Dutch train operator GoVolta has announced a major expansion of its cross-border services, with a new daily Amsterdam to Paris route set to launch on 14 December 2026. The company is also increasing its Berlin services to six times a week from July, while suspending its Hamburg link due to low passenger numbers.
The changes reflect GoVolta’s strategy to focus on high-demand routes as it navigates operational challenges and infrastructure constraints.
Paris-bound: a new daily connection
GoVolta will open ticket sales for its Amsterdam Central to Paris-North service in mid-May. The route, which will call at Haarlem, The Hague Holland Rail (Den Haag Hollands Spoor), Rotterdam Central, Lage Zwaluwe, Roosendaal, Antwerp-Central, and Ghent St Peter’s, marks the company’s first foray into the French market.
Operations will begin on Monday, 14 December, with a fleet of 10 additional I10 carriages – eight in second class and two in first class – sourced from Belgian operator NMBS / SNCB. This will add roughly 800 seats to the company’s capacity.
Faustine Gauthier, GoVolta’s operations and communications manager, expressed satisfaction with the feasibility study conducted by the three infrastructure managers – SNCF Réseau in France, Infrabel in Belgium, and ProRail in the Netherlands – highlighting their effective coordination.
However, the new service will not include stops in the Lille (Rijsel) basin, despite initial plans. “We would have liked to serve the Lille area”, Gauthier told Thibault Lapers of Mobilithib. ” Unfortunately, in terms of network capacity, Infrabel and SNCF Réseau were unable to offer a daily route that included stops in Kortrijk (Courtrai), Lille, or Tourcoing (Toerkonje), as originally intended.”
The company has submitted a formal request to SNCF Réseau to add stops at Arras and Longueau, near Amiens. The final timetable, including these potential additions, will be published in September, subject to approval by the infrastructure managers.
At Antwerp-Central, GoVolta’s blue and yellow trains will arrive on the upper level of the cathedral station, where the company will change locomotives.
Berlin expansion: six times a week from July
GoVolta is significantly boosting its Amsterdam to Berlin service, increasing frequency to six times a week from 1 July, with only Tuesdays excluded. The decision follows strong demand for the route, which launched in mid-March with three return trips per week.
According to co-founder Hessel Winkelman, trains to Berlin have consistently been full, carrying around 600 passengers per trip, while the Hamburg route has seen occupancy hover around 60%.
“As entrepreneurs who must stand on our own two feet, that level of occupancy is insufficient”, Winkelman told Treinreiziger.nl. The popularity of Berlin as a destination came as no surprise to GoVolta. “We already expected this route to perform well”, Winkelman said.
The company is capitalising on reduced capacity from NS International and Deutsche Bahn, which have replaced intercity trains with ICE services offering fewer seats.
Due to construction work on the current Berlin route, Nederlandse Spoorwegen and DB will reduce services to the German capital next year, with the ICE to Berlin rerouted via Hamburg. GoVolta, however, has secured a faster route via Magdeburg and Brunswick (Braunschweig) for 2027, potentially making its service quicker than the ICE.
“That’s why we want to fully commit to this destination”, Winkelman added.
From 14 June, the Berlin terminus will move from Gesundbrunnen in the north to Spandau in the west, reflecting the increased frequency and operational adjustments.
Hamburg suspension: buses to replace trains until summer
GoVolta will reduce its Amsterdam to Hamburg-Harburg service to two trips per week from mid-May, before suspending it entirely in June due to low passenger numbers. The last trains will run at the end of May, with buses replacing them until the end of June to honour existing bookings. The route, which also served Amersfoort Central, Hengelo, Bad Bentheim, Osnabrück Hbf, and Bremen Hbf, was initially intended to run once daily from July, pending investor support that has yet to materialise.
The suspension of the Hamburg service is partly due to the withdrawal of Keolis as a partner. Keolis was set to operate GoVolta’s trains and provide staff but pulled out two weeks before the launch when it emerged that the company lacked the necessary certificates to run trains in Germany.
GoVolta subsequently engaged Train Charter Services (TCS) to operate the trains. According to Winkelman, the Hamburg route was a ‘strong wish’ of Keolis. “We thought it was a good idea in principle, but one that required a long lead time. Now that Keolis is gone, it cannot cover the shortfall on this route.”
More on night trains and transcontinental train travel
- European Sleeper sets out vision for 40-route night train network across Europe, including London.
- Dutch passenger advocate Rover calls for EuroCity to go from Antwerp to Eindhoven instead of Rotterdam.
- RAIL BALTICA | Elron, Vivi, and LTG Link launch joint tender for regional trains.
- Trenitalia / FS Group advances Paris hub to power European high-speed expansion, looking at Belgium and the Netherlands in the long term.
- Train Charter Services replaces Keolis as operator for GoVolta trains.
- European Sleeper adds Aulnoye-Aymeries, Mons, and Liège-Guillemins to Paris-Brussels-Berlin night train service.
- DEUTSCHE BAHN | First ICE service to the Belgian North Sea coast, at Ostend, this summer.
