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Germany by train. There's no check-in, walk into the station, glance at the indicator board to find your train & hop on, any time before departure... |
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Buy German train tickets online direct from DB at www.bahn.de...
I recommend buying direct from Deutsche Bahn with all the cheap fares shown, no booking fees and print-at-home or show-on-phone tickets. Tip: Register when prompted, so you can log in and check or re-print your tickets at any time. |
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Inter-city train tickets from €12.90...
Deutsche Bahn (German Railways) high-speed IC and ICE trains are easily the best way to travel between major town & cities all over Germany, in comfort at ground level. DB's ICE trains travel at up to 186 mph from city centre to city centre, and if you pre-book direct with the operator you can find some really cheap fares.
Train travel within Germany...
DB's discount card: Bahncard25, Bahncard 50
Deutschlandticket - €49 for a month's travel on
regional trains
Quer-durchs-Land-Ticket: €44
for 1 day unlimited regional travel
Lander tickets: Unlimited train travel in one
region
Bayern Ticket: €27 for
1 day unlimited travel in Bavaria
Schönes-Wochenende-Ticket: discontinued
Maps of the German rail network
Travel tips: Luggage, food & drink, lounges...
How to
visit Neuschwanstein
Castle
How to visit the Harz steam railway & Brocken
How to visit Obersalzberg & Eagle's Nest
Useful country information:
currency, dial code...
Hotels & accommodation in
Germany
International trains to & from Germany...
Trains to Germany from other European
cities
Trains from Berlin
to other European cities
Trains from Hamburg
to other European cities
Trains from Cologne &
Düsseldorf to other cities
Trains from
Frankfurt to other European cities
Trains from Munich
to other European cities
Munich to Prague by train not bus
Station guides...
Berlin Hbf station information
Cologne Hbf station information
Hamburg Hbf station information
Munich Hbf station information
General train travel information...
General European train travel
information
Eurail passes &
Interrail passes
Useful country information
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Train operator in Germany: |
DB (Deutsche Bahn), see www.bahn.de for train times, fares & online tickets within Germany. All-Europe train times Berlin S-bahn information Berlin U-bahn information Motorail - taking your car |
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Railpasses: |
Beginner's guide to European railpasses Buy a rail pass online |
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Time zone: |
GMT+1 (GMT+2 from last Sunday in March to last Saturday in October). |
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Dialling code: |
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+49 |
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Currency: |
£1 = approx 1.15 euros Check current exchange rates |
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Tourist information: |
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Hotels & guesthouses: |
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Page last updated: |
11 January 2023 |
How to check train times, fares & buy tickets...
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To check times & prices and to buy tickets in advance go to the German Railways website www.bahn.de (on a mobile device, use this link).
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Anyone from any country can use bahn.de, all international credit cards accepted, you print your own ticket or can simply show it on your laptop or phone.
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Tip: I recommend registering when prompted, so you can log in, check all your bookings and re-print your tickets at any time.
Do you need to buy tickets in advance?
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No, for regional trains - the ones marked R, RE, M, ALX & so on in the search results on www.bahn.de. Regional trains have one fixed price with unlimited availability and no reservations necessary or possible. Treat them as you would a city metro: Turn up, buy a ticket and hop on the next train. They cannot 'sell out'! If you're making multiple journeys, there are some regional train passes explained here.
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No, for longer distance trains - the ones marked IC, ICE, EC and so on in the search results on www.bahn.de - if you are happy paying the relatively expensive Flexpreis = fully-flexible standard price. These full-fare tickets have a fixed price, unlimited availability and cannot sell out. they are valid on any train that day, a seat reservation isn't necessary but can be made as an 'optional extra' for a small fee, around €5.
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Yes, for longer distance trains if you want to save money with cheap advance-purchase fares - cheap Sparpreis (saver) advance-purchase fares are offered if you book in advance, this which varies from €12.90 upwards depending how far ahead you book and how popular that train, day or date is. If you buy one of these cheap fares you can only travel on that specific train, limited refunds and no changes to travel plans.
