The Dutch rail network ranks among the densest in the world. Train services provided by the NS (Dutch Railways) are very frequent and efficient. Distances between popular destinations are short.
In the west of the country at least four trains an hour run between the major Dutch cities of Amsterdam, Den Haag, Rotterdam and Utrecht- At least two trains per hour run for further travels in all other parts of the Netherlands
- The two main train types: the Intercity (fast city-to-city connections) and the Stoptrein (more frequent stops at the smaller stations).
- Most stations are centrally located.
Average InterCity travel times in minutes
Train types
- InterCity (IC): connect major cities, reservations are not possible
- Stoptrein, Sneltrein and Sprinter: regional local trains, reservations are not possible
- Fyra: domestic high speed trains (Amsterdam - Schiphol - Rotterdam), reservation is possible, but not required
- Thalys: international high speed trains, reservations are required
- ICE: international high speed trains, reservations are recommended
- City Night Line (CNL): international night trains, reservations are recommended
- Regional Bahn (RB): regional DB train to/from Germany, reservation not possible
NS Hispeed Lounges
Travelers with a first class InterRail Pass valid in The Netherlands, are welcome in the NS Hispeed Lounges. You can relax in these quiet areas while waiting for your (international) train to depart. Have a drink, read a newspaper or plug in your laptop. You can find a lounge at Amsterdam Central station, Rotterdam Central station and Schiphol airport. Read more at nshispeed.nl.
Amsterdam train stations
Domestic trains in The Netherlands do not require a reservation.
For the new high-speed train Fyra reservation is possible, but not required.
For the high-speed Thalys trains to Belgium and France a reservation is required. The fees are quite high and the number of seats for InterRail travellers is limited. You may want to avoid the Thalys by taking a regular InterCity to Antwerp and Brussels.
For more information see the pages:
How to get there
International trains
- Thalys high-speed trains to Brussels and Paris from Amsterdam Central Station (5 times a day in about 4 hours)
- International trains from Amsterdam to Antwerp and Brussels (every hour)
- 5 ICE trains daily from Amsterdam to Cologne, Düsseldorf and Frankfurt with one proceeding to Basel, Switzerland
- 4 daily trains leave from Schiphol Airport to Hannover, with 3 proceeding to Berlin
Night Trains
Direct night trains run from Amsterdam to Munich (Germany), Zürich and Basel (Switzerland). Reservation of accommodation is compulsory on these night trains.
