Cologne City Guide

Map

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From train stations to the conference venue

• From Köln Hauptbahnhof (Köln Hbf, Cologne Central) train station): Take Tram (Stadtbahn) 18 in the direction of Bonn at the underground platform. Get off at “Köln Eifelwall/Stadtarchiv” or “Weißhausstrasse”.
  Or, take local trains (RB24, RB26, RB48) or regional express (RE05, RE22) in the direction of Bonn, Koblenz, or Eifel area (e.g., Euskirchen, Kall, Gerolstein), and get off at “Köln Süd“ (Cologne South) train station.
• From Köln Messe/Deutz (Cologne Trade Fair/Deutz) train station: Take Tram (Stadtbahn) 9 in the direction of Sülz at the underground platform. Get off at “Universität”.
• From Köln Süd (Cologne South) train station (train line RB24, RB26, RB48, RE05, RE22): Walk (approx. 1 km).
• Link to German Railway website (bahn.de)

Nearby Airports

• Cologne-Bonn Airport (CGN): About 15 min to Cologne Central station by local trains (S-Bahn).
• Düsseldorf Airport (DUS): About 40 min to Cologne Central station by regional express trains (RE).
• Frankfurt Airport (FRA): About 1 hour to Cologne Central station by high speed trains (ICE).
  About 2.5-3 hours, if you want to travel via Koblenz along the scenic train line by the Rhine River valley.
• Link to German Railway website (bahn.de)

Networking Session

Day 2 Venue: Brauhaus FRÜH am Dom

From the conference venue to the Brauhaus
1. Take Tram 18 –> Get off at Köln Dom/Hbf (U) –> Walk (350 m)
2. Take Tram 9 –> Get off at Köln Heumarkt –> Walk (750 m)
3. Walk all the way (3.2 km)

Address: Am Hof 12-18, 50667 Köln
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Day 4 Venue: Rhine River Boat Cruise

We will take charter busses to go to the boat. Bus departure time = 18:30
Location of the charter bus step:
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If you plan to come
Boarding bridge: Along the Rhine River near Heumarkt (Kölner Landebrücke Nr. 2)
Boarding time: 19:30 (Boat will depart at 20:00 sharp. Don’t be late!)
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Networking Session Part 2 in a Club

22:00 – 
Those who still have energy after boat cruise may enjoy going to a club.
Club Sonderbar
2-min walk from the boarding bridge.
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Conference Floor Map

– Talks are held in Hall A1.
– Poster boards are distributed on the ground and first floors.
– Cloak is open throughout the conference (at the back side of the venue). Only for bags and suitcases.
– Coat racks are distributed at various locations of the venue. Please hang your jacket by yourself and remember the location.

Public Transport in Germany

Types of transport

There are following types of public transport in Germany:
– ICE (Inter City Express): Very fast express train for long-distance (up to 250-320 km/h)
– IC (Inter City): Fast express train for long-distance (usually up to 200 km/h)
## For these, you must purchase specific tickets from the starting station to the destination station.

– RE (Regional Express): Faster local train that skips some stations.
– RB (Regional Bahn): Slower local train that stops at most of the stations.
## For these, you must purchase either
– Specific tickets from the starting station to the destination station. Or
– Regional transport tickets (see below)

– S-Bahn: Slowest local train that stops at every station.
– U-Bahn: Underground train, which runs inside and around cities.
– Stadtbahn: Tram which runs inside and around cities.
– Bus: Bus
## For these, you must purchase regional transport tickets.

Specific ticket purchase for a long-distance journey (ICE, IC)

In Germany, there is no ticket barrier in train stations or at the entrance of trams and busses. For ICE and IE, conductor will come and examine your ticket. If you do not have a valid ticket, you must buy a ticket with a very elevated price. For local trains, trams and busses, ticket inspector will occasionally come to control your ticket. If you do not have a valid ticket, you must pay a fine of 60 Euro.

For long distance trains, you can purchase tickets in three ways.

– Ticket bending machine at train stations (Orange-red machine)
You select destination, select the train you want to ride, and pay with your credit card or with cash. You will receive a printed paper ticket.

– Bahn DE web site (https://int.bahn.de/en/)
Official web site of the German Railway. You can search for connections. When you select a train connection, it will show you the list of available ticket types. You then select the ticket and pay with your credit card. You will receive a PDF file with a QR code (A4 size). Print it out and show it to the ticket controller during your journey.

– DB Navigator Smart Phone App
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=de.hafas.android.db&hl=de
iPhone: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/db-navigator/id343555245
You will absolutely need this app. Do not forget to install this app when you come to Germany. Same function as the Bahn DE web site. It can show connections not only for trains but also for trams and busses. You can also search nearby train stations and tram/bus stops using the name of the facility, address, your current GPS location, etc.

Make sure to register an account with your email address and setup your credit card. Then, you can purchase tickets on the go. The app will display a QR code on your screen. Present it to the ticket controller.

Ticket types for a long-distance journey

– Super Sparpreis: Cheapest option. You must specify a specific train to board. The ticket is not valid for any other train. (You will have to buy a new ticket, when you miss the train you booked.) Not refundable and not changeable to other trains, but cheap.
– Sparpreis: Second-cheapest option. Like Super Sparpreis, the ticket is valid only for the specified train. Not changeable to other trains, either. But unlike Super Sparpreis, you can cancel the ticket until one day before your journey and get refund with certain fee.
– Flexpreis: More expensive, but you can take any train on that day. Thus, much more flexible.

