unnecessarily pass through the passport or
security checkpoints. However, be aware that there are periodic
ad-hoc security checkpoints within the secure zone.
Frankfurt airport
overview map
(Click
here for a high-resolution image)
Passenger services
If Tom Hanks' character in the movie The Terminal could choose an airport to be stuck at, this would be a
good choice. This self-contained city has large shopping and eating areas and plenty of additional services.
Indeed, FRA is arguably one of the best airports anywhere in this
regards-- it's practically a shopping mall that happens to have an
airport attached. There are a multitude of stores (over 130 of
them) carrying books, perfume, jewelry, clothes,
leather goods, electronics, toys, souvenirs, liquor, candy, convenience
items-- even erotica. In December, you'll also find a
traditional-style German Christmas market on the mezzanine in Terminal
1. Even more good news for shoppers-- the law requires businesses
to maintain typical street prices in their airport outlets.
If you're hungry or thirsty
before or after that long flight, you'll find over 50 restaurants and
bars catering to every taste: fast-food
(including the ubiquitous McDonald's), traditional German food
(including a beer garden), pizza and pasta, ice cream, sandwiches, sushi
and even hoity-toity
French fare. There are also several bakeries and even two
supermarkets for the do-it-yourself types.
If you have medical needs, there are
several pharmacies, a
medical clinic, and even a dentist. Other services to be found are hair dressers and barbers, tailors and dry
cleaners, conference and business centers with Internet access, and a kennel.
To pass the time, you'll find a visitor's terrace overlooking the
airfield in each terminal, the Airport Forum with displays on the
history of FRA, several children's play areas, chapels and prayer rooms,
art galleries, and even
a casino. And, of course, you'll find banks and currency
exchanges, post offices, insurance agents, and car rental and travel
agencies. Elsewhere on the airport grounds are a couple of hotels, gas
stations, and train stations. One service that may be particularly
useful to passengers after a long flight are the shower facilities
located in Terminal 1. For €6 or $6, you get a clean,
private shower stall with soap and towels. There are two of these
facilities, both of them in concourse B: one inside the transit area
next to the WCs behind the little waiting area between the McDonald's
and the casino, and one in the landside shopping area in the WCs nearest
the information desk.
Public showers at Frankfurt
Airport
Tired of lugging all that
baggage around? There are lots of free baggage carts and,
fortunately, they can be taken on the escalators. Note,
however, that they don't allow you to take them on the Sky Line.
For long layovers, there are lockers and a baggage storage office in
each terminal.
Throughout the airport,
you'll now find electronic kiosks with airport information. If
they're on the fritz, or you'd just rather talk to a human, there are
several staffed information centers in each terminal.
Looking for a place to snooze
between flights? There's a great new sleeping lounge with
reclining seats in concourse B, level 3 in the connecting hallway to
concourse C.
Sleeping lounge at Frankfurt
Airport
All that said,
the airport does have some pitfalls. One of the more common
complaints I've heard are about small and sometimes
not-so-clean WCs, although in my experiences, I've never actually
witnessed this. Also, many of the shops and services are located
in the big shopping arcade in the landside area of the
Terminal 1, so transit
passengers have to clear passport control to use them, then go back
through security to catch their connecting flight.
While most of
the terminal areas have now been designated as non-smoking, the smoke from
the areas where smoking is allowed (and there are a lot of them) does tend to waft considerably further afield.
Being such a large and
complex airport, distances can be long, especially if you have to change
terminals or concourses. If your gate is at the end of the A or D
concourse, or if you use the long-distance rail station (or heaven
forbid any combination of the above), get
ready for a long hike, even with the moving walkways.
Signage is good
and is in both German and English along with spiffy international
pictograms, and a project is currently underway to redo the signs
throughout the airport. But because there are so many possible
places to go and ways to get there, you have to keep a sharp eye out and know what you're
looking for or you may miss that sign.
New signage
at Frankfurt Airport
As in most places, the competence and disposition of the staff can vary
widely, but most of the time you'll find helpful and
informative workers who speak English. If you encounter someone surly or obviously
lacking the information you need, just go find someone else.
Because of capacity issues, the airport has an inordinate number of
remote aircraft parking positions, so you may very well find yourself
riding a bus between the plane and the terminal.
Given the age and extent of
the facilities, there are always renovations going on somewhere in the
terminals. It seems like they just keep rotating the construction
work
through each of the concourses every few years. And a few areas of
the airport are still rather dated and depressingly dingy, most notably
concourse C.
Finally, if for some reason you have an aversion to chrome
(or shiny stainless steel),
stay out of this airport-- it's everywhere.
Unusually quiet
concourse A at Frankfurt Airport
Arriving
When you arrive, you will be discharged into appropriate control zone
(transit or Schengen). For transit passengers,
see the "Connecting flights" section below. For those arriving
in the Schengen zone, you simply claim your bags (if any) and leave the
airport. Passengers arriving in the transit zone will first
have to pass through the passport control area where you simply present
your passport for inspection and the obligatory stamp. In some
concourses, you then
must pass through a customs checkpoint for your carry-on bags. If you have nothing to declare
or are coming from another EU country,
this is generally a non-event-- just proceed through the "green" line
and you won't even have to say anything to the inspector (why the sign
for green line is stop-sign shaped, I'll never know.) From
here, you can either head for the ground transportation or proceed to
baggage claim. From the baggage claim area, you must proceed
through another customs checkpoint with the same procedures as above.
