Train Travel in Denmark

Mastering train travel in Denmark is not that difficult once you understand how the system works. In order to do that, you need to understand how to read the maps, zones and timetables.

A few explanations and examples should help you become proficient in no time! A little bit of information first.

The infastructure in Denmark is top-notch and the government is constantly trying to encourage more and more people to leave their cars at home and use "offentlig" (public) transport or their bicycles. Which is working well.

For a visitor to Denmark, train travel may be a new experience, especially if coming from the US or Britain, where the car is still KING. You will soon find out that the experience is quite painless, fun and very relaxing.

There are two major types of train travel - the local trains and the regional trains. I am not going to cover European train travel ,but going to concentrate on train travel inside Denmark.

The train system is much more concentrated in Sjaelland, than it is in other parts of Denmark. For that reason I will discuss the DSB S-Tog system first, which is the one most visitors to Denmark will be exposed to and use.

This may seem a bit complicated, but it really is very simple when you understand the basics. Take it one step at a time and it will all come together.

Let's start with the basics.

Traveling on the S-Tog

Stations are marked with large red sign with a white S. (See above)

Boarding a train is simple. Trains stop at all train stops on their routes. That does not mean that every train going through your station will stop. If the train is scheduled to stop, it will – you don’t need to flag it down or push a button on the train for it to stop.

Always stand behind the yellow line by the edge of the platform. This is for your safety; don’t fool around with this, you will lose out. It hurts getting hit by a train.

When the train comes into the station, you will hear a beeping sound when the doors have been unlocked. You can now open the door to board. On the new trains you will see a round circle with blinking green lights. Push that button and the doors open automatically. When the train is ready to leave, the doors also close automatically. On the older trains, the doors have lever handles. They are opened by pushing the vertical door handles sideways.

If you're not sure how to open the doors, just watch other people boarding. You will soon learn how simple it is.

On the new trains there are glass doors connecting each compartment. These doors are activated by pushing the blue dots on the door frame or waving your hand right in front of the door. There is an electric eye above the door that opens it.

There is no reserved seating, but be aware of which way you are sitting - some seats will face forward and some face backwards. Some people do not like riding backwards. If you do not like riding backwards – hey, you can always change seats.

A few things to remember

2. There is no smoking on trains or in the stations.

3. Never ride without a ticket; inspectors travel on trains and if you are caught without a ticket you are fined 750 DKR.

4. Even though Denmark is very safe and muggings are rare, always be aware when traveling late at night. There are often lots of drunks and wild people going home after a night of partying. It's best to just move into another carriage if you see a wild group get on.

5. S-Togs do have conductors, so if there is an emergency you can pull the emergency stop. Only pull the emergency stop if it is a real emergency or you will be fined.

6. Check the time stamp on your tickets for the expiration. You need to be finished with your journey before the time expires. If you board the train/bus/metro before the time expires but do not complete your journey before the expiration, you can be fined.

Train Routes?

The download includes a zone map and also the timetables for the various trains. You can print off all 5 pages or only page 1 which is the zone map. I will discuss the time tables in the following steps. Notice that there are 7 lines (A, B, Bx, C, E, F and H). Each line is labeled in a different color. The names along the lines are the stations on that route.

I will use line E for teaching purposes and once you understand line E you'll understand the other lines. Line E is designated in purple.

Line E starts in Køge and ends in Hillerød or starts in Hillerød and ends in Køge. The trains travel in both directions. You can get on that line at any stop along the route.

Find the E line on the map and start from Køge. Follow the purple line all the way to Hillerød and then back again. This is the route that the E line follows each day. So if you travel this line you will soon know all the stops.

Go back to Køge and follow along the line again. This time notice that on the purple line there are some small black lines next to certain stops or stations. Those black lines mean the train stops at those stations. If there is no line next to the station, the train will just pass through without stopping.

So Line E stops at Olby, Jersie, Solrød Strand, Karlslunde, Greve, Hundige and Ishøj. Now you can see that the train does not stop between Ishøj and Ny Ellebjerg. You can follow the lines and see all the stations it stops at until you get to the last stop, which is Hillerød.

