First time taking trains in Germany - first class vs standard

Have a look at the Man in Seat 61 website for discussions on 1st vs 2nd class seats. In all my trips I've never paid extra for 1st class and have never been uncomfortable. IMO, train seating on the intercity trains are a hundred times more comfortable than your average plane seat. (Only slightly exaggerating). On German trains, reservations aren't usually required on the intercity trains . But if you are travelling at a busy time, or if the website indicates that your train has high occupancy, a reservation will ensure you can sit, and wont have to stand in the aisle. Regional trains have NO reserved seats.

I'm not sure I understand your last question. When you book a ticket, you book the whole trip, even if it involves one or more changes of train. No different than booking a flight that involves one or more connections. If you buy ahead, and at least one of the trains is NOT a regional train, then you may be able to secure a discounted ticket at sometimes considerable savings from the same day price. But those discounted tickets are nonrefundable and tied to that specific train. Again, read up on the Man in Seat 61 for more info on the different ticket types.

When you buy a long distance ticket (ICE, IC, EC) that includes a regional connection, you have the option of taking any regional train that day. For instance, if you take a train from A to C, that has an ICE train from A to B and a connection to a regional train B to C, you can take any regional train that day from B to C. This most useful when buying discounted nonrefundable tickets as it can give you a free stopover in B with the time of the stopover at your option.

I have taken 1st class when it is only a small increase over the 2nd class price. This happens only if you buy nonrefundable tickets well in advance. A seat reservation costs 4.50 EUR for a second class seat, but is included with 1st class. So if you can get a 1st class nonrefundable ticket for only 10 EUR more, it is well wort it.

Thank you both for your quick responses. I will certain check the website and educate myself on the differences among trains and seating arrangements. My husband seems to think that first class seats might provide more rack room for luggage although we will have only 20" carryons and backpacks neither of which take up a lot of room; but I guess on a crowded train, that might make a difference. We aren't on a rigid schedule, so we can choose a train midday that might not be as crowded as an earlier or later one.

CJean, I just checked the Man in Seat 61 website and it is fantastic. Thank you for much for sharing that info. Beside the Germany trip early in the year, we will be going to Italy in the Fall and need some really good information about train travel there. Very grateful for your suggestion.

The first time I went to Europe was on a company trip, and the company got us 1st class rail tickets, always. One night I was the only one in a 1st class coach from Offenburg to Heidelberg.

The next trip was on my own dime, and I had a 2nd class rail pass. I decided I preferred the interaction with locals I got in 2nd class, and since then, even when the company was paying for it, I rode in 2nd class.

There are two kinds of trains in Germany, long distance trains (ICE, IC, EC) and regional trains (RE, RB). Only long distance train have reserved seats. My rule of thumb is get a reservation only if your time on a train is more time than you would want to stand, otherwise don't bother.

Once on a December 26 (2nd day of Christmas) I was standing on an ICE without a seat reservation. All of the seats were occupied but only a few were actually reserved. Half an hour after starting, we arrived at a major hub, and a lot of people got off. Before others got on, I was able to find an unreserved seat.

On routes that include a local train to your final destination, if you purchase a ticket for the entire route (including a high speed train part of the way), it will include a ticket for the local train. You won't have to buy it separately.

I would never buy a ticket for a local train in advance. It's too easy, and no more expensive, to buy it at travel time.

Thank you so much, Lee. Your description is clear and concise and much appreciated. I don't feel quite as intimidated as previously to make the reservations now.

glassygal, if you were to lay out some or all of the train trips you have in mind we could give you specifics, and in many cases, ways to reduce the price further. For example if your travel is within one bundesland (state) there are huge savings to be made...

I always take the ICE or IC trains first class. I get the ticket early enough that the difference between first and second class usn’t that much, especially with the seat reservation.

I traveled by train in Germany for 3 weeks last year and the only time I paid extra for first class was once, and that was only because it was only a few Euros more. Otherwise, I stick with 2nd class and have never found it uncomfortable. But as others have noted, it definitely pays to buy your long-distance train tickets from Deutsche Bahn as far in advance as possible, for the best cost savings. For regional and local trips, you can wait to buy those on the day of travel or shortly beforehand. This link will allow you to search for the best routes in English: https://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en

I also find it easiest to purchase the tickets online after setting up an account. And if you download the DB Navigator app, the tickets will automatically show up there. That way you have the tickets on your phones, you don't have to worry about losing paper tickets, and you can just show the QR code to the conductor. The other advantage is that DB will notify you via the app if there are any last minute changes to the route, or even the track number.

