Berlin to Hannover by train

How to travel from Berlin to Hannover by train

The ICE trains from Berlin to Hannover spend the majority of their journey between the two cities on a high speed line, so they're the fastest option.

It can be possible to save money by taking the slower, but less frequent IC trains

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Routes

Option 1: taking the hourly ICE trains

Travel Information

Departing from Berlin:

Final Destination: Koln Hbf/Dusseldorf Hbf or Koblenz Hbf

These trains commence their journey at Berlin Gesunbrunnen station - which is to the north of the city centre.

They also usually depart from the lower level (tief) in Berlin Hbf.

If your journey is commencing in West Berlin, the quickest option is to take a Regio or S-Bahn train from Berlin Zoologischer Garten station to Berlin-Spandau station and join these trains to Hannover there.

Check your connections in Berlin on this public transport map.

1 x train per hour

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date - usually

Reservations:

Book 1st class ticket journey tickets and your seat reservation is included - but they're optional when booking 2nd class tickets, or if you will be travelling with a 1st or 2nd class rail pass.

Though for this comparatively short journey the reservation fees of €4.50 in 2nd class and €5.90 in 1st class are relatively expensive.

Finding tickets:

When making an online booking, check that you’re looking at booking info for these direct ICE trains.

On the DB Bahn 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.

Though if you are booking less than a week or so ahead, you may be able to save money by taking the slower IC trains.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
DB from €17.90

DB Guide

DB is the national railway operator in Germany, so its website can be used for booking journeys by German express trains; the ICE and IC trains and it doesn't charge booking fees.
It also sells tickets for journeys by direct trains on all international routes from Germany regardless of whether DB is operating the train service.

It also sells an extensive range of end-to-end journeys which involve making connections both within Germany and in neighboring countries, but journeys between Germany and Britain cannot be booked on DB.

A key feature of DB website worth keeping mind is that it offers 1st class ticket purchasers complimentary seat reservations on journeys both within and to/from Germany.

Seat reservations for daytime in both 1st and 2nd class can also be booked separately from tickets.

Saveatrain from €17.90

Saveatrain Guide

Omio from €17.90

Omio Guide

Omio is an online ticket agency which offers tickets for rail journeys in France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain.

The three key advantages of using Omio are

  • it offers prices in multiple currencies
  • it usually offers price comparison with other modes of travel including flights and buses
  • when visiting Europe, you can book journeys in multiple countries in one transaction.

The disadvantage of booking with Omio is that it often adds a booking fee to the final price; therefore when it does so without offering a price advantage, SMTJ doesn't tend to offer Omio as a booking option.

Happyrail from €17.90

Happyrail Guide

Happy Rail is a Netherlands rail ticket agency which sells tickets for both national and international journeys within a range of countries including Belgium France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland.

HappyRail doesn't charge booking fees in the conventional sense, but if you're not Dutch you can expect to pay additional transaction fees, which will be added to the total cost.
That's because the most common form of online payment used in The Netherlands is 'iDEAL' and HappyRail doesn't charge a transaction fee for 'iDEAL' payments, but only Dutch residents can sign up to 'iDEAL'.
Other forms of payment include Visa debit cards will incur a fee.

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - NoHigh Speed (partial)

Good to Know

The ICE train service to Hannover is formed of two ICE trains joined together, one set of coaches will head for Koln and the other will head to Dusseldorf.
The trains are joined together for the journey to Hannover, so if you haven't reserved, it doesn't matter which part of the train you join.

Option 2: these IC trains can be a cheaper option

Travel Information

Final Destination: Amsterdam or Koln or Nordeich Mole

All trains also call at: Berlin-Spandau

At Berlin Hbf the train should depart from the upper level (tief) platforms/gleis.

The alternative service of Flix trains:

Flix trains now compete with DB's trains, they now depart from Berlin for Hannover daily AND with an additional departure on Thursday - Sundays.

More info and tickets are available on the Flix Trains website.

Rail passes cannot be used on these trains.

7 - 9 x trains per day

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings open: 6 months ahead of the travel date

The ICE trains tend to depart Berlin only 4 mins before the IC trains to Amsterdam, and as the ICE trains are faster, DB Bahn logically assumes that you’ll want to take the ICE trains.
So it doesn’t sell tickets for Berlin Hbf to Hannover journeys by the IC trains heading to Amsterdam.

DB Bahn will sell tickets for Berlin Hbf – Hannover journeys by  the 1 – 3 x IC trains per day that are heading beyond Hannover to other destinations in Germany.
If you’re booking tickets less than a week ahead of your travel date, then there’s a small chance that these IC  trains will be cheaper.

But otherwise take those ICE trains from Berlin to Hannover.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
DB Bahn from €17.90

DB Bahn Guide

DB is the national railway operator in Germany, so its website can be used for booking journeys by German express trains; the ICE and IC trains and it doesn't charge booking fees.
It also sells tickets for journeys by direct trains on all international routes from Germany regardless of whether DB is operating the train service.

It also sells an extensive range of end-to-end journeys which involve making connections both within Germany and in neighboring countries, but journeys between Germany and Britain cannot be booked on DB.

A key feature of DB website worth keeping mind is that it offers 1st class ticket purchasers complimentary seat reservations on journeys both within and to/from Germany.

Seat reservations for daytime in both 1st and 2nd class can also be booked separately from tickets.

Happyrail from €17.90

Happyrail Guide

Happy Rail is a Netherlands rail ticket agency which sells tickets for both national and international journeys within a range of countries including Belgium France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland.

HappyRail doesn't charge booking fees in the conventional sense, but if you're not Dutch you can expect to pay additional transaction fees, which will be added to the total cost.
That's because the most common form of online payment used in The Netherlands is 'iDEAL' and HappyRail doesn't charge a transaction fee for 'iDEAL' payments, but only Dutch residents can sign up to 'iDEAL'.
Other forms of payment include Visa debit cards will incur a fee.

Omio from €17.90

Omio Guide

Omio is an online ticket agency which offers tickets for rail journeys in France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy and Spain.

The three key advantages of using Omio are

  • it offers prices in multiple currencies
  • it usually offers price comparison with other modes of travel including flights and buses
  • when visiting Europe, you can book journeys in multiple countries in one transaction.

The disadvantage of booking with Omio is that it often adds a booking fee to the final price; therefore when it does so without offering a price advantage, SMTJ doesn't tend to offer Omio as a booking option.

SaveATrain from €17.90

SaveATrain Guide

On this journey

Journey Features

Scenic - NoNot High Speed

Good to Know

Unlike the alternative ICE trains, these trains commence their journeys at Berlin Ostbahnhof station.

So they can be the best option for a Berlin to Hannover train ride, if the starting point of your journey in Berlin is close to Berlin Ost station.

These trains take a different route to the ICE trains and in the city they cross central Berlin on a viaduct, with great views over the city, particularly on the left.

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