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Basel / Bâle to Hamburg by train
How to take direct trains from north-west Switzerland to northern Germany
When taking a rail journey from Basel to Hamburg, travellers can choose between making the journey by day on a sleek ICE train, or travelling through the night on a smart Nightjet service.
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Routes
Option 1: travelling by day
Journey Summary
6hr 20min (approx)
Daily
Travel Information
Final Destination: Hamburg-Altona (or Kiel)
All trains also call at: Frankfurt (Main); Hannover; Hamburg-Harburg, and Hamburg-Dammtor.
Arriving in Hamburg:
All of these trains will call at two stations adjacent to Hamburg city centre; Hamburg Hbf and Hamburg Dammtor.
So it can be worthwhile working out which of these stations in the city, will suit your needs best, before making the journey.
Avoid leaving the train at Hamburg-Harburg, the first station call in the city, this station is in the southern suburbs.
Departing from Basel:
These trains will also call at Basel SBB station before they depart from Basel Bad bf.
If you'll be setting off from Basel city centre, then joining these trains at Basel Bad Bdf station is usually a quicker, easier and cheaper option.
Join these trains at Basel SBB, if you'll be making connections from trains that will be heading to Basel from other destinations in Switzerland.
Also if you're a rail pass user and have gambled on not making a reservation - then head to Basel SBB station to join these trains.
You'll have a better chance of finding spare seats at Basel SBB than at Basel Bad bf.
5 x trains per day
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date
On the DB booking site look for journeys that have:
- 0 in the Chg. column
- ICE (and only ICE) in the Products column.
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.
Use the earlier/later buttons to search for the cheapest ticket prices.
Seat reservations
Reservations are recommended for this journey; book a 1st class ticket on DB and your seat will be assigned, but not in 2nd class.
They can also be booked separately at a later date on the DB website.
For rail pass users reservations are optional, but if you do choose to reserve (recommended) book the reservation online on DB and avoid the booking fees you would be charged at the station in Switzerland.
Where to book
| Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| DB | from €19.90 | |
| Trainline | from €19.90 | |
| Save A Train | from €19.90 | |
| Happy rail | from €19.90 |
On this journey
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
Avoid the morning EC train, which will be heading to Hamburg via Koln, it is more than three hours slower than these ICE trains.
From Apr 1st to December 9th
Due to construction work on the high speed line in Germany between Kassel and Gottingen, between these dates these trains will be diverted on to an alternative route between these stations, which will increase the journey time to around 7hr 15mins,
ICE trains on an alternative route
There are now also up to five ICE trains per day which take an alternative route to Hamburg via Koln, but these trains have a typical journey time of around 7h 45mins
This is a journey of six distinct phases:
- From the suburbs of Basel to Offenburg, the railway travels through a rolling landscape.
- Then from Offenburg to Karlsruhe a high speed line has been constructed beside the conventional route.
- Between Karlrsruhe and Frankfurt (Main) the train will race through a string of towns.
- The train will reverse direction on departure from Frankfurt (Main) Hbf.
- After Fulda, the train will make use of Germany's first high speed line; this is the part of the journey with a wow factor as the trains will travel across dozens of viaducts and bridges, which occur as flashes between numerous tunnels.
- Then the remainder of the journey on from Hannover is through the largely flat landscape of northern Germany.
So you won't be missing out on a particularly memorable journey if you opt to take the overnight train.
Option 2: travelling overnight
Journey Summary
10hr 38min
Nightly
Travel Information
Final Destination: Hamburg-Altona
This train also calls at: Hannover; Luneberg and Hamburg-Dammtor
Arriving in Hamburg:
All of these trains will call at two stations adjacent to Hamburg city centre; Hamburg Hbf and Hamburg Dammtor.
So it can be worthwhile working out which of these stations in the city, will suit your needs best, before making the journey.
Avoid leaving the train at Hamburg-Harburg, the first station call in the city, this station is in the southern suburbs.
Departing from Basel:
This train is usually scheduled to depart from Basel Bad Bf station at 22:13, but before calling here, it also usually departs from Basel SBB station at 21:33.
It is typically due to arrive in Hamburg Hbf shortly after 08:00.
In contrast the first of the daytime trains, isn't due to arrive in Hamburg until after 13:30.
If the starting point for journey is in Basel city centre, the quicker and cheaper option is to opt for Basel Bad Bf as your departure station.
However, board these trains at Basel SBB station, if you will be making a connection into this train from elsewhere in Switzerland
1 x train per night
Tickets
Book early and save: Yes
Online bookings open:
6 months ahead of the travel date on OBB
3 months ahead of the travel date on DB Bahn
Our guide to booking night train tickets on the OBB (Austrian national railways) website is available HERE.
Our guide to booking night train tickets on the DB (German national railways) website is available HERE.
These Nightjet trains are managed by the Austrian national rail operator OBB, hence it sells tickets for this route, which doesn't travel through Austria.
The train conveys:
- Compartment Seats (Sitzwagen)
- Couchettes (Liegewagen); 4 berths AND 6 berths
- Standard sleeping cars (Schlafwagen) with 3 bed, 2 bed and 1 cabins
- Deluxe sleeping cars with showers (Schlafwagen) with 3 bed, 2 bed and 1 cabins
The first price you will see on the OBB ticketing site will be for the compartment seats.
Click the train details for more info including the rail pass reservation fees:
Rail pass users must reserve before boarding this train.
However, these rail pass reservations can NO longer be booked online the DB website, but you can now book rail pass reservations without paying booking fees on the OBB website (OBB operates these trains).
Though the process for doing so isn't particularly obvious, hence this step-by-step guide.
Where to book
| Ticket Provider | Approximate Cost | |
|---|---|---|
| OBB | * | |
| DB Bahn | * | |
| SBB | * |
On this journey
Travelling On
Journey Features
Good to Know
This train is in effect two trains combined into one departure:
- A Nightjet train which conveys the sleeping cabins and couchettes
- An EC train, which uses the same types of coaches as those used on daytime services.
When booking tickets if you want to sit in a seat(s) choose the EC options.
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