driving to germany

[KADVR6 0]

how long do ya all think it would take to drive to berlin, is it possible to do it in a day, without being completey knackered and falling asleep (crashing)?? i have flown to Munich a few times but never driven, so any experiences of driving to the fatherland would be appreciated.

 

i'm bidding on something on german e-bay, but its way to big & heavy to post, so gotta pick it/them up,

 

cheers

 

karl :)

[DaveStorm 0]

I'd say it could be done in a day (if you can get a fast channel crossing), it would be pretty tiring though. Best bet is to ask Tempest, he'll know for sure :wink:

[Tempest 0]

Berlin is a fair disatnce from any of the ports. I'd suggest Hook of Holland as your arrival port, as that offers you the shortest route: 443 miles

 

Although once you're on the A1 in the Netherlands (getting there via Utrecht can be a bit of a swine, if you end up in rushhour traffic), it's pretty straight forward, one straight line to Berlin along what then becomes the A30 in Germany.

 

Snag is the A30 is interrupted in Bad Oyenhausen, where you literally leave the motorway, drive through a heavily speed-camera infested village before you get back onto the A30 motorway again!

 

Tempest

[DaveStorm 0]

^^^^

 

Lol did you hear me Eric, or are you psychic? :lol:

[Jim 2]

Might be worth booking yourself a hotel for when you get to Berlin tbh as trying to do it as a round trip in a day will kill you. Then set back out the following day nice and fresh!

 

To be fair i'm not a mega experienced long distance driver but knowing the miles we did, there is just no way i'd want to do the drive from the West Midlands all the way to Berlin in one sitting.. just no way in hell.

 

And watch out driving in Holland.. there is some truely shocking driving going on over there, not to mention traffic :|

[herisites 0]

What you getting then Karl?? Something for the car no doubt :wink:

 

See if you can pick up any dirt cheap vortech chargers whilst you are out there, you may have to hang on to it for a bit tho :lol:

[KADVR6 0]

yeh it's for the car mate, will keep an eye out for a charger????

[herisites 0]

I thought it would be for the car, but then you are hardly going to drive to germany to pick up a sofa :lol:

 

And i was joking about the charger, i dont have any money yet :cry:

[stevef182 0]

when i drove to the nurburgring i did it in a day, a long day though!! i know berlin is a completely different part of germany but it is ze same country ya, :lol: maybe this helps!

[The_Dude 0]

And watch out driving in Holland.. there is some truely shocking driving going on over there, not to mention traffic :|

 

cos they are all stoned! :lol:

[stevef182 0]

And watch out driving in Holland.. there is some truely shocking driving going on over there, not to mention traffic :|

 

cos they are all stoned! :lol:

 

haha..true true!

[Tempest 0]

cos they are all stoned!

 

Oi, watch it, before a Dutchman starts with English jokes :lol:

 

And watch out driving in Holland.. there is some truely shocking driving going on over there, not to mention traffic

 

Ahh, that was easy, you weren't even driving first time round ;-), and this year it was a doddle: We had the motorways all to ourselves, once we'd arrived at midnight :-) Germany was a nightmare this summer, however, trying to fight our way through that dreaded Ruhrgebiet (like London M25/M1 et al), except for that nice stretch of motorway where my parents live. I love that bit :-)

 

Tempest

[Roger Blassberg 0]

I used to drive to/from Berlin on a regular basis, via Calais, Lille, Gent, Antwerp, Venlo, Essen, Dortmund, Bielefeld, Hannover, Magdeburg. It takes about 7 or 8 hours from Calais. As Eric says, the Ruhrgebiet (Essen, Dortmund etc.) can be horrible if you hit it at the wrong time of day.

 

As others have said, be careful in Netherlands, the speed limit is very rigorously enforced.

