Germany

Munich is Germany's second-largest airport, with almost 48 million passengers in 2019. Its growth has been exponential, with passenger traffic up by almost 40% between 2010 and 2019. This growth has been supported by Lufthansa, which has made Munich its second hub. The airport is regularly...

At present, it is possible to cross borders and travel to Spain, but subject to strict rules. Since 23 November, Spain has required a covid-19-negative PCR test result less than 72 hours old to enter the country. Only travellers in transit to a third country (Portugal or Gibraltar)...

It is now compulsory for anyone travelling from an area considered to be at risk to register using an online application. These include France, Belgium, Luxembourg and Switzerland. You need to log on beforehand to the www.einreiseanmeldung.de website. The page is available in French, although the country names still appear in German. You need to...

Patience and time are undoubtedly the two lifebloods of hotel development. The Steigenberger Airport Hotel Berlin, ready since 2012 and the scheduled opening of the German capital's new airport, has had to wait, postponement after postponement, for the official inauguration of Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER) before opening its doors. "We are delighted...

More than its Asian neighbours, the city-state of Singapore is heavily dependent on global mobility. The city of six million inhabitants has built its economy on trade. It therefore seems essential for the government to gradually reopen its borders to international travellers. In an interview with Bloomberg...

The obligation for each German region (Land) to adopt any new health regulations has forced the government to postpone the introduction of new compulsory quarantine protocols for travellers from high-risk pandemic zones. These areas are listed by country by the Robert Koch Medical Institute, which is responsible for managing...

Initially scheduled for 1 October, the new rules for entry into Germany will apply from 15 October. The decision was taken in response to the upsurge in cases of covid in Europe. Two measures are likely to discourage many business travellers. Quarantine will become compulsory even if a person tests negative for covid. The...

The price of the BahnCard 25, which gives access to a 25% discount on German rail routes, is being offered at 24.90 euros (2nd class) or 69.90 euros (1st class) instead of 54.60 euros and 109.90 euros. The discount applies to all major Deutsche Bahn -ICE lines...

To curb the possibility of imported cases of covid-19, the Italian Ministry of Health has introduced new rules for French travellers arriving in Italy from high-risk areas. In a press release, Health Minister Roberto Speranza states that from 22 September, travellers arriving...

The lifestyle brand Ruby Hotels is continuing to expand, with two new hotels expected by 2023. Already boasting eight hotels based on the "lean luxury" concept of relaxed, affordable luxury, the German group intends to unveil seventeen new properties in Europe by this date. While the German group founded by Michael Struck already has a presence...

With the resurgence of infections linked to the covid-19 pandemic throughout the world, and particularly in Europe, travel conditions are once again becoming stricter for potential travellers. In less than two weeks, for example, the United Kingdom has decided to re-impose a quarantine on travellers from Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

The Covid-19 pandemic has relatively spared Germany. According to the latest figures, Germany and France are close on the heels of each other, with around 225,000 infections. But the mortality rate in Germany is almost four times lower than in France, with 9,300 deaths to date. This probably explains the decontamination rules...

Lufthansa's Airport Express service has been around for decades. As far back as the 1980s, Lufthansa innovated by running Deutsche Bundesbahn trains from Düsseldorf, Cologne and the former federal capital Bonn, as well as from Stuttgart, to the mainline station at Frankfurt airport. The trains were painted in Lufthansa colours...

In the air, Air France, Lufthansa, Easyjet and Eurowings are continuing to operate flights between the two countries, but on a reduced timetable. For example, on 18 March, Lufthansa is offering four daily flights to Frankfurt and Munich from Paris CDG and five daily flights from Lyon (two to Frankfurt and three to Munich). Air France...

The borders are completely open, and all trains between France and Germany - particularly on the two major routes Paris-Strasbourg-Germany and Paris-Metz-Sarrebruck-Germany - are fully operational. Nor is there any interruption to traffic on the regional TER line linking Strasbourg to Bale CFF in Switzerland or the line linking Mulhouse to...

Eurowings is still losing money and is therefore seeking to further optimise its operating costs. Lufthansa's 'hybrid' subsidiary, which has taken over all the German airline's point-to-point routes, is therefore forced to make further cuts to its in-flight and ground services. Last year, the airline had already reduced its...

Stagnating or even sharply declining passenger traffic for German airports in the fourth quarter of last year: the 2019 financial year is ending much worse than it started for German aviation, according to figures published on Thursday by ADV, the association of German commercial airports. From January to December 2019, the 22 German airports...

This is good news for all passengers on Germany's mainline rail services. On 1 January, a reduced rate of VAT came into force. The law was passed by the German parliament last September, when the members of the Bundestag decided to lower VAT from 19% to 7%. Deutsche Bahn has...

This is a real strategic defeat for the Lufthansa airline group, a defeat that its CEO, Carsten Spohr, now candidly concedes. Eurowings is losing money, a lot of money, and this is weighing heavily on the parent company's accounts. In the first quarter of 2019, the Lufthansa group lost some 342 million euros, while last year Eurowings lost...

Eurowings is launching its revised Smart fare for short and medium-haul flights. Smart is the airline's intermediate fare between its Basic and Bizclass fares. Eurowings is thus responding to the needs of passengers using this class of travel who did not seem to find the services provided commensurate with the fare paid....