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For example, Frankfurt to Berlin costs over €125 with a Flexpreis if you buy on the day of travel, but starts at just €17.90 upwards (meaning it could be €17.90, €29.90, €49.90, €69.90, whatever) if you book in advance. So book ahead!
When does booking open?
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Booking now opens up to 6 months ahead for German domestic tickets.
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It was increased to 6 months from the previous 92 days in 2016. However, the booking period is often less than this for dates immediately after the timetable changes at midnight on the 2nd Saturday in December. Bookings for dates after the mid-December timetable change, including the Christmas period, usually open in mid-October.
Flexpreis or Sparpreis?
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If you use www.bahn.de to book a long-distance train it initially shows the cheapest fare available against each train.
If you click on that fare, you'll then see a range of fares, Super Sparpreis, Sparpreis, Flexpreis & Flexpreis Plus.
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Flexpreis & Flexpreis Plus are full-price flexible fares. They can be bought online or at the station on the day of travel at the same fixed price. They are refundable, good for any train that day, just hop on and find any empty unreserved seat, seat reservation on long distance IC, ICE & EC trains is optional for a small extra charge, around €5. The Flexpreis Plus fare has slightly better validity & refund conditions than the normal Flexpreis, and seat reservations are included.
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Sparpreis & Super Sparpreis fares are limited-availability advance-purchase fares, from €12.90, €19.90, €29.90, €39.90 and so on, depending on how far ahead you book and how popular that date, day and train is. Spar is German for save. Sparpreis & Super Sparpreis fares only allow travel on the specific train you book - although if your journey involves a connecting regional train, you can use any regional train on the regional part of the route. Prices vary like air fares, rising as departure approaches and the cheaper tickets are sold. They disappear a few days before departure, leaving only the Flexpreis & Flexpreis Plus fares.
Super Sparpreis = no refunds, no changes. Sparpreis fares are refundable (although for a DB credit voucher, not cash) up to the day before departure with a small fee deducted, no changes or refunds allowed from the day of departure onwards.
- Children go free! On DB trains, children under 6 go free, no ticket needed. Children over 6 but aged under 15 also go free if they travel accompanied by a fare-paying adult, a great offer. Book your tickets at www.bahn.de and it will work all this out for you.
Only one passenger name is needed...
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Only one name is necessary as I.D. to support a print-at-home ticket, even if that ticket covers several passengers.
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No ID is necessary if you select tickets by mail, as conventional train tickets have no names on them and need no ID.
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Incidentally, until 2016 you had to show the credit/debit card used for the booking when using print-at-home tickets. I'm glad to say that this changed in October 2016, all you now need is a passport or other recognised ID to support a print-at-home online ticket. You may or may not be asked for it by the conductor.
Tips for using www.bahn.de...
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Stopovers. If you'd like a stopover en route, but still want a cheap saver fare from end to end, no problem. Go to www.bahn.de and enter your start and end point, simply click Stopover, enter the place where you want to stop off, enter the number of hours stopover and off you go. Maximum 2 days validity with a Sparpreis fare.
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Alternatives to using bahn.de: Bahn.de is one of the best train operator sites, but if for any reason you want an alternative site which can also book DB trains at DB prices, try these two:
Raileurope.com has a direct connection to DB's ticketing system so it sells the same trains, same prices, same print-at-home tickets at Bahn.de, but with a small booking fee. It accepts all international credit cards so can be used by anyone from any country. Raileurope.com also connects to the French, Italian & Spanish ticketing systems so can easily book multi-operator journeys such as Munich to Naples (which involves DB and Trenitalia) or Frankfurt to Bordeaux (which involves DB and SNCF). Raileurope.com is also capable of splitting the booking to book some cross-Germany journeys (for example, Brussels to Poland) for which you'd have to manually split the booking at some logical point within Germany if you wanted to use bahn.de.
www.thetrainline.com also has a connection to DB's system, so can sell print-at-home tickets (but not those which need to be posted) for DB train at the same prices as DB, but with a small booking fee.
Competing private operator: Flixtrain...
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Almost all long-distance trains in Germany are operated by Deutsche Bahn (DB), the State-owned German Federal Railways. But there is now one other long-distance operator worth mentioning.
