A brand-new direct rail connection now links Cologne and Antwerp through Aachen, Liège, Leuven, and Brussels Airport.
The new ICE service offers two daily round-trips between Cologne Station and Antwerp, and provides Brussels with its first direct connection to the ICE network as a whole.
Operated by flagship train ICE 3neo, this new connection aims to respond to sharp increases in demand for rail travel between Germany and Belgium, with passenger numbers on cross-border ICE trains between the two countries having increased by around 18% between 2019 and 2025.
Trains depart Cologne Central Station at 06:11 and 14:38, arriving at Antwerp Central Station at 08:58 and 16:57. In the opposite direction, trains depart at 11:01 and 19:01, arriving in Cologne at 13:24 and 21:24, respectively.
Dr. Michael Peterson, DB Board Member for Long-Distance Passenger Transport, said:Direct to Antwerp, direct to Brussels Airport – and all with our most modern trains: This is how we are making international rail travel even easier and more attractive for passengers.
We are connecting two important transport hubs with ICE services: Cologne as a hub for cross-border long-distance transport and Brussels Airport as an international hub for onward travel by plane.
Passengers looking to transfer to a Brussels Airlines flight at Brussels Airport will be given the option of a joint codeshare offer, which allows for the purchase of a combined train and flight ticket in a single booking step. The codeshare offer, which is already in use by Lufthansa on its ‘Lufthansa Express Rail’, has been extended in cooperation with Brussels Airlines to include the new connections from Cologne via Aachen and Liège to and from Brussels Airport.
