Travelling to and in Berlin

Whether by bus, train, car or plane: Berlin has excellent transport links due to its central location in Europe . And you can also reach your destination both quickly and easily within the city.

Travelling to Berlin

Whether by bus, train, car or plane: Berlin has excellent transport links due to its central location in Europe . And you can also reach your destination both quickly and easily within the city.

By plane

More than 2700 flights a week land in Berlin, with 52 international and 7 national airlines offering 154 connections to 50 countries – among them low-cost airlines such as Easyjet, Germanwings, and Ryanair. So, the chances of finding yourself a suitable flight in the capital are pretty good.

But how to find the fastest way to the city center?

Berlin-Tegel Airport, located just 8 km from the city centre , is served by the TXL Express Bus service which will take you to Alexanderplatz via Hauptbahnhof in 30-40 minutes. If you take the X9 bus, you can get to S- and U-Bahn station at Zoologischer Garten in around 20 minutes. Both run every 5-10 minutes. You can link up with the U- and S-Bahn network if you take the X9 to Jungfernheide (U7/S42/S41) or the 109 and 128 buses to the stations Jakob-Kaiser-Platz (U7) or Kurt-Schumacher-Platz (U6).

Schönefeld Airport is located 22 km outside of Berlin, but you can also get to the city centre quickly from here. The RB14 and RE7 Airport Express trains run every half an hour and will get you to Hauptbahnhof in 30 minutes. The S9 and S45 S-Bahn services also run from Schönefeld Airport. The nearest U-Bahn station is Zwickauer Damm (U7), which you can get to by taking the X7 bus.

A taxi from Schönefeld Airport to Alexanderplatz costs around €43, and from Tegel Airport, around €26 EUR.

You can find more detailed information on Berlin’s airports under www.berlin-airport.de.

By train

Berlin Hauptbahnhof (main station) is the largest interchange station in Europe and is situated in the immediate vicinity of the government district. Additional long-distance train stations serve as hubs for local and long-distance transport, providing a high degree of flexibility.

By car

The Berlin motorway ring road has numerous exits that will take you quickly into the city centre, where you will find ample parking spaces and multi-storey car parks. You can book hire cars at the airports and all major train stations. Berlin also offers a wide range of car-sharing possibilities.

You can, of course, leave your car at one of the numerous parking spaces inside and outside the Berliner Ring and use the local public transport to get around.

By coach

Berlin is a destination that is on the route networks of all major coach companies. Most of the buses stop at the Zentraler Omnibusbahnhof (ZOB), or (central bus station), opposite the exhibition centre grounds in Charlottenburg.

Getting around in the city Local transport in Berlin

Public transport in Berlin is comprehensive and easy to understand. You can use the same ticket for all means of transport. The city centre lies in the AB tariff zone, and destinations further afield such as Schönefeld Airport lie in the ABC tariff zone. Single tickets (AB) cost €2.70, 4-ride cards cost €9. You can book a “flat rate” for 2-6 days at a time with the Berlin WelcomeCard, which will also give you a discount of up to 50% at around 200 museums and other attractions.

Timetables and connections can be found in the BVG’s interactive network map. You can also download all important network maps at the bottom of this page.

But how to use the Public Transport Network?

S- and U-Bahn

Berlin’s yellow U-Bahn is as much a part of Berlin as the TV Tower and the Brandenburg Gate. Ten lines criss-cross the city area and run every 4-5 minutes during peak hours, otherwise every 10-15 minutes. Closely linked to the S-Bahn network there are further 15 lines running every 10 to 20 minutes through the inner city to destinations further afield.

Tram

The tram is first and foremost a privilege of the former eastern part of the city, where a total of 20 lines are a welcome addition to the U-Bahn. There is one important exception however: since 2015, it has also been possible to reach Hauptbahnhof by tram. In addition to the lines 12-68, there are nine Metrotrams, which run more frequently and also at night (M1-M17).

Bus network

A close-knit bus network opens up the routes that are not covered by the other means of transport: bus lines 100 to 399 as well as Metrobuses M11 to M85, which also run around the clock.

Transport times: The U- and S-Bahn services run during the week until about 1 a.m. at night and continuously at weekends. The Metrotrams and Metrobuses also run at night during the week (every 30 minutes). Additional special night bus lines replace the missing connections after 1 a.m. You can also find the night bus line network at the bottom of this page.

You will find all the connections on www.bvg.de.