First-time traveler guide
Berlin, Germany
The facts people look for first, pulled from this guide.
From BER Airport
It shows live platforms and delays and sells long-distance and local tickets.
Yes. Deutsche Bahn lists luggage lockers at the station (Koppenstraße 3): 228 lockers of 24 × 42 × 76 cm for €3.00; 36 lockers of 44 × 61 × 93 cm for €5.00. All are paid with coins only and can be used for up to 24 hours.
From there, stairs, escalators and lifts lead up to the platforms.
From BER Airport
From the City Centre
By Taxi
Ostbahnhof is a through station raised above street level on the Stadtbahn, the east–west railway viaduct that crosses central Berlin.
The station hall is at street level, with shops, food outlets and ticket machines. From there, stairs, escalators and lifts lead up to the platforms. S-Bahn trains and long-distance trains use different platforms, so check the departure boards in the hall for your platform number before you go up.
Because many long-distance trains start here, they are often already waiting at the platform well before departure.
Before You Arrive
At the Station
Common Mistakes
Yes. Deutsche Bahn lists luggage lockers at the station (Koppenstraße 3): 228 lockers of 24 × 42 × 76 cm for €3.00; 36 lockers of 44 × 61 × 93 cm for €5.00. All are paid with coins only and can be used for up to 24 hours. Prices are as listed by Deutsche Bahn in October 2026.
Not until 12 December 2026. While the Stadtbahn is being rebuilt, long-distance trains stop at Südkreuz, Gesundbrunnen, Ostkreuz, Lichtenberg or Charlottenburg instead. Regional trains RE1 (towards Frankfurt (Oder)) and RE7 (towards Königs Wusterhausen) start at Ostbahnhof, and the S-Bahn runs as usual.
The S9 runs directly to the airport every 20 minutes. You need an ABC ticket, because the airport is in fare zone C.
DB Information at Ostbahnhof is open 24 hours a day, every day, including public holidays.
About five minutes on foot. Walk south from the station towards the River Spree; the East Side Gallery runs along Mühlenstraße by the river.
Yes. The station has a Bahnhofsmission, which offers free help without an appointment, and toilets. Deutsche Bahn's Mobility Service helps with boarding, changing and alighting between 06:00 and 22:30 every day. Book it in advance through the Mobilitätsservice-Zentrale to make sure help is available, and check the lift status on bahnhof.de before you travel.
Through station in Friedrichshain, on the eastern side of Berlin's city centre. It opened in 1842 and has changed its name several times; in the GDR era it was East Berlin's main station, and it has been called Ostbahnhof since 1998.
Many long-distance trains that cross Berlin from west to east start or end their journey here, so Ostbahnhof is often a quieter place than Hauptbahnhof to board an ICE or IC. The S-Bahn lines of the Stadtbahn also stop here.
The station is a short walk from the River Spree and the East Side Gallery, the longest surviving stretch of the Berlin Wall, and from the Uber Arena concert and sports venue.
Construction until 12 December 2026: the Stadtbahn between Charlottenburg and Ostbahnhof is closed to long-distance and regional trains. Long-distance trains do not call at Ostbahnhof during this time; the RE1 towards Frankfurt (Oder) and the RE7 towards Königs Wusterhausen start here, and the S-Bahn runs as usual.
