Getting There

By Plane

Tegel Airport, formerly Berlin's busiest, will close sometime in 2011. It will be replaced by Berlin Brandenburg International Airport (www.berlin-airport.de), southeast of the center.

Most international flights will arrive at the new BBI, which has a rail station under the main terminal. It will take only 20 minutes for the airport shuttle to travel the 20km (12-mile) stretch of track in Berlin's center.

Lufthansa (tel. 800/645-3880; www.lufthansa-usa.com) will no longer offer direct flights from Washington, D.C., to Berlin. Passengers flying out of Washington must stop in either Frankfurt or Munich, then take a shuttle flight to Berlin. Transatlantic passengers from several other North American cities are routed through the airline's hubs at Frankfurt and Munich.

Delta (tel. 800/221-1212; www.delta.com) has flights to Berlin in the evening from New York's JFK airport. However, daily flights, depending on the season or on business, are not always a sure thing, so you'll need to check with a travel agent or the airline itself.

The best and most convenient service into Berlin is available aboard British Airways (tel. 800/247-9297; www.ba.com), which efficiently funnels dozens of daily flights from North America to Germany, including five a day into Berlin, through its vast terminals at London-Heathrow. Connections to Berlin are available from at least 40 gateways in the U.S. and Canada, more than those offered by any other airline. Frequent transatlantic price wars keep fares to Berlin aboard BA lower than you may have thought, especially in the off season. Stopovers in London can be arranged at minimal cost, and deeply discounted hotel packages are available in either Berlin or London, at rates that are significantly less than what you'd have paid if you'd arranged them yourself. And if you opt for passage in business class (BA calls it "Club Class"), you'll ride on the most comfortable, and one of the largest, airline seats in the industry, in a configuration that can be transformed into something approaching a bed.

By Train

As Berlin strengthens its role as Germany's capital, increasing numbers of trains are speeding their way into town. All points of the country, especially Frankfurt, Munich, and Bonn, maintain excellent rail connections, with high-tech, high-speed improvements being made to the country's railway system virtually all the time. One major improvement is that Berlin and the great port of Hamburg are now 15 minutes closer, thanks to high-speed (250kmph/155 mph) InterCity Express service (the trip is now 2 hr., 8 min.). Since reunification, Berlin has improved the facilities of railway stations in both the western zone (Bahnhof Zoologischer Garten) and eastern zone (Berlin Ostbahnhof), installing improved S-Bahn links to interconnect them. The station you'll use depends on the destination or origin of your train, or the location of your hotel within the city. Some trains, but not all, make arrivals and departures from both stations. A third station, Berlin Lichtenberg, within the city's eastern half, is used for trains pulling in from small towns. For information about any railway station, call tel. 01805/996633 or visit www.bahn.de. A new megastation, Lehrter Hauptbahnhof, recently opened in Berlin-Mitte, within a 5-minute walk of the Reichstag. It incorporates the lines that lead to the three other railway stations mentioned above, eliminating the need for cross-town commutes among the city's railway stations.

By Bus (Coach)

Regularly scheduled buses operate from 250 German and continental cities, including Frankfurt, Hamburg, and Munich. Long-distance bus companies servicing Berlin include Berlin Linien Bus (tel. 030/8619331; www.berlinlinienbus.de).

Arrivals and departures are at the ZOB Omnibusbahnhof am Funkturm, Masurenalle, Charlottenburg. Taxis and bus connections are available at the station and at the U-Bahn, at the nearby Kaiserdamm station.

By Car

From Frankfurt, take the E451 north until it connects with the E40 going northeast. Follow this autobahn past Jena and then head north on the E51 into Berlin. From Nürnberg, also take the E51 into Berlin. From Dresden, take the E55 north to Berlin. Expect heavy traffic on the autobahns on weekends and sunny days when everybody is out touring.