Dortmund to Wuppertal

[theageofthetra]

Hi am staying at the Raddison (the former Hilton) in Dortmund & was wondering the best ticket to get tommorrow to get me from the several U/Sbahn stops nearby (Westenfalenpark etc) to Wuppertal. Is there one ticket to go all the way which also includes the Schwebebahn when I get there? Is there a museum for that line worth a look? Thanks for any help. I am rail staff but don't have my FIP/Priv yet.

 

[blackfive460]

Probably a bit late now but a SchönerTagTicket NRW would be your best bet at 28.50€.
Covers virtualy all trains, trams and buses in Nordrhein-Westfalen from 9AM to 3AM the following day.
Available from DB ticket machines. Full details at http://www.bahn.de/i/view/GBR/en/prices/germany/laender-ticket.shtml

 

[theageofthetra]

Thanks. Thats the one I got, as advised at the DB office at hbf. Great you could use it on all the local metro/trams too, though needless to say I didn't encounter one ticket check either on the trains or on local transport in all 3 cities. That classic car/bike place in an old roundhouse in Dusseldorf was outstanding. With the added bonus of great views of the DB yard & turntable behind. Love thats there's a public footpath used by local dog walkers right in front of the turntable! The Wuppertal area seems to be finally getting some much needed investment & looked much better than when I last went 4 years ago. The suspended railway was great fun and particularly liked the street sections.

 

[30907]

As both Dortmund and Wuppertal are in the VRR Rhein-Ruhr tariff union, there is an all day Tageskarte which is slightly cheaper at Eur26.

But that's for next time! The STT is fantastic value for urban transport fans, I only wish I'd known about the trolleybus to Soligen last time I was there...

 

[theageofthetra]

The £26 eur one is the one I got. Will be back for another Bundesliga match in a couple of months as I was so impressed with the quality crowd at BvB. For another trip is there a link to show a map of area these tickets (both 26 & 28 Eur) are valid in?

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

The £26 eur one is the one I got. Will be back for another Bundesliga match in a couple of months as I was so impressed with the quality crowd at BvB. For another trip is there a link to show a map of area these tickets (both 26 & 28 Eur) are valid in?

Links to useful sites below:

http://www.vrr.de/en/index.html
http://www.bahn.de/regional/view/md.../mdb_111068_regionalverkehrsplan_nrw_2013.pdf
https://www.ots-nrw.de/

 

[fandroid]

If you are staying in Cologne you can get a vrs day ticket that includes Dusseldorf and Wuppertal. The vrr and vrs areas overlap. Just remember that you are not supposed to use these tickets on DB's IC, EC, and ICE trains (where ticket checks do occur!)

 

[LNW-GW Joint]

I've used InterCity Hotels (part of DB I believe), and you get a free local travel ticket for your stay.
I've not used it in NRW, but the web site seems so say that you get 2 days-worth of regional travel worth €54.80 at normal rates.
http://en.intercityhotel.com/FreeCityTicket

They have a hotel in Wuppertal: http://en.intercityhotel.com/Wuppertal/InterCityHotel-Wuppertal

The only catch I have found is that you have to reach the hotel first, because you get the ticket issued at check-in.
Fine if the hotel is opposite the DB station (many are), not so valuable if you need to take a tram ride to reach it.

 

[gordonthemoron]

most IC hotels are in or close by the station, the furthest I've had to walk was in Nuremberg where it's in the adjacent block. The one in Wuppertal is nothing special and is in front of the Hbf

 

[blackfive460]

If you are staying in Cologne you can get a vrs day ticket that includes Dusseldorf and Wuppertal. The vrr and vrs areas overlap. Just remember that you are not supposed to use these tickets on DB's IC, EC, and ICE trains (where ticket checks do occur!)

Note that while you can get to Wuppertal with it, the VRS day ticket does not cover the Schwebebahn.

 

[fandroid]

Note that while you can get to Wupplertal with it, the VRS day ticket does not cover the Schwebebahn.

I was blithely unaware of that! Is there a reference anywhere? My understanding is that the Schwebebahn is part of the normal local transport system, so all the usual regional ticket rules apply.

 

[blackfive460]

Information about what is and isn't included in VRR & VRS Tariffs is hard to find but the best way is to use each area's travel planner which will indicate the fare or fare zone charged.
If you can force the VRS planner to give you a journey using the Schwebebahn you'll find that, while it will give you a journey, it won't offer a fare. It will give you fares ending at a Schwebebahn destination but only using regional trains, buses and shanks' pony.