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Flixtrain, www.flixtrain.com, or use multi-operator booking site www.thetrainline.com. Flixtrain has taken over the one daily train Berlin-Cologne-Heidelberg-Stuttgart previously run by Locomore and the Cologne-Osnabruck-Hamburg trains previously run by HKX. Flixtrain offers cheap tickets, even if the competing DB trains are more frequent and faster.
Buy tickets by phone in the UK...
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If you live in the UK you can buy German train tickets direct from Deutsche Bahn on their English-speaking telesales line, 00 49 (0)30 311 68 29 04. Lines open 08:30-20:00 Monday-Friday, 09:00-13:00 Saturday & Sunday UK time, 1.5% fee for phone bookings.
Custom-made tours of Germany by train...
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Railbookers are a train travel specialist who can put together a tour of Germany for you as a package, including rail travel, hotels & transfers. On their website you'll find a range of suggested tours & breaks which can be varied or customised to your own requirements. And as you're booking a package, they'll take care of you if anything happens to one part of the itinerary such as a strike or delay. They now have offices in the UK, USA & Australia.
UK call 0207 864 4600,
www.railbookers.co.uk.
US call free 1-888-829-4775,
www.railbookers.com.
Canada call free 1-855-882-2910,
www.railbookers.com.
Australia call toll-free 1300 971 526,
www.railbookers.com.au.
New Zealand call toll-free 0800 000 554 or
see
website.
DB's discount card: Bahncard 25, Bahncard 50...
What are Bahncards?
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DB has a range of discount cards called Bahncards. You buy a card and it gives discounts on normal fares for (in most cases) 1 year. It may justify the price even for one or two longer trips, especially if made close to departure date when fares would normally be expensive.
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You get the discount on German domestic journeys, and on international journeys to, from or across Germany.
However, for international journeys the discount will not normally be the full 25% or 50% as the reduction is not necessarily applied to the part outside Germany (test it before buying a Bahncard to see what actual effect a Bahncard has - see my top tip below).
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Man in Seat 61's top tip: Before buying a Bahncard, run an enquiry for the journeys you actually plan to make, using www.bahn.de (a) as normal and (b) with a Bahncard 25 or Bahncard 50 discount added. See what it does to prices. If you see no difference, the discount may not apply to your particular journey. If you see a difference, do the savings justify the cost of the card?
Types of Bahncard...
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Bahncard 25 lasts for 1 year and gives 25% off Flexpreis (full-price), Sparpreis and Super Sparpreis (advance-purchase) fares. The Bahncard 25 is the range of cards overseas visitors should consider as savings may justify the cost even for just a few journeys to, from or within Germany.
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Trial Bahncard 25 lasts for 3 months, after which it is automatically renewed as a normal 1-year Bahncard 25 unless your subscription cancelled in writing at least 6 weeks before. The discount can justify the cost even for one trip to Germany involving a few train rides, as long as you remember to cancel.
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Youth Bahncard 25 is a cheaper Bahncard 25 for travellers aged 6 to 18. It lasts 5 years, or until your 19th birthday, whichever is sooner.
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Senior Bahncard 25 is a cheaper Bahncard 25 for older travellers aged 65 and over, lasting 1 year.
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Bahncard 50 lasts 1 year and gives 50% off Flexpreis (full-price) fares and 25% off Sparpreis/Super Sparpreis (advance-purchase) fares. It costs several hundred euros so is only of use to regular travellers.
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Bahncard 100 gives unlimited travel for a year, this costs thousands of euros.
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Each type of Bahncard can be bought for either 2nd class or 1st class.
Check prices & buy a Bahncard...
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Check prices & buy online at www.bahn.com//en/offers/bahncard.
Anyone of any nationality can buy a Bahncard. After you buy, a hard-copy plastic Bahncard is posted to you at any address worldwide. However, you can also upload a digital Bahncard to the DB Navigator app and start using it immediately on your phone.
You can use your Bahncard to buy discounted tickets at www.bahn.de, www.thetrainline.com or www.raileurope.com.
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Bahncards renew automatically each year unless your subscription is cancelled in writing at least 6 weeks before.
