Amsterdam has a number of direct international rail services which can connect you to Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, UK and beyond. High speed rail travel in Europe is a good alternative to flying and gives a real feeling of travel.
In this article we overview all international trains running to/from Amsterdam.
How To Book International Rail Tickets to/from NetherlandsYou can check timetables, prices and make bookings for all the international train services listed below at the NS International site
Alternatively you can book international rail tickets at the Trainline site, which offers payment in 10 different currencies. Book with Trainline here
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International Rail Map Amsterdam
Firstly let’s start with our international rail network map for scheduled trains operating to/from Amsterdam Central. The map covers rail services from Amsterdam to Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland and the UK.
Amsterdam-Paris: Eurostar (formerly Thalys)
The Amsterdam-Paris rail route is served by the Eurostar (formerly Thalys), an international high speed train service. In late 2023, Thalys was rebranded as Eurostar following the merger of Eurostar and Thalys.
In the Netherlands the Eurostar travels on the HSL-Zuid high speed line from near Amsterdam to the Belgian border reaching speeds of up to 250km/h.
The red Eurostar trains runs between Amsterdam Central and Paris Nord and make stops at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport, Rotterdam, Antwerp and Brussels Zuid/Midi. The service normally runs up to 11x daily for Amsterdam-Paris.
From Amsterdam the journey times are 1 hour 15 mins to Antwerp, 1 hour 50 mins to Brussels and 3 hours 18 mins to Paris.
The Eurostar has a 3 class service: Standard, Comfort and Premium – these retain their orignal Thalys class names – note the blue London Eurostar trains have different class names. All seats on the Eurostar have individual electric power outlets.
Standard has 2nd class seating (2-2 configuration) with free WiFi. Food/drink can be purchased at the bar carriage. Standard tickets are refundable and exchangeable up to 7 days before travel; thereafter there are no refunds, but changes are possible for a €15 fee plus the price difference.
Comfort has 1st class seating (2-1 configuration), free WiFi and food/drink can be purchased at the bar. Comfort tickets are also refundable and exchangeable up to 7 days before travel; thereafter there are no refunds, but changes are possible for a €15 fee plus the price difference.
Premium is a proper first class product with 1st class seating (2-1 configuration), free WiFi (with more data), complimentary food/drink served at your seat and and free access to an international press app. Premium tickets are fully refundable up to 1 hour before travel; changes are possible right up to departure time with any price difference applying.
Premium ticket holders can access the Eurostar lounge in Paris or Brussels as well as the NS International lounges at Amsterdam, Schiphol Airport or Rotterdam.
Eurostar has introduced refurbished trainsets with new interiors, more space for luggage and screens with real-time info. The former ‘Welcome bar’ area has been renamed the Eurostar Café.
Eurostar permits 2 pieces of luggage (max 75 x 53 x 30cm, no weight limit) plus 1 item of hand luggage. There are overhead luggage racks and special racks at each end of the carriage for larger items.
Eurostar (formerly Thalys) tickets are on sale up to 4 months out and are booked like an airline seat – with a specific seat reservation. Your ticket will have a carriage and seat number.
To secure the cheapest fares you should book as early as possible.
Standard fares for Amsterdam-Paris cost €35-€149, Comfort fares cost €75-€169 and Premium fares range from €150-€220.
From Paris Nord you can connect onto the French TGV network to destinations throughout France – but you will have to transfer to one of the other Paris stations using the Metro/RER or taxi.
BOOKING: Book your Eurostar (formerly Thalys) tickets here
or Book Eurostar tickets at Trainline
Amsterdam-Brussels/Antwerp: Eurostar or Intercity Brussels
Amsterdam passengers travelling to Brussels or Antwerp have a choice of services on the route.
The high speed Eurostar (formerly Thalys) train runs from Amsterdam/Schiphol/Rotterdam to Antwerp and Brussels Zuid/Midi up to 15x daily, as described above.
Eurostar fares for Amsterdam-Brussels range as follows: €29-€89 (Standard), €52-€103 (Comfort) and €106-€129 (Premium).
For Amsterdam-Antwerp the fares are €29-€79 (Standard), €48-€88 (Comfort) and €90-€109 (Premium).
An alternative to Eurostar is the slower Intercity Brussels train which operates up to 16x daily between Amsterdam and Brussels Zuid/Midi. The Intercity Brussels service also runs on the high-speed track in the Netherlands although it is not a high speed train.
The Intercity Brussels train makes stops at Schiphol, Rotterdam, Breda, Noorderkempen (Belgium), Antwerp Central, Antwerp Berchem, Mechelen, Brussels Airport, Brussels North and Brussels Central.
