Travel to Cologne, Brussels or Amsterdam by ICE trainTravel by ICE

The booking period can vary from one type of train to another. The main international trains at a glance:

• Eurostar, ÖBB Nightjet, ICE, IC-Bus and other Deutsche Bahn trains: booking possible 6 months before travel.

• Thalys, TGV Lyria, Nightjet, Thello and Trenitalia trains: booking possible 4 months before travel.
  Exception for Thalys seasonal services: for Thalys Snow to the French Alps, booking possible from the end of the summer for the whole ski season. For Thalys Sun to the south of France, booking possible from the end of the winter for the whole summer season (date to be specified each year).

• TGV^®: booking possible 3 months before travel.
  Exception: TGV^® early bird sale for travel in winter periods (Christmas and ski season) and summer periods (July and August). For these periods, the date of the early bird sale is to be specified each year.

• "Conventional" international trains (InterCity or regional trains): buying tickets without booking a seat, particularly to the Netherlands, Lille or Luxembourg, is possible 335 days (11 months) before travel. But unlike the other trains mentioned, there are no restrictions on the various fares on these "conventional" trains, so these are available up to the last minute.

Exception: every year in mid-December, different European rail companies simultaneously amend their train services, with new timetables taking effect more or less throughout Europe.

On certain rail networks (particularly in Germany), the new timetables for mid-December are only confirmed and published at some point during October. When this occurs, bookings for rail travel from mid-December onwards can also only be made after a given date in October.

If you have an ICE 1^st class ticket for the same day (or a 1^st class ticket for an InterCity train run by Deutsche Bahn), you can use the DB Lounge at your station of departure or your station of arrival, if they have these lounges.

DB Lounges are pleasant relaxing spaces, offering a Wi-Fi connection, meeting rooms, a self-service bar offering hot and cold drinks, along with a selection of international newspapers and magazines.

You can find DB Lounges at the following stations:

Berlin Hbf, Bremen Hbf, Dresden Hbf, Essen Hbf, Frankfurt/M. Hbf, Frankfurt/M. Flughafen Fernbahnhof (Frankfurt Airport Railway Station), Hamburg Hbf, Hannover Hbf, Köln Hbf (Cologne), Leipzig Hbf, Mannheim Hbf, München Hbf (Munich), Nürnberg Hbf (Nuremberg), Stuttgart Hbf

It depends on the fare paid for the ICE ticket.

If you chose the Flexpreis fare, which is flexible, your ticket is valid on any train on your route during the period of validity stated on the ticket (one day for electronic tickets covering a distance under 100km, two days for electronic tickets with a distance over 100km, and four days for conventional paper tickets issued at railway stations).

If you opted for the Supersparpreis, Supersparpreis Europa or Sparpreis Europa saver fares, your ticket is only valid on board the IC or ICE train(s) selected when the ticket was purchased, the train number of which appears on your ticket. However, if you travel on a regional train for part of your journey, your Sparpreis ticket is valid on any regional train of your choice.

The validity of your ticket (as described above) is completely unaffected, whether or not you decide to reserve a seat on board one or more ICE trains.

If you take the ICE train between Belgium and Germany at the Supersparpreis Europa or Sparpreis Europa saver fare, your ticket price remains the same, regardless of whether you are travelling to/from Brussels, Liège, Antwerp, Ghent, etc. When booking your ticket, please specify your actual departure or arrival station in Belgium so that your ticket continues to be valid on SNCB trains in Belgium.

In all cases, simply select your actual station of departure or arrival (e.g. Bruges, Ostend or Mons) instead of Brussels Midi/Zuid. Our booking system will then automatically offer you the appropriate ticket.

Important notice: each rail operator is only responsible for its own section of the journey. 

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Unlike most high-speed trains, InterCity and regional trains in Belgium and the Netherlands do not require a reservation. For these trains, you get an open ticket, valid on board any train on the date shown (at any time of day) and on the route as indicated on your ticket. Great flexibility!

Similarly, on IC and ICE trains run by Deutsche Bahn, seat reservation is optional. Consequently, most tickets for journeys in Germany do not necessarily show the time either. Remember though, that the Supersparpreis, Supersparpreis Europa and Sparpreis Europa economy fares do require you to use the specific train you chose when buying your ticket. In this case, the train number and time of departure are shown on your ticket.