ICE INTERNATIONAL - Amsterdam to Frankfurt at 300km/h on Germany’s Most UNRELIABLE High Speed Train!

[@dijikstra8]

I took an ICE international from Cologne to Brussels this summer. It was cancelled in Liege after having had to reboot the entire train a few times during the trip and everyone had to transfer to an InterCity train, which fortunately had plenty of space. A more reliable train would definitely be welcome!

[@slasherfun]

The new ICE 3neo trainsets are currently being tested in the Netherlands (Belgium will quickly follow)

[@OMtheRails]

Testing in Belgium began earlier than in The Netherlands - aim is to get them in service on Frankfurt-Brussels services in 2024 first before Frankfurt - Amsterdam services.

[@liamtahaney713]

The IC train is not even much of a down grade, tbh. It only makes one additional stop between liege and Brussels. I usually book my trains from liege to save a few Euros when heading out towards Germany. Plus they run the nice M7 trains on that route so no complaints from me

[@michaeldrabe9509]

I had a similar experience on a journey from Frankfurt to Brussels when my ICE was terminated in Liege due to having accumulated 2h10min during its journey due to a points and a signal failure as well as 2 carriages unusable due to a broken air con which resulted in the train having to wait for passengers to leave these carriages at stations until the train was allowed to depart. I missed my Eurostar at Brussels as a result. Luckily, I caught the last one of the day and Eurostar were happy to rebook me. A true horror journey!

[@TsLeng]

Same happened to me. 😢

[@Chrisivisi]

Try the RE13 Hamm to Venlo. Now that is unreliable!

[@crios1017]

Good god so true, Düsseldorf to Tilburg, can use either of these routes, both are terrible, I use flixbus for this journey now : )

[@ovfan_zuid]

RE18 IS ALSO UNRELIABLE

[@petermaas4455]

Try local trains in NRW.. Thats the mother of unreliability

[@young_diogenes]

That train is the main reason I quit my job in Düsseldorf

[@tarickw]

and sadly that is exactly the connection you take when the ICE ams-fra is cancelled

[@missm10]

I rode Brussels to Cologne on this train a couple of weeks ago. It was very pleasant, I didn't realise this ICE model had so many issues. Thanks for the great video.

[@evo3s75]

I took it from Amsterdam to -Düsseldorf- Duisburg and all it's faults and it's age were very clear

[@vollelektrolysierer5773]

While Siegburg/Bonn is on the Cologne-Frankfurt HSL, the actual high-speed section of it with 300km/h track limit beginns just south of the station. The section between Cologne and Siegburg (incl. two run-through tracks in the station without platform) are 200km/h.

[@jan-lukas]

There are currently works in progress (currently searching for WW2 bombs along the construction site) to continue the separated HSR tracks up to the middle of Cologne. But sadly no speed increases are planned

[@zugbilder_rlp]

from Siegburg/Bonn till Frankfurt Intl. Airport trains could run 300km/h, due to the speed limit being 300km/h. Mostly trains reach 200-280km/h, the ICE 4 really slow down the ICE3, Velaro and VelaroNeo.

[@PatrickHamhuis]

Fun fact at the line at 7:17 this line is also equipped with ETCS. Meaning ICEs when they switch over to it, can run at 160km/h here. But it is super bumpy when they do

[@apotato5563]

They always switch to ETCS but they only do 160 when they are delayed. Otherwise it's 140. Kinda like 280 cs 250 on a lot of german lines Ps some drivers do go 160 without delays, just not all of them

[@awtterrosko]

@@apotato5563 It depends on the train driver's timetable. The speeds are indicated there.

[@stuartcolley8786]

I frequently travelled from Brussels to Cochem via Konlenz using ICE and local trains. I got so fed up with delays, cancelations and missed connections that if I have to make that journey now I go via Luxembourg. On paper the journey is longer but in reality works out faster because of the usual delays. I try not to use DB at all if I can help it.

[@noidea5597]

The most important thing is to avoid Köln

[@Fry_tag]

The start-up sound when this train is leaving the station is my favorite train sound ever.

[@dasy2k1]

Mine is the Taurus loco which has similar traction converters. Unfortunately the modern vectrons while fantastic locos arnt as musical

[@Felix-rm3wu]

​@@dasy2k1Die Lok 146 hat auch so einen ähnlichen Sound mit den Tönen bei der Abfahrr

[@Karimz-69]

Fantastic video! I frequently travel on the High-Speed Line and often choose to avoid the trains from or to Amsterdam/Brussels due to numerous unfavorable experiences with the BR406. The most significant delay I've encountered was a staggering 5 hours. Fortunately, with trains operating on a 10 to 30-minute cycle on the High-Speed Line, opting for an alternate train poses no problem.

