Hi gang
Since I am going to be in Munich for several days, I was thinking about heading to Berlin for the day to see some friends. I have been to both cities before. I would prefer a train than plane but would it be more efficient to fly? I think it is 6 hours by train. I may skip the idea altogether but would welcome some advice.
Six hours is around most people's tipping point for leisure travel. Munich airport and both of the Berlin airports are fairly close to the city centres. For me, the decision would rest very much on what the fares were.
Whatever you do, don't get a flight from the airport known to some airlines as "Munich West", which is at Memmingen, barely even in Bavaria.
Although whichever way you went, neither would give you much time in Berlin.
A train from Munich to Berlin takes about 6 hours and a 2nd class, full fare costs about $160. You could find a discounted price if you book in advance, although you need to be committed to a date and time when purchasing in advance as reduced fares are often not refundable. Purchase at www.bahn.com or www.ricksteves.com/rail. You can browse www.skyscanner.com for inter-European flights. There are direct flights between the two cities. It takes about an hour and 10 minutes (though account for the time it takes to get from Munich to the airport, about 40 minutes on the S-Bahn, and a quick jump once you're in Berlin if you fly into TXL, maybe 20 minutes), and I see prices around $105 for a ticket. While the train is convenient since most are direct, if you are trying to get back in the same day, it would take so long. A flight would be quicker, and if you don't have limited time it might be nice and more relaxed to stay a night or two in Berlin. I hope this helps explain some options!
Todd,
Munich to Berlin and back is not really a "day trip". Even using the fastest direct ICE trains, the trip is about 6.5 hours each way. Sitting on a train for 13 hours to spend only a few hours in Berlin will not be a pleasant day (and that doesn't include the time from Berlin Hbf to your friends house and back).
Travel by air isn't much better. The trip from Munich to the airport will be about 45 minutes each way, you'll need to arrive at least 90 minutes prior to your flights in each direction and of course endure the usual hassles of security, waiting, boarding & deplaning, etc. Add to that the flight time and of course time at the Berlin end for travel to and from the airport. The overall time for travel on that route will likely be at least five hours each way and perhaps more.
Some options would be to spend one night in Berlin or perhaps you could meet your friends somewhere in the middle and spend a day with them there. Frankfurt is one possibility as it's about 3.5 hours from both Munich and Berlin (depending on which train you use).
Hundreds of local Munich business men and women fly to Berlin for a day on each given work day. It's perfectly easy to do that. If you're traveling with no luggage to check it's sufficient to arrive at MUC airport 45 minutes prior to the departure of your plane - and the S-Bahn ride from downtown Munich to the airport takes another 45 minutes.
A couple of airlines compete on that route, so you best check with the likes of http://www.momondo.com before you book your flights.
Depending on which part of Berlin you want to go you could prefer either TXL or SXF airport there. Rule of thumb: West of the Brandenburg Gate TXL, East SXF.
I have to agree with Andreas on this one. A day trip from Munich to Berlin has to be treated like a business trip. You do it for a special purpose and you minimize travel time by flying. This is a case where I cannot see any advantage with taking the train - unless you have a phobia of flying. It's much faster and most likely cheaper to fly.
I've done many day trips from Munich to Dresden and Berlin for work. If you book early the flights can be less than 200€ and there are many to choose from throughout the day. So yes, it is doable.
DJ
Edit: My rule of thumb travel time from city center to the Munich airport was 40min using S8 from Ostbahnhof arriving at the airport only 60 mins before the flight. If you are flying Lufthansa from terminal 2 then 60 mins is plenty of time.
