Flixtrain! It's cheap but is it good?

Let's check out the newly refurbished Flixtrain between Berlin and Dortmund!
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Have a question? Please comment and I will try to provide you with an answer.
Date of Travel: 8 August 2020
Class of Travel: 2nd Class
Rolling Stock: Siemens Vectron/Inter-Regio Coaches
Cost of Ticket: €17.98 (£16.26, $21.30)
Origin: Berlin Hbf, Germany
Destination: Dortmund Hbf, Germany
*Currency conversions correct as of 16/08/2020

[@RalphHammett]

I’ve watched your channel grow since the start of 2020, and every single video, gets better and bigger! You have inspired me so much to do Travel Reports! Who else thinks Dylan deserves more Subscribers? 👇

[@DylansTravelReports]

Glad I could inspire you 😁

[@thomasg86]

It's been 20 years since I was in Germany, but the trains impressed the hell out of me. Always on time. Looks like a comfy ride for a great price!

[@manubird2475]

Aloha from Hawai'i! Another fun, informative train video. What caught my eye was the fleeting shots of Dortmund station. The last time I was there was in December, 1967!

[@Steve-xf4uv]

Great shot of the electric engine, thanks. Beautiful clean train, I would definitely use this. Seat looked good and love the green (to match the exterior) toilet seat. This train would be considered high speed in North America where the fastest is the Acela on the Northeast corridor which is about these speeds.

[@horizelux2212]

Im glad they're starting to introduce more budget trains, hopefully in the future there are more options across other continents! Great video, enjoyed it :)

[@hans2406]

Introducing budget trains and creating the same mess as in the air.....

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks!

[@stefandee1970]

With spreaded virus fears we dont need trains and plains anymore.

[@josejaviera5276]

@@hans2406 as long as it takes passengers from buses, cars, and even low cost airplanes, our planet and us win! And flixtrain ain't that bad

[@lorijohnston4311]

I really wish the States had trains that went this quickly at such a fantastic price. Flixtrain looked incredibly clean, comfortable and smooth. And the Berlin rail station was huge -- and very impressive. Thanks for the report, Dylan. Stay safe and see you Friday!

[@Neville60001]

I wish that Canada had these trains, too. But both our countries have to electrify _everything_ and improve the trackage before we could ever ride in one.

[@JESTER-97]

I've travelled by Flixbus in Italy. It was very affordable for me considering that I came as a tourist from a low income country. Talking about German trains, I've only travelled by ICE which was super fast (picked speeds above 300 kmph) and kinda expensive too. Flixtrain looks really nice and clean and still manages to run at 200kmph which is more than the top speed of the fastest trains in my country currently. What else is needed. Very good! 👍

[@olrikm]

I like it when you film the approach to the stations. It brings life to your travels. Many thanks!

[@FlixbusDe]

Thank you Dylan, for this awesome review! Happy to have you on board! ;)

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks for the ride 😁

[@kepc9083]

Flixtrain seems like a very attractive, comfortable, well priced service. Nice views of the countryside on this trip, too. Thanks, Dylan! 🌿

[@velotill]

its really nice what they've done to these 40yo waggons. The only thing that feels old timey is the connection between carriages which remains super loud and rattley and the doors that go WHAM!!! instead of a soft and slow beepbeepbeep. WiFi is dependent on the still somewhat spotty 4G coverage along the tracks, same situation as in DB ICE trains. Nice review

[@moestrei]

Absolutely love it when old rolling stock is giving a new lease of life. Fresh, airy look, compfy seats, well done, Flixtrains.

[@DylansTravelReports]

I agree 😁

[@enricomonti156]

Hopefully Flixtrain will extend a bit internationally in the future

[@drdewott9154]

Before the pandemic they had plans to expand into France, Belgium and Sweden starting in 2021 but of course those have been put on hold for rather obvious reasons.

[@michaelz.7140]

First they should extend their network in Germany... they have what like 2 routes

[@josejaviera5276]

@@drdewott9154 they cancelled their France plans, and apparently the decision was taken before covid. It was the track access fees by SNCF Reseau that were too high

[@crunchy3157]

@@drdewott9154 in France train are not that much expensive they wont have a big profit to do i think but in sweden that will be a very good opportunity for them

[@Happymali10]

They actually shrunk, they lost the cooperation with BTE for the Hamburg-Lörrach sleeper train.

[@alanlake5220]

Cheap and cheerfull, does what it says on the tin, can't be faulted.I am surprised by the amount of graffeti on the sides of the tracks abroad, and not just in the uk. Lastly you should do a train trip, and review of the big model railway in Hamburg . Keep the reports coming .