The Man in Seat 61 is as mentioned a very good source of information. First class will give you a bit more space, but second class is perfectly fine. There is plenty of space for luggage in both first and second class, so that is not a reason for buying first class tickets in my opinion. Smaller luggage fits nice on the shelves above the windows. For your trips the main legs will probably be on ICEs, DB has a couple of different versions of ICE-trains but on the interior they are pretty similar.

Seat reservations can be a good idea if travelling when it's busy, but there is usually not that hard to find free seats on ICEs if you avoid rush hour.

I don't know what you mean by adding a Bahn ticket. Are you looking at some strange third party site? If so, skip that site and buy your tickets direct from DB, www.bahn.de I'd recommend booking your entire trip in one ticket. So from Hamburg to Berlin, you will take an ICE from Hamburg Hbf to Berlin Hbf (probably), but buy a ticket from e.g. Hamburg Dammtor to Berlin Friedrichstraße, or whatever stations are closest to where you are staying. Or pay a bit extra for a ticket that includes a Cityticket.

Nigel: According to another thread they are travelling Berlin-Leipzig, and hopefully Hamburg-Berlin and Leipzig-Frankfurt as well. So I think ICEs are the best option.

Nigel: According to another thread they are travelling Berlin-Leipzig, and hopefully Hamburg-Berlin and Leipzig-Frankfurt as well. So I think ICEs are the best option.

Yes, that thread started out as a question about whether a back-pack could be considered a personal item, and morphed into the amazing discovery that there were passenger trains in Germany and you didn't have to fly every where.

thanks Badger - if those are the only trips I agree with you

First class saver fares do not include seat reservations, it is extra.
First class flex fares do include seat reservations, in the ticket price.
https://int.bahn.de/en/trains/first-class

I will start out saying I have not traveled in Germany in a number of years. I've started booking First Class in many instances since Covid. I decided I was less anxious if I was in a train car with fewer people. I certainly don't mean that the passengers in First are any less likely to have a communicable disease, but I feel like my exposure is to fewer people. That might not bother you at all!

I do take public transport in big cities where you are packed in like sardines but when I can manage it I like more open space.

but when I can manage it I like more open space.

me too

Most of the 2nd class trains I took last month were standing room only

I think it depends on when you go. I traveled throughout the month of May, and the only route that had standing room only in second class was the route from Hamburg to Copenhagen.

We usually reserve 2nd class tickets when available to avoid standing for part of the journey. We’ve been on very crowded trains in Germany in recent years and we’re glad we had reservations. The situations that caused trains to be over crowded were beginning of a holiday, sports event happening we weren’t aware of and once when a train broke down near Munich and all of those people were put on our train yikes!

When we started traveling again in 2022 we booked 1st class on all of our German trains on our month long trip because, as mentioned above, you may find the compartment less crowded and that was a consideration then. The comfort level of first and second class isn’t a factor for us. As said above, they are so much more comfortable and relaxing than air travel.

Okay, Badger, I admit that it may have sounded like I didn't know there were passenger trains in Germany, but that's not the case. I really, really do know that Germany has some pretty good transportation. What I was having trouble with was understanding the train schedules, especially when I put it an obvious destination (Hamburg-Berlin) and got back a message that there were no trains for that route. Absurd; but as I posted previously, I may have been looking too early.

When I asked about "bahn", it was because when I went on the DB website and put in the date of our travel, it asked our age and then there was a box that said "No discount" with a drop down menu choice of Bahn card 25 1st class; bahn card 25 2nd class, etc. I had no idea what that meant and when I tried to search, I came up with nothing. In the States, for example, if one buys a ticket for the Long Island Railroad to go from NYC to a suburban town, one has the option of getting a "Metro Card" for use on the NYC subways and buses. I thought that maybe the "Bahn Card" was similar, but I had no idea and no way of finding out. So, no, Bahn was not some third party booking company.

