Deutsche Bahn AG Reviews 

The worst piece of s@#t to ever graze the planet. Nothing ever goes on time and the price is triple the worth. Absolute s@#t. I hope the whole country with these trains vanishes from existence. I would rather take a donkey than a DB train. This whole country is going down. Thank Churchill and the other monkeys for ruining this once great nation with WW2. It's over.

We are Australians in Germany for 1 week. We have travelled on many trains over this week and EVERY SINGLE TRAIN WAS LATE. The communication was extremely poor so we never got reliable updates as to what was happening. One train was 40 minutes late which meant we missed our connecting ICE train by literally 5 seconds. The DB employee looked at me running to the door and shut it in my face, knowing full well that was the last ICE train with that service for the day. We paid for first class and are absolutely disgusted by DB's unreliable service and disrespectful employees. We now have to manage multiple trains and an expensive taxi to get where we need to be, albeit 4-5 hours later than planned. Not OK!!!! Rant over!

Mostly just leaving a note for future travellers:

Deutsche Bahn lets you take the next train if you miss a connection (and it's due to train delays on their end). This includes if the delay is due to another country's operator.

In my case, the MÁV from Budapest to Vienna was delayed, so Deutsche Bahn swapped me onto the next train from Vienna to Munich. Despite barely even travelling through Germany itself.

That sort of international cooperation should be standard, but sadly isn't.

Just a little advice for future travellers: to do this you need to take the ticket to the information office in the station, there's a little bureaucracy. But nothing unreasonable.

My experience with DB was terrible. Trains get cancelled without any prior notice. Delays are massive. Trains are packed with passengers, like sardines in a can. I missed my flight, had to cover all the expenses out of my own pocket, and DB only refunded a small part of it. Travelers should really keep this in mind when planning their trips: relying on DB comes with a very real risk that you won't reach your destination and will end up stranded somewhere. The overall organization is chaos, and they simply don't have the capacity to provide a service that meets modern transport standards and demand. They need to take immediate action on this, because it cannot go on like this.

Useless company, completely unreachable for a refund due to their fault. Has a db train ever ran on time? I wouldn't know.

You cannot imagine how bad they are! Cancelation, delays without any notice..

1 star is way too much. Walking would be faster. Than never arrive at all.

How can EVERY train be delayed? I have never experienced a DB train be less than 15 minutes delayed.
Is it due to neoliberal incompetence, like with DSB in Denmark?

Just hate them and their bloody delays

This review specifically concerns the reservation process for the Paris–Stuttgart TGV when traveling with an Interrail Pass, after being redirected from the Interrail app to the DB booking website.

I’ve travelled across several European countries using an Interrail Pass, and this was by far the most confusing and frustrating reservation experience of my entire trip.

For virtually every other train requiring a reservation, Interrail pass holders are instructed to book “Seat reservation only.” That’s exactly what I did—and exactly what any experienced Interrail traveller would reasonably expect to do.

However, for the Paris–Stuttgart TGV, this apparently isn’t the correct reservation. The problem is that nowhere during the booking process is it indicated or explained that “Seat reservation only” is not valid for this train. Interrail directs you to the DB booking page, yet there is no clear warning that this option is the wrong one.

As a result, I boarded the train believing I had done everything correctly, only to be told that my reservation wasn’t valid and that I had to pay an outrageously expensive onboard fee.

The issue isn’t the conductor—they were simply enforcing the rules. The real problem is a booking system that sets passengers up to fail.

If “Seat reservation only” is not the correct product for Interrail pass holders on this train, why is there no clear warning before purchase? Why are passengers expected to discover this only after boarding the train?

A simple notice explaining that this option is not valid, together with clear instructions on how Interrail pass holders should book the correct reservation, would prevent countless passengers from making the same expensive mistake.

I’ve travelled extensively by train across Europe, and this is honestly the worst booking experiences I’ve encountered. A booking system should help passengers get the correct ticket—not mislead them into buying the wrong one.

Almost everyday, planning to take a train is a gamble!! Elevators are broken oftentimes!!

DB is causing a lot of mess and stress to many people! This irresponsible behavior can cost people a fortune in some cases if they have bookings or time critical appointments! I cannot stand it anymore!!

Another annoying point: some days the weather can be extremely cold or extremely hot and the train driver prevents people from onboarding until the train time is soon enough then he moves to the platform or opens the doors, This is really selfish behavior!

trains dont arrive or come late, it gets worse and worsewhile prices go up and up - when i know i have to take a train, i get anxiety.

If this company is run by people, they should be ashamed of themselves. Its a disgrace. How can 5 out of 5 trains on different days on different segments be delayed by an average of 60min. Its pathetic. How the review score is not 1.0 on here is beyond my comprehension.

Every second train is way too late and the payment of a Deutschlandticket is way too complicated for no reason. They want a full identity verification, it is buggy and their form do not accept forign home addresses.

Services seem to be improving last years. Hopefully they can keep making it better

Overcrowded, expensive terrible experience

I am extremely disappointed with my recent experience traveling with DB First Class between Hamburg and Copenhagen.

The trip to Copenhagen was cancelled and replaced by a bus. One of the main reasons I paid extra for First Class was because I needed to work during the journey and expected the comfort and services advertised, including catering, electricity, and a proper working environment. Instead, I could not work at all, and the catering service I paid for was effectively unavailable. Not even basic things like water or food were properly provided after the cancellation.

The return trip was also unacceptable. Although I had again paid for First Class, the wagon was cold and without electricity, making it impossible to work. I eventually had to move to another carriage myself just to continue the journey in acceptable conditions.

To make matters worse, the train arrived with more than one hour delay, yet my compensation request was rejected and I received no refund at all. This is honestly very frustrating considering the amount paid for a First Class experience that was far below expectations.

Overall, the quality of the service was unacceptable. The catering offering was also extremely poor and disappointing.

The experience was nowhere near the level of service provided by companies like Trenitalia or Italo in Italy, which offer a significantly better and more reliable premium experience. DB should seriously benchmark and learn from them as soon as possible.

Paying extra for First Class should mean reliability, comfort, and proper service. Unfortunately, this journey delivered none of those things.

I agree with all 1 start review here

Reposting a perfect summery of another traveller from 2 years ago:

Probably the worst railway service in western Europe.
Delayed trains, outdated infrastructure in dire need of renovation, poor communication.
The one star is for the employees, train engineers and ticket controllers who soldier through these hurdles and do a good job despite the critique from upset travelers. It’s not their fault. The company management is utterly incompetent.

Train cancelled without warning a minute before it was supposed to arrive, no email, no nothing.
They gave me wrong information telling me I should get to a WestBahn train to get to my destination, which costed me 135 euros additionnally to my base ticket price, 50 euros.
Contacted the Schlichtungsstelle Reise & Verkehr to ask for help, they offered mediation, after almost a year of mails they were telling DB it was fair to refund me my WestBahn ticket, they refused. DB is the worst train company I ever used, and I will never use it again