If you wish to hire a car during your stay, please follow this link for different providers:
http://www.airport-nuernberg.de/english/visitors/contacts/carrentalcenter/
Sunday 14 June 2009
Train Times
If you are arriving on the Friday before the wedding, the last train to leave the main station in Nuremberg is at 00:12 am from platform 9.
After this one, there won't be a service until the morning, when the first train will leave from 04:57 am.
The last tube that you can comfortably take from the airport to the main station is the 23:46. This will get you to the main station at 23:58. You will then have enough time to transfer and catch the 00:12 train.
There is a tube leaving the airport at 23:56, getting you to the main station at 00:08. To be honest, it will be very tight to make the 00:12 train. If you have your ticket, not a lot of luggage and you're feeling very energetic, you can sprint from the tube and might just about make it.
The times are the same for Thursday and Friday arrivals.
You can use the following links to check travel times, connections, platforms and costs:
www.bahn.de for trains and www.vgn.de for tube and buses.
The website for the airport is: www.airport-nuernberg.de
All sites also have options available in english.
After this one, there won't be a service until the morning, when the first train will leave from 04:57 am.
The last tube that you can comfortably take from the airport to the main station is the 23:46. This will get you to the main station at 23:58. You will then have enough time to transfer and catch the 00:12 train.
There is a tube leaving the airport at 23:56, getting you to the main station at 00:08. To be honest, it will be very tight to make the 00:12 train. If you have your ticket, not a lot of luggage and you're feeling very energetic, you can sprint from the tube and might just about make it.
The times are the same for Thursday and Friday arrivals.
You can use the following links to check travel times, connections, platforms and costs:
www.bahn.de for trains and www.vgn.de for tube and buses.
The website for the airport is: www.airport-nuernberg.de
All sites also have options available in english.
Wednesday 3 June 2009
Nuremberg to Neukirchen
When you arrive at Nuremberg airport, you will find yourself at the outskirts of town. You can get into town in a number of ways - bus, taxi, underground or car. Further into town, you may also pick up a tram.
Public transport is safe, reliable and not too expensive. The main difference to the UK is that you must have a valid ticket PRIOR to embarking on your journey. You may not purchase a ticket once on board. When a ticket inspector asks for a ticket and you cannot produce one, you will be fined on the spot to the tune of €50 - ouch! So buy a ticket! You will not necessary be checked for a valid ticket on every journey, but there are spot checks much like here.
You will find an automated ticket machine by the entrance to all public services and at bus and tram stops. Most take coins, notes and card.
The most cost effective ticket will be to purchase a 'Bayern Ticket' that allows you to make as many journeys as you like for a whole day in the whole of Bavaria, which incidentally would take you down as far as the Austrian border. A Bayern ticket costs €28 and is valid for up to 5 adults or two adults and all their children. This ticket also allows you the free use of trams, underground and buses - Bargain! If you travel on your own, buy the Bayern Ticket Single for €20, which does exactly the same thing.
If you buy a Bayern Ticket at the airport, it will take you all the way to Neukirchen!
[Should you decide to purchase a multi journey ticket, intentionally or by accident (I don't recommend it), they look like a long strip with numbered fields on them. You can also buy a single journey ticket with only one blank field. In that case, you must stamp your ticket prior to boarding. This is done by sticking the ticket into the 'pinging stamp machine' located at the entrance to the underground or next to ticket machines at bus and tram stops; it looks like a metal box on a stick with a small slot. If you haven't stamped your ticket, you haven't paid for your journey, even though you just bought the darn thing.]
From the airport, take the underground (Line U2) to 'Hauptbahnhof', which means Main Station. This journey will take approximately 15 minutes. Once at Hauptbahnhof, follow the signs to the trains, usually marked in red lettering 'DB' which stands for 'Deutsche Bahn' or German Rail.
You will then enter a fairly large hall, where you will be able to enquire at the Information Desk or check the departures board for a train to 'Neukirchen b. Sulzbach-Rosenberg' or 'Neukirchen b. Su-Ro' for short. Final destination for the train is often 'Amberg', so this will help you orientate yourself.