[@nsl_black8053]

Its great, you should check it out

[@robindenham8237]

This train looks a lot nicer than the Flixtrain I caught in December 2019 (Frankfurt-Süd to Berlin Hbf). I don't think those carriages had been refurbished at all except to cram in a couple of jump-seats into an old-fashioned seating layout - very uncomfortable on a crowded and delayed train! Nice to see the company's finding their feet

[@blubberdignubber]

The Inter-Regio coaches are much older. They were modified in the late 1980s for the Inter-Regio operation. Originally the coaches were put in operation the first time between 1968 and 1979 as express coaches (UIC-X-Coaches) . Inter-Regio service ended in 2006 and the most coaches were repainted and operated as Intercity coaches - the interior weren't touched. Many InterCity services were replaced by ICE services and some old IC stock were replaced by new IC2 stock. The result was, that many coaches were no longer in use, hence they were sold. Obviously the coaches were again modified after they were sold the the current operation company (it is not Flixtrain, Flixtrain just hires trains), they are operated and owned by other comapanies. That minimizes the financial risk for each company. Btw. max speed is 200 kph for those old coaches.

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks for the info.

[@outdoorolli5754]

Does the FLIXTRAIN include air condition?

[@blubberdignubber]

@@outdoorolli5754 It depends, afaik the latest modification of the old express coaches has ac, but all elder versions don't have it.

[@arrivedknight7632]

Do they use dual block wheels or monoblock? Are they that loud inside?

[@blubberdignubber]

@@arrivedknight7632 The coaches have afaik dual block wheels (wheel tyres). And I have to correct myself, the prototypes were launeched in 1951 and the UIC-X caches were built from 1952. According to wikipedia, the comfort was the best in Europe at that time and it is still quite good - depending on the installed seats. The coaches are quiet especially since they got brake discs installed, which had all coaches which were delivered after 1960. There is some wind noise from the windows at higher speeds. I think the noise and movements of the coaches is comparable to the 1990s and 2000s double deck coaches used for regional services.

[@tobis.4037]

I really like the styling of those carriages, especially the wooden accents. Great video as always.

[@DJTrainBrain]

Yeah, you see such wooden accents around more and more, these days. Where I live, even the city buses have them now. Not quite the carpeted floors that I've accustomed myself to for long-distance travel, but somewhat soothing, still. I like seeing it around!

[@DylansTravelReports]

I agree and it's always good to see old loco hauled stock being refurbisbed as opposed to retired.

[@SolidMublo]

I was travelling to England in March from my hometown two hours south of Berlin. The flight departet in Berlin but then suddenly my bus had a 88 minute delay for some reason?? So I, very stressed out, looked at alternatives for gettign to Berlin and I saw this 15€ flix train that departet like 10 minutes after the bus was to depart. It honestly saved my whole travel

[@lutfiprayogi2]

You know it’s a low cost service when you see legs pop out to the aisle.

[@DylansTravelReports]

Lol

[@grumpy989]

UK ppl shuffle nervously

[@fritefrie]

Not in ouigo

[@charlesmarkins6765]

I took the FlixBus from Nuremburg to Baden Baden a few years ago and it was so nice. To just sit back and see the country side. And they did have sodas and snacks to purchase. There was a toilet on board which was not bad at all, and very clean. It was cheap and very nice trip.

[@RafhiLP]

It's very good that more operators are providing services in Germany. The rail network has been run down by the DB over the last decades and many trains are really old. Tickets are also so overpriced that it's cheaper to fly than to use the train which is ridiculous. For example a train ride from Munich to Berlin costs 135€ while flying with the Lufthansa only costs you around 60€. If I take a train from my home to the airport it's still cheaper than to use the train. So it's good that there is finally some real competition for the rail monopoly in Germany.

[@raileon]

also ich hab mal für eine Verbindung München - Berlin in exakt 2 Wochen gesucht. Bahn Sparpreise zwischen 27,90 und 61,90 Euro derzeit und Lufthansa Preise zwischen 139,40 und 244,40 Euro derzeit. Also der Zug ist da definitiv günstiger, wenn man halt gut plant.

[@penninetrains1398]

Another well-filmed and very informative review Dylan. I have to say that lime green is not my favourite colour scheme, but it seems to be a relatively fast, efficient and value-for-money service.

[@CrazyDash9]

Berlin Central is such a gorgeous station. Germany has quite the amazing stations

[@feuer_0528]

Country**

[@aloskss]

Feuer_ 05 What?..

[@SirChickon]

Meh, Cold Architecture, Several Floors, yeah a alot of "Space" but only for the eye not for people. It sucks to change the floors. They wasted so much space for tracks...

[@yodathejedimaster7781]

Do you really expect a cold country with a hot architecture design

[@Abluemoon9112]

Man if the budget train are high speed compared to the united State, then what the American are snail speed lol.

[@Abluemoon9112]

@Rod Buster i know. I am making comments about how slow it is in the USA

[@buzzukfiftythree]

Most Americans are unfortunately still far too attached to their cars and flying is still relatively cheap for long-distance.