After clearing customs, you
will unceremoniously emerge in the main landside concourse of the
terminal. If you are meeting someone, they should be waiting here.
Otherwise, follow the signs to head
to public transport (see below), taxis, or the car rental desks.
Ground
transportation options
There are
numerous local, regional, domestic and international rail connections to and from
the airport's two (yes, two) railway stations. From the regional station (Regionalbahnhof)
beneath Terminal 1, S-Bahn S8 or S9 goes to downtown Frankfurt
in less than 15 minutes, as well as to Mainz and Wiesbaden. The sparkling new long-distance rail station
(Fernbahnhof), connected to Terminal 1 by an agonizingly long skybridge over the adjacent Autobahn, services mainline GermanRail
trains to many domestic and international destinations. If you
arrive at Terminal 1, follow the signs to the appropriate station.
If you arrive at Terminal 2, take the direct shuttle bus to the stations
or take the Sky Line train to Terminal 1 and follow the signs from there.
GermanRail has two ticketing and information centers (Reisezentrum),
one at the long-distance station and the other just above the regional
station in the underground shopping area (Level 0) near the center of
concourse B.
In additional
to rail service, there is also regional bus service to several area
towns including Darmstadt and Rüsselsheim. There is also direct
bus service to Strasbourg, Mannheim, Heidelberg, and Talheim. Most
buses leave from the bus station at Terminal 1. From Terminal 2,
take the Sky Line train to Terminal 1 and go down to the arrivals level.
From Terminal 1, the bus station is located directly outside of the
terminal.
All of the
major rental car agencies have counters in both terminals. Taxis
can also be hired from either terminal. There is 24-hour taxi
service to Frankfurt, Wiesbaden and Mainz. A taxi ride to downtown
Frankfurt will take 20-40 minutes depending on traffic and should cost
about €20.
Departing
You should plan on arriving at least two hours before your scheduled
departure.
If you arrive by car or train, follow the signs for departing flights.
If you must return your rental car, follow the signs for rental car
returns. If you arrive by rail at the long-distance station, check
to see if your airline has a counter there. If so, you can
check-in there and then proceed directly to security and on to your
departure gate. Otherwise, once in the terminal, check the large flight display
boards for information on the check-in counter and gate for your flight.
Then proceed to the appropriate counter to get a boarding
pass and check any bags. From there, you will be directed to the security checkpoint
for your departure hall. Proceed through the security and passport checkpoints
and then follow the signs to your gate. Be aware that passengers headed for the
US, UK, and Middle East face
more intense screening nowadays, so be prepared to put-up with a bit
more hassle than you may otherwise be expecting.
 Connecting
flights
If you are passing through Frankfurt to and from non-Schengen
countries, your transfer will take place entirely within the transit
zone and you should not have to go through customs or passport
control. If your connecting flight leaves from a different
concourse than the one you arrive in, the Sky Line train will allow you
to make the transfer while remaining in the transit zone.
Transfers
between non-Schengen and Schengen countries (including Germany) will require you to
go
through passport control. You can then proceed to the gate for your
connecting flight-- check the flight information displays for the gate
number and follow the signs. If your connecting flight is in the other terminal, use the Sky Line
train. A tunnel allows you to transfer within the Schengen zones
of concourses A and B so that you do not need to leave the secure area.
If you need a
boarding pass or additional assistance, check-in at your airline's transfer counter
first thing after arriving.
Lufthansa
advertises a guaranteed connection time of 45 minutes at FRA; an hour is
probably more realistic if you're staying within the transit or Schengen
zones, and 90 minutes if you have to cross between them. Flights
from North America to FRA often arrive early, but don't count on it as
any time savings gained from that strong tailwind are frequently lost
due to congestion in Frankfurt's approach and landing slots.
If you have a
long layover (more than a couple of hours), you might consider visiting
the spectator's terrace on top of each terminal where for €3 you can
watch the airfield activity, or the free art galleries in each terminal.
Note that these require leaving
the airside of the airport. Long layovers are also conducive to
taking a quick sightseeing trip into Frankfurt-- the S-Bahn will get you
downtown in less than 15 minutes. (See information under
"Arriving" above.)
For more
information about Frankfurt Airport, see their official website:
http://www.airportcity-frankfurt.de
Airlines
The major
domestic airline in Germany is Lufthansa. It connects all of the
major airports with at least four flights daily. Most domestic
trips are an hour or less in duration. Lufthansa also has a
high-speed rail line, the Lufthansa Airport Express, which provides
links from Frankfurt and Düsseldorf airports to Stuttgart, Bonn,
Cologne, and Dortmund. Germany, and Europe in general, have been
invaded by a number of discount carriers in recent years, including Condor, LTU,
Hapag-Lloyd, Aero-Lloyd, Eurowings, and Deutsche BA, a subsidiary of
British Air. German airlines transport 50 million passengers a
year. About 90 other international airlines have regularly
scheduled flights to Germany, including all of the major US carriers.
From Germany, connections are available to over 300 destinations in 90
countries worldwide.
Lufthansa jet
(Photo by Lufthansa)
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
|
