Buying train ticket to Berlin from Munich

If a German city has multiple stations, the main one, where the long distance trains stop, is always called "Hauptbahnhof", abbreviated to "Hbf".

Go to the DB website ( https://www.bahn.com/en/view/index.shtml )
From: München Hbf (type "Muenchen" if you haven't got a ü on your keyboard)
To: Berlin Hbf
Date: Sun, 09.06.19 (9th June)
Time: When do you want to leave Munich?
Click on "Search".

Return: only select this if you want to go back to Munich as well.
Bahn card: You probably don't have one of these.

I see a 06:57 departure, arrive Berlin 11:29, cost €79.90 2nd class
Next few trains are more expensive (peak hours), then 09:55, arrive 14:24, is only €59.90

Personally, I wouldn't bother with first class, unless you get a good deal it isn't worth double the price.

Choose "Zoologischer Garten Bahnhof (S+U), Berlin"
I would book return journeys separately when using saver fares. No return journey.
If you have no BahnCard, select "No BahnCard".

And sorry to correct #1 in this very specific case:
It is important when booking Super Sparpreis to choose the concrete S-Bahn station and not general Hbf because you are allowed to use S-Bahn for free if right destination stands on the ticket (not other means of public transport, in Berlin operated by BVG).
Source: https://www.bahn.com/en/view/offers/germany/super-saver-fare.shtml
2nd checkmark.

Ticket inspection on that 3 stations of S-Bahn is likely.

And 1st class is definitely worth it to me.

Good luck.

It is important when booking Super Sparpreis to choose the concrete S-Bahn station and not general Hbf because you are allowed to use S-Bahn for free if right destination stands on the ticket (not other means of public transport, in Berlin operated by BVG).
Source: https://www.bahn.com/en/view/offers/germany/super-saver-fare.shtml
2nd checkmark.

I think this is wrong: I could not find anything in the official terms and conditions that excludes a Super Sparpreis from the "Tarifliche Gleichstellung" (tariff equivalence). Neither could the DB customer service, see https://community.bahn.de/questions/1752986-super-sparpreis-tarifliche-gleichstellung (though this seems to be controversial, and not all ticket inspectors may agree - so your advice to book from Berlin Zoologischer Garten makes perfect sense).

@chris-s: imo my info is fully correct for 2 reasons.

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Reason 1 (corrected version): "Die "preisliche Gleichstellung" is valid for Super Saver Fare because price stays the same if you book journey to different S-Bahn arrival destinations in Berlin but it is also standing very clearly on the English website I posted (checkmark 2) and also more than clearly on the German website for this offering.
"Mit dem Super Sparpreis können Sie nur auf der gebuchten Verbindung reisen. Die Angebote werden innerhalb Deutschlands im ICE IC/EC und im IC Bus (reservierungspflichtig) angeboten. Züge des Nahverkehrs (z.B. RE, RB, IRE oder S-Bahn sowie Züge nichtbundeseigener Eisenbahnen) können Sie für die Anreise zum Bahnhof und Weiterreise zum Zielort nutzen, wenn Sie diese mitgebucht haben." = ""Use of local public transport (RE, RB, IRE, S-Bahn) is also possible if specified at the time of booking""
Source: https://www.bahn.de/p/view/angebot/sparpreis/sparpreis19euro.shtml

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Reason 2 (corrected version): The tariff equivalence works from general named destinations (= Sammelbezeichnung, e.g. "Berlin") to detailed S-Bahn destinations within 100 km circle (=gleichgestellte Bahnhöfe, e.g. "Berlin Zoologischer Garten") in the area but not if an earlier printed on ticket destination end up validity of the ticket, in this case "Berlin Hbf" which is before reaching "Zoologischer Garten" by different local S-Bahn train from there.

If "Berlin" stands on the ticket you can travel through to the S-Bahn stations listed here:
https://www.bahn.de/p/view/mdb/bahnintern/agb/tarifliche_gleichstellung/mdb_265892_gleichstellungen_20171210.pdf

@MarkK

Please look up

https://community.bahn.de/questions/1740796-tarifliche-gleichstellung-gunstigen-tickets-neuen-super-sparpreises

There is stated by a DB representative that Supersparpreise don't fall under the category Aktionsangebot and the "Tarifliche Gleichstellung" applies to them as well.
Apparently, the tariff regulation were not completely thought through before publication. Mayby we will have to consult a Pythia before boarding a train in the next few weeks or so.

Yes, thanks for that one and sorry for posting the info with campaign specific which was wrong in that context.

In total it supports what I tried to say. The tarifliche Gleichstellung is valid but needs to be booked concretely as destination when booking Super Saver Fare which means ...

