Germany .. Any Inputs?

[paulina19]

Hi Mama Squeak, am almost done with my itinerary Sis how about sa mga beach and lakes don na try rin ba?

( July 2 - 5 : Iw ill be in Munich )

July 5 to 7 - Berlin

July 7 -10 - Paris

From Munich ba sis, pwede ako mag train? then TGV din from Berlin to Paris or should I book a flight from Berlin to Paris?

Sis, sa Litty's hotel pala ako mag stay sa Munich, nagbook ako sa booking.com..the for Berlin, doon na lang ako magbook sa Motel One, when I arrive. mas ba ok ang ganun?

Online booking din ba sis ang pagbili nga TGV, then collect ko na lang when I arrive or sa airport ako bibili?

Thanks sis, pasensy na dami kong question,, little nervous na ako sa adventure na gagawin ko.

[lemonade]

hi, paulina19! i'm so excited for you! i studied in germany on a scholarship grant for more than a year. the germans are generally very nice people, you need not worry. i stayed in berlin for 5 months -- it's become my favorite city in the world! i'm sure you will enjoy walking along kurfürstendamm (also referred to as ku'damm) -- it's like the champs elysées of berlin. you will find lots of nice shops there. but don't forget to visit kaufhaus des westens or KaDeWe (pronounced as kah-deh-veh), it's the 2nd largest department store in europe (next to harrod's of london) and is one of the oldest in germany. the 6th and 7th floor of KaDeWe is a food haven!

i stayed in munich for 3 months because that's where i did my practicum. you will find the marienplatz very interesting with the glockenspiel at the rathaus (city hall). but for me the cab drivers in munich are the worst!

hope you'll have a fun time in germany! i miss it so much! gute reise!

[paulina19]

Hi Sis Lemonade, Thanks for the tip. What course did you studied there? Did you tried the nightlife there as safe, for a solo female traveller and how about the beaches?  TIA

[j.adore]

Planning to go this October but no idea on where to start. First timer

Any suggestions on where to purchase tickets? Looking for an affordable and hassle free one (if it's a website or what).

[kulitkidz]

hi pls help...as per accuweather temp from late nov to early dec ranges from 6-4 celsius, what winter clothes to wear? thanks

[mama squeak!]

Do layering na lang sis. At least you have an option to peel off or bundle up depending on the temp of that day. Long-sleeved shirts, thick sweaters, scarf and a jacket. Depends on your tolerance sa lamig you may or may not need thermals.

[kulitkidz]

hi mama squeak, as in just your ordinary long sleeved shirts that we're used too in the philippines? i saw knitted long sleeve blouse in american eagle outfitters sa paseo worth 700+++ pwede na yun pang bundle up noh? tama layering nalang. btw o.t., nilike ko fb mo, sarap talaga mag travel while still young

[mama squeak!]

^Yup, okay na yan. Since layering ka naman, you can still wear a sweater and/or jacket/coat on top. Most of the places naman kasi na mapupuntahan mo meron silang heater sa loob. Sa labas lang naman ang kailangan mo na mag-bundle up. Aside from a scarf, bring a hat or cap na rin, it will definitely help to keep you warm (and gloves kung lamigin ka talaga).

Thanks for liking my FB page! I really love it when I inspire people to travel. And tama ka take all the opportunity to travel while you are young. Ang hirap kaya mag buhat ng bagahe and maglakad ng milya-milya kung medyo oldies but goodies na tayo. 

[kulitkidz]

Hi Mama Squeak! Thanks uli. Ask ko lang kasi magbobook na sana ako ng train travel from Germany to Paris kaso ang problem ko hindi ko alam saan sa Paris kami dapat bumaba na station. Bali yung hotel namin sa Paris is Hotel Design de la Sorbonne. According sa DB Bahn website, yung pwede namin piliin na station para bumaba sa Paris ay eto: Paris, Paris Est, Paris Nord, Paris Gare de Lyon, Paris Montparnasse, Paris St. Lazare, Paris Amsterliz RER, Paris Biblioutheque F. Mitterrands, Paris Champ de Mars/TourEiffel, Paris Javel, Paris Invalides or Paris Musee D' Orsay. Alin kaya dyan? thanks!

[mama squeak!]

^There are only two main stations where trains coming from the east (where Germany is in relation to France) will be stopping. If you take the TGV (ultra-fast train, most often direct trains) the train will stop at Gare de l'Est while the much slower trains most often with lots of stops and would involve transfers will be terminating at Gare du Nord. Magkatabi lang naman itong dalawang stations so not really an issue except for your budget kasi mas mahal ang TGV.

Para hindi tayo OT sa thread, I'll answer you in the France thread on how to get to your hotel from the train station.

[kulitkidz]

^hi sis nag mock booking ako sa db bahn tapos yung nakita ko tgv walang stop tapos paris est ang stop, ok ba yun? kasi wala akong nakita na gare de l'Est sa db bahn mas convenient ba mag 1st class considering na dala-dala na namin bags namin? Salamat

[mama squeak!]