Special regional tickets
These one-day unlimited travel passes are well worth knowing about, even though they're not valid on fast long-distance trains, only on slower regional trains. If you want a railpass valid on all trains, including high-speed and long-distance ones, see the German Rail Pass section below.
Deutschlandticket: A month's unlimited travel on regional trains €49...
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Starting April 2023 Germany will offer a €49 ticket for a month's unlimited travel on regional trains all across Germany.
This is the successor to the popular (but temporary) €9 day ticket created after the pandemic to ease the cost-of-living crisis. Unlike the €9 ticket, the Deutschlandticket will be a permanent product, sold as a cancellable rolling 1 month subscription, good for regional trains run by DB and by other operators across the whole of Germany, but not valid on faster ICE, IC or EC trains.
Update: There are now rumours that the Deutschland ticket won't be available from April or May, but later. The launch date is not known.
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More details (in German only at the moment) at www.bahn.de/angebot/regio/deutschland-ticket.
Quer-durchs-Land-Ticket: Unlimited regional off-peak train travel, €44...
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The Quer-durchs-Land-Ticket gives a day's unlimited travel from 09:00 weekdays or from 00:00 Saturdays & Sundays, until 03:00 the following morning on all regional & regional-express trains (RE, RB, IRE, S-Bahn) throughout the whole of Germany.
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The first traveller pays €44, each additional passenger pays just €7 to be added to the same ticket, up to a maximum total of 5 passengers.
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You can't use fast IC, ICE or EC trains, only slower regional trains, so a long-distance journey which could be made on a fast direct IC or ICE train could be very slow and involve several changes if made using purely regional trains. But it can be a very cheap way to go, especially if you haven't been able to book a cheap advance-purchase ticket for an ICE or IC train.
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For more information (but only in German, so use Google Chrome browser's automatic translation feature), see www.bahn.de/..../startseite-topangebote-QDL_LZ01.
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To buy a ticket online and print it out yourself, click the 'Book now' link on www.bahn.de/.../startseite-topangebote. I strongly recommend registering when prompted, so you can log in, check your bookings and re-print at any stage. Alternatively, these tickets can also be bought on the day of travel from the self-service ticket machines at German stations, although it costs €2 more if you buy from a staffed counter.
Lander tickets: A day's unlimited regional train travel in one region, e.g. Bavaria...
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A bargain worth knowing about! Each region of Germany offers a Lander Ticket giving unlimited travel on regional trains in that region, meaning RE, RB, IRE & S-Bahn, but not long-distance IC, EC or ICE trains. There's more information at www.bahn.de/en/view/offers/regional/regional-day-tickets.shtml.
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You can buy a Lander ticket online at www.bahn.de/en/view/offers/regional/regional-day-tickets.shtml and print it out or simply show it on your phone or laptop, or you can buy at the station on the day, but it costs €2 more if bought at a staffed travel centre rather than online or the self-service ticket machines. If you buy online, I recommend registering when prompted, so you can log in, check your bookings and re-print at any stage.
Bayern ticket: Munich, Füssen (Neuschwanstein castle), Berchtesgaden (Eagle's Nest), Salzburg...
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The Bayern Ticket (Bavaria Ticket) is the Lander ticket to buy for day trips from Munich to Salzburg, Munich to Füssen (for Neuschwanstein castle) or Munich to Berchtesgaden for the Eagles Nest.
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It costs €27 for a solo traveller or €36 for 2 people travelling together or €45 for 3 people or €54 for 4 people or €63 for 5 people.
Or go 1st class for €39.50 for 1 person, €60.50 for two, and so on.
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It gives unlimited travel on regional & inter-regional throughout Bavaria for a whole day, on weekdays from 09:00 until 03:00 the following morning, and all day on Saturdays, Sundays & public holidays from 00:00 until 03:00 the following morning.
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It also covers most Bavarian buses, including the bus between Füssen station and Hohenschwangau for Neuschwanstein castle.
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Buy online at www.bahn.com//en/offers/regional/regional-day-ticket-for-bavaria.
Alternatively you can buy at the station on the day from the self-service machines, or for an extra €2, from the ticket office.
