Related Content
Amsterdam to Antwerpen / Antwerp / Anvers by train
Share this journey with a friend...
There are two train services which travel between Amsterdam and Antwerpen:
(1) The high speed Thalys trains are faster and if you can book ahead, they're often not more expensive.
(2) The slower IC trains will be cheaper when the most heavily discounted tickets for those Thalys trains have sold out, so they will also be cheaper when booking last minute at the station.
Rail pass users can make big savings by taking the IC trains.
Routes you can take to go from Amsterdam to Antwerpen / Antwerp / Anvers
When travelling between most cities by train there is only one logical option, though on other journeys there is a choice between different trains or alternative routes. If different options are available you can use the info to decide which is best for you.
Choose one of the following options:
Looking for connections?
Route Information
Option 1: taking the Thalys trains
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
1hr 13min
Frequency
Daily
Travel Info
Monday to Thursday: 13 x trains per day
Friday: 14 x trains
Saturday: 6 x trains
Sunday: 10 x trains
Purchase Tickets
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Trainline ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option for comparing high speed train operators in Spain, as it sells tickets for the AVE, iryo, Ouigo, avlo and Euromed trains.
Trainline (Spain) Guide
Other Ticket Providers
NS Intl Guide
NS is the Dutch national rail operator and it operates a bespoke website for the booking of international rail journeys from and to The Netherlands.
Therefore it offers tickets for journeys by:
- Thalys trains to Bruxelles and Paris
- IC trains to Berlin via Hannover and Bruxelles via Antwerpen
- Eurostar to London
- ICE trains to Basel and Frankfurt (Main) via Koln
- the Nightjet trains to Austria and Germany
NS International also sells tickets to a range of destinations in Austria, Czechia, Denmark, Italy and Switzerland, which involve a change of train in Germany, along with the destinations in France, which can be accessed by making a connection in Bruxelles.
B-Europe Guide
B-Europe is the website provided by Belgium's national railway operator for the sale of international rail journeys from and to Belgium.
Therefore tickets can be booked for the following international train services to/from Belgium
- Eurostar
- IC trains to France, Luxembourg and The Netherlands
- ICE trains to Germany
- Thalys trains to Germany, The Netherlands and Paris
- TGV trains to destination in France other than Paris
B-Europe offers a 'Best Fares' policy for journey by these trains.
It also sells international end-to-end journeys solely by train, with connections outside of Belgium, if you will be heading to popular destinations in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
Users of Eurail and InterRail passes can also book seat reservations on the Eurostar and Thalys services without paying booking fees.
Travel Information
Final Destination: Paris Nord or Marne La Vallé
All trains also call at: Schiphol and Rotterdam
Of the two options for making the train journey from Amsterdam to Antwerpen, this option is the fastest because the Thalys trains travel on high speed lines for virtually the entire journey.
And the high speed line is also now the most direct route between these two cities.
However, if you'll be booking this journey just a couple of weeks ahead, you'll probably be able to save money by taking the alternative InterCity trains
This is a direct journey
You will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
Despite the assurance of knowing that you won't need to board early in order to secure a seat(s), because reservations are mandatory on these trains, it's a good idea to be at Centraal station a minimum of 10 minutes before departure.
As can be gleaned by clicking the station guide, it can be a confusing location to navigate and the Thalys trains typically use the platforms (tracks) which are farthest from the main entrance.
It's not a scenically interesting journey, but look out around 15 mins before the train is due to arrive in Antwerpen for the dramatic crossing of the location of where the River Rhine meets the North Sea.
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: up to 6 months ahead of the travel date
This booking period tends to be shorter when looking up journeys between mid August and mid October.
Though take care if you will be looking up a journey more than six months ahead of the travel date.
For a few weeks after the six month period the discounted ticket prices can also be available, but the non-discounted tickets can be on sale for dates further ahead.
So if you be will looking up a journey more than six months ahead and only see prices of more than €100, refrain from purchasing and return to the booking service a few weeks later.
Trains departing at different times can be cheaper than others leaving on the same day, so you may need to look through the day's departures to find the cheapest fares.
Seats will automatically be assigned when booking tickets for this journey.
The limited numbers of cheapest discounted tickets for the Thalys trains are similarly priced to the tickets for the, alternative slower InterCity Brussels trains.
