We are flying into Dusseldorf and need to take a train to Frankfurt Airport. There, a shuttle will pick us up to go to the hotel. However, we would like to take the train from Dusseldorf down the Rhine river to the airport in Frankfurt. Could someone please take me step by step as to how to do this? ( the name of the train, where to get the train, etc.) The trip is getting closer and I'm getting more nervous each day. We arrive in July. In case you were wondering :), we have a direct flight from Ft. Myers FL to Dusseldorf at half the cost to go right into Frankfurt per ticket. Thanks Tom
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
Without knowing what time your flight arrives, we can't give you exact instructions. But in general, you'll want to get on a train heading in the direction of Koblenz, and from Koblenz, head towards Frankfurt Flughafen via either Mainz or Wiesbaden. You can get one ticket that covers the whole route, but you'll need to either use the kiosks to print out an itinerary (they're easy to figure out), or ask someone at the Reisezentrum (ticket desks) to print out your desired itinerary. If you just take a train directly to Frankfurt Flughafen, the default option will likely be the extremely fast but less scenic ICE route from Köln to the airport.
Posted by
Lakewood, Colorado
19092 posts
Use the German Rail website to find schedules. Put in from: Duesseldorf Flughafen, to: Frankfurt Flughafen, and use Koblenz as the stopover (no stopover time needed, just need to go through Koblenz). Make sure you use "Flughafen" (airports), not just the city name.
Just a technicality, the Rhein River flows to the Northwest, so from Koblenz to Frankfurt, you will actually be going UP the Rhein.
You will be shown two fares. The advance purchase discount fare, Savings Fare, is a non-refundable, train specific ticket. That is not a good idea if you are arriving on a trans-Atlantic flight that could be late. You can order a fully flexible standard ticket online and print the ticket (.pdf file) at home. Then, no matter when the flight arrives, you can take any connection that uses the same classes of trains (ICE, IC, regional, etc) on the same routes, or, just buy the ticket at the airport in Düsseldorf when you arrive.
Posted by
Green Bay
20085 posts
When you say "we", I assume there will be at least 2 of you. You can travel to FRA from DUS using a "Quer durch Land" ticket if you use local trains and travel after 9 am (if a week day, otherwise anytime). There are trains every two hours from the Airport Station with only a single connection in Koblenz that travels along the Rhine, and does it in 3 hours and 45 minutes. The QdL ticket is priced at 44 euro for the first person and 8 euros for each additional person. You don't need to worry if your flight is late, since it is unreserved. the change time in Koblenz is 20 minutes, so no rush there. Looks like the flight from Ft Myers arrives 7 am. The train times are 8:50, 10:50, 12:50, 14:50. the 8:50 is out unless you arrive Sat or Sun. There are also other itineraries at different times with more changes and taking a bit longer.
There is an elevated "sky train" at DUS that will take you to the Airport Train station. There is also a separate "Terminal" train station that runs to Duesseldorf Hbf.
Posted by
Frankfurt am Main, Germany
2779 posts
If you do not travel via Koblenz the fare isn't that much more expensive BUT the total journey time is just 90 minutes. It'll be a very comfortable bullet train.
What I would do is book the train ticket well in advance to get the best fare BUT not to book a special or restricted ticket. The non-restricted ones allow you to take any train on the booked day - and trains run every hour!