A) the price is the same if you book from Munich to Berlin Hbf or from Munich to Berlin Zoologischer Garten (tariff equivalent even if additional S-Bahn train)

B) if only "Berlin" is standing as destination on the ticket you have the choice from the stations mentioned in linked pdf.

C) if you continue a journey (e.g. to Berlin Zoologischer Garten) beyond a concrete mentioned station (Berlin Hbf) you have to pay extra.

Reminder for readers: This regulation is only valid for S-Bahn, RE or RB trains, not for subway, tram or bus.

Hope, we have sorted it out now :-)

To answer the easy parts of your question:

If you only want a one way trip, leave the "Return Journey" area blank.

For the Bahn Card section, choose "No Bahn Card."

For the dates, be careful. I don't know how it works in Singapore, but in the US, 9/6/19 would be September 6, 2019, while in Germany, it would be June 9, 2019. Be sure to choose the one you need, since you are getting a non-refundable ticket.

Teo,

You've received lots of good advice so far. I have a few thoughts to add.....

• I assume your end destination is Bahnhof Zoo as you're staying at a hotel in that area?
• It would help if you could clarify your date. Are you using the European date method of DD.MM.YYYY and travelling on 9 June?
• The train from Munich to Berlin Hbf will be a high speed ICE version, which looks like this - https://goo.gl/images/G3mezs . The trip from Berlin Hbf to Bahnhof Zoo will be via S-Bahn, which looks something like THIS.

I can't provide any details on the different fares, as I'm not as familiar with fares in Germany, and that's already been covered well by the experts here.

If I were making that trip, I'd probably use the train departing Münich at 09:54, arriving Berlin Hbf at 14:24 and Bahnhof Zoo at 14:40. They currently show Saver Fares at 59.90€ for that train, which seems like a good price. You might have noted that the ICE arrival at Berlin Hbf is shown as "tief". As I recall, that means the train is arriving at the lowest level of the station, so you'll have to use the escalators or lifts to get up to the top level where the S-Bahn departs from. It sounds a bit complicated but it's actually very easy.

One other point to note is that you could also purchase tickets for trains in Germany at https://www.trainline.eu/, which sells tickets at the same price as the rail networks. Registration on the website is required, including payment information, but after that the process is very user friendly. One advantage of using Trainline is that they sell tickets for rail networks in several countries in Europe (France, Italy, Spain, etc.), so it's a good website for "one stop shopping", should you be traveling to other countries.

First, I believe that the tarifliche Gleichstellung (equivalent fare) applies to the fare only. That is, from a sufficiently remote station, the full and Sparpreis fares will be the same to any of the equivalent stations. I don't think it means that you can use the tickets interchangeably between equivalent stations. For instance, a ticket from Frankfurt to Munich will cost the same whether you specify the Hbf or Marienplatz, but that doesn't mean you can buy a ticket to the Hbf but go on by S-Bahn to Marienplatz. I've never confirmed this with the Bahn. However, since full fare and Sparpreis tickets now include city tickets, it really doesn't matter for them. From Marienplatz to Berlin Zoo Bahnhof, the SuperSparpreis is 29,90€ online from the Bahn, but from Munich Hbf to Berlin Hbf it's 25,90€, so there it does matter.

I be travelling from Munich on June 09 ,2019 to Berlin.

I be leaving Berlin on the 11 June,2019 to Rothenburg- ob-der-tauber.
Leaving Rothenburg-ob-der-tauber on the 13 June ‘2019 to Munich.

So do I need to input the return ticket?

I be leaving Berlin on the 11 June,2019 to Rothenburg- ob-der-tauber. Leaving Rothenburg-ob-der-tauber on the 13 June ‘2019 to Munich.
So do I need to input the return ticket?

No, a return is if you are going from A to B, and back to A again. You need two separate tickets, Berlin --> Rothenburg ob der Tauber on 11th June, and Rothenburg ob der Tauber --> Munich (München) on 13th June.

Re your original question. Do you actually want to go to Berlin Zoo station? If not, where is your hotel (what is the nearest station). The long distance trains stop at Berlin Hbf, then you get a local train (U-Bahn, S-Bahn) to your final destination.
Same in Munich, long distance train to München Hbf, then U-Bahn or S-Bahn.

You need two separate tickets, Berlin --> Rothenburg ob der Tauber on 11th June, and Rothenburg ob der Tauber --> Munich (München) on 13th June.

And I'd preebook a saver fare ticket for 6/11 (walk up fares are hefty) and a Bayern ticket bought on the spot for 6/13. You can use that ticket on regional trains only and only after 9am. But using regional trains takes only 40 min longer and a BT is only €25 for two against approx €60 for the ICE. And there are connections with only two easy transfers, viz. in the small stations of Steinach and Treuchtlingen, while long distance traffic goes through the large station of Nuremberg and implies always three transfers.