Edwin Wong: A Trip To Essen - Not Just To Play Games!

As we were attempting to round up Malaysian gamers to visit Spiel’06 this year, many lamented they they just couldn’t justify the cost of the trip via-a-vis the savings they would get from buying games at the fair, despite the very low prices (compared to import prices due to custom duties when these games come into the country).

I’m certain, many gamers from other parts of Asia, where interest in eurogames is growing rapidly, also shared the same concerns

Well, let me share with you, why you should NOT look at a visit to Essen as merely “playing games for 4 days”, but rather a GREAT German vacation for under RM4,000 (USD1,100)…

Firstly, let’s see what gamers in Malaysia can buy for RM4,000.

1) World of Warcraft - RM329, 2) Twilight Imperium - RM329, 3) Here I Stand - Rm329, 4) War of the Ring - RM259, 5) Railroad Tycoon - RM259, 6) ViktoryII - RM259, 7) Caylus - RM239, 8) ElGrande - RM219, 9) Fire in the Sky - RM219, 10) Primordial Soup - RM219, 11) Cleopatra - RM219, 12) Seismic - RM179, 13) Villa Paletti - RM159, 14) Der Untergang von Pompeji - RM159, Dungeon Twister - RM139, 15) Havoc - Rm99, 16) Heck Meck - RM65…

As you can see, that’s quite a lot, despite the high import duties and shipping costs!

Based on this, many gamers feel that they would have to sacrifice an equivalent of the above (which in many cases, amounts to 2-3 year’s purchase of games) in order to go to Essen, with no returns other than the discounts available. Assuming they could get games at an average of 50% lower than Malaysian retail price (eg. If Caylus was EUR25, that would represent a 50% savings), they would have to buy RM8,000 worth of games to justify their cost!

It would be quite easy to see then, why noone made the trip other than media representatives and tournament participants!

However, when we enquired how much they spent on vacations, we get a very different outlook. Many of them, especially the working professionals, take at least a local vacation break every other month. A weekend break (2 nights) would cost around RM500 including food and accommodation. In addition, many take at least one trip overseas (usually to US, Europe or North Asia).

This prompted me to ask why they never considered going to Essen for a vacation? The universal answer? 4 days of gaming would definitely NOT meet the approval of the spouse!

Well, consider this then…
1) Direct flight from Kuala Lumpur to Frankfurt. 12 hours. RM3,000 (USD1 = RM3.7; EUR1 = RM4.7)

2) Arrive in Frankfurt, rent a car and drive to Heidleberg. EUR30+ a day for car. <1 hour drive.

3) Heidelberg: Beautiful university town, with historic castles (it is part of the German castle route) and breathtaking views, and a store selling the most beautiful handcrafted wooden Christmas ornaments (a walk through the store is like a ride on Disneyland’s Small World!!). EUR60+ for a night’s accommodation.

4) 3 hour scenic drive to Essen, or a 2 hour high speed adventure on the autobahn! A priceless experience for Malaysians to drive WAY above the local speed limits!!!

5) Arrive in Essen. Accommodation from EUR60+, but higher at Movenpick Hotel (EUR80-120) though worth every euro! It’s right in downtown Essen, next to the shopping mall, so lot’s to see and do. More than 2 km of shops in a “small town” setting. Pizza from the subway station at EUR1.80 to all-you-can-eat asian lunch/dinner at EUR15. Great value!

6) Gamers and their kids will, of course, have a great time at Spiel, but there is enough downtown to keep the spouse happy for 4 days!

7) If the spouse runs out of things to do, skip the fair on Saturday (since it is the most crowded day, and therefore most unproductive), and spend the day instead at downtown Dusseldorf. Only 40 minutes drive, no spouse should be complaining once they hit Konigstrabe, the fashion capital of Germany. There are enough LVs, Guccis and Pradas to make up for the first two days of the fair, and to give you the all-important passport for the last day, where prices drop on many games towards closing time!

8) Depart Essen, drive to Mainz. 2 hours. Need to ship goods back before departing? No problem. The post office is just opposite Movenpick, and the hotel will gladly lend you their trolleys to wheel all your boxes over!

9) Arrive Mainz. WOW! Couldn’t imagine a more beautiful place than Heidelberg, but here it is! While the former is a university town with an imposing castle as it’s backdrop, Mainz is more akin to a medieval town, complete with cobblestone streets, tudor buildings and awesome churches! With all the shopping done, and money spent, Mainz is the perfect place to just take in the fresh air (unfortunately not much of that back home), have cappucino by the cobblestone streets and plan for next year! Accommodation in Mainz from EUR60+.

10) Depart Mainz for Frankfurt airport. 40 minutes. Yes, it’s that close!

So, why shouldn’t you have your next family vacation in Germany? For under RM4,000, you get historical sites, breathtaking views, medieval towns, river cruises, fine crafted wooden Christmas ornamants, collectible dolls, and the latest designer fashion thrown in to boot, it’s actually CHEAP!!! And the fact that you get to sneak into Spiel for 3 (or more) days is a real bonus!

A Spiel vacation must never be viewed as 4 days of gaming. In reality, it’s no different from a golfing holiday, shopping trip or a gourmet tour. It’s about exploring new places, meeting new people and enjoying your interest at the same time, offering the whole family an unforgettable vacation!

Unfortunately, Spiel is over, so you’ll have to wait for another year. However, it is a good time to grab some pictures from the internet on Heidelberg, Mainz, etc, and announce that the family will be taking a well deserved vacation to Germany from 18-21 October next year!

Alternatively, if you can’t wait so long, you can go to Nurenberg in February. I hear there are very nice towns between Frankfurt and Nurenberg (about the same distance as Frankfurt to Essen), which also happens to be on the “toy route”, so you could get away by planning the greatest vacation for your kids ;)

See you in Nurenberg!

© 2006 Edwin Wong

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