Planning a trip to Cologne
The compact and pedestrian-friendly Altstadt, where you find the cathedral and most of the major attractions, is most easily explored on foot. The city also has an excellent bus, tram, U-Bahn (subway), and S-Bahn (light rail) system. A CityTicket, good for a single one-way fare within the inner city is 1.90€ for adults, 0.95€ for children. Purchase tickets from the automated machines (labeled Fahrscheine), from bus drivers, or at the stations. Be sure to validate your ticket before entering; validation machines are in stations and on buses. For information about public transportation, call VRS at tel. 01803/504-030 or visit www.kvb-koeln.de.
Taxi meters start at 3€ plus 1€ if you hail a taxi from the street; the fare rises 1.55€ to 1.70€ per kilometer thereafter, depending on time of day. To order a taxi, call Taxi-Ruf at tel. 0221/19410.
Visitor Information
For tourist information, go to the Köln Tourismus Office, Kardinal-Höffner-Platz 1 (tel. 0221/22130400; www.cologne-tourism.com), a few steps from the cathedral. The office has city maps, a room-rental service, and information on city attractions, including tours. It’s open Mon-Sat 9am to 8pm, Sun 10am-5pm.
Saving with a KölnCard
The money-saving KölnCard costs 9€ for 24 hours (18€ for 48 hr.) and enables you to travel throughout the city’s transportation network and get reduced-price entry to museums and other attractions. You can buy it at the tourist information center.
Getting There
By Train -- Cologne is a major rail hub, so reaching the city from anywhere in Germany or the rest of Europe is easy. Frequent daily trains arrive from Berlin (trip time: 5 1/2 hr.), Frankfurt (trip time under 1 hr.), and Hamburg (trip time: 4 1/2 hr.). The Cologne Hauptbahnhof (main train station) is in the heart of the city. For schedules, call Deutsch Bahn at tel. 11861 or visit www.bahn.com.
By Plane -- Cologne’s airport, Konrad-Adenauer-Flughafen Köln/Bonn (tel. 02203/40-40-01; www.airport-cgn.de), is located 14km (9 miles) southeast of the city. Direct flights arrive from most major European cities. The fastest and simplest way to get into the city is by taking an S-Bahn train (S-13) from the airport train station directly to the Cologne main train station. The trip takes 20 minutes; the fare is 3€. A taxi from the airport to the city center costs about 30€.
By Car -- Cologne is easily reached from major German cities. It’s connected north and south by the A3 Autobahn and east and west by the A4 Autobahn.
