Alternative routes by train
Compulsory seat reservation
In summer 2025 from 28 May to 31 August, seat reservation is compulsory on ICE, Intercity Berlin and the seats in Nightjet to Zürich. This reservation is free if you select it while booking your train ticket.
If you want to travel without ICE to Germany or Eurostar to Paris, you can do so on the alternative train routes below.
Buy train tickets
Want to travel without ICE or Eurostar to Paris? That is possible on alternative train routes from the Netherlands. If you want to buy tickets for these routes, you can do so online. Sometimes you can book the whole route online with one ticket, sometimes you have to cut the route into several parts.
Do you have an Interrail Pass and want to travel without a reservation? Then you can travel with the trains below:
Routes to Germany
Amsterdam - Venlo - Düsseldorf - Frankfurt
- Take the domestic Intercity from Amsterdam Central to Venlo; if you are departing from Utrecht, take a train earlier, otherwise the transfer is tight in Venlo.
- Take a regional train from Venlo to Düsseldorf
- Take the ICE from Düsseldorf to Frankfurt
Travel time: 4.55 hours
Amsterdam - Arnhem - Duisburg - Frankfurt
- Take the domestic Intercity from Amsterdam Central to Arnhem
- Take a regional train from Arnhem to Duisburg
- Take the ICE from Duisburg to Frankfurt
Travel time: 5.25 hours
Amsterdam - Heerlen - Aken - Frankfurt
- Take the domestic Intercity from Amsterdam Central to Heerlen
- Take a regional train from Heerlen to Aachen
- Take the ICE from Aachen (sometimes with a change in Cologne) to Frankfurt
Travel time: 5.15 hours
The direct connection to Intercity Berlin is also very popular. To avoid the peak traffic on both ICE International and Intercity Berlin, you can also opt for the following alternative:
Amsterdam - Hengelo - Osnabrück - Berlin
- Take the domestic Intercity from Amsterdam Central to Hengelo
- Take a regional train from Hengelo to Osnabrück
- Take the ICE from Osnabrück to Berlin
Travel time: 6.50 hours
Amsterdam - Arnhem - Duisburg - Berlin
- Take the domestic Intercity from Amsterdam Central to Arnhem
- Take a regional train from Arnhem to Duisburg
- Take the ICE from Duisburg to Berlin
Travel time: 7.46 hours
Routes to Germany and Switzerland
Amsterdam - Venlo - Düsseldorf - Basel
- Take the domestic Intercity from Amsterdam Central to Venlo; if you are departing from Utrecht, take a train earlier, otherwise the transfer is tight in Venlo.
- Take a regional train from Venlo to Düsseldorf
- Take the ICE from Düsseldorf to Basel
Travel time: 7.55 hours
Amsterdam - Arnhem - Düsseldorf - Basel
- Take the domestic Intercity from Amsterdam Central to Arnhem
- Take a regional train from Arnhem to Düsseldorf
- Take the ICE from Düsseldorf to Basel
Travel time: 8.25 hours
Amsterdam - Münster - Basel
- Take the domestic Intercity from Amsterdam Central Station to Enschede
- Take the Regionalbahn to Münster
- Take the ICE from Münster to Basel
July only, travel time: 9.35 hours
Routes to Belgium - Antwerp
You do not need a seat reservation for the Eurocity Direct train to Belgium. If you want cheap last-minute travel, the alternative route via Roosendaal may be cheaper. Also, the trains are sometimes less crowded.
- Travel via Roosendaal to Antwerp and beyond
Route to France - Paris
Even to Paris, you can travel by Interrail without reserving a seat in Eurostar. The route is then:
- Amsterdam - Antwerp - Kortrijk - Lille Flandres - Amiens - Paris Gare du Nord
Travel time: 8.28 hours
Measures ICE International summer 2024
This year, in cooperation with Deutsche Bahn, we are taking measures to improve the ICE schedule.
Measures crowded trains Intercity Brussels
We are taking measures this summer to distribute the available capacity as fairly as possible and manage the crowds on trains crossing the border.