Affordable train between Amsterdam, Berlin and Hamburg hits the tracks
By
Simone Jacobs
Olivia Logan
The first trains from the affordable Dutch rail company GoVolta have hit the tracks. Direct trains are now running from Amsterdam to Berlin and Hamburg, providing a cheaper alternative to Deutsche Bahn but a longer journey time.
GoVolta launches direct trains between the Netherlands and Germany
On March 19, the first GoVolta train left the station in Amsterdam with the final destination of Berlin, followed by the first on the way to Hamburg on March 20. The new affordable train connections were announced in December last year.
Departing from Amsterdam Centraal at 8.34am three times per week on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, the train will stop in Amersfoort, Deventer, Hengelo, Bad Bentheim, Osnabrück and Hannover before arriving in Berlin at 3.20pm.
The second route to Hamburg will leave from Amsterdam at 8.05am on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, stopping in Amersfoort, Deventer, Hengelo, Bad Bentheim and Bremen. The estimated time of arrival in Hamburg is 1.26pm.
Deutsche Bahn trains already directly connect the German and Dutch capitals six times per day, with varying punctuality, but often use the brand-new ICE 3neo models, which have more bike storage, modernised toilets, luggage racks, and ambient lighting.
New GoVolta train routes cheaper but longer
Tickets for GoVolta trains start as low as 10 euros and go up to 75 euros, offering cheaper fares than Deutsche Bahn. While the new train company is cheaper, the journey will take quite a bit longer, especially on the Amsterdam-Berlin route.
While the Deutsche Bahn connection between Berlin and Amsterdam takes around five hours and 50 minutes, GoVolta’s connection clocks in at seven hours. Deutsche Bahn's connection between Hamburg and Amsterdam takes five hours and 15 minutes, while GoVolta's will take five hours and 20 minutes.
GoVolta doesn’t mention any ambient lighting, but its Berlin-Amsterdam trains will have a “lounge wagon” with hot and cold drinks and light meals on offer, perhaps a bit more expansive than Deutsche Bahn's "Onboard Bistro".
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Editor for the Netherlands at IamExpat Media. Simone studied Genetics and Zoology at the University of Pretoria in South Africa before moving to the Netherlands, where she has been working as a writer and editor since 2022. One thing she loves more than creating content is consuming it, mainly by reading books by the dozen. Other than being a book dragon, she is also a nature lover and enjoys hiking and animal training.Read more
Editor for Germany at IamExpat Media. Olivia first came to Germany in 2013 to work as an Au Pair. Since studying English Literature and German in Scotland, Freiburg and Berlin she has worked as a features journalist and news editor.Read more