Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Getting there
The quickest and generally cheapest way
of reaching Berlin from the UK and
Ireland is by air, a journey of around
ninety minutes. It is, however, possible to
travel by train or by car via a ferry. Direct
flights link Berlin to New York and
Chicago, which can also prove useful
routes for visitors from Australia and
New Zealand, though changing flights at
a major European hub such as London,
Amsterdam or Frankfurt - the only
option for South African travellers - will
probably be less expensive.
Airfares vary considerably according to the
season
, with the highest being around June to
August; fares drop during the “shoulder” seasons -
September to October and April and May - and
you'll get the best prices during the low season,
November to March (excluding Christmas and New
Year when prices are hiked up and seats are at a
premium). Flying at
weekends
will also usually raise
the price of a return fare.
Flights from the US and Canada
There are several daily scheduled flights from
North
America
to Berlin, with a choice of carriers and
destinations. Both United Airlines and Air Berlin fly
direct from
New York
; Air Berlin also offers direct
flights from Chicago and Miami. If you are starting
your journey from elsewhere in the US, you may
well find a cheaper and better connection from
Washington DC, Boston, Chicago, Miami, Los
Angeles or Seattle via a major European hub.
Canadians
will also end up flying via a major
European hub and are unlikely to make any real
savings by flying to the US first.
The lowest discounted
scheduled fares
you're
likely to get in low/high season flying midweek are
US$500/$1100 from New York, Boston or Washington
DC; US$550/$1500 from Chicago; US$850/$1750
from Los Angeles or Seattle, and US$950/$1750 from
San Francisco. Canadians have fewer direct-flight
options than Americans. The widest selections are
out of Toronto and Montreal, with low/high season
fares to Berlin from around Can$950/$1550; from
Vancouver expect to pay from Can$1350/$1850.
Flights from the UK and Ireland
Direct
scheduled flights
to Berlin are available
from London
airports with British Airways, easyJet,
Lufthansa and Ryanair. Other UK airports with direct
flights to Berlin include
Birmingham
(Lufthansa);
Bristol
,
Edinburgh
,
Glasgow
,
Liverpool
and
Manchester
(easyJet);
Leeds
(Jet2); and
Nottingham
(Ryanair). In Ireland both Ryanair and
Aer Lingus offer direct flights from
Dublin
.
The published return fare of the national airlines
can cost as much as £300, but in reality booking at
least a couple of weeks in advance can easily halve
this amount. Prices with the budget airlines - Air
Berlin, easyJet and Ryanair - can start as low as £40
for a return, but you'll often need to book at least a
month ahead to secure this and many extra fees
will apply, from checking in bags to failing to print
out your own boarding pass.
Flights from Australasia and
South Africa
There are
no direct flights
to Berlin from Australia,
New Zealand or South Africa; most airlines use
Amsterdam, Frankfurt, London or Paris as their
European gateway. All involve either a transfer or
overnight stop en route in the airline's hub city:
flying times from the Antipodes are around 24
hours via Asia and thirty hours via the US; from
South Africa the shortest flight times, including
transfer, are around 17 hours.
Flights to Europe are generally cheaper via Asia
than the US, and typical low season/high season
economy fares from Australia start at around
Aus$2300/$2900. Low season/high season scheduled
fares from Auckland start at around NZ$2600/$3150.
From South Africa you'll pay between ZAR8000 and
ZAR12,000, depending on the season.
A BETTER KIND OF TRAVEL
At Rough Guides we are passionately committed to travel. We believe it helps us understand
the world we live in and the people we share it with - and of course tourism is vital to many
developing economies. But the scale of modern tourism has also damaged some places
irreparably, and climate change is accelerated by most forms of transport, especially flying.
All Rough Guides' flights are carbon-offset, and every year we donate money to a variety of
environmental charities.
