From mid-December onwards, the Netherlands will welcome a direct ICE service to Munich, replacing the current train route to Basel, according to multiple sources.
Rumors of the change have been circulating in the rail industry for some time, with some sources reporting to Treinreiziger.nl as early as 2023 that the Basel train would be replaced by a Munich service in the 2025 timetable.
NS playing coy about new train (but Swiss Railways spilled the beans)
NS has not yet confirmed the new train service. “The timetable for Germany from 2025 is not yet final, so it is too early to answer questions about it,” said a spokesperson for NS International. NS also declined to confirm the discontinuation of the Basel train for the same reason. However, Swiss Railways has made no secret of the fact that the Basel train will stop running on July 15 of this year.
Precise details about the Munich train are not yet known. NS has sent the new 2025 timetable to consumer organizations, but this only covers domestic trains and international trains that fall within the main rail network concession. The ICEs are not covered by this and are therefore not included in the application. There is already some speculation about the future timetable on the Dutch public transport forum, but for now, it remains unclear.
From yesteryear’s EuroCity to tomorrow’s ICE adventure!
In the previous century, there were already daily EuroCity connections from The Hague and Amsterdam to Munich. These connections were discontinued in the early 2000s. Currently, Amsterdam and Munich are only connected by the Nightjet to Vienna/Innsbruck.
The new direct ICE train service between Amsterdam and Munich will likely offer a faster and more convenient connection, and it is expected to be popular with both business and leisure travelers.
