Tourists traveling as part of organized groups, as a rule, do not think about tickets: their trips are pre-arranged and paid for, managers and accompanying persons deal with all current issues. Apparently, therefore, those who do not very often travel abroad on their own consider travel around the country as one of the most difficult problems, since they have little idea of where and how to pay transport costs. You should not be afraid of this - buying tickets for transport in Germany, as in other European countries, is not difficult if you prepare in advance for this procedure.
Features of the transport system in Germany
German transport is the embodiment of the lifestyle of this European people: clarity, accuracy, an understandable tariff system. But you will have to adapt to transport in Germany, since you will have a huge number of operating lines, the need for transfers, finding out which trains you need to take a ticket for.
Railways (Deutsche Bahn) allow you to get anywhere on the map of the country, this is the most popular transport. If you are going to travel long distances, use high-speed trains ICE, IC, EC, CNL, which will quickly and expensively reach your destination.
If you need cheap tickets, choose the regional trains RE, RB, S-Bahn, which travel more slowly, and in addition, you will have to change from train to train. Tickets can be purchased at ticket offices, vending machines. The website www.bahn.de contains instructions for buying a ticket from the machine.
Intercity buses are less common in Germany, they belong to different companies, so there is no single timetable and tariffs. You can use the Deutsche Bahn (IC Bus) buses, which operate within the railway system, as well as the Berlin Linien Bus, where you can choose a convenient route around the country.
Domestic airlines also operate.
How urban public transport works
In cities, use the bus (Bus), tram (Strassenbahn), subway (U-Bahn), city train (S-Bahn).
The entire territory of the city is divided into ring zones. In the center is the zero ring, then there is a wider circle - the first ring, then the second, the third - depending on the size of the city. The last rings cover the suburb.
All types of transport use a single ticket. Its cost depends on how many zones you are going to travel through. Within one zone, the cost is minimal, the more zones you pass - the higher the price.
In Berlin, you can use the CityTourCard for 23.90 euros. For 72 hours, you can actively ride around Berlin, sightseeing without worrying about paying for transport.
Find out more about how public transport works in Germany.
Types of travel tickets
The prices for travel documents, which are displayed on transport websites, can frighten at the first minute - everything looks so expensive and inaccessible. In fact, there is a perfectly acceptable tariff system in Germany, you just need to understand it.
If you take a ticket in advance, you can take advantage of promotions or discounts, find a more convenient option. Please note: promotional tickets are often non-refundable, a seat cannot be booked on them, and you cannot get off and go on by another train at stops. It is more profitable to purchase travel documents in a vending machine than through a cashier; you do not need to punch them.
Since the main transport in the country remains the railways, it is worth finding out what types of tickets exist for this transport:
- for the federal state (Länder-ticket);
- in all German states (Quer-durchs-Land-Ticket);
- combined;
- weekend (Schönes-wochenende).
What special tickets exist in Germany
There is a travel document for all the lands of the Federal Republic of Germany. With it, you can travel throughout the country for any one day. The price for one traveler is 44 euros, for each of the 4 possible satellites you need to pay an additional 8 euros.
For example, a trip from Munich to Cologne costs more than 100 euros per passenger, and a three-person Quer-durchs-Land-Ticket can go there and back for 60 euros. You can use only the second class unlimited, children under 15 travel free of charge, but only with adults.
A weekend ticket is valid for a little more than a day: on Saturday or Sunday from 00 to 3 a.m. the next day.
Price per person - 40 euros, for each additional person - 4 euros. You can travel up to 5 adults, for own children under 15 years old travel with adults is not paid.
You can travel only in the second class, in regional trains such as RB, RE, IRE, S-Bahn trains. The ticket can be bought online in advance, three months before the trip.
German railroad workers also offer the possibility of combining a train ticket with the one required for public transport in the cities of departure and arrival, if the distance is more than 100 km.