City Mobil: Urban city transport added to your inter-city rail ticket.
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When booking online to many major German cities, you are often offered a City Mobil add-on for a few euros, with choice between a single ticket or a day ticket. If City Mobil is available in that city, it will appear after you select your train and proceed past the seat reservation stage. The single ticket option gives one trip on urban bus, tram or U-bahn transport to a destination within that city within 2 or 3 hours of your arrival. A day ticket gives unlimited travel on the urban bus, tram & U-bahn network in that city.
Schönes-Wochenende-Ticket: Discontinued...
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The Schönes-Wochenende (Happy Weekend) ticket used to give a whole day's unlimited travel on regional and regional-express trains throughout the whole of Germany on either a Saturday or a Sunday but DB discontinued this ticket in June 2019.
Railpasses for Germany
Interrail Germany pass: Click to check prices & buy online...
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If you are a European resident (but live outside Germany) you can buy an Interrail pass for Germany giving a choice of 3, 4, 6 or 8 days unlimited travel on all Deutsche Bahn trains within an overall 1 month period. You can choose 1st class or 2nd class.
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To explain that a bit more, when you buy the pass you choose the date on which the overall 1 month validity starts, and you choose how many days you want to buy, either 3, 4, 6 or 8. You then 'spend' each of these unlimited travel days on any date you like within that 1 month validity period simply by writing the date in one of the boxes printed on the pass. You can make as many journeys as you can cram in on each day, there is no limit (that's what unlimited means).
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The pass is valid on all DB trains, including the high-speed ICE trains and fast IC and EC trains. It's also valid on a few small private regional operators, but not private operators Flixtrain or InterConnex.
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In Germany, there are few if any reservation fees to pay, and (unlike France) no quotas for passholders. In 99% of cases you just write the date in your pass, then hop on any trains you like spontaneously with no reservation or extra fee payable. Germany is therefore one of the countries where passes retain their flexibility and convenience, unlike (say) France, Italy or Spain.
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Is a pass better value than point-to-point tickets? Well, an adult 6-day 2nd class pass costs £268, that works out at £45 (€51) per day. You could go online at www.bahn.de 2-3 months ahead and buy a long-distance train ticket in advance from just €12.90 upwards, limited refunds or changes to travel plans. But imagine you wanted to make two such journeys a day, not one. Or didn't book 3 months in advance, so are now seeing higher prices, perhaps €69.90 or €89.90 fares online at www.bahn.de? Or simply want flexibility, and don't want to commit to specific trains with a no-changes no-refunds ticket in advance? Then a pass can be great value.
German Rail pass...
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Alternatively, if you are resident outside Germany, you can buy a German Rail Pass Flexi giving a choice of between 3 & 15 days unlimited travel on all Deutsche Bahn trains within an overall 1 month period. You can choose 1st class or 2nd class. There are also German Rail Passes giving between 3 & 15 consecutive days travel, but the Flexi passes mean you don't need to be travelling every day.
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When you buy a German Rail Pass Flexi you choose the date on which the overall 1 month validity starts, and you choose how many days you want to buy, any number between 3 and 15. You then 'spend' each of these unlimited travel days on any date you like within that 1 month validity period simply by writing the date in one of the boxes printed on the pass. You can make as many journeys as you can cram in on each day, there is no limit (that's what unlimited means).
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The pass is valid on all DB trains, including the high-speed ICE trains and fast IC and EC trains. It's also valid on a few small private regional operators, but not private operators Flixtrain or InterConnex.
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In Germany, there are few if any reservation fees to pay, and (unlike France) no quotas for passholders. In 99% of cases you just write the date in your pass, then hop on any trains you like spontaneously with no reservation or extra fee payable. Germany is therefore one of the countries where passes retain their flexibility and convenience, unlike (say) France, Italy or Spain.
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Is a pass better value than point-to-point tickets? Well, an adult 7-days-in-1-month 2nd class pass costs €294, that's €42 per day. You could go to www.bahn.de 2-3 months ahead and buy long-distance train tickets from just €12.90 upwards, limited refunds or changes to travel plans. But imagine you wanted to make two or three such journeys a day, not one. Or didn't book months in advance so are seeing higher prices, perhaps €69.90 or €89.90 at www.bahn.de? Or simply want flexibility, and don't want to commit to specific trains with a no-changes no-refunds ticket in advance? Then a pass is great value.
