Dresden Travel Answers

I haven't been to Dresden but here's the English info about day tickets: dvb.de/en/Tickets-Fares/For-... vvo-online.de/en/tickets_und...

I have been to Dresden with my wife and the One-day tickets for families was the cheapest option. It's the 7.50 € Familien karte for 1 tariff zone, valid until 04:00 a.m. of the day following validation. PJ

I'm a bit confused about your question. Both Dresden and Frankfurt have no Altstadt Bahnhof stops (reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/qu... As long as you travel a not greater distance than allowed by your ticket, I think you're entitled to travel any shorter distance. PJ

I also don't know which Altstadt Bahnhof you mean. Generally when you book a train from B to C, you cannot get in at A. But if it is from A to C, you can get in or off at B. If you reserved your seat from A to C, and get in at B, your seat may be taken though. You have 15 minutes to claim your reserved seat, after this period it's available for anybody.

VVO tickets cover regional trains, S-Bahn, trams and buses. The suspension railway and the funicular railway are however only covered by season tickets (tickets valid one week or more) vvo-online.de/en/tickets_und... There is no Altstadt Bahnhof. In case you mean the train station Dresden Mitte: yes you can start there with your ticket using a S-Bahn or regional train to Hauptbahnhof.

If you bought a ticket from Dresden Hbf to Frankfurt then you will most likely travel by ICE train which does stop only at Dresden Hbf (which is the major railway station for the Altstadt district) and Dresden-Neustadt. It will not stop at Dresden-Mitte, only regional trains and commuter trains stop there. It's still convenient to get off at Dresden Hbf and take a tram from there to your hotel since there are a tourist information and also a local transportation network information centre there.

Hi, guys, sorry for the delay! Thanks a lot for the info, leics, pieter jan, christine, abalada and german_eagle! And I'm sorry for the wrong information: I mean NEUSTADT Bahnhof! I think christine's post answers my question, but I'd like to know if that really is a problem, since I'd catch the same train in the same city, just one station before the one my ticket is booked to. It would just be more inconvinient for me, since I'd have to do the same route with public transport. And being with luggages, that's not very pleasant. Could there be any kind of control between those 2 stations (Neustadt and Hbf)? I'd have paid the same price if I had booked the train from the Neustadt Bahnhof, the only change is in time (it would be earlier, of course). I won't catch an ICE, but 2 IC trains from Dresden to Frankfurt. I checked the DB website and it seems the first train does stop at the Neustadt Bahnhof before the Hbf.

From Dresden to Frankfurt means that the train starts in Dresden Hbf, then Dresden-Neustadt. It's only 7 minutes or so, definitely less than the 15 minutes rule to get your reserved seat - so no worries, you can easily hop on the train at Dresden-Neustadt.

Could you tell us which two ICs you are going to take? I've been looking at bahn.de but haven't found an IC from Dresden -Neustadt to Frankfurt via Dresden HBF. Where are you going to change trains, since you say you have to take two ICs? The ones I found are direct trains from Dresden HBF to Frankfurt/Main Süd. This is just because now I'm interested, it has nothing to do with your question about the ticket.

christine, the trains from Dresden to Frankfurt ALL start at Dresden Hbf and run via Dresden-Neustadt to Frankfurt. No matter if ICs or ICEs (or even regional trains). The original poster mixed something up here (just like the Altstadt train station). If you take ICs you usually have to change trains in Leipzig.

You're right, german_eagle. Here's my Fahrplan: Dresden Hbf So, 08.01.12 ab 14:23 IC 2344 Leipzig Hbf So, 08.01.12 an 15:27 Leipzig Hbf So, 08.01.12 ab 15:41 IC 2154 Frankfurt(Main)Hbf So, 08.01.12 an 19:40 If in my search I choose Dresden-Neustadt, it includes a S-Bahn ride: Dresden-Neustadt So, 08.01.12 ab 14:02 S-Bahn Richtung: Dresden Hbf Dresden Hbf So, 08.01.12 an 14:08 You're right, it's not the same train. So I guess I'd have to pay for that ride, right? Unless I buy a day-card the previous day, and I'll still be able to use it. Ok, now I get it! Thanks again!!

