Berlin #TravelBuddies

I wanted to venture further out now that I had the confidence after Dublin. I chose Berlin because it wasn't too far away and the flights were cheap.

Again we arrived at the airport already checked in a few hours before. Dylan was nearly three, I chose to take his push chair because it’s easier for getting him around the airport and the city as well as it being good for holding any bags and jackets.

We flew with Ryan air then Easy Jet. The flights were £12.99 there and £16.99 back. No tax for children so even cheaper! We flew from Glasgow to Berlin Schönefeld (SFX) was 2 hours. I felt that Ryan Air were more accommodating and helpful with Dylan but Easy Jet didn’t do anything wrong they were less approachable.

We stayed in a hotel and a hostel. The hotel was Park Plaza – Nuremberg. Bahnhofstrasse 5, 90402. I chose to stay in the city centre again because I was still finding my way with travelling. There is a train station about 10 minutes from the airport that goes directly to the city centre, it’s a maximum of 4 Euros and Dylan was free.(1 hour) I was panicking about getting to the train station from the airport but EVERYONE is going in the same direction so you knew where to go. I got a taxi previous to this which was 40 Euros so we split it for convenience (25 minutes).

The transport including the Metro system is always bang on time, clean and reliable. There is normally a lot of queues for the ticket machines though as you need to validate your ticket (stamp it-really easy to figure out). Easily accessible with a push chair and helpful locals. Even though we did not share the same language they helped with Dylan’s push chair, opening doors etc. 

There was a hotel just outside the city centre - Jugendgästehaus Hauptbahnhof . This was around 60 Euros a night, has bunk beds, private rooms and child friendly. With most hostels there is communal bathrooms but that’s why its so cheap. 

We used the Hop On Hop Off Bus again, booked online £20 – Dylan free. I felt really comfortable using them because there are interpreters for English speakers to understand where you are and what attractions you are seeing, We took full advantage of the bus, plenty of space for push chair access too The City is clean and extremely modern in places. Our favourite place was Checkpoint Charlie. There were plenty of restaurants and cafes, the tour bus takes you right outside.

There is a little beach area surrounded by bars, beach chairs and sand. Surrounded by the Berlin wall crossing point.

There is a little photobox that prints out vintage looking pictures for 2 Euros. The Haulescost memorial was spectacular, cleverly designed to make you feel uncomfortable. I was criticised by a few for taking Dylan but I look at it in the sense that I had a moment of realising that I can never take him for granted. There are no graphic pictures for him to see just a memorial for him to walk around like a maze.

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Dublin #TravelBuddies

I wanted to begin by taking him to somewhere where they spoke English and not too long on the plane. Dylan and I have been on planes before to England so he is already used to flying.

I chose Dublin as our first destination and could not be happier with that choice.

It was £9.99 there and £12.99 back. Children under 2 can sit on your lap for an extra £20 with most airlines for safety purposes. Older children go in their own seat but are often tax free so even cheaper flights

The duration from Glasgow to Dublin was meant to be an hour but the flight was quicker so we were in the air for about 50 minutes.

We landed in Dublin airport and wanted to dump our stuff straight away. We were staying at The Harcourt Hotel on Harcourt Street. You can get a taxi for around 25 Euros depending on peak time. 

Failing that you can get the bus (757) literally just around the corner from the hotel for 7 Euros. There is a cheaper bus (16) for 4 Euros which is a few minutes further than the other bus. Both come directly from the Airport which is easily marked and about 30 minutes away from the hotel. There will normally be coaches available to which you can pre order. 

The Irish are so incredibly friendly in general. The staff were so accommodating, helpful and understanding. They helped with bags and provided a travel cot free (although Dylan slept in the bed with me).  The breakfast was included in the hotel. I decided to pay more for the hotel because it was our first proper trip away so I didn’t want to go too out of my comfort zone. 

There was the beautiful about a 10 minute walk from the hotel. Dylan loved this park because it was huge so he could easily run about it in. Right opposite this park there was the beginning of the city centre. The city had a great buzz about it. Buskers in the street, entertaining acts , Disney stores, restaurants (We tried Irish Stew!) and the wonderful National Leprechaun Museum which is about 25 minutes walk from the hotel or about 15 minutes from the town. 

Having a child is difficult when being away because you want to see everything but realistically this can be hard when you have a tired hungry munchkin to deal with. I really really recommend the Hop On Hop Off bus, this works out as 25 Euros and free for Dylan.   There are other tour buses available but a little more expensive and not as regular. 

This may seem expensive however with the amount you will save on transport and the reassurance you can get back to where you started and not lost, it is worth it.

This allowed us to literally Hop Off at any of the tourist attractions then hop back on to the next location. This takes you all around the city to various parks, cathedrals, Guinness Museum (kids allowed) and Dylan’s favourite – Dublin Zoo.

This bus is usually every 15 minutes or so. It is cheaper to book online if you can but print the ticket, there was an issue because I had not printed mine but they still let me on.

Everyone is so friendly that even if you did get lost they will help you 100%. This is an ideal place to start for your first travel experience. 

contact
Email : helpustravel@outlook.com

Instagram :  _travel_buddies
Facebook : @travelbuddies86

If you want to donate anything to help towards my travels with Dylan 

Paypal :   helpustravel@outlook.com