Cheap airline tickets
I usually book my tickets in advance with Lufthansa/Swiss Air. They have offers for open-jaw round trips between Singapore and Europe at around SGD800. These include meals, 23kg checked in baggage allowance and 7kg carryon baggage allowance.
I usually book my tickets in advance with Lufthansa/Swiss Air. They have offers for open-jaw round trips between Singapore and Europe at around SGD800. These include meals, 23kg checked in baggage allowance and 7kg carryon baggage allowance.
Where to stay?
For hotels, I would recommend Motel One which has several chains throughout Germany. If you are looking for something even more affordable, B&B is good as well. Wombats hostels in Germany are clean and very popular.
For hotels, I would recommend Motel One which has several chains throughout Germany. If you are looking for something even more affordable, B&B is good as well. Wombats hostels in Germany are clean and very popular.
Good walking shoes
Besides uneven cobblestones, broken pieces of glass can be found anywhere on the streets of Germany. Expect lots of walking and climbing of stairs. Good walking shoes (preferably covered) are recommended and practical. No German would be seen with flip flops on the streets in Germany.
Buying train tickets
You can buy train tickets online from Deutsche Bahn website or from the ticketing machine. Usually, you get a discount for purchasing train tickets in advance. The ticketing machine generally do not accept big notes like 50 Eur. Remember to validate your ticket before boarding.
Train seat reservation
Long distance trains like Intercity Express (ICE), Intercity (IC) and Eurocity (EC) allow you to make seat reservation at around 4.50 Eur. Is it necessary? Nope. You can save money if you know which seats are not reserved. In the photo below, the window seat is reserved from Hamburg to Berlin while the aisle seat is available. If a seat is reserved from B to C and you are travelling from A to B, you can still sit down at that seat. Of course, that requires you to know the train route well enough.
Do I really need to buy a ticket? They don’t check anyway!
Yes! You wouldn’t want to be caught as a Schwarzfahrer (a person without ticket). It is good to plan your itinerary and purchase a day ticket on days that you would be doing lots of travelling within the city. You never know when you would get checked. I had a day ticket in Berlin and was taking S and U Bahns like nobody business and never got checked. However, I was checked shortly boarding the train in Hamburg.
Toilets
Generally, you need to pay 0.50 Eur to use the toilet. You can save money by using the toilet at the restaurants which you dined in, at the museums which you visit or on the trains. Note: you would need to pay to use the toilets at the train stations, but not the ones on the train.
In Europe, toilets are usually labelled as WC which stands for water closet. Ladies are also labelled as Damen while Gentlemen as Herren.
What to eat besides pork knuckles and German sausages?
You can try roast pork, Donerteller, and for Asian food fried duck with curry. Portion is huge by the way. If you have enough of meat, you can go for soup too. For authentic bayerisher cuisine, you can go to beer houses like Augustiner, Paulaner, Höfbrauhaus or Löwenbrau.
By default, water is sparkling. Order stilles Wasser if you don't want carbonated water.
Gelato and good quality ice cream can be purchased at 1 to 1.50 Eur per scoop. Get it in a cone.
By default, water is sparkling. Order stilles Wasser if you don't want carbonated water.
Gelato and good quality ice cream can be purchased at 1 to 1.50 Eur per scoop. Get it in a cone.
Bayerischer Krustenbraten at Augustiner
Dönerteller
Fried duck curry rice
Shopping
Generally, the same shops can be found in any city in Germany. Tourists can get VAT tax refund on items which cost at least 25 Eur. Bring your passport with you whenever you go shopping. In generally, plastic bags are chargeable. Hence, bring your own reusuable bag when you go shopping.
Besides chocolates (Ritter Sport) and sweets (Haribo), you can find lots of goodies at the supermarket. I like to buy wine at Rewe (a supermarket) and you can buy multivitamins at the drugstore (Rossman) at 0.40Eur. Compare that with the multivitamins from Watons which are also made in Germany.
At supermarkets, the cashiers do not pack the items for you. You would have the pack the items into the bags yourself. Make sure you pack the items fast enough as you would not want to be holding up the line.
Jay walking
There is no German equivalent of the word jay walking because the Germans do not jay walk. When in Germany, do as the Germans do. Do not jay walk.