[@tijmen131]

@@buzzukfiftythree but traveling by train is always going to be slower than plain. But in return they are a more relaxed way of traveling with more comfort and you see so much of the places you travel to. They are far more enjoyable than plane.

[@Abluemoon9112]

@@hypernewlapse it is not even third world. Most of the train track are own by the freight companies. Amtrak are allow to used them. Amtrak does have a trains that can go 150 mph

[@Inkling777]

The U.S. has chosen to have a high-quality freight train system rather than one of passengers. That makes our industry and farming more competitive. For travel we drive or fly, which are better anyway.

[@tim.bird.london]

Thanks Dylan for another fine report, the weather looked spectacular. The details about bike transport are most welcome and really appreciated.

[@tim.bird.london]

@@NonstopEurotrip not so bad yourself!!

[@burgerpommes2001]

The cars were not build in the 90

[@SweetUniverse]

Thank you, Dylan. This is just what I needed. Rough day at work today.

[@paulw.woodring7304]

I wish U. S. railroads were mandated to allow "open access" to their tracks, like DB is. One of the main owners of Flixtrain is U. S.-based, and the company President is a railfan of sorts (he imported 3 Chinese QJ 2-10-2 steam locomotives into the U. S. over 10 years ago, and is one of the major partners in the recent purchase into non-profit status of the historic East Broad Top narrow gauge railroad in Pennsylvania). I am sure he would try and bring this kind of service to U. S. passenger railroading if our freight railroads would allow it.

[@PravahanSalunke]

I think US railroads are open access. Each of the class 1 railroads often hosts trains from other companies. The problem is they are not so enthusiastic about timetabled trains. Amtrak trains often get delayed because the controllers in the class 1 railroads hold the trains to allow for the favored freight trains. I suppose in the US large bus operators like Greyhound and CoachUSA and some airlines operators like southwest, virgin, American eagle, frontier could diversify into trains.

[@paulw.woodring7304]

@@PravahanSalunke No, U. S. railroads are not open access in the truest sense of the term. That is, they are not open to any operator who can meet operational standards. The rights-of-way are just about all privately owned, or if they are owned by a state, the rights are leased to a private operator which has exclusive operating rights. In the U. S. most freight railroads are openly hostile to scheduled rail passenger operations, as well as most excursion requests, with Union Pacific and CSX being among the most hostile and opposed to operating anything but the Amtrak and commuter service they already host. While UP does have their own steam program, it is very much limited and controlled, and they will not allow any outside equipment to operate over their system.

[@jamesthompson3099]

Interesting concept! The basics done right at an affordable price. Thanks!

[@louislegrand2865]

Thanks, Dylan! You make us happy. So you were with NonstopEurotrip, he made some trips with you? In any case, what an emotion it is that he filmed your departure by train. Very cool.

[@louislegrand2865]

@@NonstopEurotrip You laugh?

[@stinchjack]

3:10 for a moment I thought the reason they're cheap is because you cant actually get on board!

[@DylansTravelReports]

😂

[@kaushikdey2199]

I randomly found this channel and i just love it!! You deserve millions of subs...keep it up❤️😀

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks!

[@NJintheImagination]

A little off topic but very impressed by the station. Something like this could be done to improve dismal NYC Penn Station: move Madison Square Garden, put a large glass roof over Penn Station, opening to the sky and uncover the tracks and have multiple floors for shops, etc, similar to the new WTC PATH station. Realize this comment will only be meaningful to New Yorkers or those travelers who have spent any time in Penn Station. Looking forward to you getting back to the States, Dylan!

[@bpeezy2254]

Move MSG, the Sports Mecca? Not a chance. Aside from being iconic, the cost of that (with acquiring land, demolition, etc.) would be astronomical.

[@MTobias]

If you're gonna move MSG, you might as well go all in an reconstruct the historic Penn Station. That building was an architectural masterpiece. But nevertheless, I'm really disappointed by the current extension works of the station, they could have designed it much more attractively.

[@raritania7581]

The current plan is basically what NJ described.

[@MTobias]

@@raritania7581 no. MSG won't be moved and there won't be a glass roof or some other opening as well.

[@colanitower]

Nice video. The coaches bring memories of my month-long Interrail vacations in the 1980s. This rolling stock was standard all over West Germany back then. One trip was behind a "Baureihe 103" locomotive. Kind of Germany's advanced electric answer to the British Deltic diesel locomotive. Iconic, powerful, fast, and everybody loved them. On another trip, to Paris, I took my bicycle with me. Nothing comes in as handy in Paris as your very own bicycle. The best way to explore the city! 😊 Of course we also included trips on the Inter-City 125 HST London to Edinburgh and the first TGV (the original orange ones) Paris to Lyon. These were brand new and the fastest trains in Europe at the time.

