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Germany’s new DB timetable brings more trains but higher prices

Deutsche Bahn's new train timetable comes into force on Sunday, bringing more long-distance and international trains and price increases for some tickets.

Published: 10 December 2023 12:24 CET

Employees walk past ICE high-speed trains that are standing still in Munich's main station.

Employees walk past ICE high-speed trains that are standing still in Munich's main station. (Photo by Michaela Rehle / AFP)

There will be more frequent services on the routes between Berlin and North-Rhine Westphalia, between Berlin and Munich, and between Leipzig, Jena and Nürnberg, plus there will be a second direct ICE high-speed service between Berlin and Vienna.

The Saale valley area in Saxony-Anhalt will now have five IC train connections a day, compared with just one previously.

Magdeburg will also get its first connection to Hamburg and more direct services to Berlin and Rostock.

In a joint initiative with Austrian national rail services and other rail companies, Deutsche Bahn is also offering a night-train service between Berlin, Brussels and Paris three times a week.

READ ALSO: Why are German train stations among the ‘worst in Europe’?

The first of these so-called Nightjets will depart from the capital on Monday evening.

Tickets for the new timetable from 10th December have been available since October, but price increases come into effect on Sunday, making the ‘flexi tickets’, which give passengers more choice as to which train to take, 4.9 percent more expensive on average.

The price of the Bahncard 25 (which gives a 25 percent discount on every booked train journey) has also gone up – it now costs 3 euros more at 62.90 euros per year.

However, the Bahncard 50 (which cuts the price of single tickets in half) and saver and super-saver tickets remain the same price.

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Passengers in Germany urged to prepare for crowded airports over holiday weekend

The next major rush after Easter is coming up at German airports.

According to the airport association ADV, more than 2.5 million passengers are set to travel over the Whitsun long weekend.

Whit Monday or Pfingstmontag on May 20th is a public holiday across Germany, meaning most people have the day off work while shops will be closed. As the holiday falls on Monday, Germans often take a trip to make the most of the long weekend – or even take some annual leave around this time to extend their time off.

This year’s outlook on air passengers signals a five percent rise compared to last year. “The traffic development over the long Whitsun weekend shows that the desire for holiday travel is unbroken,” said ADV Managing Director Ralph Beisel.

Due to the rush, German airports are advising passengers to allow significantly more time to plan for their travel day.

“For a relaxed start to their holiday, passengers should not only allow more time on the way to the airport on the day of departure, but also plan a time buffer for their stay at the airport,” said a spokesperson from Munich Airport.

Passengers are advised to check in online before departure and to use online check-in for their luggage along the drop-off counter at the airport if possible.

Airports have also urged people flying to cut down on the amount of hand luggage they take so that going through security is faster.

Despite rising numbers, air traffic in Germany is recovering more slowly than in the rest of Europe since the Covid pandemic, according to the ADV.

Following the pandemic, location costs in Germany – in particular aviation security fees and air traffic tax – have doubled.

READ ALSO: Everything that changes in Germany in May 2024

“This is not without consequences,” said Beisel, of the ADV. “The high demand for flights from private and business travellers is offset by a weak supply from the airlines.”

READ ALSO: ‘Germany lacks a sensible airline policy’: Is budget air travel declining?

Passenger traffic at Frankfurt airport – Germany’s largest airport – in the first quarter of 2024 was also 15 percent below the pre-coronavirus year 2019.

In addition to snow and ice disruption at the start of the year, air travel from Frankfurt was particularly hit by various strikes, including by Lufthansa staff and other airport employees.

However, Fraport said it had increased its revenue in the first quarter of the year by around 16 percent to €890 million.

READ ALSO: Summer airport strikes in Germany averted as Lufthansa cabin crew reach pay deal

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