130.000 people sign petition for DB to bring back family reservations

Hundreds of thousands of people have signed a petition for Deutsche Bahn to bring back its family reservation scheme, which was scrapped in June 2025.

Deutsche Bahn scraps family reservation option

In June 2025, Deutsche Bahn announced that it would scrap the 10,40 euro flat fee for family reservations.

Deutsche Bahn ticket prices do not include seat reservations, which must be booked separately. A standard adult seat reservation costs 5,50 per passenger, and children under the age of 14 travel for free.

Now, parents travelling with under 14s are having to fork out 5,50 euros for each child they bring, meaning a seat reservation for a family of four has increased from 10,40 euros to 22 euros one way.

Many families who regularly travel with Deutsche Bahn immediately opposed the policy change, and the uproar was so great that many groups thought the national rail service would U-turn. But no U-turn came, and Deutsche Bahn said the decision was justified by a need to increase profits after a 1,8 billion euros loss in 2024.

Petition launched to bring back DB family reservations

In response, the Verkehrsclub Deutschland (VCD) transport association launched the “Die Familienreservierung der Bahn muss bleiben!” (“The family reservation must stay”) petition, which has now been signed by over 130.000 people.

"When families travel by train instead of by car, they make an important contribution to climate protection. But travelling with children is often stressful enough. Affordable seating is a simple but crucial service, and a sign of appreciation,” the petition reads. 

VCD chairperson Matthias Kurzeck called on Deutsche Bahn to reintroduce the family booking fee by the time the company’s new timetable is launched in mid-December. Kurzeck also pointed out that Federal Transport Minister Patrick Schnieder (CDU), currently in charge of reforms at Deutsche Bahn, recently pledged an “agenda for satisfied rail customers”. 

The petition has now been delivered to Deutsche Bahn bosses.