The platforms all branch off from a central tunnel and are all numbered. If my memory is correct, the trains for Neukirchen usually depart from Platform 16 or 17. Trains will usually leave at around 36 minutes and 48 minutes past the hour. You can check train times and fares at www.bahn.de which you can view in English, too.
Neukirchen is a 35 minute journey from Nuremberg. Enjoy the scenery!
If you are staying at the hotel in Neukirchen, cross the tracks via the underpass and leave the station through the car park. Turn left at the end of the road and follow it. You will enter the main village. Walk for a couple of minutes and you will see the hotel entrance on your right hand side.
If you are staying at the reception hotel in Oed, let us know when you are on the train, so we can arrange a lift for you.
Public transport is safe, reliable and not too expensive. The main difference to the UK is that you must have a valid ticket PRIOR to embarking on your journey. You may not purchase a ticket once on board. When a ticket inspector asks for a ticket and you cannot produce one, you will be fined on the spot to the tune of €50 - ouch! So buy a ticket! You will not necessary be checked for a valid ticket on every journey, but there are spot checks much like here.
You will find an automated ticket machine by the entrance to all public services and at bus and tram stops. Most take coins, notes and card.
The most cost effective ticket will be to purchase a 'Bayern Ticket' that allows you to make as many journeys as you like for a whole day in the whole of Bavaria, which incidentally would take you down as far as the Austrian border. A Bayern ticket costs €28 and is valid for up to 5 adults or two adults and all their children. This ticket also allows you the free use of trams, underground and buses - Bargain! If you travel on your own, buy the Bayern Ticket Single for €20, which does exactly the same thing.
If you buy a Bayern Ticket at the airport, it will take you all the way to Neukirchen!
[Should you decide to purchase a multi journey ticket, intentionally or by accident (I don't recommend it), they look like a long strip with numbered fields on them. You can also buy a single journey ticket with only one blank field. In that case, you must stamp your ticket prior to boarding. This is done by sticking the ticket into the 'pinging stamp machine' located at the entrance to the underground or next to ticket machines at bus and tram stops; it looks like a metal box on a stick with a small slot. If you haven't stamped your ticket, you haven't paid for your journey, even though you just bought the darn thing.]
From the airport, take the underground (Line U2) to 'Hauptbahnhof', which means Main Station. This journey will take approximately 15 minutes. Once at Hauptbahnhof, follow the signs to the trains, usually marked in red lettering 'DB' which stands for 'Deutsche Bahn' or German Rail.
You will then enter a fairly large hall, where you will be able to enquire at the Information Desk or check the departures board for a train to 'Neukirchen b. Sulzbach-Rosenberg' or 'Neukirchen b. Su-Ro' for short. Final destination for the train is often 'Amberg', so this will help you orientate yourself.
The platforms all branch off from a central tunnel and are all numbered. If my memory is correct, the trains for Neukirchen usually depart from Platform 16 or 17. Trains will usually leave at around 36 minutes and 48 minutes past the hour. You can check train times and fares at www.bahn.de which you can view in English, too.
Neukirchen is a 35 minute journey from Nuremberg. Enjoy the scenery!
If you are staying at the hotel in Neukirchen, cross the tracks via the underpass and leave the station through the car park. Turn left at the end of the road and follow it. You will enter the main village. Walk for a couple of minutes and you will see the hotel entrance on your right hand side.
If you are staying at the reception hotel in Oed, let us know when you are on the train, so we can arrange a lift for you.
Travel Information
Travelling to Nuremberg can be done a number of ways - trains, planes and automobiles.
If you're into speed, here are some flight options for you:
AIR BERLIN (only carrier to provide a direct non-stop service London to Nuremberg)
Stanstead - Nuremberg
Stanstead - Munich
KLM
Heathrow - Nuremberg
Bristol - Nuremberg
SWISS INTERNATIONAL AIRLINES
Heathrow - Nuremberg
LUFTHANSA
Heathrow - Nuremberg
EASY JET
Gatwick - Munich
Heathrow - Munich
BRITISH AIRWAYS
Heathrow - Munich
AER LINGUS
Gatwick - Munich
If you plan on flying into Munich, we recommend you hire a car. The journey should take you approximately two hours (Munich to Neukirchen).