So when you're booking ahead, you can get to Antwerpen faster, in a reserved seat; and it won't cost you any more.
Though when the cheapest Thalys tickets have sold out, you can usually save money by taking the InterCity trains.
*Exchanges
Book to travel in Standard and Eurostar Plus class:
The booked date and time can be exchanged to a different departure to the same destination up to one hour before departure time.
- If the cost of your new ticket is more than the cost of your original ticket, you will be required to pay the difference;
- If the cost of your new ticket is less than the cost of your original ticket, you will not receive a refund of the difference.
Book to travel in Eurostar Premier class:
The booked date and time can be exchanged to a different departure to the same destination up to 48hrs after departure time (from November 4th 2024).
- If the cost of your new ticket is more than the cost of your original ticket, you will be required to pay the difference;
- If the cost of your new ticket is less than the cost of your original ticket, you will not receive a refund of the difference.
The Eurostar ticket terms summary is here
Refunds
Book to travel in Standard and Eurostar Plus class:
- Up to seven days or more before the date of departure you will need to pay a fee of £25 per person for a one-way / single ticket and £50 per person for a two-way / return ticket - So you will only receive any sum you paid in excess of these sums.
- Less than seven days before the date of departure, tickets are non-refundable - Also applies if you exchanged a ticket to an alternative departure, under seven days ahead.
Book to travel in Premier class:
Up until 48hrs after departure time (from November 4th 2024), tickets can be refunded at no additional cost,
The Eurostar ticket terms summary is here
Child tickets
Children under the age of 12 travel at a flat rate price of €15 in Standard, €20 in Comfort and €30 in Premium Class.
Source = Eurostar
Bike Tickets
Tickets are not-required as non-folding bikes can only be taken on board as hand luggage - as both wheels must be removed and everything must be covered by a non-rigid cover with maximum dimensions of 135 x 85 x 30 cm.
Dog Tickets
Charged at a flat fee rate of €30, but the payment will be taken by the train conductor, as these tickets cannot be booked online.
Rail Pass Users:
Rail Pass users will need to be pay a reservation fee prior to boarding these Thalys trains
Reservation fees do not apply on the alternative IC trains, so if you will be making this journey with an InterRail or Eurail Pass, you'll save more than €15 if you avoid these Thalys trains.
Route Information
Option 2: Taking the InterCity trains
Station Guides
Travel Time (approx)
1hr 55min
Frequency
Daily
Travel Info
13* x trains per day
Purchase Tickets
ShowMeTheJourney earns a small commission on Trainline ticket sales. It can be a particularly good option for: Comparing different train services; Booking international journeys with connections; Travelling between the UK to destinations beyond Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris - and for international travellers who don't reside in western Europe.
Trainline Guide
Other Ticket Providers
NS Intl Guide
NS is the Dutch national rail operator and it operates a bespoke website for the booking of international rail journeys from and to The Netherlands.
Therefore it offers tickets for journeys by:
- Thalys trains to Bruxelles and Paris
- IC trains to Berlin via Hannover and Bruxelles via Antwerpen
- Eurostar to London
- ICE trains to Basel and Frankfurt (Main) via Koln
- the Nightjet trains to Austria and Germany
NS International also sells tickets to a range of destinations in Austria, Czechia, Denmark, Italy and Switzerland, which involve a change of train in Germany, along with the destinations in France, which can be accessed by making a connection in Bruxelles.
B-Europe Guide
B-Europe is the website provided by Belgium's national railway operator for the sale of international rail journeys from and to Belgium.
Therefore tickets can be booked for the following international train services to/from Belgium
- Eurostar
- IC trains to France, Luxembourg and The Netherlands
- ICE trains to Germany
- Thalys trains to Germany, The Netherlands and Paris
- TGV trains to destination in France other than Paris
B-Europe offers a 'Best Fares' policy for journey by these trains.
It also sells international end-to-end journeys solely by train, with connections outside of Belgium, if you will be heading to popular destinations in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
Users of Eurail and InterRail passes can also book seat reservations on the Eurostar and Thalys services without paying booking fees.
B-Europe Guide
B-Europe is the website provided by Belgium's national railway operator for the sale of international rail journeys from and to Belgium.
