Deutsche Bahn has launched a new ICE 3neo service linking Köln Hauptbahnhof and Antwerpen-Centraal via Brussels Airport-Zaventem, restoring a direct high-speed rail connection to the airport for the first time since 2015. The route runs twice daily in each direction and the first train reached Brussels Airport on 7 September, with the morning arrival timed for 08:29.
The service also stops in Aachen, Liège and Leuven, extending the connection across the Germany-Belgium corridor and putting Brussels Airport back on the international rail map. The airport station sits directly beneath the terminal, allowing travellers to transfer between rail and air without leaving the airport complex.
Commercially, the link is positioned for intermodal travel from western Germany, with train and flight bookings available on a single ticket. That arrangement includes missed-connection protection and Miles & More accrual for eligible passengers travelling onward with Brussels Airlines, which forms part of the wider sales context around the new service.