FlixTrain has announced a new updated timetable for December onwards and emphasised that all passengers travelling with the German international company will be guaranteed a seat. However, no new routes have been announced for the time being. 

FlixTrain announces new timetable coming December

Following on from its competitor Deutsche Bahn, FlixTrain has announced timetable changes from December 11, 2022. In contrast to the past year, which saw a considerable expansion of long-distance train routes and services across Germany and south to Basel, the company has not announced any new routes for the time being. 

People wanting to switch to FlixTrain to avoid driving, flying or Deutsche Bahn delays will still be limited to travelling between Hamburg, Cologne, Aachen, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Basel, Berlin and Leipzig, with much of Bavaria remaining outside the company’s network.

While the company has announced a new timetable, it will remain largely unchanged from the existing plan. An additional service from Hamburg to Berlin will be available on Sundays at 5.45pm, meaning the connection between the German cities will be available all but two days of the week (Tuesday and Wednesday). Trains previously leaving Berlin for Hamburg on weekdays at 8.22am will now be leaving 17 minutes later, as Deutsche Bahn will take over the 8.22am service.

FlixTrain seat guarantee and 49-euro ticket offer

Unlike its competitors Deutsche Bahn, FlixTrain are the only enterprise to guarantee passengers a seat at no extra cost. For many people travelling by long-distance train across Germany, this may be a deciding factor when picking which company to travel with, as Deutsche Bahn is known for regularly delayed services and overcrowded trains. "[FlixTrain] is setting standards in train travel and stands for affordable, modern and comfortable mobility," a company spokesperson told Berliner Zeitung.

FlixTrain's efforts to compete with Deutsche Bahn come after it recently insisted that its services be included in the 49-euro ticket. Following the popularity of the 9-euro ticket over the summer and the high-demand for long- and short-distance train travel costing next to nothing, the Flix company is determined to make sure its services don’t miss out on custom when the 49-euro ticket is introduced in January.

Earlier this month FlixBus CEO Andre Schwämmlein told FAZ that he believed that, as part of the discounted transport scheme, FlixBus could close a gap between long- and short-to-medium-distance transport. “Long-distance buses already are the most environmentally friendly means of transportation and would add a lot of value to the new offer, especially for people in rural areas – for a fraction of the total costs,” Schwämmlein said. He added that the company is in discussions with the state and federal governments as to whether FlixBus could be included in the new flat rate ticket.