The Dutch rail service has announced a 6.52% price increase, which will come into effect from January 2026 onwards.
The NS’ planned price hike will affect both regular rail tickets and seasonal tickets, but these aren’t the only changes chugging down the track.
Let’s run through what’s being proposed.
Pricier tickets, higher penalties, and fewer discounts
If you prefer travelling in first class during the week, the NS will now be increasing the surcharge on your ticket. This means that while both first-class and second-class tickets are getting pricier, we’ll see a starker price difference between the two during the week.
READ MORE | Why is there a first and second class on trains in the Netherlands?
However, weekend first-class travel is actually getting relatively cheaper, as the NS attempts to fill those often-empty carriages.
And you’d better remember to check out once you’ve arrived at your destination, because the penalty for a missed check-out is jumping from €20 to €33.30 per train journey.
Meanwhile, the NS is simplifying its subscription options by… axeing two of them. Yep, you read that right: both the Weekend Voordeel and Altijd Voordeel discounts will stop being sold from February 1, 2026, though current holders can keep using them until July 1.
Not everyone’s happy about it
Rover, the Dutch consumer organisation for public transport passengers, is pushing back against the NS’ decision. The organisation argues that while the NS is allowed to raise prices by this much, it’s not required to do so.
“NS is deliberately choosing to increase prices, while passengers get nothing in return,” says Rover director Freek Bos. Rover had initially advised the NS to limit their price increases to actual inflation rates.
But the NS isn’t the only party taking the full brunt of Rover’s criticism. The organisation also blames the government’s “yo-yo policy” of allocating funding to cushion fare hikes, then scrapping funding altogether.
“We’re seeing NS pass the shortfall on to passengers instead of investing in more attractive and affordable rail transport,” Bos continues.
What do you think of the NS’ price hike? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Sh1tty service every year being raised far above inflation. What a shame.
As someone in the process of trying to move here from the ailing United States, it’s really quite bad: public transport in Los Angeles where I come from is generally awful in that the city is incredibly vast, service coverage isn’t great, and it take forever to get anywhere that’s even a bit out of the way of the central hubs, but at least it’s very affordable–and LA is certainly known for lack of affordability, so it’s nice.
I drove a Mercedes SUV while I was there (loved that car, really starting to miss it), but driving was similarly a nightmare much of the time, especially when trying to find parking at the beach and such, so I’d often take the light rail. It was cheap as hell!
So, coming to the Netherlands, the sticker shock is really something else.
The government absolutely should be subsidizing this through progressive taxation. The class war has gone global, and it’s a shame to see the Netherlands capitulating. I was pretty successful in the tech industry, but I hated dealing with the capitalist class day in, day out. It’s a big part of why I chose the Netherlands as my new home.
So, it makes me extra sad to see them encroaching here, too. They’re winning. We need to forcefully push back. Look only to the U.S. to see what happens if the Netherlands fails to do so!