Friday, 11 April
Easter getaway chaos looms for Berlin travelers
If you’re planning to leave town this Easter, brace yourself. Between train shutdowns, road congestion and crowded terminals at BER, getting out of Berlin might be more stressful than expected.
From Friday, there will be no regional trains running between Berlin and Eberswalde. That includes the RB24 and the RE3 — a popular route toward the Baltic Sea. Travelers are encouraged to switch to the S2 to reach Bernau, with replacement buses heading towards Eberswalde.
Also from Friday night, services between Ostbahnhof and Alexanderplatz are suspended, with replacement buses in service until April 22. Meanwhile, the S3 will also be out of action between Erkner and Rahnsdorf until May 5. And on the S5, trains will be replaced by buses from Strausberg Nord to Strausberg starting Wednesday evening.
Even Berlin Hauptbahnhof’s underground tracks will be shut from April 18 – 22 for maintenance, though S-Bahn trains will continue to run.
Thinking of just driving? Good luck… The ADAC is warning of heavy traffic and long delays starting Friday as nationwide school holidays begin.
BER is not looking much better either, with air operators expecting 1.2 million travelers during the holiday period. Terminals are likely to be jammed — but at least there is one silver lining: faster security checks. New CT scanners being installed in Terminal 1 mean travelers won’t be required to take out liquids.
In short: plan ahead, pack entertainment and maybe rethink that 10am departure.