^ay sorry to confuse you! I was using the French equivalent to Paris Est. Gare de l'Est is Paris Est. Sa France thread sis sinagot na kita.

I always go 1st class if the train travel is more than 3hrs. More comfy, more space plus bigger storage racks for the bags.

 

[kulitkidz]

^thanks sis i saw it too di ko napansin may post ka pala sa kabila bout my hehe hirap kasi mobile phone lang gamit ko

[kulitkidz]

^sis, additional query po uli.... tried doing mock booking sa site ng sncf & db bahn....yung from frankfurt to paris via db bahn €78 for 2 against sncf na €90. kaya lang di ko maintindihan ang site ng db parang hindi pa kasama diyan ang seat reservation samantala sa tgv meron na....para kasing mas madali intindihan ang site ng sncf hehe, isa pa if book ako ng roundtrip sa sncf saan naman kaya station kami pupunta sa frankfurt para masakyan yung train ng sncf? same lang ba yun with db bahn staion? lets say frankfurt main hbf pipiliin ko? yung railway ba iisa lang ang dinadaanan nung dalawa? thanks!

[letters_to_cleo]

^Pasagot sis,Yes sa DB Bahn add-on ang sitting reservation.  Nadali rin ako dito haha, ang hirap maghanap ng seats na free kapag walang sitting reservation!  Lalo na paglong haul trips! Naswertehan ko lang that meron akong mga German seatmates na nakasabay na nagoffer ng seat niya, for me kasi siguro narealize nya engorks ako :-)  BTW, yung sa DB bahn nagmumura ang seats nila kapag binili mo ang tix mo mga 90 days before your trip.  Yan yung reco nung officemate ko dito eh, to time my buying tix.  Basta you choose as the destination yung frankfurt hbf, whether db bahn or sncf, same station lang yan sis :-)

[mama squeak!]

@kulitkidz, I tried mock booking on DB Bahn's website and nakita ko yung EUR78 fare for 2 on 2nd class. Included na rin sa fare yung seat reservations. When you book you just have to check the fare conditions kasi it tells you naman ano ang inclusion sa fare.

Per my experience with European trains, when you buy point-to-point tickets i.e. Frankfurt to Paris on long distance or fast trains automatic na included ang seat reservations. As against rail passes i.e. Eurail passes for non-European residents (includes unlimited travel with validity) wherein you still have to buy seats.

There are different railway companies in Europe but share the same rail tracks/stations. For Germany, they have DB Bahn while France has SNCF. I tried mock booking and found out for 2nd classe/2paxs in November, DB Bahn FRA-PAR is EUR78 while SNCF is EUR90. Although coming back PAR-FRA, DB Bahn is more expensive at  EUR178 while SNCF's TGV meron pang EUR78 and EUR110 fare. I suggest buy your tickets as one way i.e. FRA-PAR on DB Bahn while PAR-FRA on SNCF/TGV. But check mo pa rin both websites kung saan ka makakamura on your departure dates.

Normally, if you buy direct at the train's websites the fares are displayed 3 months before departure date (that's when promo fares come out). Compared to third party agents like Rail Europe where you can buy tickets 6 months in advance and the schedules are limited.

Tip 1: The nearer the departure date the more expensive the seats.

Tip 2: If you see an Hbf after the station name that stands for Hauptbahnhof meaning main/central train station. Unless you know the particular train station in Germany then always choose the station with the HBF and you'll get their main/central train station.

 

[kulitkidz]

Thanks mga sis sa reply niyo. Dito kasi ako nalito dun sa "do you like to reserve a seat" (sinabi naman na mandatory for this trip) kaya lang pag pipili ka naman ng seat preferred pagdating sa next page wala naman daw for this preferred seats kaya ginagawa ko nalang any, any, any nalang   ok na ba yun? Paano ko malalaman ang seat #s namin? Kasi yung sa SNCF as in nandoon na lahat. Kakaloka trains ng Europe, hehe. Papasaan at maiintindihan din kita, humanda ka Europe 😁

[mama squeak!]

^sis, baka yung option na pinili mo wala sa train na bi-nook mo or hindi na available. For example if you booked a TGV train wala syang upper deck, one floor lang sya. As for your seats, you'll get your seat numbers once you finalize your ticket purchase.

By the way, choose mo yung Print at Home or E-ticket option for convenience. 

[kulitkidz]

^got it na mama squeak! salamat kasi nga pala site ng db bahn gamit ko tapos pinipili ko tgv kaya pala ganun nalang sundin ko tip mo 1 way kunin ko pareho para mas tipid salamat uli

[j.adore]

Which of these airlines would you recommend? All of them 2 connecting flights.

KLM
Eithad
Qatar
Emirates
Singapore