Federal states (regional) tickets
A ticket for all types of transport on the territory of a certain federal state is not profitable for one person, but if a group is traveling, this is an excellent option. It can be ridden by 5 adults or 2 adults and as many of your own children as you want. You can purchase it online.
The ticket is valid from 9 am to 3 pm on the metro, tram, regional train without restrictions.
On weekends and holidays, the document is valid for more than a day: from 12 am to 3 am the next day.
There is a night option: from 18 to 6 in the morning.
Children under 5 years old in Germany travel free of charge on all roads. Children from 6 to 14 years old (both their own children and grandchildren) can travel with an adult who has bought a land ticket for free: no additional payment is needed, only documents are needed to prove that they are your children.
Types of federal tickets
The Bavarian ticket entitles you to unlimited travel by rail and city transport in Bavaria. The cost of a Bavarian ticket in 2021 in the second class for one will be 25 euros, for each subsequent one - 6 euros. First class: € 37.5 + € 18.5 for one more.
The night ticket is cheaper: 23 euros in the second class plus 3 for the next one. In the first: 34.5 plus 14.5 euros for another one.
If your plane lands at Memmingen airport, where many low-cost airlines fly, you can immediately purchase a Bavarian ticket and go to Munich, Nuremberg.
Bavarian-Bohemian ticket: you can use it not only to travel around Bavaria and use public transport in Munich, but also to go to Karlovy Vary, Czech Krumlov. Its cost is 26 euros + 5.6 for each next passenger. The terms of use are the same.
A Baden-Württemberg ticket costs 23 euros per passenger and 4 euros for each subsequent passenger. Night option: 20 + 4 for each next passenger. You can go along it even to nearby France, Switzerland, but on German regional trains.
The Brandenburg ticket is intended for travel in Berlin, Brandenburg and adjacent areas. The day option costs 29 euros, the night one - 22. The Brandenburg railway ticket has its own peculiarities: up to 5 people can travel with this ticket, no surcharges are required. Children and grandchildren travel free of charge up to 15 years old.
On holidays and weekends, the ticket is valid for exactly one day - from 0 to 24 hours. Night option - from 18 to 7 in the morning. It is very profitable to buy such a document for a group, since the cost of public transport in Berlin is quite high, one trip for a passenger costs about 2 euros.
What benefits and discounts can I get in Germany for buying tickets?
BahnCard holders receive discounts. If a passenger has to travel a lot during the year, you can buy a card at the ticket office at the station or via the Internet, which gives a discount of 25, 50, 100% for each trip. Its cost depends on what you prefer: first or second class. Thus, a 25% card for a year costs 62 euros in the second class and 125 in the first.
Sparpreis discount options are available to tourists and locals alike, which are sold on the DB (German Railways) website. The earlier you take them, the cheaper they are. Their cost can be 19, 25, 29, 35, 39 and so on up to 119 euros.
The number of privileged seats is limited, and tickets for 19 and 25 euros can be counted only for trips up to 250 km. The ticket is valid only for one selected train, it can be returned and exchanged only after paying a fine of 15 euros.
Quite a profitable option is InterRail, the all-European travel card, which can be purchased at www.interrailnet.com.
It will pay off if a large number of trips are planned for a week, or even better - a month. High-speed train travel is possible with this ticket.
What is the responsibility for travel without a ticket
Hardly anyone, going abroad, is deliberately going to ride like a hare, but the situations are different: they ran to the train, but did not have time to buy a ticket, paid for the wrong zone, did not calculate the time, so the document was invalid.
As a result, you will have to explain the situation to the controller and pay a fine for travel without a ticket, which is 60 euros. You can also try to buy a ticket directly from the controller - there are no discounts or benefits, you will have to buy a full ticket. In case of repeated violation of the rules of travel, stowaways are threatened with imprisonment for 6 months.
Conclusion
The transport system in Germany connects almost all the settlements of the country, so using it is convenient and beneficial for both locals and tourists. When going on a trip on your own, choose a route, think over which cities and lands and on what days you will be staying in order to take advantage of convenient inexpensive options.