Hiring a car is also a good idea if you would like to visit different towns and villages around the area of the wedding. If you would like to hire a car, you can do this easily at Munich airport, as well as at Nuremberg airport, who have Hertz as their main provider.
If you would like to fly into Munich but not hire a car, it is possible to travel to Nuremberg and then Neukirchen by train, however you would look at multiple changes and longer travel times as Munich airport is quite a long distance away from the main station.
As we will be in the country, there will be no public transport and no taxis. The nearest town to us, from where you may pre-order a taxi is Sulzbach-Rosenberg, about 20 minutes away by car. If you would like to be independent and move around a lot, you may feel more comfortable with a car at your disposal.
Others can rely on public transport to take them from various airports to Neukirchen from where we will arrange lifts for people with friends and acquaintances. There is also a small train service that connects Neukirchen to Etzelwang. There is no public transport to Oed or Erkelsdorf.
We plan to share cars and give people lifts throughout their stay. As none of the locations are too far away from each other, it makes sense to car share and if we can't fit everyone in, we can make mulitple journeys. Please don't worry about getting around once you've arrived, we'll make it happen. And this also means that you will be able to enjoy a drink or two without having to worry!
When booking your flights, we find through personal experience that flights can be up to £50-£60 cheaper booked through providers such as lastminute.com as they do not charge a booking fee. It is probably best to check the rates the airlines have to offer directly and then check for a better price via a travel site such as lastminute.com, expedia or airline network. Bookings can be taken at anytime, however you may find that the closer to the actual date of the wedding, the more expensive they become.
If you're into speed, here are some flight options for you:
AIR BERLIN (only carrier to provide a direct non-stop service London to Nuremberg)
Stanstead - Nuremberg
Stanstead - Munich
KLM
Heathrow - Nuremberg
Bristol - Nuremberg
SWISS INTERNATIONAL AIRLINES
Heathrow - Nuremberg
LUFTHANSA
Heathrow - Nuremberg
EASY JET
Gatwick - Munich
Heathrow - Munich
BRITISH AIRWAYS
Heathrow - Munich
AER LINGUS
Gatwick - Munich
If you plan on flying into Munich, we recommend you hire a car. The journey should take you approximately two hours (Munich to Neukirchen).
Hiring a car is also a good idea if you would like to visit different towns and villages around the area of the wedding. If you would like to hire a car, you can do this easily at Munich airport, as well as at Nuremberg airport, who have Hertz as their main provider.
If you would like to fly into Munich but not hire a car, it is possible to travel to Nuremberg and then Neukirchen by train, however you would look at multiple changes and longer travel times as Munich airport is quite a long distance away from the main station.
As we will be in the country, there will be no public transport and no taxis. The nearest town to us, from where you may pre-order a taxi is Sulzbach-Rosenberg, about 20 minutes away by car. If you would like to be independent and move around a lot, you may feel more comfortable with a car at your disposal.
Others can rely on public transport to take them from various airports to Neukirchen from where we will arrange lifts for people with friends and acquaintances. There is also a small train service that connects Neukirchen to Etzelwang. There is no public transport to Oed or Erkelsdorf.
We plan to share cars and give people lifts throughout their stay. As none of the locations are too far away from each other, it makes sense to car share and if we can't fit everyone in, we can make mulitple journeys. Please don't worry about getting around once you've arrived, we'll make it happen. And this also means that you will be able to enjoy a drink or two without having to worry!
When booking your flights, we find through personal experience that flights can be up to £50-£60 cheaper booked through providers such as lastminute.com as they do not charge a booking fee. It is probably best to check the rates the airlines have to offer directly and then check for a better price via a travel site such as lastminute.com, expedia or airline network. Bookings can be taken at anytime, however you may find that the closer to the actual date of the wedding, the more expensive they become.
Where exactly is everything?
We will be staying with family friends in a tiny village called Erkelsdorf - no shops, no restaurants but cows and horses!
The nearest village to Erkelsdorf with a train station is Neukirchen bei Sulzbach-Rosenberg or Neukirchen for short. Please be aware that there are more than one Neukirchens as well as a Neunkirchen in the area, so you want Neukirchen bei Sulzbach-Rosenberg only.
