Champions League group stage: How Newcastle United fans can get to Dortmund, Paris and Milan from the North East

Thursday evening’s Champions League Group Stage draw was a hugely anticipated event for Newcastle United fans and the draw played up to expectations with the club being drawn against three of the largest names in modern European football.

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French champions Paris St Germain, Italian giants AC Milan and German icons Borussia Dortmund will all be playing Newcastle United home and away as part of the group stage this year, which will run from September until mid December, but how easily can fans head to the three European destinations?

Paris

Daily flights run between Newcastle Airport and Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, which is the largest international airport in France. At the time of writing direct flights are significantly more expensive than options with various stops so fans on a budget may want to consider flying via Bristol or Belfast which offer cheaper links between the North East and the French capital.

Dortmund

Although there are no direct links between Newcastle and Dortmund, Germany’s public transport make the trip relatively easy. At the time of writing fans can fly from Newcastle airport to Cologne every Monday and Friday or to Dusseldorf every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The Wednesday flights are only available during the summer seasons however.

Trains between Cologne and Dortmund take up to an hour and a half while trains between the Westfalenstadion and Dusseldorf take just under an hour. Most fans will need to change at Dortmund Hauptbahnhof in the city centre for a more direct train to the stadium.

Milan

Milan is a popular destination from the North East and is often one of the cheapest options to fly to from Newcastle Airport. Flights between the two cities run every Tuesday and Saturday at the time of writing.