2025: AUS ➡️ WAW ✈️ BER ➡️ AUS

[ROFL BOX 6644]

We are considering a trip to Gerrmany
Son is asking about into Poland, back from Berlin.
Would want to consider all options.  Never been international other than cruise ship stuff to touristy MXX, etc.
Is it better to use one airline instead of trying to patch together 2 separate airlines & hoping flights don't get screwy & you miss one connection?

Thinking June '25, quickly after Monster graduates.  Group of 4; 2 adults & @ that time an 18 & 20 year old.
 
Entire trip with tour company?  Go solo?  50-50 mix tour + solo?
Eurail?
Hostel / B&B options?
What preferred or suggested airline(s)?  As noted , maybe fly from AUS into ATL or similar East Coast via airline X, change to Y for longer leg to Europe, similar return idea?
I did a cursory Kayak check & their site wouldn't give me an AUS WAW, not even patching something like Delta to New York to Warsaw.
Whatcha think, Shag²?
 

[Brisketexan 104239]

1 -- for travel to the continent, stick with one airline.  You can get to Berlin on Lufthansa or AA or BA pretty easily.  The point is, you can get from AUS to europe direct, then a hop to BER.  Lots of itinerary options.  Oh, and on Kayak....yeah, you can get to Warsaw from AUS -- Lufthansa through Frankfurt.

2 -- if you want to see Warsaw, LOT offers roundtrip flights from BER for CHEAP.  You could fly to Warsaw, do some Poland stuff, then fly back from Warsaw.  You could even fly back from Warsaw to Frankfurt, or Amsterdam, or London, if you wanted to tack another destination on.  I suspect you can get a flight to Frankfurt from Warsaw.  Also, don't overlook taking a train here and there.  Deutsche Bahn isn't perfect, but it's plenty good.  Heck, the train from Berlin to Warsaw is just 5 hours.  Start in the morning, you're there right after lunch.

Bottom line, figure out where you actually want to go/see.  Berlin is awesome, one of my favorite cities in the world.  Never been to Poland, would like to.  But there's also lots to do in both countries other than the capital cities.  Gdansk is surely cool.  Dresden is cool, etc.

June is also a great time to go, tourist season not fully ramped up.  Weather is usually fantastic.  Eat some strawberries, they're at the peak of season.  Oh, and fuck tours.  Do it yourself.  More adventurous that way.  Y'all don't wanna stay at hostels, there are affordable hotels and Airbnbs in all major cities.  E.g., first time we went to Berlin, we stayed at the Best Western Hotel am Spittelmarkt -- really good deal, had a room that slept all four of us in three separate beds.

Edited June 25 by Brisketexan

[HornOnTheBayou 8875]

Roflbox is going overseas. Are we thinking this becomes a screwball comedy, a major international incident, or a little bit of both? 

[Brisketexan 104239]

Roflbox is going overseas. Are we thinking this becomes a screwball comedy, a major international incident, or a little bit of both? 

Oh, it’s a lock for both.

[ROFL BOX 6644]

Roflbox is going overseas. Are we thinking this becomes a screwball comedy, a major international incident, or a little bit of both? 

Pick one¹:
 
¹You have met me.
 I am neither a talking dog nor a toddler & my name is not "Mort" / I am not Jewish.
Plus, my wife is not as hot as Beverly D'Angelo.

[ROFL BOX 6644]

& I am also seeking suggestions on what attire is best for blending in.
 
I will not bring the cowboy hat, baseball cap or boots, not gonna do the Wranglers thing. 

Monster said we should dress Russian. 

[Mother mopar 3288]

I stick with one airline to get me to/from said country. Once in that country, I'll fly whatever, RyanAir, etc, for cheap. I wear my Texas hat all the time, and it's gotten me free beer, friends, and great conversations no matter where I was at in the world.

Certain countries are more accepting of amercians than others, but I've never had a bad experience. I'm also very aware of my surroundings, plan stuff out, and am hyper vigilant, but that is me.

Enjoy it, have fun, and you'll meet some awesome people and see incredible things.

[ROFL BOX 6644]

6 hours ago, Mother mopar said:

 I wear my Texas hat all the time

Texas flag?  Longhorn logo'd cap?

[Mother mopar 3288]

Texas flag?  Longhorn logo'd cap?

I say Texas, but it's a Longhorn hat.

[elfenix 34161]

because europe has better rules around airlines losing your luggage than the US does, you should change planes in europe instead of the US, if possible.

[52-80 19047]

dont chain complex multi-stop trips into a single flight itinerary, itll limit your choices and yield higher prices. thats because the booking engines try to keep the carriers within a partner networks. 

book the main transatlantic trip first, so austin to berlin or warsaw, and the connections separately. 

in this case the itinerary is not too complex so you could try searching for a “multi-leg” itinerary (aka “open jaw”), austin to warsaw & berlin to austin; book warsaw to berlin separately. 

btw there is only 1 carrier serving waw-berlin, its the national polish carrier LOT. there are also tons of direct trains taking only 5 hours. given annoyance of going to/from airport, waiting, baggage cost, etc, train might be much better experience. 

warsaw is actually quite unpopular for tourists, but i like it a ton. its super chill and people are nice. hotels selection are good. the marriott, westin, hilton (obama stayed there) are all very reasonably priced. for 4 adults staying in 1 place the Platinum Residence serviced apartment is a great option too. (ive stayed in all of them). 

independent hotels in germany are typically a bit…err..weird.  holiday inn and holiday inn express across germany are very reliable properties, as are best westerns. 

book small, specific tours as you need at each place.  in 2024 with smartphones and cheap data access and everyone pretty much speaking english you dont need a full hands-off tour to do all the little stuff for you such as getting around the city  

 

[dieucla98 2923]

If you do book separate itineraries - for example, AUS->BER->AUS and then BER->WAW->BER separately - make sure you leave a day between departures on the itineraries. If you miss a flight because your incoming flight on a separate itinerary is delayed, the airline isn't going to give two shits. Have read a lot of horror stories about that.

[Js1 85009]

11 hours ago, 52-80 said:

btw there is only 1 carrier serving waw-berlin, its the national polish carrier LOT. there are also tons of direct trains taking only 5 hours. given annoyance of going to/from airport, waiting, baggage cost, etc, train might be much better experience. 

 

Unless it's like a 12+ hour train, I will usually opt for train > plane in Europe.

it's also just fun