Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [681]
Berlin, Münster, Leipzig and Gelsenkirchen are among those cities with wonderful zoos.
CLIMATE CHARTS
The German weather is highly capricious: on any given day it can be cold or warm, sunny or rainy, windy or calm – or any combination thereof. Meteorologists blame this lack of stability on colliding maritime and continental air masses, but for you this simply means packing a wardrobe that’s as flexible as possible.
The weather tends to be most pleasant in summer, which is rarely suffocatingly hot (usually around 28°C/82°F), the occasional heat wave notwithstanding. Humidity levels tend to be quite high, making afternoon thunderstorms fairly common. Spring is beautiful but it can be slow to arrive, even if jackets are sometimes stripped off as early as April. Autumn arrives in September and brings the added bonus of bright foliage. Temperatures can still be quite pleasant, which may keep beer gardens and outdoor cafes open until October. Predictably, December to February is the coldest period, when the mercury can plunge well below 0°C/32°F. At the higher elevations, snowfall is possible from November.
For general advice on the best times to travel around the country, Click here. The climate charts Click here provide a snapshot of local weather patterns.
COURSES
Plenty of courses are offered throughout Germany, including hands-on sessions that don’t require fluency in German. Options are literally endless. How about learning rock climbing in Saxon Switzerland, taking a workshop in porcelain painting in Meissen, joining a wine seminar in a Mosel village, getting a tutorial in woodcarving in the Black Forest or taking cooking lessons in Berlin? Tourist offices are usually the best sources for what’s on offer locally, although the classifieds in listings magazines and local newspapers may also yield some leads.
If learning German is your aim, you could hire a private tutor or join a language school. Among the most respected are those run by the Goethe Institut (www.goethe.de), a government-subsidised nonprofit organisation promoting German language and culture abroad. Programs cater for all levels of proficiency, usually last a few weeks and are offered in 12 German cities, including Berlin, Dresden and Munich.
Many universities offer summer courses, which are sometimes held in English. The website of the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst (DAAD; German Academic Exchange Service; www.daad.de) has a searchable database of available programs.
CUSTOMS & REGULATIONS
Most articles that you take to Germany for your personal use may be imported free of duty and tax. Duty-free allowances for goods purchased in a non–European Union country were recently changed. Anyone over 17 may now bring in 1L of strong liquor or 2L of less than 22% alcohol by volume plus 4L of wine plus 16L of beer. Duty-free tobacco imports are capped at 200 cigarettes or 100 cigarillos or 50 cigars or 250g of loose tobacco. If you’re over 15, you may also bring in other products up to the value of €300 if arriving by land or €430 if arriving by sea or air. The limit for those under 15 is €175.
DANGERS & ANNOYANCES
Germany is a very safe country in which to live and travel, with crime rates that are quite low by international standards. Theft and other crimes against travellers occur rarely. Of course, you should still take all the usual sensible precautions, such as locking hotel rooms and cars, not leaving valuables unattended, keeping an eye out for pickpockets in crowded places and not taking midnight strolls in city parks. Many hostels provide lockers, but you need your own padlock. Train stations tend to be magnets for the destitute and drug dependent who might harass you or make you feel otherwise uncomfortable,