Travel to Europe

[Rob Dog]

I am headed to Germany and Austria in December and I am trying to decide if it is worth taking a drone. I would love to get some shots of castles etc but not sure what the restrictions are. We will be traveling by train once in Munich and on to Vienna. Thanks in Advance!

 

[Cafguy]

If you are going to the EU for recreational drone use, Just check the rules carefully and you should be just fine I lived in Germany WAY back in the before drones days and I would LOVE to go back with a Mavic! the only problem I could see is traveling with a lot of batteries I bet enough would be fine tho. check the Airline the train won't care .

 

[MS Coast]

I am headed to Germany and Austria in December and I am trying to decide if it is worth taking a drone. I would love to get some shots of castles etc but not sure what the restrictions are. We will be traveling by train once in Munich and on to Vienna. Thanks in Advance!

There are licensing and registration requirements. Here's a link to the regulations for European Union nations.

Drones & Air Mobility | EASA

EASA | European Union Aviation Safety Agency: The European Union Authority for aviation safety

www.easa.europa.eu

I've left the drones at home on my last three trips. Too much to fuss with.

 

[jfischer605]

I can’t speak on Australia (which is a bummer cuz it is high on my list of trips) but as far as Germany I haven’t had any issues. I am licensed and insured and etc and am pretty hyper focused on checking geo zones and the like.

They are pretty good about signage if they done want a drone flying (overall)

The more touristy castles I.e. Neuschwanstein will be tough (you can’t fly on their grounds so if you’re gonna try the location you find to fly from is key)

The less popular castles are pretty chill for the most part from what I’ve seen.

I think the biggest rule of thumb is the “Don’t be an *******” rule because the privacy laws and just in general not disturbing the peace (especially on Sunday)

Keep in mind this is all my experience and the do your own double checking and risk assessments are always important. The mini has always been super easy to manage around here and I’ve been a bit more careful with the bigger drone since it’s louder. Though the zoom lense has been helpful in being able to stay at more of a distance and all that.

The only other thing I’d say is to check your airlines battery policy to know if you need to keep batteries in carry on or if they can be checked.

 

[jfischer605]

I can’t speak on Australia (which is a bummer cuz it is high on my list of trips) but as far as Germany I haven’t had any issues. I am licensed and insured and etc and am pretty hyper focused on checking geo zones and the like.

They are pretty good about signage if they done want a drone flying (overall)

The more touristy castles I.e. Neuschwanstein will be tough (you can’t fly on their grounds so if you’re gonna try the location you find to fly from is key)

The less popular castles are pretty chill for the most part from what I’ve seen.

I think the biggest rule of thumb is the “Don’t be an *******” rule because the privacy laws and just in general not disturbing the peace (especially on Sunday)

Keep in mind this is all my experience and the do your own double checking and risk assessments are always important. The mini has always been super easy to manage around here and I’ve been a bit more careful with the bigger drone since it’s louder. Though the zoom lense has been helpful in being able to stay at more of a distance and all that.

The only other thing I’d say is to check your airlines battery policy to know if you need to keep batteries in carry on or if they can be checked.

Oh Austria not Australia… I misread my bad

 

[kilhan]

There are many restrictions in both countries. First study the general European drone rules here:
Drones & Air Mobility | EASA. There are 3 open categories of flight A1, A2 and A3 with different restrictions depending on the class of a drone: C0 – max 250g, C1 – max 900g etc. and level of your drone operator/pilot license. You can find the details here: Open Category - Low Risk - Civil Drones | EASA
If you are a non-EU visitor read the requirements here:
I am a non-EU visitor / drone operator ‘open’ category | EASA.
You will have to register as a drone operator in the first European country you are going to fly and pass an online test – easy and fast for A1 and A3 category, more advanced for A2 category of flight.

