Families have to pay more: Deutsche Bahn is abolishing reservations!

Families have to pay more: Deutsche Bahn is abolishing reservations!

From Sunday, June 15, 2025, Deutsche Bahn will be making a significant change to the reservation system. The creative variant of family reservations for seats is being abolished, and this has some consequences for all families who like to travel. Parents can no longer simply reserve seats for themselves and their children at a flat rate, but now have to pay extra for each individual seat. The prices for reservations in second class increase from 5.20 euros to 5.50 euros, in first class from 6.50 euros to 6.90 euros. These price adjustments have meant that the costs for a family of four are effectively more than double - a significant increase that is not well received by every household.

Families with two children, for example, will now have to reserve a whopping 44 euros for a return trip instead of only paying 20.80 euros as before. This provokes a wave of criticism. The Ecological Transport Club of Germany (VCD) has already started a petition to fight against this measure. The Pro Bahn passenger association also emphasizes that environmentally friendly travel for families urgently needs discounts. Many people share this opinion, as family reservations were already considered a popular offer that around 5% of long-distance travelers, i.e. around 6.7 million passengers, used to avoid stress and uncertainty when looking for a seat.

Political reactions and user feedback

Reactions to the abolition are mixed, but primarily characterized by outrage. Representatives from politics and various associations have spoken out loudly and criticized Deutsche Bahn's decision. A spokesperson for the Department of Transport expressed concern and understandable unease about these changes. Deutsche Bahn, on the other hand, is sticking to its decision more firmly and points out that children up to the age of 14 can travel free of charge when accompanied by an adult.

However, with the timetable change, which also takes place on Sunday, there is also positive news: Flexprice tickets can be canceled free of charge up to one day before the first day of validity, which is certainly a relief for many travelers. In addition, some discount campaigns have started that could perhaps shed some light on the price increase.

What does this mean for travelers?

So abolishing family reservations not only means higher costs, but also risk. There is no longer a guarantee that families can sit together without reservations. Travelers are encouraged to pay attention to the occupancy forecasts in the DB Navigator app to increase their chances of finding seats together. Even a low occupancy rate can indicate a high probability that seats are available next to each other. When the vehicle is at full capacity, there is always the risk that the exchange with other passengers will not work.

In summary, family travel routes could change significantly as a result of these changes. The committed voices from associations and politics reveal the cards - because a change that will cost families more and make traveling more difficult is not met with enthusiasm everywhere. Deutsche Bahn has its plan, now we just have to wait and see how it will work out in practice.

For detailed information about the changes and the current prices, the Deutsche Bahn, Tagesschau and Test websites are available: North Sea newspaper, daily news, test.