After our less-than-wonderful stay at the Plaza Premium Heidelberg, it was time for us to make tracks for Frankfurt. For the trip, I opted to sample Deutsche Bahn First Class despite the short journey, in the hopes of a quieter, more relaxed atmosphere.
Booking significantly in advance or during quieter periods can yield attractive fares, and we availed of the ‘sparpreis’, the equivalent of a saver fare with significant restrictions and inflexibility – including no complimentary lounge access, which didn’t seem like much of an issue considering our relatively short hop.
We did however opt for seat selection and ultimately, we were glad we did, as the first class section was quite full.
At the station, there’s nothing particularly special or momentous about DB first class travel – like everyone else, we stood on the platform, gawked at the ‘train map’ and tried to figure out where best to stand to be in line with our carriage, and still ended up about 30 metres off, traipising down the platform quickly with our luggage.
On-board meanwhile, probably the most significant benefit is simply the additional seat and shoulder width from having only 2 seats, and 1 seat abreast – as opposed to the 2/2 layout of standard class. This also means that as a couple, if able, you can secure a very private table seat with one seat facing the other – without having to share the space with anyone else.
Something I’d never noticed before is just how quiet both passengers and the trains themselves are in Germany; our attempt at munching on pastries seemed to create an acoustic offense in the carriage, and we eventually decided that going hungry was preferable to facing down all the stares heading in our direction.
Thankfully, an American family boarded and quickly took the heat off us, with a very well-vocalised conversation; and we were able to continue our now-inoffensive pastry devouring.
A quick transfer was necessary at Mannheim, and we shuffled off with our luggage onto the platform to wait for the next train.
Our onward train, compared even to the earlier service, was particularly slammed and we were like salmon swimming upstream trying to make it to our pre-allocated seats, which we briefly considered abandoning but for the seat selection cost, given the very short journey from Mannheim on up to Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof.
All luggage space was taken, so we ultimately wheeled our luggage alongside us and sat there carefully trying to stop it from rolling back down the carriage with every jolt.
We were in Frankfurt in no time, and quickly disembarking along with what seemed to be half the train.
Ultimately, Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof hasn’t become any more a stunning or welcoming arrival station in the years since I lived in the city and continues to be a place where you want to ideally move from one form of transport to the next as quickly as possible.
Overall, Deutsche Bahn First Class feels worth it when it’s not too much more than the standard class fare, if only for the extra space and the – relative – quietness, but I certainly wouldn’t be going out of my way to pay for any of the higher fares, or if the additional difference was much more than a low % of the standard fare.
