Short answer: unlike the Pyrenees, the French-German border is easy and cheap to cross, but almost never with an "international" ticket. The four most useful crossings are Strasbourg's tram line D to Kehl (around €2 with a CTS Europa ticket, 20 minutes from Homme de Fer), the Metz/Forbach–Saarbrücken TER (around 1 hr 10, €10–17), the Strasbourg–Wissembourg TER extended to Landau and Neustadt on the Palatinate side, and the Basel network, where tram 8 and the S-Bahn cross into Germany at Weil am Rhein. For long distances, three high-speed routes are bookable: Paris–Frankfurt and Paris–Stuttgart/Munich (ICE and TGV, €35–150) and Marseille/Lyon–Frankfurt by TGV. Simple rule: for a local trip, buy a regional ticket on each side rather than an international ticket — it is often two to three times cheaper.
France and Germany share 450 kilometres of border, two dense cross-border conurbations (Strasbourg–Kehl, Saarbrücken–Forbach), and one of the few places in Europe where you can move from one country to the other on an urban tram. It is the exact opposite of the Iberian or Pyrenean situation, where crossing the Pyrenees by public transport is still something of a feat.
And yet many travellers pay too much. Because one operator's search engine doesn't "see" the other's trains, because the border station isn't the one you'd expect, or because a ticket sold for €49 as "international" costs €11 when you split it in two. This guide sets out what is actually bookable in 2026, crossing point by crossing point.
1. Why this border is so simple — and so misunderstood
Three technical reasons explain how smoothly the French-German crossing works.
Same gauge, same loading gauge. Both networks use standard gauge (1,435 mm). No change of train is imposed by the track, unlike in Spain.
Urban networks deliberately designed to be cross-border. Strasbourg extended its tram line D to Kehl in 2017; Basel did the same with tram 8 to Weil am Rhein. These are city services, priced as such.
Regional agreements. Grand Est, the Saarland and Rhineland-Palatinate jointly fund TER services that cross the border without a change of train.
But three obstacles remain, all commercial rather than technical:
- The two electrification systems (25 kV in France, 15 kV in Germany) limit the rolling stock able to run on both sides: hence the connections required on some secondary routes.
- The ticketing systems only partly talk to each other. SNCF Connect displays German regional trains poorly; the Deutsche Bahn website does sell French TER tickets, but not always at the lowest regional fare.
- Discount cards do not cross the border. A BahnCard 50 does not reduce the French portion of a ticket, and an SNCF Avantage card does not apply to the German segment. See our comparison of BahnCard 25, 50 or 100 to work out which one pays off for your travel profile.
2. Strasbourg–Kehl: crossing the border by tram
This is the cheapest border crossing in Western Europe, and probably the most underused by travellers passing through.
Line D of the Strasbourg tram starts at Poteries, runs through the centre (Homme de Fer, Gare centrale), crosses the Rhine on the footbridge and serves Kehl Bahnhof, the German station. Allow around 20 minutes from Homme de Fer, with a tram every 10 to 15 minutes during the day.
The ticket to know about is CTS's Europa ticket: it covers the journey to Kehl for around €2 per trip, far less than an international SNCF ticket. At Kehl, you connect on foot to Deutsche Bahn regional trains towards Offenburg (15 min), then on to Freiburg, Basel or the Black Forest.
Tip: to reach Freiburg im Breisgau from Strasbourg, the tram D + regional train combination via Offenburg often costs half the price of a direct ticket, for a comparable journey time (2 hr to 2 hr 30).
Another option on the Baden side: the Strasbourg–Lauterbourg TER and services towards Rastatt and Karlsruhe, handy for joining the German ICE network without going via Paris.
3. Saarbrücken–Forbach–Metz: the Lorraine corridor
The second major cross-border route links Lorraine to the Saarland.
| Route | Mode | Duration | Indicative price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Metz–Saarbrücken | TER Grand Est / DB | 1 hr 05 to 1 hr 20 | €10–17 |
| Forbach–Saarbrücken | TER / S-Bahn | 12–20 min | €3–6 |
| Strasbourg–Saarbrücken | TER via Sarreguemines | 1 hr 45 to 2 hr 15 | €18–28 |
| Sarreguemines–Saarbrücken | Saarbahn (tram-train) | 30–40 min | €4–6 |
The Saarbahn is the other curiosity of the area: a German tram-train that leaves central Saarbrücken and ends up… in France, at Sarreguemines. It falls under saVV network fares, not an international ticket.