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You cannot buy a German railpass if you are resident in Germany.
Maps of the German rail network...
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Interactive map of the German railway network (please let me know if the link stops working)
What are German trains like?
InterCity Express (ICE): More info...
InterCity Express high-speed trains, usually known as ICE, are German Railways' front-rank trains, travelling at up to 175mph (ICE1 & ICE2) or 186mph (ICE3). You'll find information about ICEs on the ICE page.
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ICE1 or 2, 2nd class |
ICE1 or 2, 1st class |
An ICE2 at Berlin Hauptbahnhof. |
InterCity (IC): More info...
InterCity trains travel at up to 125mph, usually using a locomotive and conventional carriages. Some InterCity trains cross borders into neighbouring countries and these will be classified EuroCity (EC) rather than InterCity.
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InterCity trains are now being refurbished with similar seating to ICEs. Virtual tour of InterCity train... |
2nd class. You'll also find a few compartment coaches on InterCity trains and a bistro or restaurant car... |
1st class, often available in both open-plan saloons like this and in compartments. |
Regional trains...
Regional trains are sometimes operated by Deutsche Bahn (DB, German Railways) or sometimes outsourced to a private operator such as Abellio, Metronom, Erixx, but still run as part of the national network, with tickets sold by DB at www.bahn.de. They come in many different shapes and sizes, some single-deck, some double-deck.
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Seats on a double-deck regional train... |
DB Regio double-deck regional train at Hamburg... |
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DB Regio regional train on a rural route... |
2nd class seats on a rural DB Regio train... |
Seat numbering plans: Click here...
There are several types of ICE, for plans of the seating layout on IC, ICE and various other types of train in Germany see the Train seat numbering page.
Travel tips...
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Train formation poster or Wagenstandsanzeiger, on a German station platform, showing where along the platform each car of a train will stop, so you can be waiting in the right place when your train comes in! |
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Maps of the European rail network: See the section on the Train travel in Europe page about rail maps.
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Language problems: First-time visitors often think this will be a problem, but it hardly ever is. At stations, signs are usually in English as well as German, or they use easy-to-understand pictograms. On-train announcements on long-distance trains are often made in English as well as German.
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Food & drink on German trains: Most long-distance trains have at least a bistro car serving tea, coffee, wine, beer & snacks from a counter, with some tables nearby if you'd want to eat and drink in the bistro car rather than take it back to your seat. See sample ICE bistro menu. Many German long-distance trains have a proper sit-down waiter-service restaurant car. In first class on ICE you'll often be asked if you want to order food or drink, and it will be brought and served at your seat.
Alternatively, feel free to bring your own food and drink (even a bottle of wine, if you like) onto the train, there's no rules against that on the rails.
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Luggage on trains: There are no baggage fees or weight limits, and you don't check your bags in, you simply take them with you onto the train, placing them on the racks at the end of each car or amongst the seats, or above your head. It's usually possible to keep all your bags in sight. More information about luggage on trains.
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Should you reserve a seat or not? Reserving a seat is optional on most German trains. You can add a reserved seat to your booking for around €5, when buying a first class ticket it may be free. If you don't reserve, you simply sit in any empty unreserved seat. Small LED displays above each seat show which seats are reserved between which stations, and which seats are free. Travelling alone, middle of the day, mid-week in February, you'll have plenty of seats to choose from. But a family group, travelling on a Friday afternoon in July would be well advised to reserve seats. And for any long journey it's best to be on the safe side and reserve. You can make a seat reservation separately (i.e. after buying your ticket) simply by going to www.bahn.de and clicking the Seat only (no ticket) link right at the bottom.