The Intercity Brussels journey time from Amsterdam to Brussels is 2 hours 50 mins, around 30 minutes quicker than the previous Intercity service which used standard Dutch tracks. The Amsterdam-Brussels travel time on Eurostar is around 1 hour 50 mins.
Intercity Brussels has 1st class (2-1 seating configuration) and 2nd class (2-2) tickets for sale.
Standard fixed (distance based) prices are in effect with no seat reservations necessary for international intercity travel. The service also offers cheaper “early bird” tickets for those booking online in advance.
The standard full-flex (2024) fare for Amsterdam-Brussels one-way costs €56.50 (2nd class) or €91.50 (1st class). These are valid on any Intercity Brussels service on-the-day and are freely changeable up to the departure day.
Early bird one-way fares start at €25 (2nd class) and €41 (1st class) and are valid for a specific train only. Tickets can be changed for a €5 fee.
Holders of Dutch Railways NS discount cards and free NS travel cards receive a fare reduction off the full-flex fare for the Netherlands segment of travel.
Also of note to travellers: there is an hourly Belgian stopping train service between the border town of Roosendaal (NL) and Antwerp; those travelling Amsterdam-Bruges should travel to Antwerp and then change to a Belgian intercity. For Amsterdam-Antwerp info see here
BOOKING: Book your Eurostar/Intercity Brussels tickets at NS International
Amsterdam-London: Eurostar
There is a direct Eurostar service between Amsterdam and London which runs up to 4x daily using the blue coloured trains.
The journey time is just over 4 hours and the train stops only at Brussels Zuid/Midi and Rotterdam. The Eurostar high speed train service travels up to 300km/h and runs via the channel tunnel which takes about 20 minutes to cross.
This is the Eurostar timetable for direct trains between London and Amsterdam:
| London St Pancras – Amsterdam Centraal | Departs | Arrives | Journey time |
| 0616 | 1115 | 3 hours 59 minutes | |
| 0816 | 1315 | 3 hours 59 minutes | |
| 1104 | 1615 | 4 hours 11 minutes | |
| 1804 | 2315 | 4 hours 11 minutes |
| Amsterdam Centraal – London St Pancras | Departs | Arrives | Journey time |
| 0645 | 0957 | 4 hours 12 minutes | |
| 1445 | 1747 | 4 hours 2 minutes | |
| 1645 | 1947 | 4 hours 2 minutes | |
| 1845 | 2157 | 4 hours 12 minutes |
[Service frequency is reduced at weekends; Amsterdam is 1 hour ahead of London time]
Between July and December 2024 the Eurostar terminal in Amsterdam will undergo an expansion/renovation to allow more passengers to be processed. This means there will be no direct trains from Amsterdam to London during this time – passengers will need to make a stop in Brussels. The London-Amsterdam service will run as usual.
Passengers departing either Amsterdam and Rotterdam have to go through a security and immigration check before boarding. The current Eurostar facility is upstairs on platform 15b at Amsterdam Central station.
There are 3 classes of travel on the Eurostar:
Standard – effectively 2nd class with 2-2 configuration seating, food and drink can be bought at the bar coach.
Standard Premier – a 1st class “lite” offering with 2-1 seating, a light meal and drinks served at your seat and magazines available.
Business Premier – a full fare business product with 2-1 seating, lounge access, 3 course meal and drinks (including champagne) served plus newspapers and magazines.
Eurostar uses its E320 series trains for the London-Amsterdam route which are made up of 16 coaches. Business Premier and Standard Premier are normally located in coaches 1-3 and 14-16. There is a Eurostar Café bar facility in coaches 8 and 9.
For more info see our detailed review (Standard Premier class) of travel on the Eurostar between London and Amsterdam.
The cheapest fares need to be booked well in advance and are usually the direct train service; the Eurostar fares with a change in Brussels are normally more expensive.
One-way fares in Standard class between London and Amsterdam start from £51/€58 one-way or £78/€88 return.
Standard Premier fares start from £97/€111 one-way or £168/€192 return. Business Premier ticket prices are not cheap, priced from £335/€385 one-way or £580/€667 return.
BOOKING: Book your Eurostar tickets at NS International
or Book Eurostar tickets at Trainline
Of interest to some could be the rail and ferry option which includes the Stena Line ferry between Harwich and Hoek van Holland. Both ferry ports are accessible by rail or metro.
Amsterdam-Frankfurt, Basel via Düsseldorf, Cologne: ICE International
The modern ICE International trains (ICE3M BR 406 variants) run from Amsterdam Central to Frankfurt (Main) Hbf up to 6x daily.