[@naruciakk]

Thank you for the video, next month I'm going the same route with FlixTrain, but in reverse and this video gives many interesting information

[@joelallwyn]

Great job Dylan. Love your videos. Just a suggestion, you could add price per kilometer in your summary. That'd give the viewer better idea about fares from competitors in the same route.

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks! A good suggestion, I will bear in mind.

[@pgsells]

What nice colors! I like that color combination, especially with the green + off-white + wood panel in the lavatory. Berlin Hbf... huh... when I was in Berlin last, there was no such thing as far as I recall. (Used Zoogarten Bf back then.) Interesting building.

[@eselvonberlin]

Love it! I live in Berlin and I travel regularly to Dortmund with Flixtrain! I was on the inaugural day (old cabin train) 5 euro and they offer us pretzel! 🥨

[@BerndVonTrollhausen]

As a local, I really hoped you do not say anything about Dortmund Central Station. And I'm glad you didn't. I love this city but the Train Station is just a mess. I hope you enjoyed your stay here, even if it might a short one.

[@BruscoTheBoar]

Naja...Bin mal mit meinem Freund nach Köln mit den alten Flixtrains gefahren. Beim Halt in Dortmund hat er den Kopf aus dem Fenster gehalten und mich erstmal gefragt "Warum stinkts hier nach Pisse?" xD

[@nsl_black8053]

Always smells like piss when I pass by

[@kymmoulds]

As usual a great review. Keep em coming thanks. A BIG thumbs up.

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks!

[@mlgreenspan1760]

Such a modern, clean efficient rail system - It's a shame we can't have this in the United States - We're the exception not the rule - Here the rail lines are owned by the freight lines People clearly want High-speed rail in this country and we could have it - Rail travel in Europe looks quite nice - Nice video

[@UnimprovedIN]

It's the way the US works. If you arrive by train you'll still need a car in most areas due to both the size and lack of public transport in cities.

[@ThomasKossatz]

If you like nice US railways, you have to watch a Hollywood Western.It is a shame that such a rich country underinvests so much in its infrastructure. The only modern train I saw during my US-Trip was a monorail on the Dallas Fort Worth Airport. Not very suprising, it was made in Germany.

[@trainsandtrams2020]

Those recently refurbished lime green Flix coaches look very spiffy and comfy! Nice interior shots to get a feel for them.

[@QueenetBowie]

It’s amazing home similar this is to the Brightline in Miami. Price, design, layout.... and once the new route to Orlando is opened it’ll even be so I lose speeds.

[@PeteBrandy]

Great video! I was really looking forward to this trip report, because I also plan to try Flixtrain. Otherwise Berlin Hbf. is (together with Wien Hbf.) my favorite train station!

[@G.S.7981]

Seems much cheaper than CRH service in China. A CRH trip (around 2hrs) from Wuhan to Zhengzhou (531km) would cost around 30EUR, while standard CR service is cheaper than this (8.9EUR) but also slower (usually 4-5 hrs). And the refurbished coach looks really nice!

[@yansun3808]

The top speed of standard CR in China ("Z" Train) is 160 km/h. It is fast enough for most of the journey. But the environment of these trains sometimes can be a mess. CRH is expensive for most people in rural China.

[@colin.d]

A 4.5 hour journey in a 15 minute video looks easy - but without catering/refreshments that's a long time! We need normal service resumed as soon as possible. Great video once again.

[@anonymousfuck9320]

You could Always bring your own

[@droge192]

Eating grub and drinking Stella isn't quite as important as maintaining safety in the pandemic, lol! Plus as others have said, is it that tricky to bring your own? A nice carry out? :o)

[@desertfoxx1823]

Another impressive video by the Masked Bandit! I don't get the multi colored steps at the Berlin station, but oh well. It's funny to see almost every station having a Mc Donalds in it .

[@joermnyc]

@TheRenaissanceman65 I’ve been to 3 continents... McDs is everywhere but like North Korea... (actually the oddest thing I saw was just how many 7-11s are in Copenhagen... and how the locals loved them!

[@amc3]

Great video Dylan, £15 to travel from one end of Germany to the other, almost 350 miles, that`s exceptional value! Used FlixBus dozens of times in Germany (have family there) crazy prices from Berlin to Hamburg last year £4. Like FlixBus, the train option looks like another great product. recommendation

[@holnrew]

I'm considering taking Flixbus from London to Paris, the price is less than it would be for me to get to London in the first place

[@uweinhamburg]

@@holnrew Flixbus London/Paris kzbin.info/www/bejne/e6LYfXqmituflZY 😉

[@kyliecloud1999]

I would DIE for some casual cheap trains in america, even if the interiors do look like an office

[@ageoflove1980]

Trains are socialism, real Americans drive cars! :-)

[@thetechnocrat4979]

@@ageoflove1980 Wow! And exactly how did you reach this conclusion?

