ruthruthruth

Hi. I am trying to decide how to get from either the Crown Plaza, where the Lufthansa bus from Frankfurt drops passengers, or the main train station, to my hotel on Bergheimer Strasse near Thibault (sp?) strasse. I looked on the Heidleberg transportation site, and it looks like there are several buses than run down Bergheimerstrasser, yet when I query a route, I'm told to walk to Bismarck Platz. Is this because the bus is not going in the right direction to take me where I want to go quickly, or because of construction (I saw something about that, but don't know enough German to understand it, and the translation was sketchy) or what? I know it's probably not very far from either the Bahnhof or Crown Plaza to the hotel, but we'll have 2 weeks' luggage, so I don't think we can walk too far. To further confuse things, I don't even see a bus 32 listed on the map I have of transportation in Heidelberg. I think I got that map from the official web site, but I'm not positive.

Other related questions:
Does anyone know how much the LH bus is? Their web site says to call for prices, but I'd prefer to not do that, at least not until I'm in Germany. Also, would anyone happen to know what terminal I might come into from the US. on American Airlines? I'm trying to figure out which is easier/faster/cheaper - the train or the LH bus! After a night flight in coach, I know we'll only have half brains, so I would like to plan ahead of time as much as possible.

Anyone able to tell me roughly how much a cab would be from the Bahnhof to the hotel? Can I assume it wouldn't be too terribly much, as it doesn't look that far?

Thanks for any help you can give me! I thought I was pretty good at figuring out bus schedules, but I'm a little confused!

Oh, also, I notice bahn.de has a special through July 31 in which you get a 20 euro voucher, a roundtrip ticket, or an upgrade to first class. Again, the translation was sketchy, but can I assume that it's as simple as it sounds - anyone can purchase it, and basically apply it to a ticket? I'll be going from FF to Heidelberg, and then to Paris. 10 days or so later I'll be going from Prague to Frankfurt (through Nurnberg.

ruthruthruth

Sorry, on my previous question regarding the bahn.de special, I meant to state that the special applies when you purchase a rail card (25 or 50, I believe) before July 31.

violetduck

You might check with your hotel for distances, taxi fare, etc.
If you can manage with less luggage it will make your trip much
easier. We took the Luthansa bus from H to FF and it was easier than the train which would require a change, I believe in Mannheim. The fares are on http://ics-logistik.de. Click on the flag on the left for English. It shows 20 euros one way. Hope you can get your questions answered and have a good trip.

ruthruthruth

Oh, thank you, that helps! I guess I wasn't looking at the correct site. Yes, I think the trip by rail requires a change in Mannheim. It's a bit cheaper, especially if we either buy a Bahn Card and/or buy a non-refundable ticket. However, it sounds like overall it's easier to just take the bus. Did they use a small one (9 seater)as I saw in an ad? Did they take people's luggage, or do you have to get it on the bus with you?

logos999

http://www.vrn.de/imperia/md/content...heidelberg.pdf

Bismarckplatz is the terminus at the entry to downtown, take bus #32 from the station as shown in map. I'd rather stay in a hotel downtown. Too much walking. No idea if there's construction going on right now. You can also take any bus to Bismarckplatz and walk from there to your hotel.

logos999

There's also an S-Bahn station downtown (Altstadt). For a tourist, this is the best area to stay. Very close to the attractions, the Königsstuhl and castle.

violetduck

I am not sure if it was exactly 9 seats, but about that size. Yes, they took our luggage. The bus was perfect for our needs.

PalenQ

Go to bahn.de and you can put in any address and be told explicitly what tram or bus to take to any address in any city from any train station.

Mainhattengirl

Do not buy a Bahn Card. This is more for residents and it renews itself automatically each year, unless you cancel it by writing 3 months ahead of time. Unless you were going to be doing tons of traveling here in Germany, it wouldn't pay for itself anyway.

I think I would take the LH bus instead of the train. With your luggage, etc. it is going to be easier for you.

ruthruthruth

Thanks, everyone. I'm not actually staying at the Crown Plaza, but I've tentatively decided on the Hotel Leonardo, a little west of Bismarckplatz but still reasonably close to the Schloss and the rest of the Altstadt. I don't mind walking over to Bismarckplatz if necessary, although I was asking about the buses because it looked like several buses ran down Bergheimer to there, making it easier on my husband if he didn't want to walk over there. I chose the Leonardo partly because they have air conditioning and other hotels further east don't have it listed, so I assume they don't. I could get along without, but my husband gets pretty hot, I'm afraid, so in late August I was thinking that would be something to think about. Am I right about that, or by late August will it be pretty mild? (I know the term "mild" is relative - but....) Some of the hotels further east have reviews which state that it was hot, so the folks left the windows open, but there was lots of street noise. We could probably sleep through that, but not if it's still hot and/or humid. I know I sound like a picky American, but this will be our first night in Europe, and I'd like to get a good night's sleep after that long "try to sleep" flight!

PalenQ, thank you for reminding me about finding how to get to locations using the bahn.de site. I believe you told me about that in a previous post for a different city, and I have been using it ever since. It's amazing. I just wasn't sure if it would be up to date if there's construction going on in downtown Heidelberg. But I'll go there now...

Mainhattengirl, I didn't know you had to cancel the Bahn Card for next year! I actually compared the costs of our trips, and even with the limited number, it DID come out ahead - a bit - for the 25 euro card! But if I take the Lufthansa bus to Heidelberg, and/or can't use the card to go from Prague to Paris, things might be different.