Trains in Belgium
When you hop on trains in Belgium, you'll be sure to end up in charming cities full of culture and history. Visit Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent and Bruges on a Belgian rail adventure. It's simply the best way to see this historic country's most impressive sites!
Train types in Belgium
The Belgian rail network is run by NMBS/SNCB, the Belgian National Railway Company. You can use the Interrail train timetable to look up train times for Belgian rail journeys.
- Route Map
- DOMESTIC TRAINS
- INTERNATIONAL TRAINS
Regional and intercity trains in Belgium
S-trains and other local trains (SUB)
- Run in and around large cities
- Serve smaller communities
- No reservation required
Peak trains (P)
- Run during peak travel times
- No reservation required
Brussels Airport trains (SUB)
- Run from Brussels Airport to cities like Antwerp, Ghent and Brussels
- A supplement is required, see here for more information
InterCity trains (IC)
- Run between larger cities like Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, Charleroi and Liège
- International travel to Luxembourg City and Lille Flandres (France)
- No reservation required
Express trains (EXP)
- Extra trains during summer running to the Belgian coast
International high-speed trains in Belgium
Eurocity Direct (ECD)
- Brussels – Antwerp – Rotterdam – Amsterdam Zuid – Almere – Lelystad
- Fast connection with limited stops
- No reservations
- A supplement is only required if this train is used for domestic journeys between Schiphol and Rotterdam
Eurocity (EC)
- Brussels – Mechelen – Antwerp – Noorderkempen – Breda – Rotterdam
- Eurocity/Ouigo Brussels – Paris is not available for passholders
- No reservations
- High speed trains to Great Britain, France, the Netherlands and Germany on the routes:
- Brussels – Lille – London
- Brussels – Paris
- Brussels – Disneyland Paris
- Amsterdam – Rotterdam – Antwerp – Brussels – Paris
- Amsterdam – Rotterdam – Antwerp – Brussels – Disneyland Paris
- Dortmund – Düsseldorf – Cologne – Liège – Brussels – Paris
- Reservations are compulsory for these trains, which can get fully booked. We recommend making your reservations as soon as possible to avoid disappointment
- Read more about special booking conditions on our dedicated Eurostar page
- Brussels – Cologne – Frankfurt am Main
- Reservations are compulsory from June 1st until September 1st
TGV
- TGV trains run from Brussels to multiple French destinations:
- Lille, Marne la Vallée Chessy (Disneyland), Strasbourg, Rennes, Nantes, Lyon, Marseille and Montpellier
- Reservations are compulsory
Other international trains in Belgium
- Brussels – Munich – Salzburg – Vienna
- Brussels – Erfurt – Halle – Berlin
- Reservations are compulsory
International IC
- Brussels – Namur – Luxembourg
- Antwerp – Gent – Kortrijk – Lille
- Liège – Luxembourg
- No reservation
- Brussels – Antwerp – Rotterdam – Amsterdam – Berlin – Dresden – Prague
- Brussels – Antwerp – Breda – Cologne – Munich – Innsbruck – Venice
- Runs two to three times a week
- Reservations are compulsory
Popular connections in Belgium
- Domestic routes
- International Routes
How long does it take to travel between major cities on the Belgian rail network? This table shows journey times for InterCity trains, which don't require reservations.
Route | Travel time |
---|---|
Brussels to Antwerp | 47m |
Brussels to Bruges | 56m |
Brussels to Ghent | 31m |
Brussels to Liège | 58m |
Ghent to Antwerp | 55m |
Route | Which train? | Travel time | Reservations |
---|---|---|---|
Brussels to London (Great Britain) | Eurostar | 3h | Required |
Brussels to Luxembourg City (Luxembourg) | InterCity | 3h | None |
Brussels to Paris (France) | Eurostar | 1h 30m | Required |
Brussels to Amsterdam Zuid (Netherlands) | Eurocity Direct | 2h 08m | None |
Brussels to Rotterdam (Netherlands) |
Eurocity |
2h 07m |
None |
Brussels to Marseille (France) | TGV | 5h 30m | Required |
Brussels to Berlin/Vienna (Austria) | ÖBB Nightjet | 13h 15m/15h 10m (overnight) | Required |
Brussels to Berlin/Prague (Czech Republic) | European Sleeper | 10h 50m/16h (overnight) | Required |
Brussels to Frankfurt (Germany) | ICE | 3h | Optional (Required June 1st until September 1st) |
Reservations
Interrail reservation self-service system
- Interrail
- Eurostar, TGV, ICE, RailJet, Nightjet, European Sleeper
- Eurostar, TGV, ICE, RailJet, Nightjet, European Sleeper
Administration costs when booking through Interrail self-service
- € 2,- p.p.per train
- Additional € 9,- per order (for paper tickets)
With railway carriers
- SNCB (b-europe): International trains to Netherlands, France, Germany and UK
- Eurostar, TGV, European Sleeper, Nightjet
- DB (German railways): International trains
- ICE
- ÖBB (Austrian railways): International trains
- ICE
- ČD (Czech railways): International trains
- ICE
- European Sleeper: Only European Sleeper trains, international
- ÖBB Nightjet: Only Nightjet
Other platforms
- Rail Europe: International trains
- Eurostar and TGV
- ACP Rail: Eurostar trains to London
An explanation of how each booking platform works can be found here: How do I book my reservations
Locally at the train station in Belgium
- International trains can be reserved at the train station, the following booking costs are applied:
- ICE to Germany: € 7
- European Sleeper, Eurostar and TGV: € 12
Eurostar trains are popular and therefore, usually sell out quickly. Make sure to get your seat reservation in time. Alternatively, find trains without seat reservations in our timetable by toggling on the ‘no reservation needed’ button.
Get your Pass for Belgium
Interrail Global Pass
Offers you extensive rail travel in 33 European countries including Belgium
Youth, senior and family discounts available
Prices from € 212
Tips and tricks for Belgium
Belgian main train stations
Belgium's main stations have connections to many domestic and international destinations. These stations are:
Brussel Zuid/Bruxelles Midi
Brussel Centraal
Brussel Noord
Antwerpen Centraal
Gent Sint-Pieters
Luik Guillemins
Belgian train stations often have excellent and modern facilities:
Lockers
Cash machines and a foreign exchange desk
Restaurants and cafés
Tourist information offices
Elevators, escalators and access for disabled passengers
Spelling of cities in Belgium
You'll usually find the local spelling of Belgian cities on Belgian train timetables and at train stations in Belgium. Names will be in both Dutch and French.
Good to know:
Antwerpen/Anvers = Antwerp
Brugge = Bruges
Brussel/Bruxelles = Brussels
Gent/Gand = Ghent
Oostende = Ostend
Transport and accommodation deals
With an Interrail Pass valid in Belgium, you can travel by bus to neighboring countries, and get up to 20% off on hostel accommodation in Brussels and Bruges with Europe's Famous Hostels.
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