Therefore tickets can be booked for the following international train services to/from Belgium
- Eurostar
- IC trains to France, Luxembourg and The Netherlands
- ICE trains to Germany
- Thalys trains to Germany, The Netherlands and Paris
- TGV trains to destination in France other than Paris
B-Europe offers a 'Best Fares' policy for journey by these trains.
It also sells international end-to-end journeys solely by train, with connections outside of Belgium, if you will be heading to popular destinations in Austria, Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
Users of Eurail and InterRail passes can also book seat reservations on the Eurostar and Thalys services without paying booking fees.
Travel Information
Final Destination: Bruxelles-Midi/Brussel-Zuid
All trains also call at: Schiphol Airport; Rotterdam
*Note that this Intercity Brussels service no longer departs from Amsterdam hourly.
Instead three of these InterCity trains per day, now commence their journeys at Den Haag.
So in most hours these Intercity Brussels services depart from Amsterdam Centraal at 22mins past the hour, but there are no departures at 10:22, 14:22 and 18:22.
Therefore if you want/need to depart Amsterdam by these Intercity trains at around these times, you will need to make a straightforward connection in Rotterdam.
This is a direct journey
You will be travelling on one of these trains...
Journey Features
Good to Know
What can surprise is that comparatively old trains are currently being used for a journey which mainly involves travelling on a high-speed line, but the current trains with their retro and comparatively basic on-board facilities, are a stop-gap because new trains are on the way.
These Intercity trains use the high speed line between Amsterdam Antwerp, but they don't travel at high speed; in contrast the Thalys trains are more than 100 km/h faster.
They also divert off of the direct route to call at Breda, where they also reverse direction.
Tickets
Book early and save: No
Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date
Note that the tickets for these IC trains are typically available two months sooner than for the Thalys trains, so if you look up the journey more than four months ahead of the travel date, it can seem as though these IC trains are the only option.
The limited numbers of most heavily discounted tickets for the alternative faster Thalys trains are cheaper, but when they are sold out these InterCity Brussels trains are the cheapest option.
Rail pass users::
Take these Intercity trains and you can avoid the comparatively expensive rail pass reservation fees charged on the alternative Thalys trains.
This second version of ShowMeTheJourney is exciting and new, so we are genuinely thrilled that you are here and reading this, but we also need your help.
We’re striving not to let anything get in the way of providing the most useful service possible, hence a facility has been set up with DonorBox which can be used to support the running costs and make improvements.
Instead of advertising or paywalls, your financial support will make a positive difference to delivering an enhanced service, as there’s a lot of ideas which we want to make happen.
So if you have found the info provided here to be useful, please consider saying thank you.
See if there’s a unique journey guide for your trip, featuring info on the trains, tickets & stations.
- Austria by train
- Innsbruck
- Salzburg
- Wien / Vienna
- Belgium by train
- Bruxelles / Brussels
- Czechia by train
- Praha / Prague / Prag
- Denmark by train
- København / Copenhagen
- France by train
- Lille
- Lyon
- Marseille
- Paris
- Germany by train
- Berlin
- Frankfurt (Main) / Francfort sur le Main
- Hamburg
- Köln / Cologne / Koeln
- München / Munich
- Great Britain by train
- Edinburgh
- Glasgow
- London
- Manchester
- Hungary by train
- Budapest
- Italy by train
- Bologna
- Firenze / Florence
- Milano / Milan / Mailand
- Roma / Rome
- Torino / Turin
- Venezia / Venice / Venedig
- Verona
- Netherlands by train
- Amsterdam
- Norway by train
- Oslo
- Poland by train
- Warszawa / Warsaw
- Portugal by train
- Lisboa / Lisbon
- Porto
- Spain by train
- Barcelona
- Madrid
- Sweden by train
- Stockholm
- Switzerland by train
- Basel / Bâle
- Bern
- Genève / Geneva
- Zürich / Zurich
- No Matching Cities
- List is empty.
- No Matching Cities
- List is empty.
This is one of more than 100 train travel guides available on ShowMeTheJourney, which will make it easier to take the train journeys you want or need to make. As always, all images were captured on trips taken by ShowMeTheJourney.
TOP