Nürnberg Transportation

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The compact Nuremberg transportation system is comprised of 2 Ubahn lines, nine trams, and multiple bus lines. For the visitor, the only main attraction requiring more than a minimal walk is the castle district. The main train station is located across the street from the Frauentor entrance to the Old City at Konigstrasse. Between them is a plaza we called "tram central" where most of the tramlines intersect (Hauptbahnhofplatz). Below ground level here is a station for both Ubahn lines which intersect here and at one other stop near the Spittletor gate to the old town. Line 2 connects directly to the airport allowing easy access to the center of town. From this central point everything to see can be reached easily.

The cheap daypass for the Nuremberg transit system is one of the greatest bargains we encountered in Germany. Period. We were on and off the Ubahn and the trams all day and night long, even for one stop. Points of interest ----

Lorenz district - Shopping streets, Konigstrasse, Pegnitz River sites, St. Lorenz church -- Ubahn 1 to Lorenzkirche ( one stop ).
Sebald district - St. Sebald's, Fembohaus - Ubahn 2 direction airport for two stops to Rathenauplatz, then bus 36 to St. Sebald's.
Castle District, Albrecht Durer house - either Ubahn to Plarrer, then tram 4 to Tiergartnertor.
Documentation Center - tram 9 to the last stop.
Airport - Ubahn 2 to the last stop.

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Since the opening of a new high-speed railway line between here and Munich there are many more InterCityExpress (ICE) trains serving Nürnberg than there used to be. In fact the fastest way to get from Frankfurt to Munich is now via Nürnberg, not Stuttgart.

Second photo: Here a regional express train is pulling (or rather pushing) out of Crailsheim station, on the way from Stuttgart to Nürnberg. The locomotive pushes in this direction, with the driver of course sitting in a cab at the front end, and then pulls on the way back from Nürnberg to Stuttgart.

Third photo: An InterCityExpress and a regional train at Nürnberg main station.

Nuremberg is very well reachable by train from anywhere in Germany or near-by countries. The main railway station is right outside of the old town walls, so if you are heading to the center, you have a great starting point. The railway station itself is big and you can find many shops, some restaurans/cafes and an internet cafe over there.

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If you arrive in the city of Nürnberg by plane the airport is an end station on the U2 underground line. The station is directly outside the front of the airport and you can see the steps or escalator down to the platform. If you are not very good with ticket machines like me then go to the information desk inside the airport where you can purchase tickets. In my case I purchased a 7 day ticket which cost 17.70 euros. I had an odd day where I needed to purchase a 90 minute ticket for 1.60 euros. This is where I discovered that unlike Berlin where you stamp the ticket at the start of your journey in Nürnberg the ticket machine does it for you and the clock is then running. I only found this out when I tried to purchase a ticket in advance. The same ticket can be used on all forms of transport. The U2 trains I used were driverless and you can stand at the front of the train where the driver would normally be. There are only 3 subway lines in Nürnberg though booster trains are put on in the central sections to increase capacity. The U2 line will take you to the Hauptbahnhof and city centre. If you wish to change routes on the underground then you can change at the Hauptbahnhof and Plärrer.

Nuremberg has an excellent transport system, especially for a city of its size. It has a underground, one serving the smallest population in Europe, as well as a thorough network of trams, buses and S-Bahn trains. For a tourist you'll probably not use it all that much, unless you absolutely hate walking, because the Altstadt is so compact and contains most of what there is to see. If you want to get out to see some of Nuremberg's Nazi history, like Luitpoldhain and the Palace of Justice, you will probably want to grab a tram or train.

A single ticket fare within the Nuremberg city area will cost you €1.40. If you buy single or multiple-single tickets, make sure to get them stamped in the machines. These are located at the steps down to the U-Bahn. You can buy day tickets for only €3.60, which may prove a much better deal. If you are planning on staying a couple of days and visiting many of the museums then get yourself a Nuremberg Card. It costs 18 euros and covers you for travel in the Nuremberg-Fürth region (about as far as you could want to travel) and gives you free entry to pretty much every museum and sight worth visiting.

The metro (U-Bahn) is the main way of transport in Nuremberg, supplemented by six tram lines. Nürnberg’s metro system is the youngest in Germany, dating back to the late 1960s. It consists of two lines, U1 and U2, with a third line in construction. The designations U11 and U21 are given to U1 resp. U2 trains which do not go to the final destination. The system is part of the VAG (Verkehrs-Aktiengesellschaft Nürnberg), which runs the whole public transport system in Nuernberg, including trams and buses. Single trip tickets cost 1,80 EUR (2007), a day ticket for 3,60 is a better option, if you have to do two or more trips. Of course, these tickets are valid on trams and buses as well as on the DB light-rail trains (S-Bahn).
If you are only moving within the city center, there’s no need to buy a ticket. All important places are within walking distance. However, tickets may be useful, if you want to visit the Nazi documentation center, Fürth or any other attraction which is not in the city center.

Nüremberg train station seems to be much busier than the streets around it and give a slightly false impression of the pace of life in the city. This is most likely due to it being at the through station of two major ICE routes from Munich to Berlin, Frankfurt and Hamburg. It also has an ICE route to Vienna. It also has direct trains to cities such as Stuttgart, Karlsruhe, Dortmund and Hannover. You can even get night trains to places as far away as Stralsund in the north-east of Germany, and Copenhagen.

Nuremberg has its own airport, but it is mostly for regional flights, budget airlines and charter holidays. Lufthansa is based there, but if you want to fly in from any major airport outside of Germany, then you'll probably have to fly in via Frankfurt. The principle budget airline serving Nuremberg is Air Berlin, and they do good value flights to all over Germany, Europe, as well as further afield to countries like Turkey and Egypt. Condor, Lufthansa's budget wing, also has a lot of charter-flight destinations. Apart from Lufthansa a small number of major national airlines fly to the city, including KLM, Air France and Turkish Airlines.

Transport to the airport is excellent, and you can get to and from the city on the U2 underground line. This takes just 12 minutes to get to the city center, and costs just €1.60.

www.airberlin.com
www.condor.com
www.lufthansa.com