[@ageoflove1980]

@@thetechnocrat4979 By having a sense of humor?

[@thetechnocrat4979]

@@ageoflove1980 Oh, so you meant it as a joke. Sorry, my bad. 😅

[@stefandee1970]

America will be in mad max mode next year, forget travel and fun

[@eduardo700b]

Thanks Dylan for the very nice trip.

[@burgerpommes2001]

The cars are not 20 years old more like 50 DB used them till 2000

[@udoeiblmaier25]

I think some of them are approaching 70 years. build in the form the year 1952 until the 1970s!

[@Kurvi-2406]

But maybe he looked on the Dates that are printed in wach carriage... And if not the production Date, u can see it by the class ID. And by the door handle on the outside u can tell that its a "newer" carriage on this particular train

[@LuisMan123]

The one he's in doesn't look that old, I was in a flixtrain once and they had these awkward cabins rather then seat rows

[@burgerpommes2001]

@@LuisMan123 they where heavenly modernized during lockdown

[@burgerpommes2001]

@@LuisMan123 that are the same cars

[@LepotaBalkanska]

Amazing review! Im travelling from Dortmund to Berlin in 2-3 days with Flixtrain 👌🏼

[@jefwisse1957]

Nice report on this way of traveling. I have to say that the overal price of the ticket still is very cheap comparing to the fair prices in the Netherlands. Also the duration time of the trip is in my opinion very acceptable. In the Netherlands most trains travel at 140 km/h. We only have one high speed line from Amsterdam to Brussels. The dutch trains travel at a speed of just 160 km/h on this line although the tracks are developed for speeds up to 300 km/h. Ns has placed an order for new trains but these new trains have a maximum speed of 200 km/h. Does this make sense? I think Flixtrain is on the right track. They will be a bigger player in the future if they see the opportunity to expand.

[@Zakooie]

Great Video Dylan, the Flixtrain looks lovely I am planning to go to Germany in the next few months and will definitely try them out

[@Frauenhaus]

Thank you for sharing a great idea to upcycle old German trains. How fantastic travelling by train and kicking the too many cars out of Germany.

[@williamvenema9767]

I took the Flixtrain from Frankfurt to Stuttgart late last year. Last minute purchase, I think it was 1/4 the cost of DB. Older refurbished equipment as indicated here. I think for this train it was all compartments, no salon seating. However, it does not stop at the Frankfurt Hbf, I cannot remember where you catch it. Other than having to remove someone from my seat, the trip was good.

[@Teddini]

Frankfurt South Station is the one where flixtrain stops. Hi from Frankfurt

[@Iamwatchingyou75]

Great improvement by Flixtrain. Do the refurbished cars finaly have A/C? On the price comparison, it has to be said that an ticket with DB on the ICE is avaiable from €19 on specific dates and times, however you need to book way in advance. If I'd book a ticket for the end of this week the price somewhere around €50. Flixtrain is still a bargain, even if I'd buy a ticket for today it would cost me €20.

[@molaremasse7034]

Nope, they didn't add A/C.

[@gregcotter2908]

Love the colors. Keeps things light. Great videos.

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks!

[@daddo10]

Lovely video and such an improvement from Flixtrain! Last time I used it (Hamburg-Köln and return) they were having the old unfurbished wagons, it was such an experience ahah! too many people not wearing masks though.... that's pretty sad...

[@pega17pl]

Hello Dylan, as you mentioned Flixtrain is mainly for younger peoples with small budget. Therefore you usualy have no stops at railway hubs (means costs for train) to get other trains, no (comfortable) board service and trip times outside main times. - Greeting Heinz

[@maxart3392]

Nice refurbishment. Most of the cars used to be in compartment configuration. Looks like a very reliable service, at least as long as they don't become underpriviledged, not being the owners of the railway network (like Amtrak in most parts of the USA) and start piling up huge delays.

[@goodi2shooz]

I was very interested in this video because we have Flix buses here in the US and they are an absolute disaster. Many people have been stranded because of poor maintenance and poor planning on the part of the company.

[@elliottP1337]

In may, flixtrain will be introduced in Sweden and from start they will operate the the route between Stockholm and Gothenburg. The 8 of may I will ride with flixtrain for the first time, I’m excited!

[@DylansTravelReports]

Enjoy 😁

[@elliottP1337]

@@DylansTravelReports Thanks!

[@gvi341984]

Flixtrain -uses refurbished trains -less departures -tickets do not work with other connections It's a cheap way to long distance or to a popular area.

[@CreativeEm]

Another great video, Dylan! Thank you!

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks

[@nah_144]

It is amazing how a low budget cost train can go such speeds and how great the seating is. Super convenient!

[@jamannetje]

Low cost trains are easy between big cities. If you don't need to provide a service to smaller towns with less passengers (and thus a higher cost per passenger) it's easy to compete

[@LondonRiderAri]

Nice video! Honestly, a journey from Berlin to Dortmund would have costed around £50 if using DB (Deutsche Bahn). Bit of a shame though that there was no snacks or drinks offered.

