Non PLC question: Living expenses in Germany?

flyers

Member
F
Join Date
Sep 2006
Location
Amk
Posts
295
Hi guys,

I'll be sending one of the engineer (electrical) to Germany for a business trip for 4 weeks (next month) to study and understand a system. Can someone please advice me what is the living expenses like in Germany? I've never been there myself, so I've no idea the standard of living there (b'fast, lunch, dinner, other out of pocket expenses).

Transportation & hotel to be borne by client.

Please advise me in USD or SGD for my ease of conversion

Thank you.
 
A lot depends on where in Germany your engineer will be staying. Costs can vary depending on the region, so what I show could be more in another area.

The hotels I have stayed at in Germany have provided breakfast.
Lunch - plan on $10.00 - 20.00 USD.
Dinner - plan on $25.00 - 50.00 USD. (or more)
Incidentals will depend upon what your engineer needs. A lot of necessities can be taken in a suitcase.
 
Thanks guys for your info, the accommodation & local transport will be borne by our principle there. Our cost is only on the local food & some other basic necessities.

Thanks.
 
My estimate is that 50 euros a day should be a reasonable amount for food and small things. You have said that hotel and transportation will be covered by the meeting party, so you should not worry about that, but if for some reason the guy has to rent a car, you should know that the gas is expensive but those diesel cars so popular in Europe consume surprisingly little. Most of the rental cars come with manual transmission; usually this is a problem for many Americans spoiled by automaics but OK for everyone else. Of course, in that case your guy should be ready to drive on the right side of the road (I had to drive on the left in Singapore and Malaysia and the first couple of days it did not feel well). On the other hand, driving in Germany is mostly pure pleasure: excellent roads, clear and helpful signs, beautiful views, polite drivers around you.

Ideally your man should carry a major credit card: you cannot predict every little contingency sending someone across half the globe; things do happen and the last one you want to happen is to have someone representing your company to look like a pauper. Of course, that means certain level of trust.

P.S. A small but important detail: the restrooms in the gas stations along autobahns are not free: usually one must drop half a euro worth coins in the slot machine to get in.
 
Last edited:
LadderLogic said:
My estimate is that 50 euros a day should be a reasonable amount for food and small things. You have said that hotel and transportation will be covered by the meeting party, so you should not worry about that, but if for some reason the guy has to rent a car, you should know that the gas is expensive but those diesel cars so popular in Europe consume surprisingly little. Most of the rental cars come with manual transmission; usually this is a problem for many Americans spoiled by automaics but OK for everyone else. Of course, in that case your guy should be ready to drive on the right side of the road (I had to drive on the left in Singapore and Malaysia and the first couple of days it did not feel well). On the other hand, driving in Germany is mostly pure pleasure: excellent roads, clear and helpful signs, beautiful views, ----->polite drivers around you.--- just like driving on the xpressway around Chicago during rush hour!!! Couldn't resist this!!

Ideally your man should carry a major credit card: you cannot predict every little contingency sending someone across half the globe; things do happen and the last one you want to happen is to have someone representing your company to look like a pauper. Of course, that means certain level of trust.

P.S. A small but important detail: the restrooms in the gas stations along autobahns are not free: usually one must drop half a euro worth coins in the slot machine to get in.
Click to expand...
Agree with everything on here.
Though, it is almost as easy to find an auto transmission, most outfits do rent those at the airport, unless they ran out.
 
.--- just like driving on the xpressway around Chicago during rush hour!!! Couldn't resist this!!
Don't get me started :) Although, truth be told, I've seen much worse. Seriously, there are places on Earth where Chicago expressways seem like... Germany :)
 
LadderLogic said:
.--- just like driving on the xpressway around Chicago during rush hour!!! Couldn't resist this!!
Don't get me started :) Although, truth be told, I've seen much worse. Seriously, there are places on Earth where Chicago expressways seem like... Germany :)
Click to expand...
Wild guess:
India, China...should I go on?
The worse problem in Holland (Amsterdam) are the bikes. I almost got killed a few times by those things.
I learned not to worry about oncoming traffic, cars that is, quickly!
 
One thing to be aware of is that most smaller restaurants and businesses in Germany do not accept credit cards. While it isn't a bad idea to have one for emergencies, you won't be able to avoid going to the bank to pick up some cash.

One exception, virtually all petrol stations do accept credit cards.
 
There big differences in Germany. There are some regions (countryside or Eastern part) where you can live with 40 EUR very well. Other regions (Munich, Stuttgart, Frankfurt) you would need the double for the same.
But, Sept and October are the best months for festivals here (Beer and wine fests). Allow him to participate and get some German culture ;-)
Give him 100 EUR and you will receive a highly motivated engineer.
 
Remember that public transport works well in Germany, the railways run to time and are well integrated so getting around with out a car is easy unless you are really going off the beaten track. Taxis are ubiquitous and dont rip you off

Also outside the big cities it is nearly impossible to buy anything other than a beer or a meal after 5.30pm so no last minute shopping for things you forgot to bring.

Germans will not usully work weekends, so dont expect to be busy Saturday or Sunday. Organise some touristy things if you trip is over a weekend, or maybe your host will have done some organising for you

Germans tend to be much more formal in their business dealings, you will be addressed as Herr ... rather than by firt name in a lot of cases.

If you are travelling outside the big cities try and find a local hotel rather than staying in an international chain. You will be pleasently suprised, and save money.

I spent quite a bit of time in Crailsheim a few years ago, its a small town about 1/2 way between Nurenburg and Stuttgart, and my comments are based on this trip.

Some years before I also travelled to Solingen (on the edge of the Ruhr industrial area), this was somewhat different and less pleasent but thats another story.
 

Similar Topics

A
Non-PLC Question For Help
Hello Everybody. I would not post this here if I did not really need some help with this. I appreciate your patience. I normally use this site...
2
Replies
22
Views
6,380
fredz0003
F
D
non plc valve driver question
Hi guys I'm going to show my ignorance here...but I'm hoping someone here can help. I've got a late 80's Toshiba inj molder with a valve drivers...
Replies
3
Views
1,651
dougpdf
D
digitalfist
Non PLC question
Hi guys; I know im not suppose to ask non PLC questions here but im not sure where else to go. We are experiencing some trouble with blowing a...
2
Replies
15
Views
5,634
digitalfist
digitalfist
T
Powerflex 525 to PLC (non-Ethernet connection)
I am looking for some help with a project that I am working on to finish my maintenance apprenticeship. Any help would be greatly appreciated. My...
Replies
7
Views
3,263
CENTER
CENTER
mad4x4
Saftey Inputs & ouputs into Non-Saftey PLC (Siemens)
What he have is a HMI2GO unit ( KTP900F) and we use a safety relay to trigger our e-stops. What the tech wants to do is guard against e-Stop on...
Replies
2
Views
1,859
Ken Moore
Ken Moore
Back
Top Bottom