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[Travel] Germany calling ! Advise on travailing to and in Germany wanted please.



Garage_Doors

Garage_Doors

Originally the Swankers
Jun 28, 2008
11,789
Brighton
We are planning a trip to Colditz castle next February.
As there are no direct flights from the UK to Leipzig or Dresden
and Berlin too far away we have decided to drive over with a stopover in Bruges on the way.

From to Bruges to Colditz the internet tells me it an 7-8 hour drive
which as we are in no hurry want to break this journey up over two
days with a stopover at a mid-point ish, which would be around Duisberg/Dortmand.

Does anyone have any good recommendations as to where to stay and
is there anything to do/see around these areas?
Also any advice on the Chunnel as we have never used it before.
 




P

PeterOut

Well-known member
Aug 16, 2016
1,238
Personally, I take the ferry from Dover to Dunkirk when travelling to Bruges, which I do quite regularly.
Have taken the Chunnel, but prefer the ferry - cheaper, lands closer to Bruges, and avoids (avoided - not sure if it is still a problem?) previous issues with asylum seeker encampments.

I can recommend a couple of decent hotels in Bruges if you have not already booked.

Others will have to (and I am sure will) recommend stopovers in Germany...
 


L

loco61

Well-known member
Jan 30, 2004
1,678
Hove GOSBTS
How many days are you planning in total and have you been to Germany before? ...

would also take the ferry Dover Dunkirk but then do a few hours driving before making a stop ...

yes ... a long hike ... not surprising not many made that "home run" ... 843 kms to Dunkirk ... although the direct route wasnt as advisable in the 1940s ...

Bruges is nice but a stop in or near Koeln could be one option .... still 5 hrs to drive the next day...
i think you need four days minimum to make it worthwhile ... the more the merrier... Leipzig is on route and its an extra hour to Dresden by car from Colditz .

no cheap flight to Berlin? ...& hiring a car is one option i would take another look at ... and then just 250 kms ie two and half hours
 
Last edited by a moderator:


Behind Enemy Lines

Behind Enemy Lines

Well-known member
Jul 18, 2003
4,801
London
Garage_Doors said:
We are planning a trip to Colditz castle next February.
As there are no direct flights from the UK to Leipzig or Dresden
and Berlin too far away we have decided to drive over with a stopover in Bruges on the way.

From to Bruges to Colditz the internet tells me it an 7-8 hour drive
which as we are in no hurry want to break this journey up over two
days with a stopover at a mid-point ish, which would be around Duisberg/Dortmand.

Does anyone have any good recommendations as to where to stay and
is there anything to do/see around these areas?
Also any advice on the Chunnel as we have never used it before.
Click to expand...

Fly to berlin and then get a train....
 


Garage_Doors

Garage_Doors

Originally the Swankers
Jun 28, 2008
11,789
Brighton
PeterOut said:
Personally, I take the ferry from Dover to Dunkirk when travelling to Bruges, which I do quite regularly.
Have taken the Chunnel, but prefer the ferry - cheaper, lands closer to Bruges, and avoids (avoided - not sure if it is still a problem?) previous issues with asylum seeker encampments.

I can recommend a couple of decent hotels in Bruges if you have not already booked.

Others will have to (and I am sure will) recommend stopovers in Germany...
Click to expand...


Plan at the moment is over to Bruges on the:
11th and stay in Bruges that night.
12th 1/2 way point to be decided.
13th stay in Colditz
14th travel back 1/2 way point to be decided.
15th Bruges / Dunkirk
16th Back home

Welcome recommendations for hotels in Bruges please.
 




Cowfold Seagull

Cowfold Seagull

Fan of the 17 bus
Apr 22, 2009
21,620
Cowfold
Behind Enemy Lines said:
Fly to berlin and then get a train....
Click to expand...

Would be my choice too. Anywhere on the channel coast to Colditz is one hell of a drive, even with an overnight stop en-route. However that would mean missing out on Bruges of course, which l think the OP is set on!