[@incarnate3276]

Great video, nice shots, editing, narration! Thank you! Watched the whole video even though I recently rode the train myself. On our trip to Amsterdam we had to divert to a different city in the Ruhr Area, Oberhausen, change trains and then go by another route entirely, via Venlo and Nijmegen I think. Had a few hours delay, 2? At any rate it was enough to get some money back, I think it was half of the price. We had our own compartment, the family compartment in 2nd class, because we have small children and reserved it early enough to get in. That is a really nice way to travel, a lot better than by car, because you can give your children your full attention without having to stop. Also a note on the speed limits. Duisburg and Düsseldorf for instance are really right next to one another in an urban agglomeration with other nearby cities. So not only would it be a waste of energy to accelerate to full speed there, it is also a noise pollution issue in the densely populated area imo. Same thing for Düsseldorf to Cologne, passing through the cities of Monheim and Leverkusen. The Ruhr Area is so dense that there isn’t really a point to high speed trains because they stop at all the major cities anyways. Anecdotally, I recently used the ICE to go on a daytrip to Düsseldorf from Cologne because it was only a couple Euros more expensive and the schedule fit my needs better, but it is also only like 5 minutes faster than the Regional Express Train.

[@sebdecarteret5830]

Great video, I also really like the acceleration sound of these trains!

[@Mrtribru69]

Nice video! I used ICE train last year, Brussels- Frankfurt- Dresden, to and fro. The onward journey was comfortable, except a small delay reaching final destination. Coming back , the train back to Brussels from Frankfurt was cancelled and provided with another train an hour later.

[@lucasresno2076]

Most of the time the first and last trains of the day are cancelled, especially on the belgian line, they will force you to use the regional services that stop every couple kilometers... They don't care where you are going or if you are having any connecting services, you never know when you will arrive...

[@oasjk]

I took that Same Train about 4 months ago to Amsterdam and back. Both Times, we were diverted via Mönchengladbach Hauptbahnhof and s'Hertogenbosh. 40 min. Delay

[@simonwood3638]

I got this train once and like you had a very pleasant on time journey, I've also had it cancelled on me twice though and noticed it cancelled on the boards at Frankfurt quite often so not surprised about the poor reliability you mention. I've seen this train terminate in Cologne on arrival from Amsterdam a couple of times as well.

[@jamelo2132]

I haf to laugh when I heard that 40% of ICE connections to belgium got canceled in 2022. I was on an interrail adventure this exact summer and I had so mutcg trouble getting back to Germany from brussels. I had planed a final stop in colone for that day continuing back home to Stuttgart in the evening but after 2 trains got canceled and the 4th skipping brussels midi. I ended um in Stuttgart without leaving the train station in colone with a minor delay of a few hours. It was adventurous walking into brussels midi after 2 trains got canceled and seeing that the first ICE to Germany on this day will skip the station. The train to brussels nord, some regional train, was full of people that had to catch the train. Than 3 doors where not working which resulted in even more delay and at the end the train stranded in colone and was broken. And my final train of the day to Stuttgart had delay due to short staffed signal boxes in Mainz. So to summarize my useless long story. I would never ever take a train from or to a benelux country ever again😂

[@jlust6660]

Last year, I travelled on both the Brussels-Frankfurt and Amsterdam-Frankfurt. Honestly with varrying levels of succes. Amsterdam-Frankfurt was a breeze, no delay and I believe fewer stops in Germany than your train had, the other trips had lots of delays. Brussels-Frankfurt was a disaster, the train was cancelled at Liège, causing all passengers to try and get to Aachen on the regional train on the same route, which just does not have the same capacity. I do hope things will improve with the NEO, because the connection truly has a lot of potential.

[@DerToasti]

the regional train liège-aachen is an absolute catastrophe. you have to switch in welkenradt into a train that looks like it survived the second world war. supposedly in december it will get a huge upgrade: an hourly direct train liège-aachen (that stops everywhere unfortunately....) and twice hourly a direct train liège-maastricht-aachen. unfortunately the tickets for both won't be interchangeable. there is a 'euregio ticket' but at 20 euros it's only cheaper on the liège-maastricht-aachen route. and of course neither ticket will work on the eurostar/ICE.

[@rolandkoczka7895]

Ich habe bereit mit den gefahren vor paar Wochen. Es ist einfach a hammer. Wir waren von Frankfurt bis Köln knapp eine Stunde. (45-50 min) TOP

[@ageoflove1980]

Rijks museum and Rijks monument are pronounced in English more or less like bike - . So, Rike's museum and Rike's monument would be correct. It is of course similar to the German word Reich for reference. Oh and my favorite ICE would be the original. I was amazed as a little boy how cool the French orange TGV's and the original ICE trains looked, especially the Marklin model sets of those. When I get on a high speed train and we achieve that magical 300 km/h speed I still feel like a little boy, watching the landscape fly by in amazement. You just dont get that sense of velocity and momentum on a plane. By the way, the stretch between Arnhem and Duesseldorf is a nightmare. It seems like its always under construction.

[@sang-cheolkim5149]

Thanks for sharing a wonderful experience of same route, which I had when the ICE1 began their services firstly.

[@alpenroseable]

i very much like your voice and your explanations very nice

[@mariadelmarjimenezarroyo]

Lovely video

[@AndreSomers]

I took this route last week. It was reasonable on time (not quite), but the train itself had many broken bits. Still, quite comfortable.

[@amtrakharry]

Nice tid bit about the hockey arena...Great video...