 

[theageofthetra]

Not that my ticket was checked but was my ticket not valid? I was advised by the DB person who sold it at Dortmund hbf that it was valid on all services.

 

[blackfive460]

Not that my ticket was checked but was my ticket not valid? I was advised by the DB person who sold it at Dortmund hbf that it was valid on all services.

Assuming your ticket was a VRR full area TagesTicket (26€) which, if sold in Dortmund it should have been, then you were valid on the Schwebebahn. The one that isn't is the VRS full area day ticket (23.80€).

If you are travelling in both areas then the SchönerTagTicket NRW is still the best bet for just a few Euros more for a much bigger area.

 

[Martin]

Note that while you can get to Wuppertal with it, the VRS day ticket does not cover the Schwebebahn.

Sorry but that's definitely wrong. If a VRS ticket is valid in Wuppertal, it's also valid on the Schwebebahn. (Schwebebahn is normal local transport and as such included in the VRR and VRS Verbundtarif). They even sell VRS tickets a the WSW ticket machines at the Schwebebahn stations (been there, bought that).

(On the other hand not every VRS TagesTicket is valid in Wuppertal. It need to be bought/stamped in the border-area ("Großer Grenzverkehr")).

 

[theageofthetra]

One other thing, while I remember is that when I mentioned to the DB lady about being a rail worker she said that those discounts don't apply on regional tickets- was that correct?

 

[blackfive460]

(On the other hand not every VRS TagesTicket is valid in Wuppertal. It need to be bought/stamped in the border-area ("Großer Grenzverkehr")).

That would explain why I've never come across this. I've always been looking for prices into that area and, on the VRS web site, any information regarding this must be very well hidden.
What seems odd though is that while the VRS web site's journey planner will provide a price to travel say, from Köln to Wuppertal Hbf, if you try to force it to go to a Schwebebahn destination, it will avoid actually using the Schwebebahn and provide a price. Then, if you force it to use the Schwebebahn, it directs you to VRR for pricing.

Mind you, I've always ended up with an NRW day ticket. For the extra few Euros, you can do a lot more with it!

 

[fandroid]

I emailed VRS and asked them. They confirmed that if travelling from Cologne a level 5 tagesticket 23.80 euros will get you to Wuppertal and be valid on both the Schwebebahn and the Solingen trolleybuses. I agree that the NRW ticket will get you a lot further. My trips are normally constrained by time, so I am happy with the VRS one. Remember there's a more modern Schwebebahn, Duesseldorf airport's Skytrain. Those tickets allow access to that too!

 

[theageofthetra]

Damn saw that new one at the airport as the train went through didn't think I would be able to use it!

 

[Martin]

I've always been looking for prices into that area and, on the VRS web site, any information regarding this must be very well hidden.

If you can read German there is a leaflet http://www.vrsinfo.de/fileadmin/Dateien/downloadcenter/VRS-VRR_Flyer_2014_neu.pdf . It can be found on http://www.vrsinfo.de/tickets/tickets-zu-nachbarverbuenden.html . And all the details are in the official tariff document http://www.vrsinfo.de/fileadmin/Dateien/downloadcenter/VRS_Gemeinschaftstarif_01102014.pdf (VRR/VRS is on page 154-156) - but that's not a pleasant read.

 

[blackfive460]

If you can read German there is a leaflet http://www.vrsinfo.de/fileadmin/Dateien/downloadcenter/VRS-VRR_Flyer_2014_neu.pdf . It can be found on http://www.vrsinfo.de/tickets/tickets-zu-nachbarverbuenden.html . And all the details are in the official tariff document http://www.vrsinfo.de/fileadmin/Dateien/downloadcenter/VRS_Gemeinschaftstarif_01102014.pdf (VRR/VRS is on page 154-156) - but that's not a pleasant read.

I never spotted a link to the first brochure though I did look at the second document. However, with my basic German there was no way I was plowing through that so, as I said, well hidden!

As a Preisstufe 5 day ticket is valid I have to say that I find it odd that when forced to show a journey involving the Schwebebahn, the journey planner won't quote a fare, instead referring to the VRR web site for prices. Then, of course, for journeys from destinations outside the VRR area, that web site won't show fares either!

Easy to see how difficult it is for visitors to know what's what.

 

[fandroid]

I too have struggled to get decent information from the VRS website. Experience has shown me that there are many stops/stations in Koeln that show maps of the zones in which VRS tickets are valid. There is also a detailed leaflet. I have tried and failed to access that leaflet on the web.
There are ticket machines in the border zones of the VRR area that have a portion of the main touch screen dedicated to VRS tickets. The ones I am most aware of are those at Duesseldorf Airport.