The train from Neukirchen links you directly to Nuremberg, which is the closest airport and biggest town in the area. The service is reliable and regular and takes about 45 minutes. Neukirchen also has a small supermarket, baker, butcher, pharmacy, dentist and GP in addition to a restaurant and hotel, which you can book for your stay (Neukirchner Hof).
The church wedding will take place at St. Nikolaus zu Etzelwang, a lutheran church, very close to Erkelsdorf.
The registry wedding will take place in the registry office in Neukirchen.
The reception will be held in Oed, a very small village close to Etzelwang the opposite direction to Neukirchen. There is only one restaurant / hotel in Oed, where we are holding the reception, but there are no further shops or conveniences.
Nuremberg has everything a normal town of reasonable proportions has in England - the old town or Altstadt - has cinemas, restaurants, pubs, clubs and the usual shops. Public transport is good, reliable and cheap with trams, buses, taxis and an underground system.
Nuremberg is considered a safe town; the area around Neukirchen is also safe with people leaving doors and cars unlocked. If you wander around at night, you will be more likely to bump into a horse or fall into manure, than a scary guy trying to mug you.
Distances
Erkelsdorf to Oed - 2km
Erkelsdorf to Neukirchen - 2km
Erkelsdorf to Etzelwang - 4km
Etzelwang to Oed - 2km
Etzelwang to Neukirchen - 2km
Oed to Neukirchen - 4km
The three main locations, Neukirchen, Etzelwang, and Oed are best thought of as points of a triangle with Erkelsdorf between Neukirchen and Oed.
The nearest village to Erkelsdorf with a train station is Neukirchen bei Sulzbach-Rosenberg or Neukirchen for short. Please be aware that there are more than one Neukirchens as well as a Neunkirchen in the area, so you want Neukirchen bei Sulzbach-Rosenberg only.
The train from Neukirchen links you directly to Nuremberg, which is the closest airport and biggest town in the area. The service is reliable and regular and takes about 45 minutes. Neukirchen also has a small supermarket, baker, butcher, pharmacy, dentist and GP in addition to a restaurant and hotel, which you can book for your stay (Neukirchner Hof).
The church wedding will take place at St. Nikolaus zu Etzelwang, a lutheran church, very close to Erkelsdorf.
The registry wedding will take place in the registry office in Neukirchen.
The reception will be held in Oed, a very small village close to Etzelwang the opposite direction to Neukirchen. There is only one restaurant / hotel in Oed, where we are holding the reception, but there are no further shops or conveniences.
Nuremberg has everything a normal town of reasonable proportions has in England - the old town or Altstadt - has cinemas, restaurants, pubs, clubs and the usual shops. Public transport is good, reliable and cheap with trams, buses, taxis and an underground system.
Nuremberg is considered a safe town; the area around Neukirchen is also safe with people leaving doors and cars unlocked. If you wander around at night, you will be more likely to bump into a horse or fall into manure, than a scary guy trying to mug you.
Distances
Erkelsdorf to Oed - 2km
Erkelsdorf to Neukirchen - 2km
Erkelsdorf to Etzelwang - 4km
Etzelwang to Oed - 2km
Etzelwang to Neukirchen - 2km
Oed to Neukirchen - 4km
The three main locations, Neukirchen, Etzelwang, and Oed are best thought of as points of a triangle with Erkelsdorf between Neukirchen and Oed.
Our Plans
We will be in Germany, preparing and settling in from the Monday before the wedding (19th October) and will be staying with family friends in Erkelsdorf, near Neukirchen.
On Friday, we are getting married at the registry office (late afternoon), followed by a rehearsal dinner in the evening.
On Saturday, we are getting married in church (early afternoon), followed by the reception until the early hours of Sunday.
On Sunday, we will rest.
We are not sure yet as to plans around a honeymoon, so we will probably stay on for another day or two to wrap everything up before returning to England.
On Friday, we are getting married at the registry office (late afternoon), followed by a rehearsal dinner in the evening.
On Saturday, we are getting married in church (early afternoon), followed by the reception until the early hours of Sunday.
On Sunday, we will rest.
We are not sure yet as to plans around a honeymoon, so we will probably stay on for another day or two to wrap everything up before returning to England.
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