[@c128stuff]

I've travelled 100s of times on ICE international during the 2000s and 2010s, with very little problems. Often from Utrecht to Duisburg (and from there to Berlin using DB's ICE service), or to Basel, or Frankfurt (and from there to Vienna), Those trains are really very comfortable and nice. Met a lot of interesting people in the board restaurant.

[@florianpelin]

I absolutely enjoyed your video, you have a new subscriber 😊

[@racingweirdo]

"Is currently undergoing a renovation" this station is in renovation since its opening(except in the wo2 years) prorail already launches some new ideas to extend the renovation beyond 2030. Multiple generations dont know how the entrance looks like finished.

[@paullbennett2923]

Remember 30 plus years ago the station was being "renovated".

[@7catsmom959]

I think i first traveled to Amsterdam Centraal in the mid eighties...it was being renovated then. There was a VVV just out side the entrance.

[@PhilLeonardLiverpool]

The guy at 10:31 is a world renowned Kotlin Konnoisseur. Missed opportunity. Great video!

[@Esudao]

We live in Utrecht. I am dearly hoping that it will be possible to book bike reservations on the new ICE 3 Neo connecting Amsterdam to Frankfurt. We sometimes go for bike trips in the south of Germany, and navigating the NRW area on RB64 / RB13 with its reliability issues is a nightmare. However you need to cross that Bermuda triangle to make it to Düsseldorf / Mönchengladbach or even Münster to reach the ICE's (with bike spaces) going to Stuttgart.

[@Persephone_]

I’ve travelled on ICE three times while interrailing in 2018. Every single train seemed to do at least one emergency stop at some point on the route, coming to a complete halt in the middle of nowhere from top speed!

[@rie-annebroekhuizen3635]

😍 Thanx voor sharing!

[@tanfer2003]

ICE are my favorite 😍

[@pirazel7858]

Don't be like that person at 10:25 Always keep the aisle clear

[@misterincredible6819]

Taking the Düsseldorf-Frankfurt ICE up to 6 oder 7 times per month since I live in D. and work in F. What is worth to be mentioned about Köln / Cologne Central / HBF: coming from Messe Deutz via Hohenzollern Bridge you have the narrowest curvature trains can take without being damaged, since tha Central Station needed to be built in the heart of the city center. A botanic garden was sacrificed for that, which then was rebuilt as the "Flora". Because the magnificent cathedral stood in the way of the train line the curve was crucial. Today, trains and tracks still suffer of lot from the friction. The extended roof of Cologne Central was designed to mirror the gothic appearance of the cathedral nearby. Two more stops on the high speed line, Montabaur and Limburg Süd, were built because local politicians demanded their "connection" to the train line as their "price" for giving away that amount of land. Some trains stop everywhere which makes the high speed advantage non-existant. Another stop, from 300 km per hour to zero every 10 or 15 minutes, does that make sense?

[@jan-lukas]

Even the trains that stop everywhere are so much faster than the route through the congested middle-rhine-valley that you shouldn't even try to compare them. And most trains only stop in Siegburg/Bonn because Bonn is actually an important city, in contrast to Montabaur and Limburg. Though those two cities do benefit from the hourly or half-hourly connections (don't remember what it was) a lot, and apparently a lot of new development has spread around the stations. As long as you have a reasonable service pattern those stops are a great thing imo

[@cehaem2]

High-speed trains are not only for passengers travelling between large cities as they are important boosters for local economies enabling access to job markets and are used by regular commuters.

[@RunfisherRS]

2:03 Platform 1 is only for the sprinter train to Zandvoort and the sprinter to Hoorn via Haarlem. The ICE trains usually depart from platform 2. Never seen an ICE on platform 1.

[@viliamklein]

Im flying from the US to Amsterdam. My location doesn't have direct flights to Amsterdam and I'd like to avoid the dumb short flights inside the continent. Is the Frankfurt to Amsterdam train route worth taking instead? I can get a direct flight to Frankfurt easily. I would have to take the 6:30am train to Frankfurt in the morning in order to catch the flight back to the US that leaves at 13:00 or so. Is it too risky schedule wise to take the train back from Amsterdam?

[@imsbvs]

I travelled Amsterdam-Berlin mid-August. What a let down!. The aircon didn't work properly, catering was reduced and the train arrived over 30 minutes late. Also, had problems finding the 1st Class NS lounge ... travelled from Sloterdijk station and arrived next to platform 1. Having walked the length of the platform I later noticed the signage was facing the other direction. This was not an ICE service, the train was loco hauled, sat in a compartment in the last coach with rear window nearby.

[@1968Christiaan]

We did Rotterdam - Berlin mid August... what a disappointment. Train from Berlin at 06:35 cancelled without announcement - replacement train stopped near the border...hour wait without announcement and then we trundled on changing to get to Rotterdam. Train back also cancelled and had to improvise to get the IC going from Amsterdam. The IC was old and in a bad shape. No catering, bad air-con. Generally very impressed with the Dutch trains and network - embarrased at how bad the German side has got. This comes from YEARS of false savings, semi-privatisation and bad priorities from the Merkel government.