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On the train's LED seat reservation displays above each seat:
ggf. reserviert - this means the train's on-board reservation system hasn't been updated with the latest information from the main DB reservation system. Usually all of the seats show this message if this happens. Seat reservations are still valid, but cannot be shown on the LED displays, so you can sit in these seats but you could be asked to move if someone shows up with a reservation.
ggf. freigeben - this is a last-minute reservation seat. You can sit in it if you like, but will have to move if someone shows up with a reservation.
bahn.comfort - travellers holding a frequent traveller BahnCard have priority for these seats. You can sit in these seats but someone with a BahnCard may show up and claim it. Though how they'd know you didn't have a BahnCard and so ask you to move is another question!
Schwerbehinderte means that seat is reserved for people with disabilities.
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First class lounges at stations: There are lounges for first class passengers at Berlin, Bremen, Dresden, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Frankfurt Main Airport, Hamburg, Hanover, Cologne, Leipzig, Mannheim, Munich, Nuremberg, Stuttgart. Just follow the signs to the 'DB Lounge'. Most are open roughly 07:00-21:00 daily, search www.bahn.de for details. The lounges offer complimentary tea, coffee, soft drinks, beer & snacks. Unfortunately, since December 2019 only expensive 1st class full-flex Flexpreis tickets give you lounge access, not cheaper 1st class Sparpreis fares or 1st class railpasses.
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Left luggage at stations: All German stations other than the very smallest have left-luggage lockers in various sizes, up to suitcase-sized. More information on left luggage lockers & prices.
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Bicycles: Bikes can be carried on all German trains if semi-dismantled & placed in a bike bag, they then travel as ordinary luggage.
Undismantled bikes are carried on most suburban & regional trains, you need a Bicycle Day Ticket (Fahrradtageskarte) which you can buy online at www.bahn.de (use the site search to find it) or at stations for a few euros.
Undismantled bikes are also carried on most InterCity trains, ICE-T & ICE4 trains for a fee as these have been fitted with bike racks, prior reservation required. Undismantled bicycles are not carried on high-speed ICE trains other than ICE-T & ICE4.
To find a train that will take you and you bike, use the online timetable at www.bahn.de and tick the carriage of bicycles required box. Within Germany, you can book a bike space and buy your ticket online this way, too. For more information, see the bicycles by train page.
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Dogs & pets: Dogs can be taken on all German trains, sometimes free, sometimes for a small fee. For more information, see the dogs & pets page.
Places not served by the main rail network...
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Neuschwanstein, Germany's fairytale castle: See details here.
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Eagles's Nest: See details here.
Recommended guidebooks
Take a good guidebook. For independent travel, the best guidebook is either the Lonely Planet or Rough Guide. Both guidebooks provide an excellent level of practical information and historical and cultural background. You won't regret buying one!
Buy online from Amazon.co.uk or Amazon.com
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Or buy the Lonely Planets from the Lonely Planet website, with shipping worldwide. Alternatively, you can download just the chapters or areas you need in .PDF format from the Lonely Planet Website, from around £2.99 or US$4.95 a chapter.
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Tours of Germany by train
If you want to tour Germany by train, with all your train reservations and hotels sorted for you to your own specification, contact rail travel specialists Railbookers and they'll create the best rail holiday for you, hassle-free. Unlike some overseas travel agents, they really do know all about train travel in Italy and right across Europe, and they know some excellent hotels, too. They take good care of their clients and it's not surprising they get a lot of repeat business, so I have no hesitation in recommending them.
UK call 0207 864 4600,
www.railbookers.co.uk.
US call free 1-888-829-4775,
see website.
Canada call free 1-855-882-2910,
see website.
Australia call toll-free 1300 971 526,
see website.
New Zealand call toll-free 0800 000 554 or
see website.
Find hotels anywhere in Germany...
AirBnB: www.airbnb.com...
www.airbnb.com began in 2008 when two designers who had space to share hosted three travellers looking for a place to stay. AirBnB is a platform which connects hosts with guests, so you can now book a room in people's homes, or an apartment, flat or house which people want to rent out. It can be nicer than a hostel, cheaper than many hotels.
Backpacker hostels: www.hostelworld.com...
www.hostelworld.com: If you're on a tight budget, don't forget about backpacker hostels. Hostelworld offers online booking of cheap private rooms or dorm beds in backpacker hostels in Paris and most other European cities at rock-bottom prices.