Frankfurt to Nuremberg by Train: Tickets and Arrival

By The Travel Fieldbook October 7, 2026 October 7, 2026

ICE trains at Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof, the city’s main station. (Maksym Kozlenko · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Edited)

From Römerberg in Frankfurt, take a direct ICE from Frankfurt (Main) Hbf to Nuremberg’s main station, then walk to Hauptmarkt. Deutsche Bahn’s train brings you to the edge of the old town, but the coach is a realistic alternative when its fare and departure suit you better.

ICE trains and the coach alternative

Operator and service: Deutsche Bahn (DB), direct ICE
Station-to-station journey example: ICE 621: about 2 hours
Advertised rail offer: €30.99 one way per adult; sample for 12 October 2026, varying by connection and date
First direct ICE departure: ICE 23 at 08:20, arriving 10:30; runs through 8 November 2026 except 17 July, 22 August–4 September and 25 September–4 October 2026

Choose the ICE for a main-station arrival and the option of a flexible rail ticket, or choose the coach if its offer and departure fit better. Both journeys here start at Römerberg and end at Hauptmarkt, rather than stopping the comparison at the destination station.

Nuremberg is a straightforward intercity journey rather than a neighbouring town: the rail journey between the main stations covers about 226 km. You arrive beside the old town rather than needing a further cross-city journey to reach it.

Direct ICE versus FlixBus between Römerberg and Hauptmarkt

Pros

The rail journey example, including the two walks, takes about 2 and a half hours and covers about 228 km, before waiting and boarding time.
A flexible rail fare lets you choose a different train on the ticketed route and travel day; useful if your departure time is uncertain.

Cons

The advertised rail offer of €30.99 per adult one way is higher than FlixBus’s starting fare of €11.98 per adult one way; neither is a guaranteed price for every departure.
The coach’s minimum scheduled journey is 1 hour 40 minutes. With its access and arrival walks, its travel components total roughly 2 hours 20 minutes, before waiting and boarding, potentially less than the rail example.

FlixBus uses Frankfurt central coach station at Stuttgarter Straße 26 and Nuremberg central coach station at Willy-Brandt-Platz. From Römerberg, the coach-station walk is about 1.7 km and about 24 minutes, while from the Nuremberg coach station to Hauptmarkt it is about 1.1 km and about 15 minutes.

Compare the particular departures, not just the coach’s fastest advertised journey. Its minimum is not the duration of every service, while the rail figure is a journey example. Beyond the walks, allow time to find the platform or coach boarding point, board and wait for departure.

Frankfurt (Main) Hbf: getting there and boarding

From Römerberg, the walk to Frankfurt (Main) Hbf is about 1.5 km and about 21 minutes. Select Frankfurt (Main) Hbf when buying your ticket, not one of Frankfurt Airport’s stations. This is the city’s main railway station and the departure point for this journey.

At Frankfurt (Main) Hbf, match your train number and departure time to the live departure display, then follow the indicated platform. Follow any platform changes shown there. The train’s final destination can be beyond Nuremberg, so its destination name alone is not enough to identify your service.

Platforms at Frankfurt (Main) Hauptbahnhof, with tracks and station signage. — Platforms at Frankfurt’s main railway station, the departure point for trains to Nuremberg.
*Wikimedia-User Jivee Blau · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Edited*

You do not need to validate an ICE ticket before boarding. Keep the ticket and photo ID ready for the onboard crew, along with your BahnCard if the fare uses that discount. Having these together avoids searching through bags during inspection.

Komfort Check-in, DB’s optional digital onboard check-in, is available after you take your seat with eligible digital saver or flexible tickets on supported trains. It is not a station check-in or a step you must complete to board.

Allow extra time at the station to find the platform and board comfortably. With large luggage or children, leave more room rather than treating the walk’s end as the moment you can catch the train.

Tickets and seat reservations

Choose a saver fare when you can commit to the departure, but choose a flexible fare when your timing may change. Saver and Super Saver tickets are tied to the booked long-distance train. A flexible ticket allows any ICE or other long-distance service, and local trains, on the ticketed Frankfurt (Main) Hbf–Nuremberg route on the booked travel day, not on another day.

Any regional or local trains included in a saver booking are not train-specific. The journey must be completed by 10:00 the following day, but that completion deadline does not give you permission to switch to a different ICE voluntarily.

The Deutschlandticket does not cover this ICE journey: you need a separate ticket. You can buy a rail ticket through DB or another rail-ticket seller, but the fare conditions, rather than the seller alone, determine your freedom to change plans.

Seat reservations are optional on domestic ICE trains. Reserving is useful if you want companions seated together rather than finding separate available seats after boarding. A ticket and a reserved seat are different purchases unless your fare includes both.

A separate second-class reservation costs €5.50 per person, per direction.
First-class Flexpreis, the flexible fare, includes a reservation, while second-class Flexpreis does not.
Sparpreis and Super Sparpreis, the Saver and Super Saver fares, do not automatically include reservations.
Sparpreis Gruppe, the group saver fare, includes reservations.

The journey, disruptions and late travel

Once you have boarded at Frankfurt (Main) Hbf, watch the onboard displays for Nürnberg Hbf, the name used for Nuremberg’s main station. Leave the direct ICE there even if the train continues to another city. Have your belongings ready before arrival so you can move towards the doors without rushing.

Disruption rights are different from a voluntary change of plans. On a domestic journey, DB lifts a saver ticket’s train-specific restriction if a delay of at least 20 minutes is expected at your ticketed destination. The restriction is also lifted for a cancelled train or stop, a missed connection, or a timetable change causing an earlier departure. Simply deciding to leave later does not qualify.

From the main station to Hauptmarkt

At Nuremberg’s main station, take the Hauptausgang, the main exit facing the old town, rather than the south exit. If you need step-free access, use the platform lifts to the ground-floor concourse, then follow signs to the main exit.

From the forecourt, head towards Königstor and follow Königstraße through the old town to Hauptmarkt. Altstadt signs mean “old town”. The walk is about 1.1 km and about 15 minutes.

Hauptmarkt, the central market square, completes the centre-to-centre journey from Römerberg. Your accommodation may be elsewhere, so its final approach can differ from this walk. Keep that distinction in mind when planning your arrival.

Sources & fact-checking

Checks against the sources below cover: services and fares and charges.