Now do the same thing with the other lines and see where they go and where they stop. You can start anywhere on any line and go either right or left along the path. Just stay on the same colored line for the time being.

Now you know where each line goes. You don't have to remember the stations; the trains all have wall maps in the cars and each station also has train routes posted. But you now understand that each line has its own unique set of stops.

Take a breath now - you are getting closer to mastering train travel in Denmark - review the above section before continueing, if you are confused.

Now this is the fun part. Go back to the purple line E. Go all the way to Sjaelør Station. Notice that there is a black mark on the purple Line E and the blue line A. That means that trains on Line E and Line A both stop at that station. Go to the next stop, which is Dybbølsbro. There you can see that Line A, E, B, Bx, C and H all make a stop at that station. The next stop is København (main train station) where all the lines, except Line F, make a stop.

Play around with this for a while and you will see the importance of this in the next step. For example, how many lines (trains) stop in Lyngby? Skovlunde? Nordhavn? Answers are 2, 1 and 5.

There are 5 stations with unique marks and they are Ny Ellebjerg, Danshøj, Flintholm, Ryparken and Hellerup. These stations are marked with a black "L" mark. The reason is the F line is a crosstown train and it is intersecting with the other 5 lines. Here the marks mean the same thing as the normal black marks. The "L" mark is actually just two normal lines that are perpendicular to each other, forming the "L" shape. (It is actually just two normal black lines intersecting to create the L shape). Here you can switch to the F line which is ring road route. It is very convenient to avoid having to travel through the city center.

The importance of the black lines is that this is where you can switch train lines. If you are going from Køge to Charlottelund, you would start out on the E line but would need to change to the C line in order to get to your destination. The E line does not go to Charlottelund. So where do you change? The choice is yours, since you can change anywhere the two lines meet. Your first opportunity would be in Dybbølsbro or any of the next 7 stations. Most people would choose to switch in København, but the choice would be yours.

I would prefer Vesterport whenever switching because there is only one platform there. At some of the other stations there may be two or three platforms and you may have to change platforms.

What if you are going from Glostrup to Ballerup? Here, you want to take either the B or Bx train to Valby. At Valby you take the C or H train to Ballerup. Play around with this for awhile and you will soon get the hang of it. Just remember you can only switch to another train line if they both stop at the same station.

Let's say that, from Valby, you want to get to Ballerup and you are going to take the C line. The question is, which C line do you take? C to Frederikssund or C to Klampenborg? If you head to Frederikssund, you will reach Ballerup. If you take the other one, you will be heading in the wrong direction.

IMPORTANT TIP: Here is what confuses many first-time train travelers: One platform and two train tracks! The same line (A, B, etc) travels on both tracks (different directions). So how do you know which train to take? Let's use the above example. If you are catching the B train from Glostrup heading towards Valby, the train will say B Holte. Holte is its final destination. The train always shows its last stop. Look at the green B line going towards Valby and follow it until you see that the last stop, which is Holte.

Tip: On the S-Tog (city trains) the line letter is displayed on the front of the train. (See the picture on the top of the page and notice the A in the sign at front of the train.) On the side of the train, there are also signs showing the line letter.

At each station there are several signs on the platform that display the next train arriving on that platform. It will give the line letter and its final destination. There are always lots of signs telling you which train is arriving on your platform. Either look at signs hanging along the platform above your head or, as the train comes in, look at the front for the line letter and usually the final destination. Not all trains display the final destination. If not sure ask someone else boarding the train. 99% of the time there will be a sign on the train or platform.

Remember There are signs on both sides of the platform, so make sure you are reading the correct sign.

The signs on the platform also state which train is coming on which track a few minutes before it arrives, so you have time to figure out which train you want.

I know this all sounds a bit complicated, but if you take it a step at a time, you will quickly come to understand the system.

The next step to mastering the train travel is to learn how to read the Train Schedules and Mastering the Zones