Deutsche Bahn (DB) plans to simplify the purchase of tickets for international rail travel this year. With the help of a new standard for data exchange between European railways, more cross-border journeys will be bookable directly via the Deutsche Bahn website and the DB Navigator starting at the end of the year, the company announced on Tuesday. By the end of 2026, it will be possible to book tickets "for all major railways in our neighboring countries directly" via DB channels.
Today, several tickets are sometimes still required for international travel, which must be booked via the international-bahn.de website. This can have disadvantages for travelers, for example, if connecting trains are missed due to delays, and passenger rights are then no longer valid. Gradually, tickets for cross-border travel will be able to be booked directly and concurrently via DB channels using the OSDM (Open Sales and Distribution Model) technical interface.
In these cases, forwarding can be omitted. This will soon be the case for journeys on the Swiss and Austrian federal railways, SBB and ÖBB. By the end of next year, cross-border travel should be easier throughout Europe. This will enable not only ticket bookings across Europe, but also long-distance and local train bookings within other European countries.
According to Deutsche Bahn, travelers will then be able to book a trip from Rome Airport to the main train station in the Italian capital, or from Bordeaux to Arcachon on the French Atlantic coast, via DB channels.
From breaking news to thought-provoking opinion pieces, our newsletter keeps you informed & engaged.