Alternatively you can fly to Dresden too which is even closer to Colditz, but flights are from Heathrow, and it involves a change of aircraft on the way.
 
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B

BensGrandad

New member
Jul 13, 2003
72,015
Haywards Heath
When going to Belgium or onward we always use the tunnel as the time taken by the ferry plus possible delays due to bad weather is offset by he fact that the train only takes 30 mins and is only 30 mins away from the Belgian border driving. Plus it is is 10 mins near than Dover ferry and less time loading so all in all a lot quicker. A short stopover ticket is reasonably priced plus trains every 30mins. All in all trhe ferry doesnt compare favourably at all IMHO.
 


Algernon

Algernon

Well-known member
Sep 9, 2012
2,963
Newmarket.
Either stop in Essen/Duisberg/Dortmund area (4.5 hrs to Colditz) and visit here: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=zollverein+essen&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiOwtSt-crXAhVGOxoKHVeJDnMQ_AUICygC&biw=1366&bih=637

Or push on a little bit further (4 hours to Colditz) and stop at Winterberg and get some snow : https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Winterberg&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiC6P3--MrXAhXMlxoKHcGTBuIQ_AUICygC&biw=1366&bih=637

Divert slightly from either route to take a look here : https://www.google.co.uk/search?biw=1366&bih=637&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=gaIRWo2hNsLxaIXitJAO&q=m%C3%B6hnesee&oq=mohnesee&gs_l=psy-ab.1.1.0l4j0i24k1l6.281744.283858.0.286124.8.8.0.0.0.0.169.667.7j1.8.0....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..0.8.663...0i67k1j0i10k1.0.UulBFB0Mgoo
 




Garage_Doors

Garage_Doors

Originally the Swankers
Jun 28, 2008
11,789
Brighton
Cowfold Seagull said:
Would be my choice too. Anywhere on the channel coast to Colditz is one hell of a drive, even with an overnight stop en-route. However that would mean missing out on Bruges of course, which l think the OP is set on!

Alternatively you can fly to Dresden too which is even closer to Colditz, but flights are from Heathrow, and it involves a change of aircraft on the way.
Click to expand...

Yes we would like to take in Bruges, we originally intended to fly but the lack or direct flights to either Dresden or Leipzig put us off.
the best was something like 9 hours including the stop over at Barcelona or Madrid, so decided to make it a road trip as we have never done it before.
Have flown to Germany many times in the past on business but never been for pleasure or driven so though we would give it a go.
 


Dolph Ins

Dolph Ins

Well-known member
May 26, 2014
1,525
Mid Sussex
I booked train from Berlin to London yesterday for £260 for 2 people one way. I hate driving. 10 hours of looking out of the window drinking beer.
 


Lethargic

Lethargic

Well-known member
Oct 11, 2006
3,463
Horsham
Algernon said:
Either stop in Essen/Duisberg/Dortmund area (4.5 hrs to Colditz) and visit here: https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=zollverein+essen&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiOwtSt-crXAhVGOxoKHVeJDnMQ_AUICygC&biw=1366&bih=637

Or push on a little bit further (4 hours to Colditz) and stop at Winterberg and get some snow : https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=Winterberg&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiC6P3--MrXAhXMlxoKHcGTBuIQ_AUICygC&biw=1366&bih=637

Divert slightly from either route to take a look here : https://www.google.co.uk/search?biw=1366&bih=637&tbm=isch&sa=1&ei=gaIRWo2hNsLxaIXitJAO&q=m%C3%B6hnesee&oq=mohnesee&gs_l=psy-ab.1.1.0l4j0i24k1l6.281744.283858.0.286124.8.8.0.0.0.0.169.667.7j1.8.0....0...1.1.64.psy-ab..0.8.663...0i67k1j0i10k1.0.UulBFB0Mgoo
Click to expand...
Winterberg is a good shout, personally I wouldn't bother with Dortmund or Essen bit too industrial for my liking also one of the towns around the Mohne see with the added bonus of the Warstiener brewery.

