BENLEE

I will be flying into Frankfurt late in the evening and will stay one night at the Hilton Frankfurt airport hotel. I have to goto Munich the following day. Can someone advise me what's the fastest and most convenient way to take a train from Frankfurt to Munich?

I understand the Frankfurt Airport is directly connected to a train station and the Hilton hotel itself sits on top of the train station ( ICE Railway Station ). Also, are tickets always available or it is better to reserved online and if yes, which website?

Thanks in advance.

NWA747SNN

http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/que...UK-277984_LZ03

Palal

Tickets are always available, although it does not mean you will have a seat, but if you want a ticked that's cheaper, but tied to a specific train, you can pre-book and print at home.

BENLEE

so it means it is possible to board a train from Frankfurt airport ICE station directly to Munich?

ToGo

http://fahrplan.oebb.at/bin/query.exe/en
oh yes there are many (cheaper) EC Trains the take just 20min Longer than the ICE.
sorry i look just from the Main station.

Aviatrix

Where did you find that information?

According to bahn.de non-ICE connections take between 4:30 hrs (with one change) and 5:30 hours (with two changes), and non-flexible fares start at EUR 35.00

The direct ICE train, on the other hand, takes just over 3:30 hours, and non-flexible fares start at just EUR 29.00 if booked early enough.

As the OP is staying overnight there is absolutely no reason not to buy a non-flexible ticket. Just pick a train at www.bahn.de, book online and print the ticket - couldn't be simpler!

And yes, the Hilton is indeed right on top of the train station

ToGo

Just Press F5...

The DB show me a "Normalpreis Ticket" fort just 159,00 EUR by ICE and a "Normalpreis Ticket" by EC via Frankfurt HBF for just 128,00 EUR
There is a 10Min Sbahn ride for 5€ from Airport to Mainstation.

Aviatrix

If you go to bahn.de and enter Frankfurt Flughafen as your point of departure and München Hbf as your destination, with no other preferences set, you get a long list of direct ICE services all taking 3:30(ish) hours and with fares starting at EUR 29 (Sparpreis). Obviously you have to pick a date some time in the future as opposed to tomorrow as the cheap tickets are likely to have sold out for tomorrow (I picked a date about four weeks away)

If you change your preferences to "no ICE" you get a (much shorter) list of connecting services, with one or two changes, taking a minimum of 4:30 hours (but some taking as long as 5:30), with Sparpreis tickets starting at EUR 35.

If the OP is able to book ahead it's really a no-brainer. And even at full fare... what's an extra 20 Euro when one considers the alternative? I'd much rather have a fast direct journey then a slow one involving multiple changes and a long trek around Frankfurt Hbf.

BENLEE

Thanks guys for your input.

I went to bahn.de to try to do a simulated booking, the departure stations for Frankfurt available from the dropdown listings are : Frankfurt Main Hbf, Frankfurt Main Flughafen and also Frankfurt Flughafen Fernbf. So which one to choose? And for the arrival station, I couldn't find "Munich Main Hbf", only ""Munich (Munchen)". So if I choose "Munich (Munchen)", is this the Munich main train station at the city center?

I am arriving at Frankfurt on 12-Jan-2013 at night and wants to take the train the next morning from Frankfurt airport to Munich on 13-Jan-2013 with the fastest route. One more thing, are these trains luggage friendly? ie are there compartments for storing luggage? I will have a large Samsonite travel bag with me.

It is my first visit to Germany. Thanks for your patience.

blue2002

Fernbahnhof ~= Lond-Distance Train Station, so "Frankfurt(M) Flughafen Fernbf " is your best bet

Also bahn.de shows München Hbf as an option. Try entering that as your destination.

By the way, if there is nothing keeping you in FRA, you do have the option of saving a few bucks on the hotel and going by sleeper train straight from the airport. It is a very late departure though.

ToGo

Please note this is a Night Train. For this Train you need a Seat/ Bed Reservation. That is an option but... the Train is verry noisy and move around. The most Coaches are verry Small.
I wold take a Hotel in the City and the Sbahn (Local Train) take only ~11Min from the Airport to the City and on the next morning the EC.

FLYGVA

Frankfurt Airport has two railway stations, which are more or less in the same building but not close together.

Frankfurt Flughafen Regionalbahnhof ist the one, where all local trains stop, i.e. S-Bahn, RegionalExpress Trains (RE) or RegionalBahn Trains (RB). This is the stop if you want to take the train downtown for the cheapest rate. There is not really any need for a ticket on one of the ICE trains running from the airport to main station, as they are not much slower.

Frankfurt Flughafen Fernbahnhof is the one, where all long distance trains are stopping. This stop is only served by high speed trains (ICE) and a few long distance trains (IC [Intercity trains] or EC [Eurocity trains]). Some but not all trains serve the Hauptbahnhof (Frankfurt main station) from the Flughafen Fernbahnhof.

Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof (Main station) is located downtown and not at the airport. Frankfurt main station is served by long distance trains, high speed trains (among those ICE and TGV) and local trains (the most S-Bahn trains stop at the tracks in the basement).

Some Night trains are actually quite comfortable, depending on the class of service you book, but then it is not cheaper than a hotel night and the distance Frankfurt - Munich is not that far away to justify a sleeper compartment. I suggest to book a hotel in Frankfurt and take a train the next day.

Depening on the type of luggage, it will not fit in the overhead compartment of the trains and has to be put on the floor. This is easier in First Class than in Second (Coach) Class (seating is 1 -2 in First vs 2 - 2 in Second). The most ICE train of the newest generation do not have much of luggage storage facilities). This is better in IC / EC and a few older ICE trains.

As far as I remember Munich - Frankfurt is served only by the newest ICE trains. If time is not a reason to book the ICE service, than an IC or EC would be an option as well.

The ICE trains usually have priority if anything goes wrong and they are faster than the IC trains (and I am not talking about a few minutes - the times mentioned by aviatrix are the ones I think are correct).

Aviatrix

The OP is flying into FRA late at night (presumably long-haul, judging by his location) and has, sensibly, booked a hotel at the airport... which is exactly what I would have done, arriving late at night in an unfamiliar place. And he is looking for the FASTEST route to Munich, which means the direct ICE from Frankfurt Flughafen Fernbahnhof.

A quick look at www.bahn.de shows lots of availability throughout the morning of the 13th at EUR 59.00 (Sparpreis, i.e., saver tickets). Just like with airline seats availability at these cheap fares is limited, so if price is important then I would recommend booking as soon as possible.

Note: The first page only shows second class fares. Once you click on the booking link you will also be shown the cheapest first class fare. I've just randomly clicked on the 0853 departure and found first class is available at EUR 69.00 - definitely worth going for.

Koby

Exactly. Keep it simple. I love FT, but we sure know how to complicate things...

BENLEE

Thanks guys for all your great help. So I should select "Frankfurt Flughafen Fernbf" as original departure, which will be the train station at airport and arrival station "Munchen Hbf".

Please check if this is correct?



By the way, is it worth to pay more for 1st Class?