Ok, I'm planning to buy a Dresden Day Card. I arrive in Dresden on Jan 7th at 16:04 and leave the next day in the afternoon. Is the card still good in the morning or does it expire at 3 or 4 AM? Can I buy it at the Hbf and get it immediately?

dvb.de/en/Tickets-Fares/For-... makes it clear that the one-day card expires at 4am the morning after validation, regardless of when it is validated.

On the website it says: "Valid as a ticket from 6pm the previous day until 4am the day following the registered date on all local public transport..." If it's valid from 6PM to 4AM then it's no "day" ticket, but a "night" ticket. There must be something wrong. Maybe they meant 6AM. Anyway, I guess in my situation I'd need 2 cards...

Sorry...I thought you meant the ordinary day ticket rather than the City Card. Yes, I imagine that the site is wrong about the Dresden City card and that they mean valid from 6am until 4am the following day. But the card is 9.50 euro and the ordinary day ticket is 5 euro for one zone.

You're right, leics. I saw that simultaneously on another website. So what do you guys think? Is it worth buying 2 day-tickets or separate tickets? I don't think it would be worth buying a Dresden Card, since I wouldn't visit any museum the first day and the card would expire before I could use it. Maybe I should buy it in the following morning...

I don't know Dresden at all and can only say that in my experience European city cards are rarely worthwhile unless you intend to take advantage of all or many of the discounts they offer. I've always stuck with ordinary one-day transport tickets. Hopefully VT-ers with more knowledge of Dresden will be better able to advise.

Thanks, leics. Maybe that's a good choice. But I'd also like to have discounts at museums, and it's hard to know if the Dresden Card is the best choice to combine discounts in museum and public transport.

Ok, here we have the very rare situation that an IC train from Dresden to Leipzig does not run via Dresden-Neustadt. Reason is that on weekends sometimes (rarely) they make good use of less busy travel times to do construction works at the railroads around the train station Dresden-Neustadt. So, yes, you have to take either an S-Bahn train or a tram to Dresden Hbf to catch your train there. The website that leics gave explains the rules for a day ticket of the Dresden Transportation Network (DVB). It is indeed a "day" ticket - valid for one calendar day, extended into the next calendar day until 4 am. It is NOT a 24-hours ticket. As you know the 1-day Dresden-Card does NOT include the museums of the State Art Collections. A bad deal, especially since it entitles you to the reduced entrance fee which you already get with the international student card. The 2-days Dresden-Card would be an option, but I agree with leics it doesn't make sense in your case - not enough time on your first day to pay off. How many museums could you see if arriving at Dresden Hbf at 4 pm? They close at 6 pm ... Also, a single trip on tram/bus is 2 Euro, good for one hour, changes possible. If you stay in the Dresden Neustadt district you are probably in walking distance to the old town anyway - why bother getting a day ticket? So I'd just buy a single trip ticket for 2 Euro to get to the hotel, another one to get back to Hbf the other day. Or buy a 4-trips ticket which is 7.50 Euro if I recall correctly, slightly discounted. And buy the tickets to the museums individually. Which do you plan to visit, btw?

Thank you again for the very helpful information! I think I won't buy the Dresden Card, but most likely a 4-trips ticket. My hotel is not so close from the Neutstadt Bahnhof (it's in the Plinger area), and I'm afraid that in a cold night I'd rather not go back from the Altstadt by foot, and wouldn't want to lose too much time the next morning by walking to the Altstadt. So I think a 4-trips ticket would be the best deal. Can I get it at the Hbf, btw? I need to validate it in each ride, right?

> You're right, it's not the same train. So I guess I'd have to pay for that ride, right? No. To start at Dresden-Neustadt by S-Bahn is covered by your ticket. Your Ticket reads behind "Hinfahrt:" Dresden -> Frankfurt(Main). Not "Dresden Hbf". Covered are a number of central train stations in Dresden. > I'd have paid the same price if I had booked the train from the Neustadt Bahnhof If it's the same standard fare price (it is in this case) this means it's one of those central train stations a ticket from "Dresden" is good for. > So I think a 4-trips ticket would be the best deal. Can I get it at the Hbf, btw? I need to validate it in each ride, right? You can get it for sure at the Hbf. Generally from any ticket machine, the bus drivers and VVO sales points. You have to validate it before each ride. Only a good deal if you need all 4 trips. One stripe equals one fare zone. As you will stay inside Dresden you will travel inside one fare zone.

Thanks a lot for the info, abalada! Good to know that!