[@EpicThe112]

Which station you got stuck on remember it can happen at the Border Station Bad Bentheim where they cannot change the German DB Netze 15kv 16.7hz to the Dutch 1.5kv DC system

[@slasherfun]

ICE L (which are also loco hauled) are coming on this route at the end of 2024.

[@Thatguyjack758]

I used the ICE to get around Germany when I studied abroad there in 2018. Not alone though as it was with other students and professors of course. Initially took it out of Frankfurt airport’s station to Göttingen. And also used it to go to Kassel, Hameln and Berlin among a few other cities throughout northern Germany. Pleasant experience I thought. Hopefully whatever damage the pandemic did to rail travel is soon to recover in due time (if it hasn’t already).

[@thebeber2546]

I'm exceptionally lucky with trains. I did two journeys that included taking the ICE between Frankfurt a. M. Hbf and Brussels and back and all of them went without issues. Admittedly the last journey was on the 3 Neo, but still.

[@The_Gamer_66]

I took this journey in summer last year... the train only made it to Düsseldorf... with a 20 minute delay.

[@Anonym-dg7xd]

Be carefull when using the gates at amsterdam central. I accidently checked in with my credit card (nfc) when presenting the QR-code on my phone and was charged 20€. However you can file a chargeback online and they will refund 100% of the charge.

[@matpk]

Still much better than Chi Na Train

[@oscarm.d.3848]

5:21 My favourite velaro train is the e320, as can be seen at 6:28.

[@janjoujou97]

Super nice Video Mate, i suggest you to Go Sleeper, basel - frankfurt Leipzig Prag!

[@fp3359]

A question please: Did the speed immediately increased when the ICE was under German catenary (15 Kv AC) ? Overhere in Holland its 1,5 Kv DC......

[@ambroseglory6464]

What’s that app u use to check how fast the train is going?

[@amanda_wm_3261]

Great vlog. Thanks

[@evo3s75]

The ICE-3M was my favorite, I love how it looks and drove with it for the first time last year from Amsterdam to Düsseldorf Well, it was an absolute disaster to say none the less... We got in at Amsterdam and we noticed they got a completely different train so our booked seats did *not* have a table nor were they seated next to each other like we booked.. Then there's also the problem that people who did *not* reserve a seat also entered the train making it insanely full (so people had to stand) and humid which got even worse after we left Utrecht because the AC in the WHOLE train except for our car stopped working (and it was a hot summer day at that). Then somewhere along the Betuweroute the intercom stopped working so the people from DB had to go through every car to make an announcement, we then skipped Arnhem and the train got cancelled with end station being Duisburg and leaving us to our own devices to get to Düsseldorf to make our next train which was also insanely full, but it was a short trip so we didn't mind standing for a short bit all the way in the back because this train at least had working airco... It was a very frustrating trip to say the least, at least the ICE 4 to Stuttgart was nice (which is now my favorite ICE, I love how it looks and that beautiful nose) and clean with working airco, the only downsides with the ICE 4 imo is that it isn't muli-voltage cause it could've been very helpful if it were to drive Amsterdam - Frankfurt because of how long and spacious it is. And the 2nd downside is that it's not as quick as the other ICE's with it's 250km/h, though it is getting upgraded to drive 265km/h. But this wouldn't be a problem if it were to drive Amsterdam - Frankfurt since you're only going 140km/h in the Netherlands and 160km/h in Germany. Also, apparently Arnhem is often skipped by the ICE's which lead to a lot of people being stranded

[@crowmob-yo6ry]

I took this exact train last month and it was delayed 40min due to a snowstorm, with top speed limited to just 200km/h.

[@bittewarten3783]

I have to regularly cross the border to the Netherlands. It’s horrible and there are no other alternatives.

[@RichardRenes]

This train now detours over 's-Hertogenbosch and Mönchengladbach because they are doing maintnance to the track between Arnhem and Duisburg, and that does not aid the speed of an ICE one bit. The only time we actually were going 140 kmh + was between 's-Hertogenbosch and Eindhoven... Between Mönchengladbach and Cologne, we were lucky to even reach 100!!! Also the train on the trip to Cologne had a tinnitis type of whistling going on, making it slightly unpleasant.

[@nigelvanschaik1714]

How do you film the train arriving at a platform when you’re in it

[@ireland3979]

Nice vid love when you upload

[@Red-lg9hv]

there just seems to be so many Ice models on the same lines these days, when I was travelling there was the loco hauled ICE1 and then the EMU ICE3 - and that seemed to work just fine, so I don't know if they're all just poorly built or if it's a distance thing they all need replacing after a couple of years

[@anthonywarrener1881]

Thank you for this excellent video ! I agree with all that you say, and the ICE3 is far and away my favourite ICE ! I have travelled many times from Amsterdam to Koln by ICE3M, and the trains have behaved perfectly ! The sounds they make are wonderful, and the quality of finish breathtaking, and much better than the ICE4s. The forthcoming ICE3 Neos should be great !

