Trip to Germany - July 2023
General Notes
A week away in Germany with former colleagues from various Alstom sites, with friends and family, excellently organised by Carsten; using the "Deutschland-ticket", excellent value at €49 for one month on regional and local trains, buses and trams. A supplement, €8 per day or €25 for a week, is needed for the two steam lines on Rügen and at Bad Doberan.
Operating Company Abbreviations
- DB - Deutsche Bahn - the national railway company in Germany.
- MBB - Mecklenburgische Bäderbahn - steam-powered 900 mm gauge railway running between Bad Doberan, Heiligendamm and Kühlungsborn West.
- NEB - Niederbarnimer Eisenbahn - operating regional train services in Berlin and Brandenburg.
- ODEG - Ostdeutsche Eisenbahn - operating regional train services in eastern Germany.
- PRESS - Pressnitztalbahn - operating regional train services between Bergen and Lauterbach Mole on the island of Rügen.
- RB - Rügensche Bäderbahn - steam-powered 750 mm gauge railway that runs from Putbus via Binz and Sellin to Göhren on the island of Rügen.
- SRS - Schöneicher-Rüdersdorfer Straßenbahn - metre gauge tramway in Schöneiche bei Berlin.
- WS - Woltersdorfer Straßenbahn - standard gauge tramway near Berlin.
Track gauge
Standard gauge (1435 mm) unless otherwise stated.
| Place | Arrive | Depart | Train | Traction details & notes |
Sunday 16th July 2023
| Timperley | 15:27 | Manchester tram 3029 | ||
| Trafford Bar | 15:40 | 15:49 | Manchester tram 3020 | |
| Manchester Airport | 16:31 | |||
| Manchester T1 (MAN) | 18:45 | EZY2201 | Easyjet EZY2201 G-EZFV A319-111; gate 2; push-back 19:02, take-off 19:21 from runway 23R | |
| Berlin (BER) | 21:40 | landed 21:52 on runway 25L, on stand 22:01 | ||
| Flughafen BER Terminal 1-2 | 22:44 | 'RE8' 62039 | ODEG DD EMU (to Wittenberge) | |
| Berlin Hbf | 23:17 | 23:20 | 'S9' | DB EMU 480??? |
| Savignyplatz | 23:32 | |||
| Overnight: Hotel Peters, Kantstraße 146, 10623 Berlin (1st of 2 nights). Today's photos. | ||||
| Notes: Home to Berlin via tram to Manchester Airport, Easyjet flight to Berlin Brandenburg, then by train to Savignyplatz. |
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Monday 17th July 2023
| Savignyplatz | 09:26 | 'S3' | DB EMU 480??? | |
| Friedrichshagen | 10:10 | 10:24 | '88' | SRS tram 53 |
| Alt-Rüdersdorf | 10:52 | 11:03 | '88' | SRS tram 53 |
| Rahnsdorfer Straße | 11:23 | 11:43 | '88' | SRS tram 52 |
| Friedrichshagen | 11:56 | 12:10 | 'S3' | DB EMU 480??? |
| Rahnsdorf | 12:15 | 12:30 | '87' | WS tram 31 |
| Woltersdorf Schleuse | 12:46 | walk to | ||
| Thälmannplatz | 13:35 | '87' | WS tram 31 | |
| Rahnsdorf | 13:46 | 13:50 | 'S3' | DB EMU 480??? |
| Alexanderplatz | 14:22 | 14:28 | 'U5' | |
| Hauptbahnhof | 14:52 | 15:08 | 'S5' | DB EMU 481??? |
| Savignyplatz | 15:16 | 15:52 | 'S7' | DB EMU 482??? |
| Tiergarten | 15:56 | walk to Café am Neuen See and back | ||
| Tiergarten | 20:10 | 'S5' | DB EMU 481??? | |
| Savignyplatz | 20:13 | |||
| Overnight: Hotel Peters, Kantstraße 146, 10623 Berlin (2nd of 2 nights). Today's photos. | ||||
| Notes: A free day where we all did our "own things", prior to meeting up in the Tiergarten for some beers and food. |
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Tuesday 18th July 2023
| Savignyplatz | 07:36 | 'S9' | DB EMU 482??? | |
| Berlin Hbf | 07:45 | 08:33 | 'RE3' 3306 | DB EL 147016 |
| Eberswalde | 09:07 | 09:21 | 'RB60' 61315 | NEB DMU 650537 |
| Niederfinow | 09:33 | |||
| walk to Niederfinow ship lifts; boat trip up and down the old lift, and technical visit to the old lift (see my YouTube video) | ||||
| Schiffshebewerk | 16:25 | '916' | bus | |
| Eberswalde Busbahnhof | 17:02 | |||
| Eberswalde | 17:09 | 'RE3' 3314 | DB EL 112165 | |
| Pasewalk | 18:16 | walk to Pasewalk preserved locomotive roundhouse | ||
| Overnight: Sleeper coaches at Pasewalk preserved locomotive roundhouse (1 night). Today's photos. | ||||