Sent from my LG-H850 using Tapatalk
 




LANGDON SEAGULL

LANGDON SEAGULL

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2004
3,422
Langdon Hills
Dusseldorf is a decent shout for a stop over - drove there in the summer via the tunnel - about 4 hours from tunnel exit. Melia Dusseldorf is an excellent hotel choice there


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 


Y

Yes Chef

Well-known member
Apr 11, 2016
1,819
In the kitchen
You can fly directly to Leipzig from London, albeit from Stansted. Ryanair go there, and a quick glance around the dates you have provided shows a return for £43 each. Of course, you'll miss out on Bruges, but the time and money you save by flying could be put towards a trip to Belgium!
 


Two Professors

Two Professors

Two Mad Professors
Jul 13, 2009
7,617
Multicultural Brum
We used to use Harwich-Hook of Holland overnight.Some great roads from there into Germany (was stationed near Hanover,which is a great place to stop over).Leipzig should be a fairly easy drive if no road works.
 




P

PeterOut

Well-known member
Aug 16, 2016
1,238
Garage_Doors said:
Plan at the moment is over to Bruges on the:
11th and stay in Bruges that night.
12th 1/2 way point to be decided.
13th stay in Colditz
14th travel back 1/2 way point to be decided.
15th Bruges / Dunkirk
16th Back home

Welcome recommendations for hotels in Bruges please.
Click to expand...

Try Hotel Ter Brugge http://www.hotelterbrughe.com/en or
Hotel Navarra - https://www.hotelnavarra.com/index.htm

Each very different, but both fabulous and less than 5 min walk from the town centre
 




Raskolnikov

Raskolnikov

New member
Aug 13, 2014
445
Wivenhoe
Garage_Doors said:
We are planning a trip to Colditz castle next February.
As there are no direct flights from the UK to Leipzig or Dresden
and Berlin too far away we have decided to drive over with a stopover in Bruges on the way.

From to Bruges to Colditz the internet tells me it an 7-8 hour drive
which as we are in no hurry want to break this journey up over two
days with a stopover at a mid-point ish, which would be around Duisberg/Dortmand.

Does anyone have any good recommendations as to where to stay and
is there anything to do/see around these areas?
Also any advice on the Chunnel as we have never used it before.
Click to expand...

I have flown several times from Stanstead to Leipzig
 


alfredmizen

alfredmizen

Banned
Mar 11, 2015
6,342
Garage_Doors said:
We are planning a trip to Colditz castle next February.
As there are no direct flights from the UK to Leipzig or Dresden
and Berlin too far away we have decided to drive over with a stopover in Bruges on the way.

From to Bruges to Colditz the internet tells me it an 7-8 hour drive
which as we are in no hurry want to break this journey up over two
days with a stopover at a mid-point ish, which would be around Duisberg/Dortmand.

Does anyone have any good recommendations as to where to stay and
is there anything to do/see around these areas?
Also any advice on the Chunnel as we have never used it before.[/QUOTE [MENTION=409]Herr Tubthumper[/MENTION] is your man
Click to expand...
 




alfredmizen

alfredmizen

Banned
Mar 11, 2015
6,342
Garage_Doors said:
We are planning a trip to Colditz castle next February.
As there are no direct flights from the UK to Leipzig or Dresden
and Berlin too far away we have decided to drive over with a stopover in Bruges on the way.

From to Bruges to Colditz the internet tells me it an 7-8 hour drive
which as we are in no hurry want to break this journey up over two
days with a stopover at a mid-point ish, which would be around Duisberg/Dortmand.

Does anyone have any good recommendations as to where to stay and
is there anything to do/see around these areas?
Also any advice on the Chunnel as we have never used it before.
Click to expand...

No direct flights to Dresden ? Im sure i remember my grandad telling me he flew direct to Dresden once :lolol:
 




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