– With or without City-Ticket: Some of the ticket offers may include “City-Ticket”. It is the ticket for the local transport near the destination station. If your ticket displays “City-Ticket”, you do not have to pay for S-bahn, U-Bahn, tram, bus etc.

Be careful: Train delay

Contrary to the international impression, the German Railway (Deutsche Bahn, DB) is as punctual as a broken clock. (It had been punctual as a clock until 1990s…) Sometimes (and only sometimes) trains come and arrive on time. More often than not, they get delayed by 10 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour, or even a couple of hours. Trains are also cancelled occasionally.

Thus, when you plan your journey, please make your plan so that it would not cause serious problems even if your train might be cancelled or delayed severely.

This is most critical, when you go to an international airport like Frankfurt. I would advice to make your plan to arrive at the airport four hours before the departure time. (Thus, you can still be in the airport two hours before departure, even if you arrive two hours later than your original plan.) Indeed, I once experienced the following case: My ICE train got cancelled. The following ICE train one-hour later was also cancelled. The subsequent ICE train 30-minutes later managed to come, but it arrived 30-minutes late. In total two hours of delay. During my ten years of life in Cologne, I arrived at Frankfurt Airport only two times on time…

NOTE: If the train you booked with your specific Super Sparpreis/Sparpreis ticket got cancelled, or, if you miss the connecting train you booked because of the delay of the train to reach there, you might be able to take another train without buying a new ticket. Please show the evidence of train cancellation or delay to the conductor and try to negotiate.

Ticket purchase for regional transport (RE, RB, S-Bahn, U-Bahn, tram, bus)

1. Conventional but more expensive
Purchase the ticket at the orange-red bending machine with your credit card or cash. (Cash payment is sometimes not available.) For the tram and bus, you can find the bending machine inside the tram/bus. You will receive a printed paper ticket.

The ticket is valid regardless of your pathway within the time limit. You do not have to buy a new ticket when you change the train/tram/bus.

Price inside the City of Cologne:
Einzelticket Kurzstrecke (single ticket, short distance): 2.90 Euro, up to 4 stops, valid for 20 minutes
Einzelticket Preisstufe 1b (single ticket, price level 1b): 4.00 Euro, inside the city limit, valid for 90 minutes
24-StundenTicket (24-hour ticket): 9.60 Euro, inside the city limit, unlimited number of rides, valid for 24 hours after purchase

2. Online, same price as above
You can purchase tickets also using the DB Navigator App. You will specify the starting and destination points (using the name of the tram/bus stops or popular facility names), select a convenient connection, and tap the “Buy ticket” and “Go to offers” button. Select the ticket type you want (single ticket or 24h ticket) and purchase with your credit card. The app will display a QR code on your screen. The ticket gets effective right after the time of your purchase. Thus, your ticket might become invalid, if you tap the purchase button too early before you start your journey. The ticket is valid regardless of your pathway within the time limit. It does not matter, if you actualy go to a completely different destination, as long as it is inside the same city.

3. New cheaper price, only inside the State of Nordrhein Westfalen
eezy.nrw is a new price system for the regional transport inside the State of Nordrhein Westfalen (NRW). You must use specific smartphone apps. When you ride the train/tram/bus, you will tap or swipe the “Start journey” button. When you finish your jouney, you will tap or swipe the “End journey” button. The App will calculate the distance between the start and end points using GPS. The price is dependent on the straight-line distance between the two points, regardless of the pathway and connection you take.

eezy.nrw is usually significantly cheaper than the conventional price. If you come from the Cologne central station to the stop near the conference venue, it will cost 2.47 Euro with eezy.new, instead of 4.00 Euro with the conventional ticket.

Apps for using eezy.nrw
Many apps offer access to the eezy.nrw system, but the following two would be easiest to use. Install the app, setup your account with your email address, and setup payment with your credit card or PayPal. You must also allow the app to access your location data.

myGO, also called go.Rheinland
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.goRheinland.tickets&hl=en-US
iPhone: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/go-rheinland/id6739698722
This app is completely optimized for English-language use. (Other apps often go to German pages.)
You can not only use eezy.nrw but also purchase the Deutschland-Ticket (see below) with this App.

VRS eezy.nrw
Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=koeln.kvb.ticket.vrseezy&hl=en-US
iPhone: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/vrs-eezy-nrw/id1597071609
This app is also relatively optimized for English-language use. If offers some additional nice features like fare calculator without actual journey. It does not offer link to the Deutschland-Ticket, however.

Deutschland-Ticket, if you want to visit many locations in Germany with only 63 Euro

Deutschland-Ticket is a ticket that was introduced after the COVID pandemic in order to promote train journey. It is a monthly ticket throughout Germany with only 63 Euro per month. (Cf. A single return journey from Cologne to nearby Aachen already costs 28 Euro with the regular price.) You cannot use ICE and IC, but as long as you travel using regional trains, you can go anywhere without additional cost.

You can purchase Deutschland-Ticket via the above-mentioned myGO / go.Rheinland app.

Be careful: Deutschland-Ticket is a subscription system like Amazon Prime. Once you register, you will pay 63 Euro every month, even if you are far away from Germany. But there is a trick to purchase Deutschland-Ticket only for one month.

1. Subscribe Deutschland-Ticket before the 10th day of the month e.g., 10th Sept.
Then, you will get a valid Deutschland-Ticket until the end of September.

2. Cancel subscription immediately afterwards, before the 10th day of the month e.g., 10th Sept.
Then, you do not have to pay further for October, November, etc.
If you do not cancel before 10th, you already get the ticket for the next month and you must pay for it.

Accommodation

Cologne is a touristic city with numerous hotels and hostels. Please book your hotel/hostel using your favorite booking sites.