DB - Berlin Brandenburg to Leipzig Hbf ticket sheet

The Snap · Saturday at 19:04

Hi,

I am looking at tickets from Brandenburg to Leipzig. I’ve been given 3 ticket options on the DB website, as per image below.

Does the Sparpreis ticket allow me to get any ICE train on that route at any time that day, or is it tied to a specific train time that day (much like an Advanced ticket in the UK)?

Ideally I don’t want to tie myself down to a specific train incase my inbound flight is delayed, but am wondering whether to take a chance on the Sparpreis ticket given its an extra €60 to go for the Flex!

PS: never travelled intercity by train in Germany before so any tips would be welcome! Have used the local S-Bahn and U-Bahn in Berlin, Munich and Leipzig and always found it very efficient. Hopefully the same can be said for ICE??

Thanks

RailUK Forums

The exile · Saturday at 19:09

The Snap said:
Hi,

I am looking at tickets from Brandenburg to Leipzig. I’ve been given 3 ticket options on the DB website, as per image below.

Does the Sparpreis ticket allow me to get any ICE train on that route at any time that day, or is it tied to a specific train time that day (much like an Advanced ticket in the UK)?

Ideally I don’t want to tie myself down to a specific train incase my inbound flight is delayed, but am wondering whether to take a chance on the Sparpreis ticket given its an extra €60 to go for the Flex!

PS: never travelled intercity by train in Germany before so any tips would be welcome! Have used the local S-Bahn and U-Bahn in Berlin, Munich and Leipzig and always found it very efficient. Hopefully the same can be said for ICE??

Thanks

Both “Sparpreis” variants are like advances in GB - ie are train specific.

py_megapixel · Saturday at 19:15

Yes, Sparpreis is restricted, like an advance single

Re. efficiency of the service - my experience is that the trains are pleasant, comfortable, quiet and quick. Assuming everything goes to plan it's an extremely civilised way to travel and I usually enjoy an ICE journey when I get the opportunity.

But the major caveat is that DB-Fernverkehr ("DB Long-Distance Travel", the division of DB that runs ICEs) is unfortunately a bit notorious for long delays and cancellation at the moment so I would advise leaving some slack in your travel plans!!

The Snap · Saturday at 19:18

py_megapixel said:
Yes, Sparpreis is restricted, like an advance single

Re. efficiency of the service - my experience is that the trains are pleasant, comfortable, quiet and quick. Assuming everything goes to plan it's an extremely civilised way to travel and I usually enjoy an ICE journey when I get the opportunity.

But the major caveat is that DB-Fernverkehr ("DB Long-Distance Travel", the division of DB that runs ICEs) is unfortunately a bit notorious for long delays and cancellation at the moment so I would advise leaving some slack in your travel plans!!

Ok many thanks for the advice

The following day, we will be travelling back to Brandenburg for a flight back to the UK. The flight is at 11:30am, there are trains once per hour from Leipzig. Is this a risky move, ie: relying on the train to get us back to the airport in order to catch a flight?

Farigiraf · Saturday at 19:18

Unfortunately DB don't do 'Airport Advances' as are sometimes seen in the UK so purchasing the Sparpreis is very risky.
If you want flexibility, you basically have 3 options:
- Stay overnight at the airport or nearby, and purchase a cheap Sparpreis for the next day. Only worth it though if you can find a relatively affordable hotel. Noting that you seem to be arriving on a morning flight, you could also buy a Sparpreis for a train in the afternoon and kill time in Berlin - one of the better places to do this!

- Pay the €138 Flexpreis fare
- Buy a D-ticket (or pay nothing if you already have one) and take a number of connecting trains to get from BER to Leipzig, taking around 1h-1.5h longer. IIRC you have to change at Berlin Sudkreuz and Lutherstadt Wittenberg.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: Saturday at 19:26 ==

The Snap said:
The following day, we will be travelling back to Brandenburg for a flight back to the UK. The flight is at 11:30am, there are trains once per hour from Leipzig. Is this a risky move, ie: relying on the train to get us back to the airport in order to catch a flight?

With current long-distance train reliability I wouldn't suggest doing that, but I would say that if you do really want to take the train then you don't really need to allow more than 2 hours for potential cancellations as train frequency is quite high and there are lots of alternative train options for if things go wrong.

If your flight is with Lufthansa or one of their partnered airlines (e.g. BA) then there is a 'Rail&Fly' ticket option which does have protection against train delays resulting in missing a flight, but whether this is the best value option (or available at all) depends a lot on the route.

DanielB · Saturday at 19:52

Farigiraf said:
Noting that you seem to be arriving on a morning flight, you could also buy a Sparpreis for a train in the afternoon and kill time in Berlin - one of the better places to do this!

Adding to that: trying a bit with the journey planner I noticed that a Sparpreis from Berlin Hbf to Leipzig (on exactly the same trains as in your screenshot) is actually quite a bit cheaper.
So it might be worthwhile to book a Sparpreis for a later train and buy a VBB single from the airport to the city centre to kill the time.

You'd then spent € 10 on two VBB singles for travel in Berlin, but the Sparpreis from Berlin Hbf to Leipzig is € 20 cheaper than from the airport.

The Snap · Saturday at 20:05

Farigiraf said:
Unfortunately DB don't do 'Airport Advances' as are sometimes seen in the UK so purchasing the Sparpreis is very risky.
If you want flexibility, you basically have 3 options:
- Stay overnight at the airport or nearby, and purchase a cheap Sparpreis for the next day. Only worth it though if you can find a relatively affordable hotel. Noting that you seem to be arriving on a morning flight, you could also buy a Sparpreis for a train in the afternoon and kill time in Berlin - one of the better places to do this!
- Pay the €138 Flexpreis fare
- Buy a D-ticket (or pay nothing if you already have one) and take a number of connecting trains to get from BER to Leipzig, taking around 1h-1.5h longer. IIRC you have to change at Berlin Sudkreuz and Lutherstadt Wittenberg.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: Saturday at 19:26 ==

With current long-distance train reliability I wouldn't suggest doing that, but I would say that if you do really want to take the train then you don't really need to allow more than 2 hours for potential cancellations as train frequency is quite high and there are lots of alternative train options for if things go wrong.

If your flight is with Lufthansa or one of their partnered airlines (e.g. BA) then there is a 'Rail&Fly' ticket option which does have protection against train delays resulting in missing a flight, but whether this is the best value option (or available at all) depends a lot on the route.

Thanks. There appear to be other options with 2 connections in between the hourly ICE trains, which gives us a back up if the first ICE trains is candelled

Sadly we would be travelling with the almighty Ryanair (hurray, not!) so your last suggestion won’t apply

rvdborgt · Saturday at 21:09

Farigiraf said:
If your flight is with Lufthansa or one of their partnered airlines (e.g. BA) then there is a 'Rail&Fly' ticket option which does have protection against train delays resulting in missing a flight, but whether this is the best value option (or available at all) depends a lot on the route.

DB have a list of Rail&Fly airline partners here:

Rail&Fly: Take the train to your flight across Germany

We provide stress-free transport to the airport and right into the heart of the city. Rail&Fly saves you time and makes sure you don't get caught out by the weather.

int.bahn.de

paul_munich · Sunday at 12:48

A delay of more then 20 minutes gives you full flexibility, you can just take the next train of your choice within a year! And ICEs on the Berlin Munich line are usually a bit more reliable then services coming from the Frankfurt or Rhein-Ruhr area…

DB - Berlin Brandenburg to Leipzig Hbf ticket sheet

The Snap

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The exile

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Rail&Fly: Take the train to your flight across Germany

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