May 23-27, 2018 · Heidelberg, Germany
May 23-27, 2018 · Heidelberg, Germany
Heidelberg has a working network of trams and buses that currently is sometimes a bit restricted by various construction work going on. The two central hubs are the Central station (“Hauptbahnhof”) and Bismarckplatz, a place right next to the old town, and in easy walking distance from the talk venue.
There are regular trams and buses from Hauptbahnhof to Bismarckplatz. Our talks venue is inside the
old town and reachable with buses to the stop “Kongresshaus” or by foot from Bismarckplatz. Our
sprints venue is reachable by foot from Central station or from the bus stop Czernybrücke.
Tickets can be bought from vending machines at any tram station or from bus drivers. They can not be bought on board of a tram. You will need to validate the tickets using machines placed next to the doors in all buses and trams. The lines and prices are coordinated by “VRN” and the buses and trams are operated by “RNV” – just don’t get confused by the two names ;) The newer vending machines support credit cards and and some debit cards (girocard/Maestro/V-Pay), while there are still some older machines around that only take cash.
Tickets for travelling inside Heidelberg require “price level 2” which is 2.60 EUR for a 90 minutes in one direction. There are day passes starting from 6.80 EUR for one person (cheaper for groups). A three-day pass is 16.20 EUR and a week pass 23.70 EUR. There is a ticketing app available that features a special tariff that charges you by kilometer distance.
Connections can be checked at the official site. Unfortunately, the site does not appear to be available in English, but you can use the website (and app) of DB instead, which has the same information (except real-time data on delays).
At night, the normal tram and bus lines do not operate, but there is a network of buses called “Moonliners”, that feature regular connections on weekend nights and some connections on other nights.
There is a NextBike bike sharing system installed with relatively cheap rates, you can find more on their website. If you already have a NextBike account from a different place, it will work here as well.
Taxis are available and are run by multiple Taxi companies. There are always taxis present at places like Central station or Bismarckplatz and they can be called to other places by phone. Their prices are regulated by the city and should be the same for all taxis. That means 3 EUR as a ground price, then 2.6€/km for the first two kilometers and 1.6€/km for every other kilometer. Waiting time is priced at 0.45€/minute.