| Notes: A visit to the Niederfinow ship lifts, including a boat trip through then a technical visit to the older of the two ship lifts; then by bus and train to Pasewalk where we overnighted in static sleeping cars at the preserved locomotive roundhouse. |
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Wednesday 19th July 2023
| Pasewalk | 10:18 | 'RE3' 3306 | DB EL 147010 | |
| Stralsund Hbf | 11:45 | 11:59 | 'RE9' 63915 | ODEG EMU 4746304 |
| Rambin (Rügen) | 12:12 | walk to the Insel Brauerei for drinks and lunch | ||
| Rambin (Rügen) | 14:12 | 'RE9' 63919 | ODEG EMU 4746307 | |
| Bergen auf Rügen | 14:28 | 14:40 | PRE 74876 | PRESS DR 650032 |
| Lauterbach Mole | 14:54 | 15:22 | P109 | RB DL 251901 tnt SL 99783 (750 mm gauge) |
| * Putbus | detach DL, SL 99783 on front (750 mm gauge) | |||
| Göhren | 17:23 | Walk to hotel. Evening Meal: Vju Hotel, Göhren. | ||
| Overnight: Koopmanns Hotel, Göhren (1st of 2 nights). Today's photos. | ||||
| Notes: Breakfast in the roundhouse, then by train to the Insel Brauerei at Rambin for lunch; then by train via Bergen, Lauterbach Mole and Putbus to Göhren. |
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Thursday 20th July 2023
| Göhren | 08:49 | P222 | RB SL 99783 (750 mm gauge) | |
| Binz LB | 09:33 | walk to | ||
| Ostseebad Binz | 11:02 | 'RE9' 69914 | ODEG EMU 4746304 | |
| Lietzow | 11:19 | 11:39 | 'RE9' 63951 | ODEG EMU 3462120 |
| Sassnitz | 11:54 | 13:02 | 'RE9' | ODEG EMU 4746307 |
| Bergen (Rügen) | 13:25 | 13:40 | PRESS DR 650032 | |
| Putbus | 13:49 | 14:08 | RB SL 994011 (750 mm gauge) | |
| Jagdschloss | 14:47 | walk to Jagdschloss and back | ||
| Jagdschloss | 16:02 | RB SL 99783 (750mm gauge) | ||
| Göhren | 16:27 | 16:27 | '20' | bus |
| Heimatsmuseum | 16:29 | short walk to/from hotel | ||
| Heimatsmuseum | 17:26 | '20' | bus | |
| Sellin Ost | 17:43 | 17:44 | '25' | bus |
| Sellin Südstrand | 17:47 | walk to Seebrücke Sellin for evening meal; then walk to | ||
| Sellin Ost | 22:07 | P114 | RB SL 991784 (750 mm gauge) | |
| Binz LB | 22:33 | 22:44 | P115 | RB SL 991784 (750 mm gauge) |
| Göhren | 23:27 | |||
| Overnight: Koopmanns Hotel, Göhren (2nd of 2 nights). Today's photos. | ||||
| Notes: A free day until we headed for the group meal. Two of us chose to do a circular train ride from Göhren via Binz to Sassnitz, then back via Bergen and Putbus to Göhren. Getting the first morning service to Linz LB we videoed the return departure for Göhren (see my Youtube video), with plenty of time left to walk across Linz to the main line station which is known as "Ostseebad Linz". Then we caught local trains via Lietzow to Sassnitz where we had time to have a look around the Sassnitz Hafen harbour area: I arrived here in the 1990s on a train ferry working from Sweden, when the train was pulled off the ship then hauled up the semicircular steep connecting line up to the main station. Continuing by local train via Bergen (Rügen) to Putbus we then caught a steam working back to Göhren, breaking our journey to walk up to the Jagdschloss and back on the way. In the evening we had a group meal at the Seebrücke (pier) at Sellin, followed by a run in the open coach in the dark from Sellin Ost to Binz and then back to Göhren. |
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Friday 21st July 2023
| Göhren | 11:53 | P104 | RB SL 994401 (750 mm gauge) | |
| Putbus | 13:06 | depot visit | ||
| Putbus | 15:11 | PRE 74877 | PRESS DR 650032 | |
| Bergen auf Rügen | 15:20 | 15:26 | 'RE9' 63922 | ODEG EMU 4746307 |
| Rostock Hbf | 16:55 | 17:06 | 'RB11' 13130 | DB DMU 642050 |
| Bad Doberan | 17:27 | 17:45 | MBB 14632 | MBB SL 992324 (900 mm gauge) |
| Bad Doberan Stadtmitte | 17:48 | Evening Meal at Klosterküche | ||
| Overnight: Prinzenpalais Hotel, Bad Doberan (1 night). Today's photos. | ||||
| Notes: A late start, then by train to Putbus for a specially arranged visit to the new and old depots; then by train via Bergen and Rostock to Bad Doberan. |