Jointly operated by DB Bahn (German Railways) and NS (Dutch Railways) the ICE train makes stops at Utrecht, Arnhem, Oberhausen, Duisburg, Düsseldorf, Cologne and Frankfurt airport. One train a day also continues on to Basel in Switzerland.
Journey times from Amsterdam are 2 hours 11 mins to Düsseldorf, 2 hours 38 mins to Cologne (Keulen / Köln), 3 hours 42 mins to Frankfurt airport and 3 hours 55 mins to Frankfurt Hbf. There is a high speed track between Cologne and Frankfurt where speeds can approach 300 km/h.
ICE one-way ticket prices between Amsterdam and Düsseldorf or Cologne start from €20 (2nd class) and €32 (1st class).
Amsterdam to Frankfurt costs from €38 (2nd class) and €50 (1st class). Book in advance to secure the lowest fares.
Seat reservations are included with 1st class tickets and cost €4.90 extra (recommended) for 2nd class.
BOOKING: Book your ICE trip at NS International
or Book ICE tickets at Trainline
The Basel bound ICE train departs Amsterdam Central at 0746 – from Frankfurt airport it heads to Mannheim, Karlsruhe, Offenberg and Freiberg before arriving at Basel SBB at 1447. For the return leg, it departs Basel at 1513 arriving back in Amsterdam at 2159. Journey time both ways is around 6 hours 45 mins.
Standard Amsterdam-Basel tickets are priced from around €38 (2nd class) and €60 (1st class) one-way.
In our opinion, both the 1st and 2nd class seats on the ICE International are extremely comfortable.
A nice feature of the ICE3M trains are the “Panorama lounge” cabins at the very front and rear of the trains where you can sometimes view the driver’s seat and window – although the driver can elect to frost the glass. One cabin is 1st class, the other is 2nd class.
The ICE train also has a bistro bar carriage in the middle of the train.
Free WiFi is available to all passengers and there are power outlets accessible from each seat.
BOOKING: Book your ICE trip at NS International
or Book ICE tickets at Trainline
Amsterdam-Berlin: Intercity Berlin
DB Bahn (German railways) and NS International operate an IC (Intercity) train service 6x daily between Amsterdam Central and Berlin Ostbahnhof. The journey makes a good number of stops: in Netherlands at Hilversum, Amersfoort, Apeldoorn, Deventer, Almelo and Hengelo.
German stopping stations include Bad Bentheim, Rheine, Osnabrück, Hannover, Wolfsburg, Stendal, Berlin Spandau and Berlin Hauptbanhof, the main station of the city.
The journey takes around 5 hours 52 mins with the lowest one-way prices from €38 (2nd class) and €50 (1st class).
The Intercity Berlin carriages are from DB and are normally pulled by a Dutch locomotive.
The IC Berlin train has an on board bistro bar carriage for drinks and snacks. 1st class passengers can order from their seat.
The 1st class seats (mainly 6 seat mini-compartments) are very comfortable; the 2nd class seats (open 2-2 configuration) are a little firmer. The windows on this train are large and offer good views.
Seat reservations are included with 1st class tickets and cost €4.90 extra (recommended) for 2nd class.
Free WiFi is available to all passengers and there are some power outlets located under the seats.
BOOKING: Book your Intercity Berlin trip at NS International
or Book Intercity Berlin tickets with Trainline here
Amsterdam to other destinations in Germany and beyond
Passengers heading to other destinations can use the ICE or IC trains from the Netherlands and then connect onto other German rail services. Connections are normally made at Hanover, Düsseldorf, Osnabrück or Frankfurt Main – from here you could travel to the likes of Hamburg, Stuttgart and Munich.
BOOKING: Book your trip to Germany at NS International
Amsterdam-Vienna/Munich, Amsterdam-Zurich: NightJet
Austrian Railways ÖBB operates a couple of NightJet night train services to/from Amsterdam.
There is an Amsterdam-Vienna service which departs nightly from Amsterdam at 1900 and arrives in Vienna at 0917 the next morning – giving a journey time of just over 14 hours.
The train runs via Utrecht, Arnhem, Düsseldorf, Cologne and Frankfurt. It continues to Nuremberg where the train splits into a Munich bound section (via Augsburg) and a Vienna-bound section via Linz.
The arrival time in Munich is 0706 meaning a journey time of around 12 hours.
From Vienna and Munich the NightJet trains depart at 2010 and 2252, respectively. They arrive together the following morning at Amsterdam Central at 0959.