[@AndreiTupolev]

Its because it needs to be multiple voltage thanks to the refusal of rail administrations even in neighbouring countries that have close ties to liaise with one another when planning electrification

[@dasy2k1]

It's getting better as the majority of new specialist high speed lines (Germany excepted) are all using the same system.... 25kv 50Hz with ETCS signalling..... Germany however is sticking with 15kv 16.7Hz even on high speed lines for some reason

[@jan-lukas]

The problem is that multiple systems inside of one country is a far greater problem than multiple systems in different countries. 15kV and 25kV are both totally acceptable voltages to use and standards in the German speaking or international world respectively. Changing the 15kV to 25kV (you'd need to change it in the entirety of Germany for trains and tracks, regular trains use the high-speed lines here regularly either during the night or as fast regional express trains) would be such a huge undertaking that it makes more sense to equip all trains with the ability to use both voltages. ETCS signalling however is standard everywhere in Europe for new lines, even in Germany. The retrofitting of old lines however is sadly going very slowly... The actual oddball are the Netherlands and Belgium because the voltage of 1.5kV and 3kV respectively are not able to deliver the power needed for high-speed operations. The difference between 15kV and 25kV however is insignificant

[@DJTrainBrain]

When railway electrification started, international train services weren't a thing yet and wouldn't be for many decades - except for simply bringing you just across the border, the solution to which was often to just use steam or diesel traction. Also electrification first tended to focus on the more densely populated areas, which wasn't necessarily close to the border either. So it made no sense to go through all the trouble to agree on a common electrification system and forego a country's own considerations. It just wasn't relevant yet to do so, at that time or in the foreseeable future. Nowadays, upgrading a country's electrification system is rather disincentivized because of the need to (at least partially) replace a whole country's worth of overhead line equipment, while taking rolling stock into account that isn't equipped to run on the newer system. That's not to mention the case of lower-voltage countries where the limited clearance around the overhead wires in tunnels and under bridges and buildings prohibits an increase of voltage without measures that are even more drastic. Add to that the existence of multi-system trains and it just doesn't make sense anymore to change to a common voltage.

[@MarkusDuesseldorf]

However, the ICE is often seen as a prestige project and is not faster than other trains at all. It is 400 km from Amsterdam to Frankfurt, and the high-speed route with 300 km/h is between Siegburg (near Bonn) and Frankfurt Airport (130 km long). So that's only a third of the total distance. On two thirds, the train is not faster than other trains.

[@sinadiatta9905]

Probably because the ICE is avoiding the high speed line like said in the video. They should maybe use the HSL to speed up the trip

[@Br3wer]

Does a first class Eurail Pass get you free food, also is wifi free in both first and second class?

[@peterelvery]

Thanks. I'm always amused by the penchant for timber panels shared by Germans and Brits.

[@gerhardmassier]

Do you want plastics everywhere?

[@peterelvery]

@@gerhardmassier if it's there, why cover it? Timber is a great natural composite of lignin and cellulose and if a structure or panel is made of wood then by all means, highlight it. But if it's made of metal, polyamid, etc, then let that surface shine as what it is without having to pretend it's a tree.

[@stamatismarkos9232]

5:40 where can i make a map like this myself?

[@Cooltrains]

This train is my favourite one, it was my childhood excitement.

[@westsidestylo]

I took the ICE International in September this year i came +20 mins late in Frankfurt Am Main even though i had a hour conncetion with my next train

[@dasy2k1]

I took the ICE-I from Bruxelles to Köln in 2018.... Was supposed to take it back too but it fält als and so we had to rebook for the Thalys which wouldn't accept railteam/hotnat and so we had to pay €60 each for a ticket and then get this refunded by DB.... The ICE3m is much more comfortable than the Thalys for sure

[@jz453]

The title should be: All trains in Germany are unreliable, but this one is the worst!

[@the.mystictraveller]

You've obviously never taken British trains...

[@pettylein]

Oh Boy. I took this journey last year. First day of my first interrail trip. Well, we hadn't even reached Cologne, when the train broke drown. Well, in Cologne, there was already an reserve train for us, so no problem. We continued with minimal delay. We thought, well, it cannot get worse. Well, it got. Just after crossing the Dutch border, they said that we cannot continue the journey and this train will go back to Frankfurt. So, yeah, we all left the train in 's-Hertogenbosch and continued on Dutch IC trains. Great!

[@lucasresno2076]

Seems like there is something else than just reliability... 5 years ago, all ICE trains in Belgium and Netherlands were running just fine, always on time, with the same equipment... so there must be something else,

[@DeBert]

@@lucasresno2076 Yes, they should have gotten a full refurbishment at that moment. But that went so bad with the first set (4651), that they cancelled the whole scheme. As a result, all trains are runnings on their last legs for about 3-4 years now. Also, they really don't like all the voltage changes. Those things also add up over the course of the years.

[@lucasresno2076]

@@DeBert I don't understand why international trains are so bad in Europe, they should honestly be the top priority as it might be the first thing a foreigner sees from your country... but most of them are either unreliable, old, or not properly maintened...