From Saarbrücken, the German network opens everything up: ICE services to Mannheim and Frankfurt, regional trains to Trier and Luxembourg. It is one of the best entry points for a trip into central Germany without going via Paris.
Consider a universal travel plug adapter if you're chaining connections: sockets on French TER trains and German regional trains use the same standard, but Czech or Swiss trains encountered further along the route don't guarantee the same availability.
4. The Palatinate: Wissembourg, Lauterbourg and the Lauter valley
Less well known, this area has become interesting since German services were extended.
- Strasbourg–Haguenau–Wissembourg: TER Grand Est, around 1 hr 10, €10–14. At Wissembourg, Palatinate regional trains continue to Winden, Landau and Neustadt an der Weinstraße, from where you can reach Mannheim and the high-speed network.
- Strasbourg–Lauterbourg: TER, around 1 hr. Connections to Wörth and Karlsruhe.
On the German side, these routes are covered by VRN fares (Verkehrsverbund Rhein-Neckar). A regional day ticket there is often better value than a single, especially for two people.
It is also the ideal playground for cyclists: the Lauter valley and the German Wine Route combine beautifully with the train. Carriage rules differ from one side to the other — we set them out in our guide to taking your bike on the train in Europe. For journeys where bikes aren't allowed, a folding bike transport bag solves the problem: folded and bagged, the bike travels as luggage.
5. Basel: three countries, one station split in two
Basel is the only place where you can cross two borders in a single morning without leaving an urban network.
Basel SBB station houses a French section (Bâle SNCF), with its own platforms and customs checks. From there, TER trains leave for Mulhouse and Strasbourg, and TGVs for Paris. Basel Badischer Bahnhof (Basel Bad Bf), meanwhile, is German territory: German regional trains and ICEs depart from there for Freiburg, Karlsruhe and Frankfurt.
Tram 8 links central Basel to Weil am Rhein (Germany) in about twenty minutes; tram 10 and tram 17 reach France at Leymen and Saint-Louis. The trinational S-Bahn completes the picture.
Three classic pitfalls:
- Don't mix up the stations. A "Basel SBB" ticket is not valid from Basel Bad Bf, and vice versa.
- Basel's visitor tax often gives you a free transport pass if you stay overnight in the city: check before buying.
- Swiss cards (Halbtax, Swiss Travel Pass) do not cover the German portion of the S-Bahn beyond the border. Our comparison of Halbtax, Swiss Travel Pass or discounted tickets details the break-even points.
6. Long-distance services: ICE, TGV and the Franco-German alliance
For long distances, the offer rests on cooperation between SNCF Voyageurs and Deutsche Bahn, with German ICE 3 trainsets and French TGV Euroduplex units running on the same routes.
| Route | Operator | Duration | Indicative price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paris–Frankfurt | ICE / TGV | 3 hr 50 to 4 hr | €35–150 |
| Paris–Stuttgart | TGV / ICE | 3 hr 10 to 3 hr 25 | €39–140 |
| Paris–Munich | TGV / ICE | around 5 hr 40 | €39–160 |
| Paris–Karlsruhe | TGV / ICE | 2 hr 45 | €35–120 |
| Marseille–Frankfurt | TGV | around 7 hr 45 | €49–160 |
| Strasbourg–Frankfurt | ICE | 2 hr 45 | €25–80 |
Two booking tips.
Compare both ticketing systems. For a Paris–Munich trip, Deutsche Bahn's Sparpreis Europa fare frequently starts lower than the French equivalent, and the reverse is true on Paris–Frankfurt depending on the period. Same trains, same seats, but two pricing policies.
Watch out for the December timetable change. Paris–Munich was speeded up in December 2026; we have listed all the changes in our round-up of the 13 December 2026 timetable change.
On these 4- to 7-hour journeys, comfort matters. A neck travel pillow and a blackout sleep mask radically change the experience of an early-morning TGV or a late-evening ICE, especially in second class where the seats barely recline.
7. Coaches: FlixBus, and almost nothing else
On the coach side, the picture is simple: FlixBus dominates the French-German market almost single-handedly since BlaBlaCar Bus stopped operating.
The best-served routes run from Paris, Strasbourg, Lille and Lyon to Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Munich, Cologne, Berlin and Hamburg. Ballpark figures:
- Paris–Frankfurt: 8 to 10 hr, €15–40
- Strasbourg–Stuttgart: 2 hr 30 to 3 hr, €9–20
- Paris–Berlin: 14 to 17 hr, €25–60
- Lyon–Munich: 10 to 12 hr, €25–50
Coaches keep the edge on two segments: secondary cities poorly served by rail (Freiburg from Lyon, Nuremberg from Strasbourg) and overnight departures, where you pay €20 for a journey that would cost €90 on a daytime ICE. To weigh up the options, our feature on long-distance buses in Europe compares baggage allowances and cancellation policies.
