Germany Travel Facts & Tips

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Captial City	Berlin

Dialing Code	(00) 49

Emergency Numbers	Ambulance 112, Fire brigade 112, Police 110

Weather	In the summer months, temperatures in Germany are typically between 20°C and 30°C. The north-west and north of the country are dominated by an extremely oceanic climate; rain falls all the year round; the winters are mild and summers are comparatively cool. In the east of Germany, as well as in central and southern Germany, the climate can be moderately oceanic to continental (always depending on the actual region) with temperatures that often exceed 30°C in summer. In winter, it is often below freezing in the east, the south and the centre of Germany; with frost and snow being particularly prevalent in the south and east of the country.

Tourist Board website	www.visits-to-germany.com

Most Famous For	Beer, sausages and cars (BMW, Audi, Mercedes, Porsche)

Useful Phrases	Hallo (hello), tschuess (goodbye), danke (thank you), Entschuldigung (sorry)

Accommodation	Average prices for hotel rooms are 35 Euro (single room)/ 50 euro (double room) which will normally include breakfast. There is a room-finding service (at a small charge sometimes) at most tourist offices. Private accommodation (usually including breakfast) is a cheaper option most of the time; look for the ‘ Zimmer frei’ / ‘Fremdenzimmer’ (rooms available) signs. Another cheap option is a hostel. These are open all year-round. Most touristed towns have private hostels that offer a friendly, relaxed atmosphere, fun and more freedom than other hostels might do (meaning no curfew, 24 hours reception, etc.). The ‘Deutsches Jugendherbergswerk’ (www.djh.de) coordinates all German hostels.

Business Hours	Shops in Germany are open Monday to Friday from 8am/9am to 6pm/8pm (in cities); business hours on Saturday are from 9am to 2pm (again later in cities). Shops are closed on Sundays and except for petrol stations, train stations and such like, there are no 24 hour shops. Bars open around 6pm, and most of them are open until at least 2am; most nightclubs open at 11pm and shut at 4am or later. Most museums are open from 9am until 6pm, although some close on Mondays or Tuesdays. Restaurants are generally open from 11am to midnight, although some close/ do not serve food from 3pm to 6pm and many of the privately run hotels and restaurants will have a 'Ruhetag' or rest day one day in the week where they are closed.

Visas	Germany is part of the Schengen visa scheme; EU citizens and and EEA (European Economic Area) nationals can enter on an official identity card. For visits of up to three months in any half year, for nationals of those countries for which the European Community has abolished the visa requirement, no visa is required (including for US Citizens and those from New Zealand and Australia). For all other citizens and for stays of over three months by non-EU nationals, a Visa will be required.

Tipping	Tipping is not compulsory, although very common in Germany. If you’re happy with the service you would generally add 5-10% in restaurants, for taxis, etc... You tip as you’re paying, just say ‘Das stimmt so’/ ‘Ist in Ordnung’ (that’s fine) when handing over your payment (including tip) meaning that you don't expect them to give you any change back.

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