New ICE timetable: Fast connections to Berlin, Munich & Paris!

New ICE timetable: Fast connections to Berlin, Munich & Paris!

With Deutsche Bahn's new timetable, which comes into force on December 14, 2026, passengers in northern Germany and beyond can look forward to a truly remarkable improvement in long-distance transport. How dubisthalle.de reports, the focus is primarily on the hourly ICE connections between Berlin and Munich, with a pleasant journey time of around four hours.

But that's not all! The timetable also offers a half-hourly service between Berlin, Halle and Erfurt, which makes travel planning much easier for commuters and travelers. There will also be 16 fast connections per direction between these cities every day, meaning spontaneous travel will be easier than ever before.

Extended connections in long-distance transport

A special highlight are the new, direct connections to Paris, Leipzig and even southern Poland. From May 1, 2026, a new line from Saxony to Copenhagen will further improve long-distance transport. The planned Eurocity trains between Leipzig, Wroclaw and Krakow will also have stops in Riesa and Hoyerswerda, which will improve travel opportunities to neighboring eastern European countries.

Deutsche Bahn also plans to increase its free rides on routes that are in high demand. This affects the section between Hamburg and Dresden as well as the connection between Berlin and Dresden - people in the peripheral regions are looking forward to these changes. Loud tagesschau.de Some less popular connections are to be abolished, while at the same time the ICE Sprinter network is being expanded.

New comfort and improved punctuality

Deutsche Bahn has taken advantage of the opportunity and, with the new timetable, is also announcing the introduction of the new ICE L, which enables barrier-free boarding and reaches speeds of up to 230 km/h. These changes not only benefit travelers, but also the railway itself, as they try to massively improve the current punctuality problems of around 60%.

The new punctuality targets plan to increase punctuality to 70% by the end of 2029 and even to 90% in the long term. In addition, local transport will soon achieve over 90% punctuality, which will bring enormous relief to all those commuters who rely on these connections. deutschebahn.com highlights that there will also be five major construction sites in 2026, which could cause temporary disruption, but will serve to improve the rail network in the long term.

For travelers, booking for the new timetable is scheduled to begin on October 15, 2026. Until then, we just have to wait and keep an eye on the upcoming changes. Passengers expect that the railway will have a good hand with the new offers and that long-distance travel will become increasingly popular again.