[Cobalt]

Hey Everyone,
I have a big problem, i am considering attenting the Galacon'14.
No problem right ? Well...i live in Essen, which is in Nordrhein-Westfahlen (Germany) which is about 400km far from Ludwigsburg.

I've spend the Weekend looking for cheap Hotels, Train Tickets etc. which is by far not an easy Task, since i have a Part time Job and my financial abillities are limited.

I never traveled to any Convention so my Questions are:
-Do you Guys know cheap Ways to get to the Galacon and get back Home ?
-How much Money should i have while beeing at the Con ?
-Best ways to stay the Weekend (Hotels, etc.)
-And other stuff i should know before i book the Ticket ?

I really hope you Guys can help me out

(( Sorry i noticed too late that i'm in the wrong Section >.< ))

[Weatherhoof]

Cheap way of travel:

Looked into travel coaches? A direct coach from Essen to Stuttgart Airport is €31 1-way (normal) or €24 1-way (discounted).


Private con budget:

Depends on what you want to do - have at least €20 for food, rest depends on how much merch you want to buy.


Hotels:

We will publish a list of free hotels and partner discounts next week. (There were some long negotiations we made) – but room sharing is always the best idea to save money.


Other stuff:

Read the FAQ, follow the rules and be open minded - we have visitors from several dozen nations this year.

[Yeti]

Well, if it'll be of some help: There's rather cheap hostel in Ludwigsburg called Seibenschlafguestehaus (since I probably misspelled it, here's their site: http://www.gaestehaus-siebenschlaefer.de/ (not sure if they have free rooms anymore though, since I booked rooms for whole Croatia Bronies group there)).
3 bed room there is 22€/person/night (considering 3 people in 3 bed room). Less beds, more price. Also, no breakfast, but there's shared kitchen on every floor, and there's Aldi close to hostel which has really cheap food.
I remember that (without extra drinks and pizzas in restaurants), last year, it was about 8-10€ per person for food (since we were buying food for whole group and then split the cost) and we even had extra leftover food that we took back home.
So, just to be safe, I'd take about 15€ for food and if you can get accommodation in Ludwigsburg under 25€ per night, that would be great (if not, then try in Stuttgart).

Note, subway/train from Stuttgart city center to Ludwigsburg is 3.60€ per trip, so take that in count when thinking about accommodation as well. (so, you'll need some extra money for public transport).

As for getting to Stuttgart/Ludwigsburg, I don't know how are prices inside Germany, but I'm comming from Zagreb (Croatia) and price difference between train, bus and plane (if you get plane tickets early enough), aren't that big, so this year we decided to go by plane (low cost company (German-Wings)). Although, it's bit different, since Croatia is much farther away.

hope it helps.

[HiopX]

If you have a train ticket for NRW and can come to Cologne, you should check this here. *klick*