Cologne Transportation

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We took a trip down the Rhine from Cologne in 1950. My father was fascinated by the ruined castles and vineyards, and he also took photos of various bridges and boats. We also saw the famous Loreley Rock where the legend says the legendary beautiful mermaid combed her long blonde hair and sang, luring fishermen to their death onto the rocks, but if we have a photo of that, I haven't found it.

You can also take a round trip from Cologne down the river a little way and then come back to Cologne.

The trip was too slow for me - I liked the train trip better

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Waterfront is definately my favourite environment, I was born and grown up in the coastal town and it must be in my blood and soul. No matter if seashore or riverbank it makes me feel good and relaxed if around.
Rhine is really huge, didnt expect it to be so wide. I regret not to have take boat tour along the river but unfortunatelly it was really too cold for me. A fellow Vter told me there are nice cabins on the boats, warm and comfortable, but I just can't stay closed in a cabin if on the boat. It has nothing to do with klaustrophobia, its just that I must feel wind on my face if on the boat.

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The transportation is very easy in Köln. The train connection to neigbouring cities is so practical. You don't need to ask to anyone, just go to Hauptbahnhof (Central Train Station) and have a look at the schedule list which can be found everywhere. In addition, there are DB digital-machines at Hauptbahnhof, in which you can find very detailed information. Please note that, there are four languages options in these machines. (English, German, French and Turkish)

If you have a match ticket, whole public transportation in through the city is free. It starts three hours before the match until midnight. On the other hand, it provides free travelling among Nordrhein-Westfalen region except IC & ICE.

Cologne has its own airport, the Cologne/Bonn airport. But there are many nearby airport that are very accessible too, so it's worth shopping around for the best deal. Dusseldorf also has a major international airport, with destinations on four continents, and you can be in Cologne in about 30-40 minutes from there. Less accessible is Weeze Airport, popular with budget airlines, especially Ryanair. Even Frankfurt airport, the second busiest in Europe, is only about an hour away by direct ICE express train.

Cologne/Bonn airport isn't as busy as Dusseldorf but it's a little more convenient and has a lot of destinations served by two of Germany's high quality budget airlines: Air Berlin and Germanwings. These serve a host of major European cities, including Budapest, London and Copenhagen. They are joined by a number of other budget airlines, like EasyJet and Wizz Air, as well as a small number of national airlines, including Turkish Airlines, Air France and even Iran Air.

To get to Cologne from the airport take S-Bahn Line 7 to Porzmarkt and then Bus 161 to the airport. For Bonn just take Bus SB60.

Koln has many assets. However one that makes it particularly pleasant is its flatness and many bicycles lanes. While not quite as apparent as Amsterdam or Brussels, Koln has many bicycle lanes that make seeing some of the sights like the many churches and museums very quick.

There are several sites within downtown to rent from and expect to pay approximately 2 euros an hour, 10 euros a day, or approximately 40 euros a week and up depending on the bike you choose. An excellent list with maps of bike tours in and around Koln is provided at the following web site;

http://www.bikely.com/listpaths/country/91/region/1918/city/3659

Be particularly careful when riding your bike on one of the cities bridges. For some reason, the pavement is particularly slippery on these.

As everywhere make sure you rent a secure lock if you park the bike in the Koln.

Conveniently located not far from the train station is the Cologne (Koln) Tourist Information Centre (Koln Turismio). The office is located at Unter Fettenhennen 19, Cologne, 50667, Germany, DE
(Tel: +49 0221 2213 0400) and several of the staff there speak English. One of the things they will recommend purchasing there is the Koln Card. While the card offers many discounts to museums and other places in Koln if you there for just a day or two I really don't think it is worth it. However add up the places you want to go, figure the cost and decide on your own!

One better travel into Cologne city by train, airplane, helicopter, parachute or anything but car.
But if one like to stick to one's car (like I did), one better forget about parking spots in that city's center. There are parking houses but they are very tiny, and ok only for those that drive small vehicles. Yet there are comfortable parking places along Aachener Strasse, which is way out of town's center (around housing numbers 300 to 400). Cost is up to 4 euro for 4 hrs. To get into town after parking the car there, one can jump on the tram (direction Heumarkt) that rides along Aachener Strasse. Take a look at BillNJ's Transportation tips, link below.

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Located next to the Cathedral, the Cologne Hauptbahnhof (central train station) is an important local, national and international transportation hub. The Hauptbahnhof is an extremely busy place with trains and trams arriving and departing on many different platforms. The station's building also hosts a large shopping mall, the Colonaden.

The station broadcasts instructions and information in both German and English. Also, the personnel at the information desk in the station are fluent English speakers.