Offices of the German National Tourist Board can be found in a number of major cities and are able to provide information relevant to the needs of visitors. Germany is an easy country to both visit and travel in and holiday makers are presented with little in the way of threats to health or safety. Safety: Germany is, by and large, a safe country to visit, offering very little in the way of serious threats to the safety of visitors. The risk of terrorist activity is considered low and the threat of violent crime is perhaps prevalent only in high-risk areas of big cities. Petty crime exists of course, as it does in most countries and generally takes the form of pick pocketing, bag snatching and similar opportunist felonies. If you have a rental vehicle, be sure not to leave anything of any value on show inside the vehicle and always park it in well lit and well populated areas. When to go: the main tourist season and best time to visit Germany is between May and October as this is when the weather is the most agreeable. The months of June, July and August are hottest and the best time for those looking for to see some serious sunshine while September has the obvious advantage of the massively popular Oktoberfest in Munich. Money: Germany began making preparations to phase out the Deutschmark at the turn of the century and officially introduced the Euro as its legal currency on January 1, 2002. The Euro is made up of 100 cents and is available in both notes and coins with the former in denominations of 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, and 500 Euros and the latter in 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, and 50 euro cents and also in 1 and 2 euro coins. Language: German is the official language spoken in Germany and is a West Germanic language that ranks among the world’s most commonly spoken and significant languages. Referred to as Deutsch in the language itself, German is comprised of a number of two significant dialects: low German and high German. Emergency: 110
Ambulance: 112
Police: 110 Recommended hospitals:
Berlin - Waldfriede Hospital +49 30 81 810285
Munich - Schwabinger Hospital +49 89 30681
Bremen - Paracelsus-Kliniken +49 421 46830
Hanover - Friederikenstift +49 511 30431
Stuttgart - Bethesda Krankenhaus Stuttgart
+49 711 21560
Hamburg - Allgemeines Krankenhaus Altona
+49 40 88220 If you are from an EU country, you will find the rules for setting up a company are becoming increasingly less complicated and you will certainly have the edge over non-EU investors with regards to favourable bureaucratic treatment. Typical business hours:
- Government departments: 09:00 to 18:00, Monday to Friday.
- Retail: 09:00 to 18:30, Monday to Friday (Saturdays 09:00 to 16:00).
- Banking: 08:30 - 13:00, 14:30 to 16:00, Monday to Friday (and until 18:00 on Thursdays).
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