How to take a rail journey from Bruxelles/Brussels to Amsterdam

Final Destination: Amsterdam Centraal/CS

All trains also call at: Rotterdam and Schiphol

There can be gaps of up to two hours between departures, particularly in the middle of the day.
On Sundays the first departure of the day is usually at 09:52.

Aim to be at Bruxelles Midi/Zuid station a minimum of 10 - 15 mins before your train is due to depart.
You will have to pass through security checks before boarding this Eurostar (formerly Thalys) train and queues can build up at busy times.

These Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains do not call at Bruxelles Central or Bruxelles Nord - but the alternative (slower) InterCity Brussels trains do call at those stations.

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.

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.

Using rail passes:

If you will be travelling with a rail pass, you can avoid the rail pass reservation fees charged on these Thalys trains by taking the InterCity Brussels trains instead.

From December 15th there will be a major timetable change, on the Bruxelles to Amsterdam route.
After this date these Intercity trains will be terminating at Rotterdam, but new hourly ECD services will link Bruxelles-Midi with Amsterdam Zuid - where transfers will be available into Metro services on to Amsterdam city centre.

Final Destination: Amsterdam Centraal/CS

All trains also call at: Bruxelles-Central; Bruxelles-Nord; Bruxelles Airport; Antwerpen; Breda; Rotterdam and Schiphol

Connect in Breda if you're heading to Den Bosch, Eindhoven, Nijmegen and Arnhem; travelling via Breda to these destinations will typically be quicker than taking a Thalys train to Rotterdam or Amsterdam and making the connections there.

Departing from Bruxelles/Brussels:

Note that these InterCity Brussels trains call at Bruxelles-Central station; the most convenient station for the city centre, as well as at Bruxelles-Nord.

However, the Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains, trains do not call at these other stations in central Bruxelles/Brussels, they only depart from Bruxelles-Midi.

In some hours during the day these IC trains are the only direct trains departing Bruxelles for Amsterdam.

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date.

There are two choices of train service between Bruxelles/Brussels and Amsterdam
(1) These Intercity Brussels/IC Brussels trains
(2) The high speed Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains

These Intercity Brussels trains are slower than the Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains, but typically cheaper; though if you're booking more than a couple of weeks ahead, the price difference between the two services can be less than €5.

However, when the discounted tickets for the Thalys trains are sold out, these InterCity Brussels trains are the cheapest option
So, if you will be booking tickets on your day of travel -these InterCity trains will be (much) cheaper than the Eurostar (formerly Thalys) trains.

Though your ticket will only be valid on the IC trains, if there is a delay to the IC services, or if the next IC train to leave is cancelled, you cannot then just take a Thalys train instead.

Booking tickets online:

If you want to take one of these DIRECT InterCity trains - look for the trains that have '0' changes and only 'IC Brussels' shown by the journey.
Also IF you are offered a choice of route, then choose the option 'via BREDA'.

Note that seat reservations are not available on these 'IC Brussels' trains.

Using rail passes:

Taking these IC Brussels trains is a good option for rail pass users because you can avoid the rail pass reservation fees charged on the Thalys trains.