Germany is a Western European country with a landscape of forests, rivers, mountain ranges
and North Sea beaches. It has over 2 millennia of history. Berlin, its capital, is home to art and
nightlife scenes, the Brandenburg Gate and many sites relating to WWII. Munich is known for
its Oktoberfest and beer halls, including the 16th-century Hofbräuhaus. Frankfurt, with its
skyscrapers, houses the European Central Bank.
Germany is a place that can't be encapsulated in a series of paragraphs, so it is truly best to
grab the chance to experience it in all its finery when the opportunity comes. Come for the beer
and bratwurst, stay for the philosophy and art. Germany is continually evolving and visitors get
to enjoy the fruits of its being at the center of the world stage.

FACTS & FIGURE:
 Official Name: Bundesrepublik Deutschland, BRD (Federal Republic of Germany, FRG)
 Government: Federal republic;
 Size: 137,847 sq mi (357,021 sq km), slightly smaller than the US state of Montana
(145,552 sq mi)
 Population: 82 million (2015 est.)
 Capital City: Berlin (since Oct. 3, 1990), Bonn (West Germany, 1949-1990)
 National Holiday: October 3, Unity Day (Tag der Deutschen Einheit), since 1990 –
More: Other German holidays
 Largest Cities: Berlin 3.3 million, Hamburg 1.7 million, Munich (München) 1.2 million,
Cologne (Köln) 1.0 million, Frankfurt am Main 648,000, Stuttgart 600,000, Essen
588,800, Dortmund 587,600, Düsseldorf 568,900, Bremen 527,900, Hanover (Hannover)
516,300, Duisburg 513,400
 Time Zone: UTC+1, Central European Time (CET),Mitteleuropäische Zeit (MEZ)
Daylight Saving Time (Sommerzeit): Germany and all of the EU nations observe Daylight
Saving Time from the last Sunday in March until the first Sunday in November.
 Ethnicity: German 81%, Other Europeans 7%, Turkish 4%, Asian 2%, Black African 1%,
Others 5%
 Religions: Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 4%, Jewish 0.1%, unaffiliated or
other 28%
 Monetary Unit: Euro (€, EUR, since 2002), Deutsche Mark (DM, German mark, 1949-
2001)
 GDP: $3.5 trillion, 4th in the world (2016 est.)
 Climate: Temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters (snow mostly in mountainous areas);
mild summers with occasional heat waves; occasional warm mountain winds (Föhn) in
Alpine regions
 Highest Point: Zugspitze 9,721 ft (2,962 m) in the Bavarian Alps
 Seacoast: Baltic Sea, North Sea; total coastline 1,484 mi (2,389 km)

 Neighboring Countries (9): Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France,
Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Switzerland
 Country Code: +49
 Best Time to visit: For more settled weather with sunshine and comfortable
temperatures, latespring and earlyautumn – May,September and earlyOctober – are
the best time to visit: the Germans don't call the harvest season “goldener Oktober” for
nothing.