[@theov9713]

I would love to see a video of you coming in Greece and reviewing the "Hellas Sprinter" (an express train between Athens and Thessaloniki). Btw keep up with the good vids :)

[@DylansTravelReports]

I hope to get to Greece at some point.

[@haruroy2345]

Very sweet design and good looking

[@Kassi614]

14:05 Not 1 but 2! You're amazing Dylan...!

[@droge192]

The one on the right ;o)

[@still_guns]

I wish we had tickets that cheap in the UK. It's funny that the Conservatives privatised the railways saying that it would bring ticket prices down, but they've skyrocketed instead.

[@DylansTravelReports]

Idk, there's good deals to be had if you book in advance.

[@strafrag1]

Very nice review. Thanks for the ride along.

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks!

[@relgeiz2]

Fun fact: The coach you traveled with is far older than you think: It's a version of the UIC-X coach line called Bimz 264. Prototypes originate back to 1951, the series production of this specific version started in 1963 under the name Bm 234. A total of 1848 Bm 234 coaches were built. The first refurbishment programme started in 1974 (magnetic track brakes and yaw dampers added to enhance maximum speed from 160 km/h to 200 km/h, steam heating system removed, new interior, type number changed to Bimz 264). Then finally, 25 years after the start of production, a second refurbishment programme for use in the Interregio service (no techical changes except pneumatic door closure system, and new interior again) started in 1988. So, the coach you travevled in was 50+ years old ...

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks for the info! Isn't it just amazing that 50 year old coaches (albeit refurbished) can do 200km/h!

[@relgeiz2]

@@DylansTravelReports - not really. The first scheduled public 200 km/h service with prototypes of this very coach type started june 25th, 1965 between Munich and Augsburg.

[@abalada]

The "new" Flixtrain coaches are refurbished DB InterRegio coaches (Bmmz 264 und Bmmdz 268). These are up to 50 years old. The coaches have been refurbished and are also maintained by Talbot Service in Aachen. That's why some routes end now in Aachen and not already in Cologne anymore. Guess the confusion comes from the fact the these were former InterRegio coaches - a service introduced in 1988. However, the InterRegio coaches were back then also already a refurbishing program using former InterCity coaches. How smooth these old coaches run is however indeed impressive. And the service agreement with Talbot Service is for 15 years.

[@AML2000]

@@abalada Talbot, founded in 1838, was a major manufacturer of railroad equipment, particularly for the Dutch railway company. The Talent and VIRM are two of its best known EMU's. It was bought out by Bombardier in 1995, and the Aachen factory was closed in 2013. The facilities were reopened as an independant company shortly thereafter as a railroad maintenance facility.

[@SpeedSetSims]

I really like how high the roof is and the design!

[@martinum4]

This is because these were comparment-wagons before, you can see it from the lamps too, they didn't change it at all, they just put some new paint on it.

[@SpeedSetSims]

Martin that’s a nice fact, thanks

[@rhmagalhaes]

I just wished you stopped in Aachen. It is my daughter's city and I miss is so much. Pandemic wise the Germans are cool with it while here in Miami we are fighting over it. LOL. Over here we have the Bright Line connecting Downtown Miami to West Palm Beach. Future connection to Orlando in an about 4h trip. Considering that's a private endeavor in US, they are quick and beautiful trains. Hopefully they will be a good example of how trains work and make some Americans and tourists take the train instead of a 3h journey by car from Miami to Orlando. Thank you for sharing the video.

[@mstrmren]

These trains were actually Refurbished in Aachen at TALBOT!

[@graememellor8319]

Never ceases to amaze me that Europe still uses hook and loop couplers, here in Australia it's either American style AutoCouplers or Scharfenberg

[@zugiii1086]

But nearly all the modern european trains use the Scharfenberg coupler.

[@droge192]

There's absolutely no material difference between the two approaches. No efficiency gain, nothing, nada. Except that Scharfenberg and US style costs three times as much. Europe saves on pointless cost, to keep rail travel affordable.

[@gardenman3]

Very interesting that you have to open the train doors. I would think they would open automatically.

[@orthospinechannel9450]

Good video recording. No doubt. Flix train and Flix bus services are high quality, low cost budget services of Europe.

[@daraka1754]

The train ticket for my route in Bulgaria, which is at least 120 km, first class compartment seat is around €2.70 with seat reservation which is 20 eurocents. I use discoint 50%....

[@normanstyles6240]

Loving all these trips as an oldie, but do you miss watching Leeds Utd as well as I miss Coventry City.

[@DylansTravelReports]

Yes I miss it a lot 😭

[@FinnTheCanadian]

Well good to know flixtrain Is a great option will have to consider it for sure next time I'm in Germany

[@kimberleykultala1396]

The Flex train logo reminds me of batteries + bulbs.

