Public Transportation

Berlin has an excellent public transportation system, consisting of the  S-Bahn (City Railway), U-Bahn (Subway), trams and buses. There are three tariff areas: A, B and C. One can reach most city destinations within the areas A and B. The single ticket is valid up to two hours and you may use any public transport system as often as you want to within this time limit.

Tax Free Goods

If you buy non-edible goods in Berlin you are entitled to a VAT-Refund unless you are citizen of another EU-country. If you enter a shop with a Tax-Free sign outside, ask for a special form. This form must be stamped when you get through Customs - but be prepared to show your goods, which must still be in their original packing.

Public Telephones

Public phone booths stand on almost every street corner. There are different types of public phone booths: The older ones are still coin-operated with 30 Pfennig as the  minimum amount needed to make a call. Most public booths require a telephone card, which are sold at post-offices and most newsagents.

Internet Cafes

There are several internet-cafés that are centrally located in the city, for example the "Easy Everything" at Kurfürstendamm/Meinekestraße or the "Website" at Joachimsthaler Straße.

Emergency Phone Numbers

The most important emergency numbers:

Police: 110
Fire Brigade and Ambulance: 112
German Red Cross: +49 (30) 85 00 55
Ambulance:+49 (30) 31 00 31
Emergency Poison Help-Line: ( Anthrax included!)+49 (30) 192 40Confidential Help-Line: 0800 111 02 22

Visa Information

Visitors of Germany from non-EU countries need a valid passport. A list with regulations for the different countries is available at all German embassies. Citizens from a non-EU country who want to stay longer than 90 days in Germany need a special visa by the German consulates. They are difficult to obtain, normally these visas are only given to business travellers and students taking up scholarships. Citizens of the following countries don't need a visa:

Andorra, Argentinia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Ecuador, El Salvador, Finland, France, Great Britain, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kenya, Colombia, Korea (Republic of Korea), Luxembourg, Malawi, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Monaco, New-Zealand, The Netherlands, Norway, Panama, Paraguay, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Sweden, Switzerland, Singapur, Slovakia, Hungary, Uruguay, USA.

Tourists, who want to combine their stay in Germany with the journey to another European country should inform themselves about visa regulations of the other countries.

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