- Deutsche Bahn ICE 1110 and 1111 to connect Cologne and Ostend on weekends from 6 June to end of summer 2026.
- European Sleeper postpones Brussels–Cologne–Zurich–Milan night train to 9 September 2026.
- Brussels Airlines and Deutsche Bahn team up for Antwerp – Brussels Airport – Liège – Cologne ICE codeshare.
- Deutsche Bahn confirms Cologne – Brussels Airport – Antwerp ICE connection from September 2026.
- Trenitalia unveils €2 billion investment plan and orders 74 new Frecciarossa high-speed trains.
- Belgium and the Netherlands work on Brussels to Eindhoven direct train, possibly via Antwerp.
- Belgian Mobility Minister wants to revive direct train service to Switzerland.
- NETHERLANDS | Arriva will not launch the Groningen to Paris service in 2026.
- Snälltåget to run Stockholm – Malmö – Copenhagen – Hamburg day trains from May 2026.
- Nox night trains: a smart new cabin concept or just an unachievable dream?.
- How firm are Eurostar and Deutsche Bahn’s “2030s” Germany to London train link plans?.
- Leo Express files plans for extraordinary 2026 Bratislava–Ostend and Venice–Northern Germany services.
- Rail should be functional, not fine art: EU leaders call for standardisation and lower costs.
- Subsidies for night trains? “You cannot fix this until someone builds more sleeper and couchette carriages”.
- Leo Express and Arenaways plan direct train between Prague and Venice.
- Italo targets the German high-speed rail market.
- Trenitalia eyes expansion into Germany’s high-speed trains market.
- European Commission wants to link all EU capitals by high-speed train by 2040… and that’s not going to happen.
- Travellers in Europe increasingly open to choosing trains over planes for short-haul journeys.
- REVIEW | European Sleeper night train.
- Paris Nightjet axed: France’s withdrawal threatens Europe’s night train revival.
- 2026 | Deutsche Bahn plans 4 ICE’s per day between Cologne and Antwerp and 16 per day between Frankfurt and Brussels.
- Iron Rhine gets renewed political attention in Belgium, the Netherlands and Germany.
- ÖBB prioritises Railjet over Nightjet: Is the night train revival a False Dawn?.
- EUROPEAN SLEEPER | Brussels to Barcelona night train to stop in Avignon, Montpellier, Narbonne, and Girona.
- Trenitalia, Deutsche Bahn and ÖBB launch Frecciarossa EuroCity trains linking Berlin, Munich, Milan, Rome and Naples.
- European Commission commits to single-ticket train travel, Back-on-Track unconvinced it will happen.
- EU train travel report sees increase in cross-border passenger trains and easier bookings.
- Brussels to Luxembourg by train under 2 hours by 2030?.
- Eurostar and five more train operators joined the European Agreement on Journey Continuation.
- ÖBB’s new Nightjet sleeper cars accommodate solo travellers with Mini Cabins.
- EUROCITY EC-8 | Basel to Cologne in SBB’s Panoramic Car.
- REVIEW | Trenitalia Frecciarossa 1000 Paris – Milan in Business Executive.
- RAIL TOUR OF EUROPE | How easy is touring Europe by train?.
- Eight train connections between the Netherlands and Belgium by 2030?.
- REVIEW | ÖBB Nightjet Amsterdam – Zurich night train.
- Nightjet Vienna/Innsbruck to Brussels, or how we got thrown off the train in Aachen.
- Why the expensive ÖBB Nightjet is really not that expensive.
- Ticket Distribution: the failure of railways to sell themselves.
- To use night trains in Portugal and Spain or not?.
- Night trains in Europe.
- Low-cost, long-haul trains to conquer Europe?.
- Fly now before it’s taxed and consider using the train instead.
Channel Tunnel updates
- A London-bound Eurostar terminal at Antwerp-Central? Highly unlikely!.
- Trenitalia (FS Group) and Certares agree strategic partnership to expand international high-speed rail operations.
- #CROSSCHANNELRAIL | Expanding UK-Europe train links most realistically leading to Switzerland.
- CHANNEL TUNNEL | Virgin Trains gains access to Temple Mills, ORR snubs links to Germany and Switzerland.
- Eurostar unveils €2 billion Alstom ‘Celestia’ fleet of double-decker sustainable trains.
- Gemini Trains partners with Uber for Stratford to France Channel Tunnel route.
- Eurostar and St. Pancras Highspeed back major station expansion to double capacity amid growing international demand.
- EUROSTAR | London – Frankfurt, London – Geneva and Amsterdam – Antwerp – Brussels – Geneva from 2030?.
- Alstom wants its double-decker trains to ride through Channel Tunnel.
- London St. Pancras Highspeed pledges financial support for cross-Channel rail services.
- London St Pancras Highspeed and Getlink aspire to to triple train services to France, Belgium and the Netherlands and add services to Germany and Switzerland.
- Heuro wants to operate high speeds trains between Amsterdam, Antwerp, Brussels, Paris and London from 2028.