[@jan-lukas]

​@@lucasresno2076I don't understand why you don't understand that these trains will not be in use in 3 years or so

[@lucasresno2076]

@@jan-lukas these are not the only bad international trains in Europe 🤣 there are many examples of unreliable and low quality trains used on international routes in western Europe

[@vincenthuying98]

Just recently took the ICE 156 from Frankfurt Flughafen to Amsterdam CS. Have taken the train several times over the last decades. I’m not of the opinion it’s always been a breeze. There’s a lot of things which should be improved. First of all, for all the EU claptrap on synchronization of the different power systems, why indeed is there still such a difference between DB and NS? After all, the transformers and compressors even start to sound different, when the power is switched. Smooth and low noise on the DB side, noisy and humming like the train got some serious problems on the NS side. Anyhow, on the latest ride. Due to some major work being done, around Cologne and Düsseldorf our initial chosen train didn’t ride, so our ticket was transferred to the ICE 156, which meant one transfer less. Anyhow, familiar with the 156’s path, I was curious for the reason the train wouldn’t stop at Duisburg, Oberhausen, Arnhem, or even Cologne Hauptbahnhof. Seemed the Cologne stop was Köln-Ehrenfeld, and the train would further halt at Mönchen-Gladbach, ‘s Hertogenbosch, before coming to Utrecht. When a decade ago I took the similar route, with the NS intercity to Venlo, Regiobahn from Venlo to Mönchen-Gladbach, and from Mönchen-Gladbach to Cologne, to there transfer to the DB ICE network, I was astounded by the poor quality of these connections, but overall astounded by the fact that the line between Venlo and Mönchen-Gladbach is a single track section. And in fact its main purpose is still freight. Both on the Venlo and Mönchen-Gladbach sides there are two large transit hubs for piggyback trailer transport and transit. These freight trains seem to have the right of way, at least on this particular section of track. Hence, I was wondering what the experience would be to cross this very section of track with the ICE. Even though both DB and NS have invested a lot in their track, through their subsidiaries, the rail line aforementioned is still of the quality of decade ago. The freight trains still seem to have the right of way, and even seem to reach higher speeds on this particular part of the track work. Still ai got the impression the Schaffner and the other personnel did their utmost to get the train moving and arriving on the allotted time schedule, which is of course even more essential for a track section which is consisting of an Einbahnstrecke. Nevertheless, the traffic on the particular section seemed just too high to allow smooth passage for the ICE, just as did several years ago, when I took the REgionalbahn from Venlo. The question therefore should be, why schedule a train over this piece of track, which can’t even handle the traffic which is already allotted to it. In that sense we should ask ourselves if we haven’t done ourselves a disservice, by allowing high speed rail to be built on the same standard gauge normal trains circumvent. In that sense the Japanese have made a much better choice, where all regional and standard intercity rides their equivalent of meter gauge and their Shinkansen is only suited for standard gauge. The weaving in of more tracks to allow for the high speed trains is not going to be helpful, when the track system for lower speed trains isn’t kept up to par. Oh, and definitely agree with the commenter who said the RE13 Hamm to Venlo is a disaster. Because it is!

[@jan-lukas]

The problem is that it's super easy to equip trains for multiple electrical system while switching systems for an entire country (!) Is super difficult. So this will probably never be resolved. The humming noise is probably because of the much lower voltage used in the Netherlands. Germany has 15kV, the Netherlands has 1.5kV I think. Here in Cologne there's currently a lot of work being done. Cologne-Düsseldorf will be closed for another week or two because of works to add a forth track. At the same time there's work being done in Cologne Hbf to replace old signals from the 70s with up to date digital components, that's probably why you didn't stop at the Hauptbahnhof.

[@johnkeepin7527]

1500 V dc on the NS conventional lines, and 15 kV 16 2/3 Hz ac on the DB. The low frequency used probably causes the audio output. The modern standard now is 25 kV 50 Hz on most new lines, including all the high speed ones on the SNCF and SNCB. Although the historic reason for using low frequency coupled with ac traction motors has gone, I think you are correct to observe that converting a complete system, so that it is incompatible with existing trains, is complex and expensive. @@jan-lukas

[@rabitec.]

As a maintenance worker for these I can tell you they can also be a pain in the backend to service. Still kinda like them tho aswell.

[@zugbilder_rlp]

One Info: one ICE3M owned by the Nederlandse Spoorwegen was given to the Deutsche Bahn, so there are only 2 BR406 with the NS-Logo on the train, which being the trainsets „Arnhem“ and „Amsterdam“

[@OMtheRails]

I believe NS initially had 4, then DB bought one from NS to make 3… unless they sold another one to DB in the last year or so?

[@zugbilder_rlp]

@@OMtheRailsI dont know If they sold them actually, it could be. I just know that trainset 4653 was once a NS one, but If they had four I would have to ask someone

[@zugbilder_rlp]

Infact, the one that got to DB was „unrefirbed“ so it got modernised and with that it got to DB a few months ago

[@Bahnliner]

Die Holländer haben drei Züge. Tz4651-4653. Tz4653 hat keinen Taufnamen. Tz4654 gehörte früher auch den Holländern. 2 Wagen wurde von Tz4681 ersetzt und gehört der DB.

[@Manawatu_Al2844]

Far better than what's on offer in New Zealand. Wish we had high speed railways.

[@MaartenOtto]

If there is no need for them your better off without High Speed Rail. It is a very expansive hobby to tun.