 

In Germany only some sections of the Autobahnen are de-restricted contrary to popular myth. But on those that are, be prepared to experience very rapid traffic indeed and keep your eyes peeled in the rear-view mirror. Good lane discipline is expected and you will make yourself very unpopular if you don't clear the overtaking lane even at 180+ km/h. I was once driven at 270km/h in SW Germany, perfectly legally on a 2 lane Autobahn and the locals are used to having traffic come up behind at very high closing speeds; they get out of the way and so should you. Incidentally, it is an offence to flash your lights at people to get them to clear the lane, as is any form of (cough) gesture.

 

A peculiarity in Germany if you are driving alone; another driver, if supported by a witness, can report you to the Polizei for any offence such as speeding, dangerous driving etc., and you are powerless to defend yourself unless you in turn have a supporting witness.

 

Don't park on the "wrong" side of the road as so many people do here - you'll probably get a ticket.

 

One point for the un-initiated. In towns and cities in Germany, as you turn right at traffic lights you must give way to pedestrians crossing parallel to you. Also, in the absence of signs to the contrary (a yellow diamond with a diagonal line through it) you give way to traffic approaching from the right.

 

You must have your documents, (licence, insurance, V5) with you whenever you are driving. You must have a fire extinguisher and first aid kit in the car, and spare bulbs and a reflective jacket are mandatory in some countries. Take an international accident report form with you just in case. Strictly speaking you should modify the headlights to obscure yor left-dipping beam.

 

They say that in Germany, unless it is specifically allowed, it is forbidden! Maybe an exaggeration but there is an element of truth in it.

 

Have fun in Berlin, it's a great city. If you are coming in from the Magdeburg direction, you drive into Berlin along the famous AVUS racetrack and past the radio tower which stands on the banked curve at the east end of it.

 

What part of Berlin are you going to?

 

Best wishes

 

RB

[stevef182 0]

cant ask for much more info than that!!!

[KADVR6 0]

thanks Rodger for that bleedin good bit (lot) of info mate, i dont know exactly where in Berlin i will hopefully be going to. it all depends on winning some items on german e-bay first, but i have also been in touch with UK pallets, as we use them at work, and if the missus has a strop with me going on a 2 day drive/drink :) then they will pick up a pallet for me/deliver it for about £80, so them picking up is cheaper than fuel/ferry etc etc, but i dont get 2 days away from the in laws :(

 

cheers

 

karl

[lauraJ 0]

I love driving in germany, the couple of times i've done it!!

 

Bloody scary when ur pushing your car to it's max (in the case of the cars i've driven over there only about 110mph) and then a brand new merc or bmw is up your arse, awesome but scary!!

 

Yeah we also got pulled over a couple of times, for not realising when it goes from de-ristricted to restiricted. A couple of fines not too bad, altho our car was all stickered up and we were part of a 150 car rally. so maybe thats why they were leinant.

[Tempest 0]

In towns and cities in Germany, as you turn right at traffic lights you must give way to pedestrians crossing parallel to you.

 

Something I still haven't got used to that that rule does not exist in this country, as I regularly get myself into swearing contests with IMO ignorant car drivers who don't yield to me. The law in D is pretty obvious, and holds for everyone taking part in traffic: If you do not change your direction of travel at a junction, you have priority unless the right-before-left rule applies.

 

Also, in the absence of signs to the contrary (a yellow diamond with a diagonal line through it) you give way to traffic approaching from the right.

 

That's admittedly been solved better in the UK thanks to road markings at virtually every junction.

 

Incidentally, it is an offence to flash your lights at people to get them to clear the lane, as is any form of (cough) gesture.

It took me 6 years to realise that when people flash their lights at me in the UK, they don't mean for me to feck off, like I was used to in Germany :lol:

 

Although penalties on flashing your lights to make someone in front of you clear the lane (called Nötigung in German) have recently even been increased, you'll still see the typical BMWs and Mercs, Porsches and suchlike do this, as this law cannot really be enforced. The plod can't be everywhere to check. A joke in Germany is to say that all BMWs already come with headlight flashers built-in, that activate from speeds of 130 km/h onwards :lol:

 

Tempest