I did take your advice to cancel the Hamburg-Berlin flight so I need to buy a train ticket for that leg. I already have a train ticket for Berlin-Leipzig and I'll need to get a train ticket for the Leipzig-Frankfurt leg. Other than those two train reservations, I think my travel within Germany is secure.

It would be nice to learn from the seasoned travelers which trains are the best to take between those cities and if there are any discounts available as was previously mentioned if the travel is within states. At any rate, I do appreciate all the comments and suggestions.

I do realize that the ICE trains are probably the ones we'll go with, but I am going to see if I can get the tickets to a station closest to our hotels.

This is information about the BahnCard 25 scheme- https://int.bahn.de/en/offers/bahncard

It is a subscription scheme, so is unlikely to work for you- but look at it and do the maths. Only you can make the decision

For travel within each state on regional trains there traditionally were the Lander tickets, but those are really supplanted presently by the 49Euro monthly Deutschland ticket for the whole country (there are many threads on the forum about that, and how to buy it).

There is also the national daily regional trains 44 Euro Quer-durchs-Land-Ticket

For details of the above see https://int.bahn.de/en/offers/regional?dbkanal_003=L07_S07_D002_KAF0001_14964_INTERNATIONAL-REGIONAL-EN-125632_LZ01&et_uk=27e50d7d28cb44ec96102c1c20ab8a6a

Note all the above are on regional trains NOT the fast ICE or IC/EC services.

Okay, Badger, I admit that it may have sounded like I didn't know
there were passenger trains in Germany, but that's not the case.

It was Sam who wrote that the thread resulted in discovery that Germany has train.

When I asked about "bahn", it was because when I went on the DB
website and put in the date of our travel, it asked our age and then
there was a box that said "No discount" with a drop down menu choice
of Bahn card 25 1st class; bahn card 25 2nd class, etc. I had no idea
what that meant and when I tried to search, I came up with nothing.

A Bahn card is as has been mentioned a discount card. You can buy a Bahn card 25 that will give you a 25% discount on all train tickets for a year. There are also Bahn card 50 and Bahn card 100. For your trip, they will not make sense, the card will cost more than you will save by having it. So simply choose "No discount".

I did take your advice to cancel the Hamburg-Berlin flight so I need
to buy a train ticket for that leg. I already have a train ticket for
Berlin-Leipzig and I'll need to get a train ticket for the
Leipzig-Frankfurt leg. Other than those two train reservations, I
think my travel within Germany is secure.

Great choice, you will not regret it!

It would be nice to learn from the seasoned travelers which trains are
the best to take between those cities and if there are any discounts
available as was previously mentioned if the travel is within states.

For those trips, I'd suggest the direct ICEs. And since the cities are in different states, the Ländertickets will not be of any use.

but I am going to see if I can get the tickets to a station closest to
our hotels.

In Leipzig, book a hotel within walking distance of the central station and you will be fine. But Berlin and Hamburg are much larger cities.

One final (I hope) question: would it be beneficial for us to purchase a Deutschland-ticket for €49 each which will give us access to all local transportation for one month rather than pay the individual fares? Since I don't know how much each local trip would cost, I'm thinking that the D-ticket might be a good option. It's a recurring monthly subscription, but it can be cancelled after the first month. In NYC, the fare is $2.75 for all local subway trains and buses, so it's easy to figure out if a pass is a good purchase; but if the fare is based on distance traveled, then I really have no way of knowing if the D-ticket is a good idea. It definitely would be more convenient. Is there an average fare within a city? Actually that's two final questions.

One final (I hope) question: would it be beneficial for us to purchase
a Deutschland-ticket for €49 each which will give us access to all
local transportation for one month rather than pay the individual
fares?

Short answer, it depends on how much you plan to travel. You have to do the maths and see what is the best option. It's hard to say without knowing your plans.

Is there an average fare within a city?

No. In Berlin, a single ticket for zones A and B is €3.20, or €2.20 for a short trip. But you can also get a 24 hour ticket for €9.50, and there are other options as well. In Leipzig a single ticket is €2.10, but most of the city can be seen on foot so you might only need an occasional tram ride.