Germany (Deutschland), officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres (137,847 sq mi), and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany’s capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, with its main centres of Dortmund and Essen. For information, the country’s other major cities are Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf, Leipzig, Bremen, Dresden, Hannover, and Nuremberg.

Germany has been divided until back in 1989 when the Berlin wall came down. Up to today you can feel and see this division of the two parts of Germany everywhere, especially when visiting Berlin. But in recent years you can find many booming cities in the east of Germany while some of the industrial towns in the Ruhr area are struggling with people moving away and high unemployment rates.

General Information about Germany

Economy of Germany

Germany has a social market economy with a highly skilled labour force, a large capital stock, a low level of corruption, and a high level of innovation. It is the world’s third largest exporter of goods, and has the largest national economy in Europe which is also the world’s fourth largest by nominal GDP and the fifth one by PPP.

The service sector contributes approximately 71% of the total GDP (including information technology), industry 28%, and agriculture 1%. The unemployment rate published by Eurostat amounts to 4.7% in January 2015, which is the lowest rate of all 28 EU member states. With 7.1% Germany also has the lowest youth unemployment rate of all EU member states. According to the OECD and as general information Germany has one of the highest labour productivity levels in the world.

Germany is part of the European single market which represents more than 508 million consumers. Several domestic commercial policies are determined by agreements among European Union (EU) members and by EU legislation. Germany introduced the common European currency, the Euro in 2002. It is a member of the Eurozone which represents around 338 million citizens. Its monetary policy is set by the European Central Bank, which is headquartered in Frankfurt, the financial centre of continental Europe.

Being home to the modern car, the automotive industry in Germany is regarded as one of the most competitive and innovative in the world, and is the fourth largest by production. The top 10 exports of Germany are vehicles, machinery, chemical goods, electronic products, electrical equipments, pharmaceuticals, transport equipment, basic metals, food products, and rubber and plastics.

Transport in Germany

With its central position in Europe, Germany is a transport hub for the continent. Like its neighbours in Western Europe, Germany’s road network is among the densest in the world. The motorway (Autobahn) network ranks as the third-largest worldwide in length and is known for its lack of a general speed limit.

Germany has established a polycentric network of high-speed trains. The InterCityExpress or ICE network of the Deutsche Bahn serves major German cities as well as destinations in neighbouring countries with speeds up to 300 km/h (190 mph). The German railways are subsidised by the government, receiving €17.0 billion in 2014.

The largest German airports are Frankfurt Airport and Munich Airport, both hubs of Lufthansa, while Air Berlin has hubs at Berlin Tegel and Düsseldorf. Other major airports include Berlin Schönefeld, Hamburg, Cologne/Bonn and Leipzig/Halle. The Port of Hamburg is one of the top twenty largest container ports in the world.

Tourism in Germany

Germany is the seventh most visited country in the world, with a total of 407 million overnights during 2012. This number includes 68.83 million nights by foreign visitors. In 2012, over 30.4 million international tourists arrived in Germany. Berlin has become the third most visited city destination in Europe. Additionally, more than 30% of Germans spend their holiday in their own country, with the biggest share going to Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. Domestic and international travel and tourism combined directly contribute over EUR43.2 billion to German GDP. Including indirect and induced impacts, the industry contributes 4.5% of German GDP and supports 2 million jobs (4.8% of total employment).

Germany is well known for its diverse tourist routes, such as the Romantic Road, the Wine Route, the Castle Road, and the Avenue Road. The German Timber-Frame Road (Deutsche Fachwerkstraße) connects towns with examples of these structures.

Germany’s most-visited landmarks include e.g. Neuschwanstein Castle, Cologne Cathedral, Berlin Bundestag, Hofbräuhaus Munich, Heidelberg Castle, Dresden Zwinger, Fernsehturm Berlin and Aachen Cathedral. The Europa-Park near Freiburg is Europe’s second most popular theme park resort.

Berlin – The German Capital

Reichstag Berlin in WinterBerlin is both the German capital and the biggest city in Germany. Roughly 3.2 million Berliners make this city a buzzing melting pot of all kinds of people.

Quoting former mayor of Berlin, Klaus Wowereit, Berlin is poor but sexy. This probably sums Berlin up better than anything else.

If you want to party and have a good time Berlin probably one of the best places to be in the world right now, but if you are focusing on your career you should better move to Munich, Hamburg or Frankfurt.

Hamburg – Meine Perle

Meine Perle – my pearl – as Hamburg is referred to in a famous song has a unique feel. If you would not know better you would bet all your money that Hamburg is a coastal town in the North of Germany. But the supposed sea is just the river Elbe. But this river is so wide and deep that many big cruise ships and tankers can make their way to Hamburg.

With 1.75 million inhabitants Hamburg is the second biggest city in Germany. If you count the metropolitan area of Hamburg even has around 5 million inhabitants which makes it a significant hub close to the North Sea.

Munich – The most Northern Italian city

On hot summer days, you would not be able to tell if you are still in Germany or in fact in Italy. Munich is probably the prettiest major city in Germany. With 1.5 million inhabitants living in Munich, it is the third biggest city in Germany.

With many big companies located in Munich, it is probably the economic capital of Germany. And with the Oktoberfest and the Alps close by Munich also attracts many tourists every year.

Climate in Germany

In general information you can say that has a temperate seasonal climate, which means that you can clearly feel and see the difference of each season. The weather in the North, and especially North-East, is in general colder than in the South due to the winds coming from Russia carrying cold and dry air.

Summers can be hot and sunny, with temperatures as high as 35 degrees, while in winter you can be sure the temperature will drop south of -5 degrees for sure. But the nice thing about this is that in summer you can enjoy sunshine and swim in on of the countless lakes or the North or Baltic sea, while in winter you can enjoy lots of snow and go skiing in the Alps.

General Information about Germany