What are the big travel changes in Germany this autumn?

BORDERS

EES introduction

This is the biggest change for travellers to and from Germany and other EU countries to come in several years. After numerous delays and postponements, the European Union’s new Entry/Exit System (widely known as EES) will come into effect on Sunday, November 10th, the European Commission has said.

From that date, all tourists entering or exiting the EU or Schengen zone (with the exception of exempt groups) will have to complete a pre-registration form giving details such as a name and date of birth and also provide biometric data – specifically fingerprints and a facial scan.

These will be used for two things: tighter security checks on passports and automatic counting of the 90-days of visa-free travel that some non-EU citizens are allowed within the EU/Schengen zone.

Once EES is up and running and the main problems have (ideally) been ironed out, the EU plans to unroll the second change –  ETIAS.

READ ALSO:  How to prepare for travel under Europe's new EES and ETIAS rules

PLANES

Liquids limits return to EU airports

The European Commission (EC) recently announced that it was temporarily reintroducing limits to liquids carried in hand luggage at airports around Europe. The move is due to concerns about the reliability of CT scanners as part of new systems. 

In Germany some airports - such as Frankfurt - had been phasing out the liquid limits. 

A notice on Frankfurt airport's site says: "Starting September 1st, 2024 an EU-wide restriction on taking liquids in carry-on luggage will be applied again for all passenger security checkpoints (including CT scanners)."

The airport goes on to say that "only liquids in containers no larger than 100 millilitres may be taken, and these must be placed inside a re-closable bag with a maximum capacity of 0.1 litre".

READ ALSO: What return of liquid limits at airports means for travel in Germany

Possible strikes

A four-day strike by cabin crews and pilots at Lufthansa subsidiary Discover Airlines took place in the last week of August.

And there may be more strikes called, but these are usually announced at the last minute. 

It's worth keeping in mind that the strike resulted in some flight cancellations, but not widespread disruption. 

The unions Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) and the Independent Flight Attendants' Organisation (UFO) are calling on pilots and cabin crew to strike over a collective bargaining row.

READ ALSO: Pilots and cabin crew to stage four-day strike at German airline Discover

New flight routes

Among the new flight routes already running this year are more connections to North America.

READ ALSO: The new direct flights to and from Germany in 2024

Condor is adding American and Canadian routes this autumn - from September 6th, the airline will offer direct flights to San Antonio, Texas three times a week. Those flying to western Canada will be able to hop on Condor two times a week with a direct service from Frankfurt to Calgary. 

Lufthansa also increased the number of flights they operate on some already existing routes from the summer.

The current Frankfurt to Austin service has increased from three times a week to four, while San Diego to Munich has become a daily service, rather than five times a week.

Eurowings is also increasing its current service from Tampa to Frankfurt to a daily service.

READ ALSO: The German airport with the cheapest long-haul flights

TRAINS AND LOCAL TRANSPORT

Reservation requirement for international trains ends

If you wanted to travel abroad by train in the summer months in Germany, you needed a reservation on almost all long-distance train connections. But from September 1st, this is no longer needed. 

Deutsche Bahn had introduced the requirement due to the expected high demand amid the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament in June and July.

However, the reservation requirement between Munich and Zurich will remain in force up to and including October 5th.

Big construction projects 

Deutsche Bahn has launched a massive overhaul to improve the ailing network by 2030 - but it does mean that there are a lot of high profile construction projects ongoing. Among the biggest this year is the refurbishment of the Riedbahn between Frankfurt and Mannheim. It closed for renovation in July and is scheduled to reopen fully on December 14th.

Other routes being hit with disruption because of upgrades to the lines this autumn are:

• Erfurt – Eisenach, August 2nd to November 24th, 2024
• Hamburg – Schwerin, August 4th to November 22nd, 2024
• Karlsruhe – Freiburg, August 10th to 30th 2024
• Hamburg – Berlin, August 17th to December 14th 2024
• Hamm-Hagen, October 19th to December 14th, 2024

For a full view of the construction works on the long distance train network, check out the Deutsche Bahn website. 

Night trains

French rail operator SNCF announced in June that the Paris-Berlin night train, which was expected to become a daily service in October, would be suspended from August 12th-October 28th for construction work.

The line is operated by Deutsche Bahn, SNCF and Austrian operator ÖBB which supplies the “Nightjet” rolling stock.

It means that the Vienna-Paris and Berlin-Brussels routes will also be affected. The Vienna-Brussels line will operate three times a week as planned, according to ÖBB.

Berlin airport S-Bahn transport link to close

From September 13th, S-Bahn connections to Berlin's BER airport are being cut for around two months.

It affects the S9 and S45. The route is being closed due to maintenance work. 

The lines are expected to reopen around November 8th. 

Passengers can continue to use the airport express FEX and regional trains. 

Berlin's BVG to change timetable on some U-Bahn lines

Berlin public transport operator BVG is changing the timetables on several U-Bahn lines from September.

The aim is to make the entire system more stable, the company said. Due to technical problems with the outdated subway fleet, there are currently frequent delays and cancellations.

The changes include the U2 running every four and a half minutes instead of four minutes for around a year during school hours. Trains with a maximum length of eight cars will be used. 

From September 2nd, the U9 will only run every five minutes during rush hour (previously every four minutes).

There are also some changes on the U1/U3 lines and the U4 line.