DB Train Delays and Transfers

I was planning on taking the train from Nuremberg to Rothenburg for a daytrip, but to do that I would need to make 2 transfers. Is that still a good idea if the DB trains are notoriously late?

These are regional trains and have a much better on-time record than national trains. Just go with it. It is a VGN Tages Ticket which is good for the whole day.

What happens if the high speed train from Berlin to Hannover gets delayed so I miss the connecting high speed train from Hannover to Amsterdam? Would I have to buy another ticket in that situation, or is DB responsible for that since it was their train delay that would have cause the problem?

You just board the next train, which could be awhile. If you have seat reservations, just get them changed for free in the Hanover train station. The IC trains to Amsterdam go every 2 hours, but if I look at a April 24 departure at 7:45 from Berlin, you have 28 minutes in Hanover, which is a healthy cushion. They will often hold departing trains if the inbound is late. The transfer is on platform 12, so you get off the inbound train and wait for it to depart, then your connecting train arrives and you get on.

What is your exact date of travel? I see some trains are direct from Berlin Lichtenberg station.

The current problems with long-distance trains have nothing to do with local transport, which runs largely smoothly (punctuality rate over 90%). Nuremberg - Rothenburg: There are easy changes at the small station in Ansbach and the tiny station in Steinach. At least in Steinach the train to Rothenburg is waiting in case the Ansbach train is delayed. Buy a VGN ticket "Tagesticket Plus", which is valid for the whole day or the whole weekend and on every local train (and also on the alternative routes Nuremberg - Ansbach - Dombühl - Rothenburg or Nuremberg - Neustadt/Aisch - Steinach - Rothenburg). Berlin-Amsterdam: If your train arrives late in Hanover, the train commitment of a saver fare ticket is automatically cancelled and you can continue your journey on a train of your choice. Standard tickets are not subject to train commitment anyway.

Some interesting reading
https://www.dw.com/en/germany-a-third-of-long-distance-trains-delayed-in-2023/a-67964403
https://www.theguardian.com/business/2023/oct/14/its-the-same-daily-misery-germanys-terrible-trains-are-no-joke-for-a-nation-built-on-efficiency

I would say go to Bamberg over Rothenburg regardless! Especially if you’re a beer fan.

Both long distance and local trains were terrible on my trip last fall. However I wouldn’t be too concerned about going from Nuremberg to Rothenburg

Thank you for the suggestion to buy TagesTicket Plus to travel from Nuremberg to Rothenburg. I hadn't heard of it until it was mentioned here.

I was going to buy a Bayern Ticket, but is the TagesTicket Plus still the better choice if its for a group of 4 adults?

For Bayern Ticket for 4 people, that would cost 49 euros.

For the TagesTicket Plus, I'm not sure if I'm calculating the costs correctly.

Which price level do I select?
Is it A, Nurnberg?

Since its 4 adults, I'd need to buy two TagesTicket Plus so the total price is 28.60 euros?

And, on the train, how do you keep track of which stop you'd need to get off of? (I live in Southern California, and never deal with trains or public transportation)

I know I'd need to get off and transfer trains on Ansbach and on Steinach, but I'm worried I might not realize that's the stop to get off until its too late.

Is there something on the train that will tell you what the next stop is going to be, or is the passenger entirely responsible for keeping track of the upcoming stations?

You want a VGN TagesTicket Plus, Price Level 10. You need 2, so that would be 47.80 EUR for 4 adults. A Bayern Ticket for 4 people Would be 59 EUR and you would have to wait until 9 am on weekdays to use it.

Rothenburg and Bamberg and Nuremberg are in the Verkehrsverbund Grossraum Nuernberg, VGN, or Greater Nuremberg Transit Authority. So that is who sells local transport tickets.

Most cars have a digital display with the next station "Nächste Halte...XXX". It will also be announced on the PA in German, and often in English. So keep your ears open. You can also print out a cheat sheet with all the stations on the line and follow along. After a while, you'll get the hang of it.

Trains often have some kind of display or information screens onboard that show information like upcoming station(s), current time, temperature and sometimes other information. There are also announcements made over for upcoming stations. And you can use the time to know when you have get off. If it says on your ticket that your train arrives e.g. 16:47, then you know that unless the train is delayed you need to leave the train 16:47. If you are unsure you can also ask other passengers or the staff onboard.

Also note that trains don't hang around in stations more than needed, so when it arrives at your station you need to be ready.

I know I'd need to get off and transfer trains on Ansbach and on Steinach, but I'm worried I might not realize that's the stop to get off until its too late.

The easiest way is to download the DB app (DB Navigator). Then call up your connection, tap on "Train information" and then you can follow the route of your train with all stations live.

• The station directly before Ansbach is "Wicklesgreuth" - if you are travelling with RE 90 (e.g. Nuremberg dep. 8:37) or "Sachsen" - if you are travelling with the slower S4, which has more stops (e.g. Nürnberg dep. 9:21).
• The station directly before Steinach is "Burgbernheim-Wildbad"

You want a VGN TagesTicket Plus, Price Level 10. You need 2, so that
would be 47.80 EUR for 4 adults. A Bayern Ticket for 4 people Would be
59 EUR and you would have to wait until 9 am on weekdays to use it.

Just want to add that a Tagesticket Plus is valid for both Saturday and Sunday if you buy it for Saturday.

Also, the VGN zone within which you are allowed to travel with the Tagesticket Plus, while significantly smaller than the zone of the Bayern Ticket (which covers all of Bavaria) is still pretty large. Here's a map of it with VGN destinations you can reach:

https://images.gutefrage.net/media/fragen-antworten/bilder/459443150/0_full.jpg?v=1655930239000

This map shows the VGN zone and the other local transport associations within Bavaria (Bayern.)

https://www.oberpfalz-aktuell.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/222-2.jpg

Basically you should never have to pay extra because of something the railway did. Your ticket is for a route. If you have a ticket Berlin - Amsterdam you do not have a ticket for a Berlin - Hannover train and another for a Hannover - Amsterdam train, you have a ticket that is a proof that you paid to be allowed on trains on the Berlin - Amsterdam route.

It is true that you usually nowadays start a ticket purchase by picking a train from a schedule (I can still remember when all you did was enter origin and destination...) but that does not always mean that you need to take that schedule. And even if you did buy a discounted ticket that is tied to a schedule, the moment the railways make it impossible for you to follow that schedule your ticket defaults to "good for any train on the route".

So there is no need to plan in extra buffer usually. I would only do that if you are connecting to a train that only runs once a day ( like a night train).