Wikimedia Conference 2010/Practical information

General Information

• wikipedia:Berlin
• wikitravel:Berlin
• Map of the venue and surroundings, with useful locations marked: OpenStreetMap Google Map

Emergency numbers

Emergency numbers work free of charge from any land line or cell phone.

• Police: 110
• Ambulance / Fire: 112
• Blocking stolen Credit Cards or Bank Cards: 116116

Electricity, Internet, etc

• 230V at 50 Hz. People from the US, UK, Australia, etc: bring an adapter!
• "Schuko" plugs type F (CEE 7/4), see wikipedia:Schuko
• Cell phone coverage is good pretty much everywhere in Berlin, including subway tunnels.
• Free Wifi is common in Cafes, you may have to ask for a code though.

Getting around

Public Transport

Berlin has excellent public transport. It's backbone consists of the Berlin S-Bahn and Berlin U-Bahn systems, aided by buses and street cars.

• overview
  • You can get travel plans online at bvg.de
  • The S-Bahn system is layed out in a circle with a major east-west axis and minor north-south connections in addition to the circle lines.
• night service
  • At night, there is Night-Bus and Metro-Bus service.
  • However, major S-Bahn and U-Bahn lines run non-stop from Friday evening until Monday.
• to the venue
  • The venue is close to the S-Bahn und U-Bahn stations Warschauer Straße, serviced by U1 and all east/west S-Bahn lines.
  • The S-Bahn station Ostkreuz, 2km east of the venue, is serviced by all east/west S-Bahn lines as well as the circle lines.
• fees
  • a "short range" ticket for 1.30 EUR covers 3 stations by U-Bahn or S-Bahn, or 6 bus stops.
  • a regular ticket "AB" for 2.10 EUR gets you through all of Berlin proper. It's valid for 2 hours, with unlimited transfers and interruptions. However, you need a new ticket if you want to reverse your direction.
  • tickets can be bought at ticket machines at the stations. Tickets need to be redeemed (punched) in order to activate.
  • You can buy tickets from Bus drivers and inside street cars, but not inside U-Bahn or S-Bahn trains.
  • You will receive public transport tickets along with your name tag for the Chapters' conference!
• taxi calculator

By Car: Environmental Zone in Berlin

On 1st January 2008 the city of Berlin established an Environmental Zone. You need to have a special sticker (costs: 5-6€) to be able to drive in the inner-city (conference, accommodation, etc is here!), which marks your car to be classified in a certain exhaust emission standard. Please keep all documents providing any information on your car with you. Get a sticker before you enter the inner-circle.

• Information and addresses needed to get a sticker de/ en/ fr/ it/ tr/ ru/ po

Going out

• Basic English is understood nearly everywhere.
• Tipping waiters and taxi drivers is customary. 5 to 10% is the usual amount.
• ...

Weather

• Spring in Berlin tends to be wet and windy, but last year we got lucky. Let's hope for the best!
• Forecast: BBC and Weather Channel.

Money

• Bring cash, Germany is not credit-card-friendly at all.
• ATMs are plenty, though.

Catholic Church Service

• Service (in German) can be attended on 18th April, 8:45 a.m. at St. Piuskirche, Palisadenstraße 72, D-10243 Berlin [1]