Let's be real: taking a frankfurt to berlin flight is basically the German equivalent of a commute between two totally different worlds. You leave the high-rise, banker-heavy skyscrapers of Frankfurt am Main—where people actually wear suits and drink Apfelwein with serious faces—and barely an hour later, you're touching down in the chaotic, sprawling, "poor but sexy" capital.
It's one of the busiest domestic routes in Europe. You've got business consultants trying to finish slide decks on their laps and tourists who realized too late that the train takes four hours. It’s fast. It’s convenient. But honestly, it’s also a bit of a logistical puzzle if you don't know the quirks of Frankfurt Airport (FRA) or the reality of landing at Berlin Brandenburg (BER).
Is flying actually faster than the ICE train?
People argue about this constantly. If you look at the flight time, it’s a joke. You’re in the air for maybe 50 to 70 minutes. By the time the pilot says you can use your laptop, you’re already descending over the flat plains of Brandenburg.
But you have to account for the "Airport Tax" on your time.
Frankfurt Airport is a monster. It’s the fourth busiest in Europe. If you’re flying Lufthansa, you’re likely in Terminal 1, which is massive. Walking from the regional train station to your gate can take twenty minutes if you're a fast walker; thirty if you’re trailing a suitcase. Then there’s security. Then there’s the boarding process.
Add it up. An hour to get to FRA and through security, an hour in the air, and thirty minutes to get out of BER and onto the FEX (Flughafen-Express) train to the city center. You're looking at roughly three to four hours door-to-door.
Compare that to the Deutsche Bahn Intercity-Express (ICE). The fast trains from Frankfurt Hauptbahnhof to Berlin Hauptbahnhof take about 3 hours and 50 minutes. It’s almost a wash. So why do people still choose the frankfurt to berlin flight?
Mostly, it’s the connectors. If you’re flying in from New York or Singapore and heading to Berlin, you aren't going to drag your bags to the train station. You just walk to the next gate. Also, for business travelers, the sheer frequency of flights—sometimes every hour—gives a level of flexibility that the train can’t always match, especially when the German rail system is having one of its "unforeseen technical delay" days.
📖 Related: Seeing Universal Studios Orlando from Above: What the Maps Don't Tell You
Dealing with the Frankfurt Airport maze
If you're booked on this route, you’re almost certainly flying Lufthansa. They own this corridor. You might find a codeshare with United or ANA, but the metal is German.
Terminal 1 is your home base.
Pro tip: If you have a choice, use the security checkpoints at the far ends of the terminal rather than the central ones. They are often less crowded. Also, Frankfurt has been rolling out these fancy CT scanners where you don't have to take your liquids or laptop out. It feels like living in the future, but it’s only at specific lanes. Look for the signs. If you end up in the old-school line, be ready to strip your bag down to its atoms.
The walk to the "A" gates is long. Really long. There’s a tunnel with a moving walkway that feels like it’s straight out of a 70s sci-fi movie. Use it. Don't try to be a hero and walk the upper level if you're in a rush.
The Berlin Brandenburg (BER) reality check
When you finally land in Berlin, you’re at the airport everyone loves to hate. BER took a decade longer to build than planned, and it shows in some of its weirdly narrow corridors and strange boarding gate layouts.
Domestic flights usually land at Terminal 1.
The baggage claim is on the lower level. If you only have carry-on, you can be out the door in five minutes. The train station is directly under the terminal. This is where Berlin actually beats Frankfurt for convenience. You take the escalator down, and the FEX train or the S9/S45 are right there.
👉 See also: How Long Ago Did the Titanic Sink? The Real Timeline of History's Most Famous Shipwreck
Wait.
Check the platform. The FEX is much faster than the S-Bahn. It stops at Ostkreuz, Gesundbrunnen, and the Main Station. If you hop on the S-Bahn by mistake, you’re going to be stopping at every single neighborhood in Southeast Berlin. It’s a scenic tour you probably don't want after a day of travel.
What it costs (and when it doesn't make sense)
Pricing for a frankfurt to berlin flight is a rollercoaster. If you book three weeks out, you can snag a round trip for €120. If you book last minute because you missed your train, you might be looking at €400.
Lufthansa offers "Economy Light" which doesn't include a checked bag. For a one-hour flight, that’s fine. But watch the size of your carry-on. They have become much stricter lately about weighing bags at the gate, especially when the flight is full.
Is it worth it?
If you are a solo traveler with a laptop bag, yes. If you are a family of four with six suitcases, the train is better. Seriously. The cost of checking bags for four people on a domestic flight is astronomical compared to just shoving them in the luggage rack on an ICE train.
A note on the "Environment" factor
Germany is very conscious of short-haul flight emissions. There’s been a lot of political pressure to move passengers from planes to rails. Because of this, you won't find many budget airlines like Ryanair or EasyJet flying this specific internal route anymore. They can't compete with the infrastructure. Lufthansa keeps it alive because it feeds their international hub.
✨ Don't miss: Why the Newport Back Bay Science Center is the Best Kept Secret in Orange County
If you’re worried about your carbon footprint, the train is the clear winner. But sometimes, you just need to get to that 2 PM meeting at Alexanderplatz and you don't have time to gamble on rail strikes or track maintenance.
Timing your arrival like a pro
The first flight leaves Frankfurt around 6:30 AM. It is packed with people who look like they haven't slept and are clutching coffee like a lifeline. These are the "power commuters."
If you want a quieter experience, the 10:00 AM or 11:00 AM flights are usually emptier. You might even get an entire row to yourself.
In the winter, be careful. Frankfurt gets fog. Berlin gets snow. Neither airport handles "extreme" weather (which in Germany is just an inch of snow) particularly well. If the weather looks dicey, the train is actually more reliable because it doesn't get grounded by visibility issues.
The snack situation
Don't expect a meal. You’ll get a small bottle of water and maybe a tiny piece of chocolate. That’s it. Lufthansa stopped the free sandwiches on domestic routes years ago. If you’re hungry, buy a pretzel at the "Ditsch" stand in the Frankfurt train station before you head to the gate. It’ll be better than anything you find on the plane.
Summary of the travel flow
- Check-in: Do it on the app 24 hours before. Save the QR code to your wallet.
- The Airport: Reach FRA via the Regionalbahnhof (S-Bahn) or Fernbahnhof (Long distance).
- Security: Terminal 1, Gates A or B.
- The Flight: 1 hour. Get a window seat on the right side if you're flying into Berlin for a chance to see the city skyline (though usually, you approach from the south).
- The Exit: Follow signs for "Regionalbahn" at BER for the fastest trains into the city.
Strategic steps for your next trip
- Compare the "Door-to-Door" time: Use Google Maps to calculate the time from your specific hotel in Frankfurt to your destination in Berlin. If the total is over 4.5 hours, the ICE train is probably a more relaxing and cheaper choice.
- Book the "Rail & Fly" option: If you are flying into Frankfurt from abroad, many airlines allow you to add a train ticket to Berlin for almost nothing. This gives you the flexibility of the train with the protection of a flight connection.
- Check the BER terminal: Most frankfurt to berlin flight arrivals are at Terminal 1, but if for some reason you end up on a charter or a weird seasonal hop, you might land at Terminal 2. They are connected, but it adds ten minutes of walking.
- Download the VBB app: Once you land in Berlin, don't stand at the ticket machine like a confused tourist. The VBB "Bus & Bahn" app lets you buy your city transport ticket on your phone while you're walking to the train.
Taking the flight is about efficiency, not the view. It’s a tool. Use it when the schedule fits, but don't be afraid to skip the clouds for the rails if you want to see the German countryside roll by at 300 km/h.