Getting there & Getting around

Getting there

The tiny Maastricht Aachen Airport (www.maa.nl), about 40km (25mi) northwest of Aachen, is served once daily by EasyJet from Berlin. Flights are met by an airport shuttle that goes right to Aachen's centre.

Regional trains (www.dieeuregiobahn.de) to Cologne (1hr) run several times hourly, with some proceeding to Dortmund and other Ruhrgebiet (Ruhr Valley) cities. High-speed trains (www.bahn.de) continue to destinations like Paris, but trips to most cities south of Aachen require a change in Cologne. There are direct connections to Cologne, Düsseldorf, Dortmund, Siegen, Frankfurt/Main and Hamm. An hourly service to Heerlen connects Aachen with the Dutch railway system.

Aachen is easily reached via the A4 (east-west) from Cologne and the A44 (north-south) from Düsseldorf. The B57, B258 and B264 also meet here.

Getting around

Aachen's centre is contained within two ring roads and is best explored on foot. The inner ring road encloses the Altstadt (Old Town) and is called Grabenring. The outer ring is known as Alleenring. The central train station (Hauptbahnhof) is just south of this outer ring, on Römerstrasse. To get to the Altstadt and the tourist office, head north from the Hauptbahnhof (10-15min).

The main bus station, called Bushof, is in the town centre at the corner of Kurhausstrasse and Peterstrasse. One ticket will let you travel on buses within the area bounded by Alleenring. All of Aachen and the adjoining Dutch communities of Vaals and Kelmis can be covered with a Zone 1 ticket. Go online (www.aseag.de/fahrplan2.php) for a journey planner in four languages.

For a taxi, call 0241 34 441.