Cologne Travel Forum

I'd like to take a fast train from Bruges to Cologne in late September, 2009. Any recommendations for trains, from what station to what station, websites from which to purchase tickets, and perhaps a boutique-style hotel in Cologne not too far from the train station. Thanks for any help.

The journey from Brugges to Cologne takes between 3 and 4 hours depending on what train you get. You will need to change trains at Bruxelles Midi. Details of times, fares etc. here:

www.b-rail.be/

For hotels, you could try www.venere.com or www.bookings.com which are probably the two most popular sites around. Reviews are genuine and both services are reputable and reliable.

DB timetable
http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en
From: Bruges
To: Cologne

or with local names
From: Brugge
To: Köln Hbf

You can get a few connections from DB from EUR 19,00 if you book in advance (earliest 89 days before departure). By chance these are also the fastest connections.

Another big hotel booking service in Europe is Cologne based HRS.
http://www.hrs.com