How to travel by train from Brussels to Rotterdam where connections are available to Delft, Gouda and Utrecht

Final Destination: Amsterdam Centraal/CS

These trains also call at: Antwerpen Central

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 Thalys train and queues can build up at busy times.

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

The trains use the high speed line between Antwerpen and Rotterdam, but are not high speed between Bruxelles/Brussels and Antwerpen

These Thalys trains do not call at Bruxelles Central or Bruxelles Nord stations, but the alternative (much slower) InterCity Brussels trains do call at those stations in the city.

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: 4 months ahead of the travel date

The limited numbers of cheapest discounted tickets for the Thalys trains are cheaper than the fares charged on the alternative slower InterCity Brussels trains.
Though when the cheapest Thalys tickets have sold out you can save money by taking those InterCity trains.

All tickets for the Thalys trains have a complimentary seat reservation.

On the Eurostar train to Bruxelles

The ticket terms are:

*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:

Try and avoid these Thalys trains if you will be travelling with a rail pass; you can avoid the rail pass reservation fees charged on these Thalys trains by taking those InterCity Brussels trains instead.

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 Rotterdam:
(1) These Intercity Brussels/IC Brussels trains
(2) The high speed Thalys traions

Note that if you are looking up this journey more than 4 months ahead, only the tickets for this Intercity Brussels service will be on sale.

These Intercity Brussels trains are slower than those Thalys trains and are 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 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.

Book 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 if you will be making this journey with an InterRail or Eurail pass you can avoid the rail pass reservation fees charged on the Thalys trains.