Travelling by train from London to Nuremberg

Sally Broom, founder of tripbod.com, gives a few tips on taking the train from London to Nuremberg (via Brussels and Frankfurt):

A train journey that’s half the holiday...

We had planned to travel to Nuremberg by train over New Year but the poor weather meant it was sensible to postpone. So instead we chose the beginning of half term week to set off from St Pancras on the Eurostar bound for Brussels. Our expectation was mad crowds, busy trains and stressful journeys, but what we got was very different.

The only problem with setting off from St Pancras at 7am is not having enough time to enjoy the wonderful shops and amenities that this stunning building has to offer. So we had to settle for perfectly-cooked boiled eggs and earl grey tea at the Pain Quotidian.

The journey to the check-in desk across the forecourt is all of 70 metres, meaning we were through and ready to board within 10 minutes, despite hoards of families with skis. At this point I struggle to remember why anyone flies! Twenty minutes later we’re on the train and off, with two hours to read the Saturday papers and have a quick snooze before arriving in Brussels.

>> For booking tickets, journey times and itineraries, see our Rail Journey Planner: Train from London to Nuremberg

Brussels Midi station is part of the Brussels zone so here’s a tip – if you’re catching a connecting train you often don’t have to change station as you can jump on from here, which makes life a little easier (this is where Brussels differs from Paris). We pottered around the adjacent streets in the freezing cold until we came across a traditional little cafe where older gentlemen sat around tables playing cards, so we joined in.

Thoroughly warmed up after a coffee and the obligatory ‘first beer of the holiday’ we headed back to the platform, jumped on our train for Frankfurt and found our first class seats. First class sounds terribly grand but for 20 Euros extra it’s really worth the price. You don’t get free food and drink, but you do get bigger seats and smarter carriages. The greatest value of these tickets, however, is access to the first class lounges at connecting stations. We found these to be a blessing when, due to icicles in tunnels, the trains were delayed and at Frankfurt we could sit in the warm lounge with plenty of free soft drinks instead of waiting on the freezing platforms.

Standard class passengers didn’t lose out entirely as Deutsche Bahn has a policy of a 25% refund if your train is more than 60 minutes delayed. So we really couldn’t fault the customer service and, despite the delays, arrived in Nuremberg relaxed and refreshed.

That may, however, have had something to do with the buffet cart serving traditional German wheat beer in half litre glasses, along with plates of Nuremberg sausages and buns, all for a very reasonable price. So not only did we arrive relaxed and refreshed, we also had pleasantly full stomachs with a little room left for that ‘first beer of the holiday’. Oh, hang on a minute...

Sally's Top Tip: if you do plan to visit Nuremberg you could do no better for a budget place to stay than the youth hostel, which as you’ll see from the photo, looks more like a German Schloss (castle) than a hostel, and it has fabulous views over the city! For more information about booking the hostel, see:www.jugendherberge.de/jh/bayern/nuernberg/index.shtml.en

For information on how to travel by train from London St Pancras to Nuremberg (via Brussels and Frankfurt), see greentraveller's detailed journey planner:

Train from London to Nuremberg (via Brussels and Frankfurt)