NightJet operates a second night train service from Amsterdam to Zurich via Utrecht, Arnhem, Düsseldorf, Cologne, Frankfurt, Mannheim and Basel.
The train departs Amsterdam at 2030, arriving in Zurich at 0805. From Zurich the train leaves at 2159, arriving in Amsterdam at 0905. The journey time is just under the 12 hour mark.
One-way tickets prices for NightJet range as follows: €35-€165 for a 2nd class seat; €50-€195 for a couchette bunk (4-6 people); €80-€320 for a sleeper cabin for 1, 2 or 3 people.
BOOKING: Book your NightJet tickets at NS International
or Book NightJet tickets at Trainline
Amsterdam-Marseille: Eurostar Sun
Eurostar Sun is a special seasonal service which runs weekly (on Saturdays) during July and August only. The train operates as a normal Eurostar from Amsterdam to Brussels – but then continues on to Valence, Avignon, Aix-en-Provence and Marseille St Charles. Note, this service will not run in summer 2024.
Alternatively there are TGV services originating from Brussels running year round which bypass Paris and serve many major destinations in the south of France – including Lyon, Marseilles, Nice and the French Riviera, Montpelier and Perpignan. The Amsterdam-Marseilles journey takes about 8 hours.
Prices from Amsterdam via Brussels start at €84 one-way. Book at NS International
Amsterdam-Bourg St Maurice: Eurostar Snow
The Eurostar Snow service runs every Saturday between mid-December and the end of March.
From Amsterdam it makes stops in Rotterdam, Antwerp and Brussels before heading to Chambery, Albertville, Moutiers Salins, Aime La Plagne, Landry and finally Bourg St Maurice.
Travel time between Amsterdam and Bourg St Maurice is around 9 hours. Bus connections from these stations run to all the main French ski resorts.
BOOKING: One-way prices start from €99 in Standard class. Tickets on sale from October, book at NS International
European Sleeper: Amsterdam-Berlin-Prague
This is a start-up cooperative company established in 2021 which runs a 2x weekly night train service between Brussels and Berlin via Amsterdam.
The train departs Brussels Zuid/Midi at 1922 and travels to Amsterdam via Antwerp, Roosendaal, Rotterdam (2122), Den Haag HS and Schiphol Airport. It leaves Amsterdam Central at 2234 with further Dutch stops at Amersfoort and Deventer before crossing into Germany at Bad Bentheim. It arrives in Berlin Hbf at 0620.
From 25 March 2024 it will continue on to Dresden (0829) and Prague (1056).
From the other way it is timetabled to depart Prague at 1804 and travels the same route back with main stops Dresden (2030), Berlin Hbf (2256), Amsterdam Central (0626), Rotterdam (0727), Antwerp (0843) and arriving at Brussel Zuid/Midi at 0927.
Accommodation on board comprises of sleepers (1/2/3 bed) with a wash basin, couchettes (4-person or 6-person compartments) and standard seats (in a 6-seat compartment).
Amsterdam-Berlin tickets are priced from €19 (seats), €49 (couchettes) and €139 (sleepers).
Brussels-Amsterdam-Berlin-(Prague) runs on Mondays and Fridays. The (Prague)-Berlin-Amsterdam-Brussels leg runs on Sundays and Thursdays.
It is possible to book European Sleeper tickets at Omio. You need to specify the correct date and adjust the departure time to evenings to see the European Sleeper in the results. For single occupancy you need to click ‘Change seating preferences’ on ‘seat reservation’ on the booking page.
Amsterdam-Luxembourg
There are no direct services from Amsterdam to Luxembourg. You have the option of various routes via either Belgium or Germany.
The easiest way to travel (just one connection) is to take a train from Amsterdam to Brussels and then take an intercity service from Brussels to Luxembourg. This costs from €32 one-way if taking the Intercity Brussels or from €70 one-way if taking the faster Eurostar. Journey times are from 5 hours 35 mins to 6 hours 25 mins.
2nd class rail travel in Luxembourg is free.
BOOKING: Book Amsterdam-Luxembourg trips at NS International
Buying International Train Tickets
International train tickets can be easily bought at NS International counters at main stations including Amsterdam Central and Rotterdam Central. However, they will charge you a €7.50 per person service fee (max €22.50 per booking).
You can buy some limited tickets at the NS automatic ticket machines at stations – generally to Belgium, western Germany, Lille and Luxembourg.
To save the desk booking fee, it is best to book online in advance at the NS International site
Related articles: How to Buy a Dutch Train ticket and International Rail Borders in Netherlands
This article was originally published in 2010 and has continuously been updated. Last update 31 January 2023.
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