During our amazing lunch at Heilig-Geist-Spital, I admit that Karla and I lost track of time chatting. When we realized it was after three o’clock, we knew we needed to get a move on to catch the train Erlangen for our river cruise with Viking River Cruises. Completely motivated so as to not miss the ship, we had to trek back up Konigstraße to return to the hotel to collect our bags before returning to Hauptbahnhof.
Taking public transportation isn’t something you should be afraid of when traveling abroad. Quite honestly, it was as simple as purchasing a ticket for a train at South Station here in Boston. After purchasing our tickets from the self-serve machines, we only had to look at the departure board to see from which platform our train would be boarding.
TSG Tip: I love the little escalator for bags going up to the platform. I have had to pull and drag my bag up a set of stairs on many occasions in the past to get to a train and it’s never fun. While it’s not a terribly big or wide, it can still give your bag a little piggy back ride, which means less wear and tear on you and your bag.
By the time we got to platform 4, the train was waiting and we were able to board.
We chose a spot near the doors because we had bags, but there were certainly enough seats available had we chosen to sit down. The beverage and snacks guy came around with a little cart that had just about everything on it in case anyone needed a little something before heading to their final destination.
Total travel time with only one stop from Nuremberg to Erlangen was a mere 15-20 minutes.
You know I can’t go anywhere without taking a few pictures and so I snapped away at the Erlangen train station. Overall, the train service was quick, both train stations were clean, and the overall process was fast and efficient.
Once off the train, I just had to walk through to the front of the train station to locate the waiting taxi queue. But first, I had to stop to admire the food offerings, which were of course, meaty and plentiful, inside the train station before walking outside.
While there are buses that you can take, the trip from the train station to the port (Am Hafen 17) is apparently a short one. I suggest you verify with your driver that he or she knows where it is before setting off because while our taxi driver said he knew the address, I should’ve known better as he had no clue where he was headed.
When we went down a small unmarked gravel road, I thought this might be final gravel resting place. Damn it! I knew I should’ve taken the bus! But no, the driver told us we could get out and maneuver around a gate, walk along the water’s edge and over train tracks to board the ship.
While the cab ride may have not been exactly as I would have liked and 20 euro, taking the train was easy and seeing the German countryside was a bonus. Public transportation is easy to use and cost efficient so don’t be so quick to avoid trying it out on your next trip.
If you’re curious as to what the train ride itself is like, I have a quick video of my train ride to Erlangen here.