Spending 3 or 4 weeks tooling around Germany/Austria/Switzerland in late December/early January and I would like to plan according to departure for England at the end of the road. What does experience tell you about the cheapest way to move from anywhere in Germany (must be FROM Germany)to England? Best cities to depart from? Cheapest (or most adventurous/memorable) modes of travel between countries? etc. Thanks. Other information about Christmas markets, etc. would also be welcome. Cheers!

Cheapest is definitely by flying a low-cost airline. For example, on Jan 8, if you fly Ryanair from Hahn (about an hour west of Frankfurt) to London Stansted, it's 2.79€ + tax one-way, for a total of 17.28€.

Sorry, that rate was for Jan 7. On Jan 8, all flights are now 0.01€. With tax is 14.5€.

But you'll have to pay extra for checked bags and using a credit card to pay for your flights.

And ground transportation to/from airports are extra, of course.

The bus from FRA to Hahn takes 1 hr 45 min and costs €12. The Stansted express to Liverpool St. Station takes 45 min and costs about €20 (£14,50).

Also note that right now German Rail has a €49 special fare from Köln to London, but that fare is only for sure until Dec 12. However, I think they have been running it for some years, so it might be continued.

Just have a look at the "flights from Germany" section of www.whichbudget.com

It's pointless saying "fly from Hahn" if it means travelling all the way across Germany to do so - or missing out something you want to see.

Ditto AR

I was using the Jan 7/8 HNH-STN flights <b>as an example</b>. I wrote &quot;For example&quot; in that reply of mine.

The OP asks about &quot;anywhere&quot; in Germany to &quot;England&quot;.

So, I'm telling him he can indeed go from somewhere in Germany to somewhere in England for 14.50&euro; with an example.

Give me a break.

OP did ask for costing from Germany to England - not FRA to London. I think that SP (second poster) answered question well. He was not saying you shoudl fly from Hahn

But you didn't mention any other possibilities, therefore based on your posting the only place to fly from was Hahn

Consider Eurostar train from Brussels - from Cologne to London via Brussels can be as quick as about 5 hours or less - and Eurostar tickets come with an ABS fare, meaning All Belgian Stations so you could go from the German-Belgian border station free and just pay for the Cologne to Belgian border - neglible.

...and one other suggestion....return tickets on Eurostar are very very expensive....but you can halve the price by purchasing a same day return and throwing away the return...

Anywhere from Germany is rather vague.
Ryanair flies from Hamburg (in fact L&uuml;beck) to London. Germanwings flies out of a lot of cities in Germany.

There's also the bus. Booking via www.touring.de

I check some <b>sample</b> routings. Cologne to London is 64EUR one-way. Frankfurt to London is 77EUR. But if you book ahead, there are some discounts. <b>For example</b>, it's 54EUR Frankfurt-London on Septmber 7. Can't book for Jan, 08 yet.

I personally enjoy the Eurostar experience - train up to nearly 190 mph, then 'Chunnel' experience and then the bucolic Kent countryside until the train creeps into London on elevated tracks, allowing you to see all the main landmarks.

and i hate flying anyway but i hate more crowded airports like Heathrow and then you have to get in from the airport, more time and money, etc.

Folks come to Europe to see Europe and not airports i'd hope.

www.eurostar.com for prices in euros from Brussels - in US i always advise calling BETS (800-441-2387) for their expertise and lack of RailEurope mailing fees for most Eurostar orders (under $399 - over RE has free mailing too)

The train is the most pleasant option, the plane probably the fastest and the bus (Eurolines) the slowest, most unpleasant experience you could ever wish for. Sadly the Cuxhaven - Harwich ferry doesn't run anymore.

And rkkwan...

How long does the bus take?

Hm, the bus is surprisingly fast. For example, from Frankfurt Hbf, it departs 3:30pm and arrives 6am next morning.

Save a night of hotel too!