[@FLUGCLAIM]

FLIX! not Felix

[@kimberleykultala1396]

WAS. CLAIM yeah, that’s auto correct for ya 😔

[@write2pras84]

Even the ICE prices seem super reasonable for the length of the journey. Virgin from London to Edinburgh (which is roughly the same distance) used to cost like £40 like 3 years ago, one-way. I'd compare Virgin to ICE in terms of comfort but to Flix in terms of speed.

[@cg6511]

The ICE prices mentioned in the video are not by far the regular normal prices but strongly limited Discount rates. Normalpreis 2nd class for that route with ICE would be around 90€.

[@droge192]

Lol, Virgin would have *dreamed* to be compared to DB ICE services! For a start, German trains don't smell of wee, as most Virgin trains did!

[@TheMrTomkennedy]

Wow, the Berlin Hbf is seriously attractive now! My partner and I got a train to Prague from there in 2000 and it was quite dark and dismal.

[@stefandee1970]

Will be dark again when govt destroy economy 4 nothing

[@AML2000]

Well, the Berlin Hauptbahnhof didn't open until 2006, so you may have stopped at the Ostbahnhof, which was East Berlin's main station during the communist era. Thus the dark and dismal feel back then! West Berlin's "honorary" main station was the Zoo station, near the Kudamm. It's quite small, since the East German Goverment banned all passenger rail traffic to West Berlin except transit trains from West Germany.

[@TheMrTomkennedy]

@@AML2000 Thanks, that must have been it. I was a little hazy on the detail!

[@Happymali10]

The train cars are basically brand new, only the shell was reused. The whole interior, running gear and comfort stuff is new. Before the rebranding/aquisition the train cars were older, not refurbished/changed, and sometimes didn't even bother with paint, so you got different-color old DB-cars, all the way back to blue/beige. Flixtrain by now only uses the former "Interregio"-cars.

[@maureendesquitado3606]

Hi Dylan, Excellent video!!! ☆☆☆ See you on Friday!!!

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks!

[@uweinhamburg]

Ok for the price.. If you just move from A to B that is clearly an alternative. Especially if you consider that it is town-center to town-center.

[@ThomasKossatz]

Even better: You don't have to be at the airport hours early for security check, you don't wait 30 minutes to get your luggage.... If the distance is 400-500 km, at least the ICE is faster, and even Flextrain may compete. Gruß aus Büchen, dem alten Grenzbahnhof auf der Strecke Hamurg-Berlin.

[@DanielsUKT]

Very good video Berlin hauptbahnhof station looks so amazing the government of Germany must have spent billions of euros building this 😊 in terms of the Flix company itself they already have a well established intercity and long distance coach network in contential Europe and USA (started in UK domestic service in July 2020) so I do hope they do very well with low cost train services in Germany and also if they expand to other countries too

[@JMac7991]

Good service to see. It's a good idea to have some low cost carriers to compete against the national operators who tend to have a monopoly. Maybe something that could be implemented more in the UK as you really only have one choice of operator on any particular route so they can kind of do what they want. Like the idea of upcycling old rolling stock if it's fit for purpose. Also good to see Europe still using a lot of loco hauled trains for intercity travel rather than multiple units. Something that seems to have died off in the UK as well apart from sleeper services.

[@holnrew]

TPE have the 68 hauled services and Grand Central will be doing class 90s hauling mk 4 carriages from Blackpool to Euston, and a planned service from Cardiff to Paddington using IC225 sets. Not quite dead yet, but it is sad they won't be around forever. It feels more proper

[@liamdoyle9559]

holnrew . The Grand Central service has been axed before it is due to start because of COVID 19.

[@scrambaba]

low cost rail competition is a neoliberal fantasy. It is paid for mainly by paying your workers less, just like ryanair and the cheapo air carriers. Passenger rail service is a natural monopoly and until the great neoliberal Thatcherite wave hit Germany the Deutsche Bundesbahn was the envy of the world. Well run, great trains, even small towns had stations with indoor waiting areas, great schedule and crews. Now DB is crap, obsessed with “profit” (a very distorted definition of profit), massive infrastructure for high-speed and using algos to give the least possible value for the maximum possible cost.

[@marclemieux8269]

Flixtrain operates at very similar speeds in comparison to Via Rail’s proposed HFR (High Frequency Rail) project encompassing top speeds of up to 200 kph or 125 mph! Via's new Siemens Charger train sets, if chosen, would provide a more luxurious experience, more leg room and more amenities than a budget train like Flixtrain. However, this Flixtrain video demonstrates without a doubt that modernized passenger rail involving regular intercity and regional trains in Europe offer attractive travel times without the huge construction costs of HSR! If we, in Canada, had anything like this or HFR as a transportation alternative, a significant shift to modernized passenger rail would take place in a very short time.