Apart of European rules, there can be additional restrictions in particular countries. Check also here:
AUSTRIA: dronespace.at die Austro Control Drohnenplattform - EN
GERMANY: Drone Laws in Germany | UAV Coach (2023)

In both countries there are many no-drone zones or restricted zones, especially in towns and over or close to popular places like castle. You can download applications which tell you restrictions in the place you are.
German: DRONIQ - Droniq App - Drone App "Where can I fly my drone?"
Austrian: AustroControl - https://www.dronespace.at/dronespace_app

Though I live in Poland and I have high, even BVLOS European drone operator and pilot license, especially flying in Germany and Austria is a real nuisance. Even if I know my rights, the police or guards usually don’t know the complicated drone laws and rarely speak English.
So even if I check the place is legal for my flight, I do everything to avoid anybody. I start from a place where I can’t be seen, make photos and videos as quickly as possible and disappear. And in case of e.g castles, I chose the time where the place is closed, and most people sleep, usually at 5-6 AM. Also the sunrise light is wonderful then. But you can do it only in summer. In December it will be impossible. And I usually look for the correct place to start my drone a day before with my car. If you travel by train, you will be less mobile, and you will probably be mainly in no-fly or restricted zones.

It’s my experience. I hope helpful for your decision to fly or not to fly in Germany and Austria.
BTW, in e.g. Poland, England or Italy it’s much easier to fly drones legally with much less problems.

 

[Papa Echo]

Don't take your drone to the EU!
There are many anti drone people. The laws are over-regulated.
The weather in December is mostly not good.
Just forget it.

 

[jfischer605]

There are many restrictions in both countries. First study the general European drone rules here:
Drones & Air Mobility | EASA. There are 3 open categories of flight A1, A2 and A3 with different restrictions depending on the class of a drone: C0 – max 250g, C1 – max 900g etc. and level of your drone operator/pilot license. You can find the details here: Open Category - Low Risk - Civil Drones | EASA
If you are a non-EU visitor read the requirements here:
I am a non-EU visitor / drone operator ‘open’ category | EASA.
You will have to register as a drone operator in the first European country you are going to fly and pass an online test – easy and fast for A1 and A3 category, more advanced for A2 category of flight.

Apart of European rules, there can be additional restrictions in particular countries. Check also here:
AUSTRIA: dronespace.at die Austro Control Drohnenplattform - EN
GERMANY: Drone Laws in Germany | UAV Coach (2023)

In both countries there are many no-drone zones or restricted zones, especially in towns and over or close to popular places like castle. You can download applications which tell you restrictions in the place you are.
German: DRONIQ - Droniq App - Drone App "Where can I fly my drone?"
Austrian: AustroControl - dronespace.at die Austro Control Drohnenplattform - Austro Control Dronespace

Though I live in Poland and I have high, even BVLOS European drone operator and pilot license, especially flying in Germany and Austria is a real nuisance. Even if I know my rights, the police or guards usually don’t know the complicated drone laws and rarely speak English.
So even if I check the place is legal for my flight, I do everything to avoid anybody. I start from a place where I can’t be seen, make photos and videos as quickly as possible and disappear. And in case of e.g castles, I chose the time where the place is closed, and most people sleep, usually at 5-6 AM. Also the sunrise light is wonderful then. But you can do it only in summer. In December it will be impossible. And I usually look for the correct place to start my drone a day before with my car. If you travel by train, you will be less mobile, and you will probably be mainly in no-fly or restricted zones.

It’s my experience. I hope helpful for your decision to fly or not to fly in Germany and Austria.
BTW, in e.g. Poland, England or Italy it’s much easier to fly drones legally with much less problems.

This is good info.

 

[kilhan]

If you don’t need high altitude, only to take photos above a crowd, high wall or other distractions, a good alternative in no-fly zones is a long selfie stick, extended up to 3 meters, where you can place your phone, light mirrorless camera with a radio pilot or even a light drone without propellers (if you find the way to fix it). There are many such extended sticks or poles on e.g. Amazon