[@aleksandarbrzic8351]

This train drove me nuts while I lived in The Netherlands... Old masochist that I am, I kept taking it and hoping that one day it will be on time and actually finish the journey, but it never ever was: many times coming from Germany it stopped in Arnhem and that was just declared by the staff during the actual ride. Then how many times it did not go to Cologne Hbf but stopped before the Rhine etc etc etc. This year, I tried it again and nothing changed: rerouted via Eindhoven without prior notice and chaos in the train as the reservation system crashed and the train composition was actually halved. After all this time, I can only say, it does take some serious effort to be THAT incompetent...

[@Parafernalia-TT]

Exactly my experience as well.

[@oslo162]

i experiment the same issues but with a broken down ICE train but hopefully the train has reached my destination with over 34 min of late, normally i didn't planned to travel from Frankfurt Airport to Amsterdam with ICE but normally with obb nightjet instead but unfortunetely delayed with over 4 hours of late at morning for a reason that we don't know over 20 persons was concerned by the disruption of the night train and honestly i was very sick by these multiple delays of this DB and OBB company who both actually the worst in Europe i will never travelling with DB again, their service are so disgusting multiple cancellation and delays peoples who spending money for travelling are not supposed to desserved this

[@jonathanocampo8249]

i actually rode it yesterday and was great because i had the table lounge

[@blubberwasser5105]

9:16 20 years old already?? Man.... it hurts

[@jasonsolomon9059]

Would love to travel on the ICE.

[@HerrGru]

The RJX has a nice Bord Restaurant too

[@wm7195]

Is it problems with the ICE trains that causes delays in Germany? I thought that there are problems with trains not being on time in Germany in general.

[@oslo162]

the train itself so the ICE3M is technically a failure and this is the main reason of the multiple cancellation and the delays DB fault, 2 the DB network is oudated who cause many dealays and cancellation causing huge disruption into the network, i experiment the travelling and i will never travelling with DB again because their quality service are disgusting

[@martinbitter4162]

I love the shape of its nose. Much nicer than on the Neo or ICE4

[@PatrickBijvoet]

I tried ordering something with the QR code on you video. But It immediately noticed I wasn't on any of the ICE trains 😂

[@SegundoHectorAlvarezMari-jh3pc]

Extraordinario viaje

[@oliverlison]

I travel requently between Germany and the Netherlands. Actually, a frequent route of mine is Amsterdam / Frankfurt. It takes me 4 hours by car.

[@alpenroseable]

it would be nice if you show a little bit how it looks outside the train station iam very curios of that thank you nice video

[@ali4ne]

i dont think ive had a single trip with this train that was free of delays or cancellations which is impressive to say the least

[@hoperdepop]

I travel somewhat regularly between Utecht and Munich. This service has ruined many of my trips, which makes me take the plane when I really need to be on time. The service is simply not reliable enough.

[@hafizah922]

Hi could you tell me the whole experience? Cuz I’ll be visiting munich from amsterdam in the summer next month by this train.

[@simonpilk]

The worst without a doubt is Brussels - Köln - Frankfurt. Punctuality and reliability is just appalling. What is needed is a 2-hourly loco hauled service using. ‘Proper’ Vectron locomotive and not the ‘pretend’ ones of the 18xx SNCB variant. Keep it simple and less complicated…

[@FoCoBuzz]

I think the ICE trains are so sleek. I’m torn as to whether they are my favorite HSR or the double decker SNCF TGVs. The Eurostar has to get some consideration as well.

[@jessicamorgan3073]

Looks good. What's the app. that you use to show the speed, please? Thanks

[@OMtheRails]

Thanks! The app’s called Speedmeter

[@jessicamorgan3073]

@@OMtheRails Thank you!

[@christophernoble6810]

Have used the Brussels - Frankfurt ICE on numerous occasions without any delays or cancellations. However, not recently. Perhaps I was just lucky!

[@johnmehaffey9953]

When I worked in Germany many years ago they were reliable you could have set your watch by them, forward quite a few years and yep the ice from cologne was 45 minutes late the excuse was vandalism on the line went for a lovely day in Mainz and yes our return train was 40 minutes late and we missed it, reason why you may ask or if you’re bored I don’t care will suffice, well we stood at our designated place and the train pulled into the platform ahead of ours, yes they split the same platform into two platforms and as my German is now pretty poor I didn’t catch the announcement, ps they didn’t announce it I found out later, anyhoo DB pulled out all the stops to use an Irish phrase and by putting me on different ice trains to destinations I thought were taking me in the opposite direction 2 changes later I’m in Düsseldorf where I wanted to arrive anyway and on time, somehow our train had bypassed engineering work and wasn’t delayed, and that folks is why I love DB and their brilliant staff, be polite try and speak the language no matter how poor it is and people will help, ps it helps to be Irish , pps great post

[@shugthehornyhaggis]

This is what the islamifcation has done

[@jan-lukas]

​@@shugthehornyhaggisah yes, the deteriorating railways are because of so called "islamification", makes total sense. No way that it's just politicians that don't want to spend money on these projects 🙄

[@mx338]

You know what's not lacking, not having the scan your ticket QR-code. I booked my ticket to/from Amsterdam with Deutsche Bahn, and the ticket gate did not recognise my ticket. Ticket gates should just be abolished everywhere, it works well in Germany.

