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Train Travel Info► All Journeys► From Paris◮ From Köln / Cologne / Koeln
A typical view from the train between Bruxelles and Liege

Paris to Köln / Cologne / Koeln by train

How to take a train journey from Paris to Köln / Cologne

The only direct trains between Paris and north-east Germany are the high speed Thalys trains, so this is a straightforward journey.

Köln hbf, the main station in Cologne, offers connections on to a swathe of destinations with no direct trains from Paris, including Berlin, Bonn, Hannover, Koblenz and Wuppertal.

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Routes

From Paris Gare Du Nord/Paris Nord to Köln/Cologne Hbf

Journey Summary

From
Paris
The street view looking towards the opposite end of Paris Nord to that used by Eurostar
Paris Gare Du Nord/Paris Nord Rail Station Guide
To
Köln / Cologne / Koeln
Köln/Cologne Hbf Rail Station Guide
Travel Time
3hr 21min (approx)
Frequency
Daily
Travel Information

As a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic, the services on this route are operating to a more limited schedule compared to the usual timetable.
Details of the departures which are available can be found on the Thalys website, (change the departure and arrival stations).

Note that these trains depart from Gare du Nord in Paris.

The usual first train of the day does not depart on Sundays.

Final Destination: Dortmund or Essen or Köln

All trains also call at: Aachen

Monday to Saturday: 5 x trains per day
Sunday: 4 x trains

Tickets

Book early and save: Yes

Online bookings usually open: 4 months ahead of the travel date

Seats will automatically be assigned when booking tickets for this journey.
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.

Also when making an online booking, check that you’re looking at booking info for the direct trains - on the B-Europe  booking site look for journeys that are marked 'direct' train and only have a Thalys logo and no other.

Rail Pass Users:

If you will be travelling with an InterRail or Eurail pass, you will have to pay a comparatively expensive reservation fee prior to the boarding these Thalys trains.

You can save (at least €10) and experience a much more scenic journey by following this routing:

  • Paris to Luxembourg on TGV trains
  • Luxembourg to Koblenz on the hourly Regio trains; this is an exceptionally scenic route
  • Any of the 1 - 3 x trains per hour from Koblenz on to Koln/Cologne.

Or avoid paying any reservation fees at all by making multiple connections.

Where to book
Ticket Provider Approximate Cost
B-Europe from €35

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.

Oui.SNCF from €35

Oui.SNCF Guide

SNCF is the national rail operator in France and not so long ago it recently simplified both the range of tickets and the term and conditions of using them.
Therefore the cheapest tickets also become more flexible too.

Other improvements included a simple integration of travelling with bicycles and rail pass users being able to book reservations for national journeys, without paying booking fees.

Though a legacy of when SNCF sold international tickets under the Rail Europe branding is that OuiSNCF is available in multiple translations with the offerings on the site then tailored to international visitors to France.
However, some of the site's features, including the integration of mobility assistance into the booking path, are only available on the French language version.

Something else to look out for is that simplest way of travelling with tickets is to use the SNCF 'My Travel' phone app, so it's therefore often a good idea to book on the OuiSNCF mobile service.

Trainline from €35

Trainline Guide

SaveATrain from €35

SaveATrain Guide

Happyrail from €35

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

Travelling On
Exterior of a refurbished Thalys train - note the red doors
Thalys Train Guide

Journey Features

Scenic - NoHigh Speed (partial)

Good to Know

For a stress-free journey it's a good idea to be at the Gare Du Nord at least 20 minutes before departure as all passengers taking the Thalys trains have to pass through security checks.
So being at the back of the queue wondering if you'll be able to board in time is a scenario best avoided.

A typical view from the train between Bruxelles and Liege A typical view from the train between Bruxelles and Liege
On the Liege to Aachen high speed line On the Liege to Aachen high speed line
On the final stretch the journey after Aachen On the final stretch the journey after Aachen

This is a fascinating journey of six distinct phases.

  1. Around seven minutes after departure the train will move on to the high speed line and it will then travel at more than 280 km/h for around 80 minutes until it reaches the suburbs of Bruxelles; this is the fastest part of the trip.
  2. On departure from Bruxelles-Midi the train will cross the city centre in a tunnel.
  3. Then after Bruxlles-Nord the train will move on to a re-engineered railway until Leuven.
  4. Between Leuven and five minutes before arrival in Liege the train will travel up to 250 km/h on a high speed line.
  5. After Liege and until Aachen the train will again achieve speed in excess of 280 km/h as it heads over the border into Germany.
  6. Then from Aachen until the suburbs of Koln/Cologne, the train will travel at 200 kn/h on a re-engineered railway.
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