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Travelling on an international train

In the Netherlands, you can use a domestic ticket to travel on international trains, except for Eurostar. You sometimes have to pay a supplement for this.

How to travel on the ICE train

You do not pay a supplement for the ICE if you have one of the following tickets:

  • An OV-chipkaart or NS-Business Card with a valid NS season ticket/subscription (except for NS Flex Basis)
  • A Student Travel Product
  • A business OV-chipkaart from another seller
  • Railrunner 

What to do if you have a different ticket

In this case, you will need to pay a supplement for travelling on the ICE train. You can purchase this supplement online before boarding the train. Alternatively, you can buy it at the station from a ticket machine or the service counter.

Order an ICE Supplement

How to travel on the Eurocity Direct train

You do not pay a supplement for the Eurocity Direct or Nightjet if you have one of the following tickets:

  • An international ticket
  • The Railrunner or Kids Vrij season ticket

What to do if you have a different ticket

You will need an Intercity Direct Supplement. You can purchase this supplement online before boarding the train, Alternatively, you can buy it at the station from a ticket machine or the service counter.

Order Intercity Direct Supplement Order Intercity direct Supplement

International travel with an OV-chipkaart

You can book a single ticket for your entire journey from the departure station in the Netherlands to your destination abroad.

If you are entitled to free travel or a 40% discount on the domestic leg of the route, please communicate that fact when booking the ticket. You will then receive either 40% or 100% discount on your international ticket.

Remember to bring along your NS season ticket in addition to your ticket, as you must be able to show both when asked by the conductor.

An NS season ticket is not valid for the Thalys or Eurostar trains.

Opening gates with an international ticket for the entire journey

Most international tickets feature a QR code you can use to open the gates with a barcode reader.

Please note! Not all gates are equipped with a barcode reader. Some only have an OV-chipkaart reader.

  • Stations with access gates have at least one wider gate equipped with an integrated barcode- and OV-chipkaart reader.
  • At stations served by international trains, all gates are equipped with an integrated barcode- and OV-chipkaart reader.

This gate is indicated by a 'scan ticket' icon on the right door of the gate, and the illuminated surface to the right of the gate.

If you are travelling with an international ticket on a single-use chipkaart, you can open the gate by checking in with the chipkaart. This will automatically validate the ticket.

If the gate does not open, go to the Information Pole near the gates and press the blue button. This will contact an NS assistant who can help you. You can also approach a service assistant if one is on duty at the station.

Checking in and out

If you have booked an international journey from the departure station for an international train, and you plan on travelling with a domestic train to reach that station, then you must check in and out with your OV-chipkaart for the domestic leg of the journey. You can then continue from the international train's departure station with your international train ticket. We recommend that you book a single ticket for the entire journey. This way, you do not need to check in and out along the way.

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