[@megatwingo]

Interesting trip & test video. Thumbs up! :)

[@canusdominici]

Great to see a loco hauled train with seperate carriages! Here’s hoping they make a comeback. It reminds of backpacking around Europe in 1990. Thanks for the video..

[@pre1694]

This looks surprisingly good. When I used Flixtrain last time, there were graffiti and stickers everywhere, and some seats were broken. I guess I'll should try them again in the future

[@DJTrainBrain]

Seems like they've been able to put their savings to good use, right?

[@DylansTravelReports]

Yes, the old stock hadn't been refurbished in years. Glad they were able to modernise the train.

[@John_Fugazzi]

I loved the shot of the racks from the rear of the train. For a moment I felt like I was on the train myself.

[@queerdemmis]

Hey! Love your vids. Come to Greece and make some vids! Thanks!

[@AnimieBahn]

Fantastic video, glad you enjoyed your trip. 😄 Interesting to see, how the train changed - At the beginning there were no refurbished coaches, all of them were in their original state. But now, it looks really good. Btw - the slow speed of the wifi is probably just in the countryside... "Broadband"... We're very bad at this in Germany :D Also interesting to see them using Vectrons now, they used to operate only Taurus locomotives. But Vectron is also fine, traveled from Berlin to Poland last year by Eurocity. Perfect fit for 200km/h and great acceleration. 🙃 Looking forward to seeing more reviews! Thanks a lot 🙏

[@DylansTravelReports]

Thanks! We have the same problem with WiFi in the UK 😅

[@jakeblanton6853]

Trains and aircraft are for when you just care about the endpoints of your travel and not about what might be between those endpoints. Personally, I would just drive since it's not that large of a country anyway and you never know what you might encounter along the way that you would find interesting enough that you might want to stop / detour.

[@himanshu8469]

I've traveled in the flixbus in Europe, but this Flixtrain looks even more amazing. What's next flixflights?

[@DylansTravelReports]

I think Ryanair, easyJet and Wizz beat them to that 😅

[@mstrmren]

They actually made a joke about that on their social media accounts a few years ago!

[@Paul91193]

It seems as there was a detour around Hannover. Normaly the long distance trains stop in Hannover Hbf and not in Lehrte 😉

[@DJTrainBrain]

It could be that, at Hannover station, they couldn't provide FlixTrain with enough time to actually stand at a platform for a while. Or, possibly more likely: it could've just been much more expensive for FlixTrain to buy that much time at a Hannover platform track instead of at another station nearby, leading them to take that second option instead. Let me explain: Like all train operating companies, FlixTrain has to pay the railway's owner or administrator (in this case DB Netze, I believe) to use some of their railways' capacity. In layman's terms, they have to buy some "track time" for their trains. Now, when traveling at speed, they'll only need to buy enough track time to occupy some bit of track until they've raced through it. But stopping at stations is a different story: they won't just need time to drive on the tracks, but also to stand still at a platform for a while. Now, I can imagine that track time at Hannover Hbf costs a lot more than track time at Lehrte, making it cheaper to stop at Lehrte and drive through Hannover Hbf (or even completely bypass the latter) than the other way around. And FlixTrain does have to fully cover their own expenses - being a so-called "open access" operator means they are not subsidized - and they still have to appeal to customers on a low budget. So if stopping at the cheaper Lehrte instead of at the expensive Hannover Hbf actually works, then, of course, they will go for Lehrte instead. And indeed: with Lehrte being quite close to Hannover Hbf, I can see it work for lesser demanding customers to use Lehrte instead, and connect to their ultimate destination - or from their ultimate origin - from there. Kind of like flying into the cheaper London Stansted with Ryanair, instead of flying British Airways into London Heathrow or London City. And another thing is the train schedule. Because even if the railway's owner gets paid by the train operating companies, they still have to make sure the trains actually fit onto their network and don't sit in each other's way. And it could be that FlixTrain just couldn't fit in with the other companies at Hannover Hbf time-wise. But the former option makes more sense to me. :-)

[@bjornburhenne6869]

@@DJTrainBrain they couldn't stop at Hanover Central Station because of Maintaining Works in Hannover Central at this time, so they were diverted around Hanover and stopped in Lehrte instead. Usually Flixtrains do stop in Hanover Central.

[@DJTrainBrain]

@@bjornburhenne6869 gotcha

[@MissDatherinePierce]

I thought FlixTrain only stops at Hannover Messe and not central station but my information might be outdated since they apparently also removed Wolfsburg from their list of stops (I can at least no longer book a ticket from there).

[@wcc1948]

Ever considered a separate review for a train station? Not every one, but some of these, like Berlin HBF, almost seem worthy. A video exploring it might be really interesting.

[@DylansTravelReports]

I haven't really thought of that. Maybe in the future.