One practical detail that often goes unnoticed: overnight coaches cross the border without stopping, but random Bundespolizei checks still happen on the German side, notably on the A5 and A6. Keep ID within reach, not at the bottom of the luggage hold.
8. Regional passes: the secret weapon
This is the point foreign travellers overlook most often.
The Deutschlandticket (€63 a month in 2026) covers all German regional trains, S-Bahn services, trams and city buses — including tram D as far as Kehl on the German side, the Saarbahn, and Palatinate regional trains. For a multi-day stay in south-west Germany starting from Alsace, it is formidably effective. Our break-even calculations are here: Deutschlandticket 2026.
On the French side, Grand Est regional passes (day tickets, Primo season tickets) cover TER services up to the border station. The "French pass to the border + Deutschlandticket beyond" sequence is the cheapest combination for exploring the Saarland, the Palatinate and the Baden region.
To keep track of both systems, a travel notebook with document pockets helps you avoid losing the paper proofs some regional inspectors still require.
9. Formalities, checks and what's new in 2026
Schengen remains Schengen: no systematic checks at internal borders. But since 2023, Germany has maintained reintroduced, temporary checks at several of its land borders, renewed period by period. In practice, this means occasional inspections on Forbach–Saarbrücken regional trains and in coaches on the motorway.
What to plan for:
- A valid ID card or passport, even for a tram ride.
- For non-EU nationals: the new entry rules apply, set out in our article on EES checks.
- A power bank for your smartphone, because a digital ID or an e-ticket on a dead battery amounts to travelling without a ticket.
Frequently asked questions
Can you really get to Germany by tram from Strasbourg?
Yes. Strasbourg's tram line D serves Kehl Bahnhof in Germany, around 20 minutes from Homme de Fer, with a CTS Europa ticket costing about €2. It's the cheapest cross-border crossing in the area.
Do you need an international ticket to travel from Metz to Saarbrücken?
No, and it's often more expensive. TER Grand Est sells a direct ticket for around €10–17. If you're continuing beyond Saarbrücken, buy a German regional ticket (or use the Deutschlandticket) from Saarbrücken rather than an end-to-end international ticket.
Does my BahnCard reduce the price of a Paris–Frankfurt ticket?
Only partly. The BahnCard applies to the German portion of the journey on certain fares, but not to the French segment. On Sparpreis Europa promotional fares, the discount is generally limited and cannot be combined.
Which is Basel's German station?
Basel Badischer Bahnhof (Basel Bad Bf), north of the city, located on German territory. ICE services to Freiburg, Karlsruhe and Frankfurt depart from there. Basel SBB station, for its part, houses the French section (Bâle SNCF).
Is there a night train between France and Germany?
Not directly from France to Germany in the classic sense: the Nightjet services Paris–Berlin and Paris–Vienna pass through Germany, and European Sleeper runs Paris–Berlin and Paris–Hamburg. For short Franco-German trips, a night train makes no sense — a morning ICE covers Strasbourg–Frankfurt in 2 hr 45.
Is the Deutschlandticket valid in France?
No, except on the very last stretches of German services that extend beyond the border (such as the Saarbahn to Sarreguemines or the Kehl tram). It does not cover any French TER service.
In summary
- Tram D Strasbourg–Kehl: around €2, 20 minutes, the simplest border crossing in Europe.
- Metz/Forbach–Saarbrücken: TER at €10–17, the gateway to central Germany without going via Paris.
- Wissembourg and Lauterbourg: access to the Palatinate and Karlsruhe, VRN fares on the German side.
- Basel: three stations, three countries, cross-border trams — but don't confuse Basel SBB with Basel Bad Bf.
- Long-distance services: Paris–Frankfurt 3 hr 50, Paris–Stuttgart 3 hr 10, Paris–Munich 5 hr 40, from €35 to €160; always compare SNCF Connect and Deutsche Bahn — same trains, two prices.
- FlixBus: the only coach player, unbeatable for secondary cities and overnight departures.
- The real trick: split your ticket at the border and use a regional pass (Deutschlandticket on the German side) rather than an international fare.
To compare real timetables and prices for your departure date, compare on Gopaxo or see our frequently asked questions about cross-border tickets.
