Trains to Leipzig Hbf

Leipzig train station

The largest terminal railway station in Europe (and, when measured by floor area, the largest in the world), Leipzig train station comprises 19 platforms with 21 tracks in six iron buildings, with two more underground. Opened in 1915, this station was one of the major stations of the century, and today it’s an impressive mix of old and uber-modern architecture. The high-speed ICE and IC services connect the city on a national level. Berlin is 1 hour 14 minutes away, Frankfurt to Leipzig is 3 hours 30 minutes, and travelling from Munich takes a minimum of 4 hours 53 minutes. International routes include Prague to Leipzig, with a journey time of just over 3 hours. Nearby cities are also served, including Erfurt, Jena and Weimar, which are all around 1 hour away via regional trains. The S-Bahn (urban train) is a convenient means of public transport, with the S1, S2, S3, S4 and S5 all going to the city centre from the station. The S5 and S5x also connect the station to Leipzig/Halle Airport in just 13 minutes.

Main attractions near Leipzig train station

Leipzig reveals a rich cultural legacy, historic prowess, and a progressive present-day vibe that’s got it tagged as ‘the new Berlin’. Leaving Leipzig train station on foot, visitors can be exploring the city’s Old Town, with its maze of museums, monuments and beautiful churches, in around 10 minutes. Even closer, right opposite the station, is the oldest urban park in Germany. The opera house next to the park’s pretty lake is a testimony to the high-calibre music scene here, both past and present. Leipzig Opera is the third-oldest in Europe, and the 1960s replacement establishment dominates Augustusplatz, the city’s largest square, around a 7-minute stroll from the station.

Continuing south, the striking contemporary Paulinum stands where the original edifice of Leipzig University (one of the world’s oldest universities) once did. A 10-minute walk away, the university’s Bibliotheca Albertina building stands proudly. The Renaissance town hall is now home to Stadtgeschichtliche Museum, which explains the city’s eventful past. Nearby, the Museum der Bildenden Künste houses an enormous collection of fine art inside its modernist and cubist glass building. At the other end of the scale, the 16th-century Nikolaikirche can name Johann Sebastian Bach as a former organist and choir leader! Its Renaissance and Gothic exterior gives way to Neoclassical features within.

Leipzig offers a plethora of places to eat and drink. The Old Town is packed full of traditional restaurants, pavement cafes and genre-defying eateries. After dark, visitors should seek out a real German pub, late-night coffee house or a club, all of which are only a 20-minute walk from the station.