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Saturday 22nd July 2023
| Bad Doberan Stadtmitte | 09:39 | MBB 14614 | MBB SL 992323 (900 mm gauge) dep 14 late | |
| Kühlungsborn West | 10:21 | 11:35 | MBB 14619 | MBB SL 992324 (900 mm gauge) |
| Bad Doberan Stadtmitte | 12:14 | collect bags from hotel | ||
| Bad Doberan Stadtmitte | 13:14 | MBB 14621 | MBB SL 992323 (900 mm gauge) | |
| Bad Doberan | 13:18 | 13:32 | 'RB11' 13122 | DB DR 642183 |
| Wismar | 14:15 | 14:24 | 'RB17' 13163 | DB EMU 442337 |
| Bad Kleinen | 14:38 | 15:00 | 'RE4' 33592 | DB DMU 2x648 |
| Lübeck Hbf | 15:56 | 16:10 | 'RE8' 11425 | DB EMU DD |
| Hamburg Hbf | 16:53 | |||
| Hauptbahnhof Süd | 17:02 | 'U1' | ||
| Wandsbek Markt | 17:13 | 17:21 | '213' | bus |
| Am Husarendenkmal | 17:24 | walk to and from hotel | ||
| Am Husarendenkmal | 17:59 | '23' | bus | |
| Wandsbek Markt | 18:02 | 18:11 | 'U1' | |
| Hauptbahnhof Süd | 18:20 | |||
| Hauptbahnhof/ZOB | 18:28 | '2' | bus | |
| Am Sandtorkai | 18:37 | visit to Miniatur WunderLand photos | ||
| Am Sandtorkai | 00:56 | '2' | bus | |
| Hauptbahnhof/ZOB | 01:04 | |||
| Hauptbahnhof Süd | 01:07 | 'U1' | ||
| Wandsbek Markt | 01:17 | 01:30 | '23' | bus |
| Am Husarendenkmal | 01:34 | |||
| Overnight: Hotel Marienthal, Am Husarendenkmal 33, 22043 Hamburg (1 night). Today's photos (excluding Miniatur WunderLand). | ||||
| Notes: By train to Kühlungsborn West, with time for a visit to the museum there and viewing the next train departure (see my YouTube video); then back to Bad Doberan to collect our bags from the hotel; then by train via Wismar, Bad Kleinen and Lübeck to Hamburg. Some of the group were in a hotel near Hamburg Hbf, I was in a hotel in Wandsbek, which needed a U-Bahn and a bus ride to get to. After checking in to the hotel we returned to Hamburg Hbf then continued into the Hamburg docklands where we spent a very enjoyable 6 hours in Miniatur Wunderland (see separate photo gallery and my YouTube video) - then back to the hotel early on the Sunday morning. |
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Sunday 23rd July 2023
| Am Husarendenkmal | 09:45 | '23' | bus | |
| Wandsbek Markt | 09:50 | 09:56 | 'U1' | |
| Hauptbahnhof Süd | 10:06 | 10:23 | 'U3' | |
| Landungsbrücken | 10:31 | |||
| Landungsbrücken Brücke 3 | 10:40 | ferry '62' | ferry "Wilhelmsburg" | |
| Neumühlen/Övelgönne | 10:57 | visit to Övelgönne “museum harbour” | ||
| Neumühlen/Övelgönne | 14:03 | ferry '62' | ferry "Oortkaten" | |
| Landungsbrücken Brücke 1 | 14:22 | walk through Elbtunnel | ||
| Steinwerder (Alter Elbtunnel) | 14:44 | '256' | bus | |
| Hafenmuseum | 14:52 | guided tour of sailing ship "Peking" | ||
| Hafenmuseum | 16:31 | '856' | bus | |
| Elbbrücken | 16:38 | 16:41 | 'U4' | |
| Jungfernstieg | 16:48 | 16:50 | 'U1' | |
| Ohlsdorf | 17:07 | 17:15 | 'S1' | DB EMU 5056 |
| Hamburg Airport | 17:19 | |||
| Hamburg (HAM) | 18:40 | KL1784 | KLM Embraer E195-E2 PH-NHD; gate A18; push-back 19:07, take-off 19:15 from runway 23 | |
| Schiphol (AMS) | 19:50 | landed 19:57 on runway 18C, on stand 20:05 | ||
| Schiphol (AMS) | 21:15 | KL1083 | KLM B737-8K2 PH-BXL; gate D03; push-back 21:37, take-off 21:45 from runway 24 | |
| Manchester (MAN) | 21:35 | 22:25 | landed 21:39 on runway 05L, on stand 21:51 - taxi | |
| Timperley | 22:40 | Today's photos. | ||
| Notes: A "ship" day. Firstly a ferry trip to visit the harbour museum at Övelgönne, looking at a couple of steam powered ships; then another ferry back to walk through the Elbtunnel, a foot tunnel under the river Elbe, to connect into a bus to the Hafenmuseum where we were shown around the steel-hulled four-masted bark "Peking". Then I had to get home, via bus, two U-Bahn rains and S-Bahn train to Hamburg Airport, flying via Amsterdam to Manchester with KLM. |
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