anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Posted 15 years ago
Hi Peter - I have heard that in the new ICE 3 trains there is a lounge car immediately behind the driver and passenger are able to look straight through over the drivers shoulder and see the line ahead, have you any infoa on these please? Is it possible to reserve inthese cars?
I will be taking the ICE service from Utrecht to Duisberg, ICE 123, Koln to Freiburg ICE 501 and Hamburg to Koln on ICE 1023.
Thanks
Peter
Traveller
9337 comments
hej ...
you are right... this is possible on the ICE 3 trains ... you can book a place in the lounge... just ask for it... the reservation fee is 3 or 4 EUR...
as much as I know you will travel on an ICE 3 on Cologne (Köln) to Freiburg and Hamburg to Cologne (Köln) as well ... :)
anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Do you only pay a booking fee for the Intercity Express trains ?
And... Is is possible to book the reservation online ? :)
Peter
Traveller
9337 comments
Germany is a really (!!!) InterRail-friendly country compared to France, Spain and Italy.
you only pay supplements for night trains (like everywhere in Europe - and the one running in Germany are cheap and comfortable) and for the ICE Sprinter. this is a special business ICE running in the morning and evening from Berlin to Frankfurt/Cologne and something like this. but this is marked in the train schedules.
for all other ICEs you do not need a supplement or reservation. you can buy one if you travel at peak times (Friday and Sunday evening, Monday morning, ...).
if you want such a special seat, buy the reservation at the station and ask for such a seat - the same for normal reservations: do it at a station. right now it is not possible via internet - or at least I didn't get it... ;)
anonymous
Traveller
2469 comments
Thanks once again Peter.
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
You can find those lounges on the ICE 3 ICE-T and ICE-TD trains.
[b]All[/b] trains that connect Cologne and Frankfurt/Main via the high speed line (travel time ~70min) are ICE 3 trains.
[b]Many[/b] trains on the Munich - Nuremberg route via Ingolstadt are either ICE 3 (to/from Frankfurt, Köln, Düsseldorf) or ICE-T (to/from Leipzig, Berlin, Hamburg).
You can find these ICE-T also on the route Dresden - Leipzig - Erfurt - Frankfurt or Stuttgart - Zürich.
The ICE-TD run between (Berlin -) Hamburg and Kopenhagen.
rnl
Traveller
20 comments
Is there a distinction between regular ICE and ICE-express in terms of supplements?
I want to travel Düsseldorf-Berlin with the ICE 843, and I suspect it is a busy line so maybe a reservation is necessary...but nothing else, right? :)
Flo
Traveller
10724 comments
There is no train ICE express. ;)
IC = InterCity; up to 200 km/h, no supplement/no compulsory reservation
ICE = InterCityExpress; up to 300 km/h (320 km/h in France :D ), no supplement/no compulsory reservation [b]except[/b]:
- ICE Frankfurt - Paris: compulsory reservation, 1st class = 20€, 2nd class = 5€
- ICE Sprinter: compulsory reservation, 1st class = 16€, 2nd class = 11€
On the 843 a reservation might be useful since it is a morning train to Berlin, however it is not mandatory!
rnl
Traveller
20 comments
Thanks! Now I feel really stupid for asking that! :D