[@Vank4o]

3 Minute delay in Frankfurt, that's actually very exceptional, I guess it was your lucky day! I used to commute daily with a BahnCard 100 between Frankfurt and Bonn for a year and a half and had to take oft the ice from Amsterdam Centraal from Siegburg. I can't really remember to have ever arrived in Frankurt on time - there were always at least 15 Minutes delays. My record was 80 minutes delay. We stood still between Montabauer and Limburg with only 2 vapid announcements for the whole duration... Deutsche Bahn is the worst...

[@annamaria41]

My record was 4 hours minus delay. Between Berlin and Frankfurt. 😩

[@Vank4o]

@@annamaria41 not make a dick measuring contest out of it LOL, because everyone who travels with DB loses, but my record ist Mainz! - Bonn! a measly 150 km in 6 hours. Granted it was after a storm... 20 hours after a storm... But their excuse was "the storm"

[@bieneulm1982]

It is not the train that is unreliable. It is the overcrowded railroad infrastructure. Added to that comes that the first ICE3 train sets are 26 years old.

[@KaaimanProductions]

It gets worse. The ICE is classified as a ‘Intercity with Supplement’ which means that if you want to take it between Amsterdam CS-Arnhem CS for example you’d need to pay extra. Which isn’t very helpful if you are traveling on a day ticket. Even more confusingly. The Intercity to Berlin (Also departing from Amsterdam). Does not have this supplement and is treated like a normal intercity between Amsterdam-CS and Hengelo. The only real use for this is if you want to skip two stations between Utrecht-CS and Arnhem-CS

[@Indizonen]

Well the ICE to Frankfurt is an "Intercity Express" and the IC to Berlin is an "Intercity" not an "Intercity Express" so I think it makes a lot of sense no? They are two different class of products.

[@KaaimanProductions]

@@Indizonen not if there is a same kind of service between Den Haag and Eindhoven which travels over its own high speed line and is classified as a normal Intercity

[@jan-lukas]

​@@KaaimanProductionsthat's not how German trains work, sadly. Even when the RE and ICE have the same type of service regarding travel time and stops, you obviously have a more comfortable time in the ICE with better seats and a restaurant...

[@wethebo200]

Its my birthday today and ill go to Düsseldorf with this train

[@ronaldderooij1774]

I have a request for my German neighbours. Could you please use more colored paint on you public infrastructure? It would brighten up your country so much.

[@DenzelPF-jl4lj]

As a German I have to say I really despise those train colours in the Netherlands... it looks very kitsch and chaotic 🙈 I guess, the taste in our countries is just different. I really love those classy ICEs. Look much more posh and stylish in my opinion:)

[@ronaldderooij1774]

@@DenzelPF-jl4lj I am not talking about trains per sé. But the smaller stations, the street lighting, the sound walls, the parks, most buildings. They all are grey. I love Germany. It is my favourite country to go,. but really it would be much more cheerful with some color here and there.

[@tsjukemar]

​@@DenzelPF-jl4ljFor us, Dutch, Russia starts at our eastern border with Germany.

[@Sturmisch]

Those trains are fantastic, it is just too many signalling gizmos.

[@Jonas-uh7bb]

Tbh the ICE trains are heaven compared to local trains and their delays 🤣🤣

[@HissingKitty2008]

The title of your review was a bit odd. You made it from point A to point B, therefore it *is reliable. Thanks for the review.

[@medman36]

I enjoy the ICE from the Netherlands to Munich. Its better than ditch railways and Thalys. I enjoy first class. What I don't like are the nightvtrains. They are not comfortable and too expensive for what you get. Another thong I don't enjoy are return trips with ICE. They always take longer, have more stops and are almost twice as expensive in price for some inexplicablecreason. What I truly miss is the option for one train from the Netherlands to Munisch with no stopovers. Especially more than onecstopover is exhausting, when on holiday, because you have to transfer everthing overvto another ICE train, and eaiting times are often hours, and pose risks of missing connections when multiple stopovers are short and stressful. Another minus is thatbit is bot easy to find an ideal stopover plan. The cross country border multiple plan complexity I think is oldfashioned and it would be nice if international travel was mire seemlessly connected.

[@oslo162]

honestly if you reached your destination on time i'm going to tell u something, you are very lucky

[@NJ50409]

It‘s a fact that these trained are very unreliable, but the DB will replace the most of them these summer.

[@RoelBaardman]

This train is no longer running on this route, as far as I know. It's now the ICE3Neo.

[@hansmuller3604]

i would always prefer a compartment seat.

[@pham3383]

i took the ICE from frankfurt to munchen ,the train broke mid journeys :)))

[@johanrebel]

A lounge for First Class passengers that doesn't serve any food and restricts patrons to one lousy non-alcoholic beverage?!? Ha ha ha ha ha. Who on earth came up with the stereotype that the Dutch are stingy?

[@jan-lukas]

Even the on-board restaurant on the ICE is better than that...

[@ajfrostx]

Used it in July and it was fine - by ICE standards a delay of 5 minutes is practically nothing.