There are 8 ways to get from Cologne to Hanover by train, bus, car, plane, or rideshare
Select an option below to see step-by-step directions and to compare ticket prices and travel times in Rome2Rio's travel planner.
Train
best- Take the train from Köln Hbf to Hannover Hauptbahnhoftrain 10 / ...
2h 43m€50–140Rideshare
cheapest- Take the rideshare from Cologne to Hanover290.7 km
3h 13m€11–21Bus
- Take the bus from Köln-Ehrenfeld Gleis to Südviertel, Essenbus Mykolayiv
- Take the bus from Essen Hbf to Hannover Hbfbus Dnipro
3h 36mDrive 290.2 km
- Drive from Cologne to Hanovercar 290.2 km
2h 36m€42–61Train to Düsseldorf International Airport, fly
- Take the train from Köln Hbf to D-Flughafen Bftrain
- Fly from Düsseldorf International Airport (DUS) to Hannover Airport (HAJ)plane DUS - HAJ
4h 48m€151–356Train via Minden
- Take the train from Koeln Messe/Deutz to Minden(Westf)train Re
- Take the train from Minden, Bahnhof to Hannover Bahnhof Nordstadttrain S1
4h 54mFly from Cologne Bonn Airport
- Fly from Cologne Bonn Airport (CGN) to Hannover Airport (HAJ)plane CGN - HAJ
5h 9m€153–327Train to Frankfurt, fly
- Take the train from Köln Messe/Deutz Bf to Frankfurttrain
- Fly from Frankfurt (FRA) to Hannover Airport (HAJ)plane FRA - HAJ
3h 24m€118–239
Cologne to Hanover by train
Questions & Answers
The cheapest way to get from Cologne to Hanover is to rideshare which costs €11 - €21 and takes 3h 13m.
The fastest way to get from Cologne to Hanover is to drive which takes 2h 36m and costs €40 - €65.
No, there is no direct bus from Cologne to Hanover. However, there are services departing from Köln-Ehrenfeld Gleis and arriving at Hannover Hbf via Essen Hbf. The journey, including transfers, takes approximately 3h 36m.
Yes, there is a direct train departing from Köln Hbf and arriving at Hannover Hauptbahnhof. Services depart every 30 minutes, and operate every day. The journey takes approximately 2h 43m.
The distance between Cologne and Hanover is 295 km. The road distance is 290.2 km.
The best way to get from Cologne to Hanover without a car is to train which takes 2h 43m and costs €50 - €140.
The train from Cologne Hbf to Hannover Hauptbahnhof takes 2h 43m including transfers and departs every 30 minutes.
Cologne to Hanover bus services, operated by OrionBus, depart from Köln-Ehrenfeld Gleis station.
Cologne to Hanover train services, operated by Deutsche Bahn Intercity (DB IC), depart from Köln Hbf station.
The best way to get from Cologne to Hanover is to train which takes 2h 43m and costs €50 - €140. Alternatively, you can bus, which costs and takes 3h 36m, you could also fly, which costs €150 - €330 and takes 5h 9m.
What companies run services between Cologne, Germany and Hanover, Germany?
Deutsche Bahn Intercity (DB IC) operates a train from Köln Hbf to Hannover Hauptbahnhof every 30 minutes. Tickets cost €50–140 and the journey takes 2h 43m. Alternatively, you can take a bus from Köln-Ehrenfeld Gleis to Hannover Hbf via Südviertel, Essen and Essen Hbf in around 3h 36m.
- Website
- lufthansa.com
Flights from Düsseldorf International Airport to Hannover Airport via Frankfurt
- Ave. Duration
- 3h 45m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €120–550
Flights from Cologne Bonn Airport to Hannover Airport via Munich
- Ave. Duration
- 3h 32m
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €70–550
Flights from Frankfurt to Hannover Airport
- Ave. Duration
- 50 min
- When
- Every day
- Estimated price
- €100–160
- Website
- austrian.com
Flights from Cologne Bonn Airport to Hannover Airport via Vienna
- Ave. Duration
- 4h 51m
- When
- Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday
- Estimated price
- €100–550
- Website
- lufthansa-city.com
Flights from Cologne Bonn Airport to Hannover Airport via Munich
- Ave. Duration
- 3h 42m
- When
- Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday
- Estimated price
- €70–410
- Website
- eurowings.com
Flights from Cologne Bonn Airport to Hannover Airport via Pula
- Ave. Duration
- 6h 35m
- When
- Saturday
- Estimated price
- €100–370
Flights from Cologne Bonn Airport to Hannover Airport via Milan Malpensa
- Ave. Duration
- 7h 10m
- When
- Friday
- Estimated price
- €100–360
- Website
- swiss.com
Flights from Cologne Bonn Airport to Hannover Airport via Zurich
- Ave. Duration
- 4h 35m
- When
- Monday to Friday
- Estimated price
- €130–490
- Phone
- +49 30 311 682904
- Website
- bahn.de
Train from Köln Hbf to Hannover Hauptbahnhof
- Ave. Duration
- 2h 43m
- Frequency
- Every 30 minutes
- Estimated price
- €50–140
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
Train from Köln Hbf to D-Flughafen Bf
- Ave. Duration
- 31 min
- Frequency
- Every 2 hours
- Estimated price
- €8–23
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
Train from Köln Messe/Deutz Bf to Frankfurt
- Ave. Duration
- 54 min
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Estimated price
- €30–80
- Website
- https://int.bahn.de/en
- Phone
- 0221 13 999 444
- Website
- nationalexpress.de
Train from Köln Hbf to D-Flughafen Bf
- Ave. Duration
- 55 min
- Frequency
- Every 30 minutes
- Schedules at
- nationalexpress.de
Train from Koeln Messe/Deutz to Minden(Westf)
- Ave. Duration
- 3h 31m
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Schedules at
- nationalexpress.de
- Phone
- +49 30 311682904
- Website
- bahn.com
Train from Minden, Bahnhof to Hannover Bahnhof Nordstadt
- Ave. Duration
- 52 min
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Website
- https://www.bahn.com/en
- Phone
- +31 30 751 5155
- Website
- ns.nl
Train from Köln Messe/Deutz Bf to Frankfurt
- Ave. Duration
- 55 min
- Frequency
- Twice a week
- Estimated price
- €18–45
- Website
- https://www.ns.nl/en
- Phone
- +38 (050) 010-01-04
- orionbilet@gmail.com
- Website
- orionbus.net
Bus from Köln-Ehrenfeld Gleis to Südviertel, Essen
- Ave. Duration
- 45 min
- Frequency
- Once daily
- Website
- https://orionbus.net/en
- Phone
- +380 98 815 4444
- support@ewe.ua
- Website
- ewe.ua
Bus from Essen Hbf to Hannover Hbf
- Ave. Duration
- 1h 51m
- Frequency
- Once daily
- Estimated price
- €16–27
- Website
- https://ewe.ua/
- Phone
- +3 318 576 2228
- Website
- blablacar.com
Rideshare from Cologne to Hanover
- Ave. Duration
- 3h 13m
- Frequency
- Hourly
- Estimated price
- €11–21
- Schedules at
- blablacar.com
Want to know more about travelling around Germany
Rome2Rio's Travel Guide series provide vital information for the global traveller. Filled with useful and timely travel information, the guides answer all the hard questions - such as 'How do I buy a ticket?', 'Should I book online before I travel? ', 'How much should I expect to pay?', 'Do the trains and buses have Wifi?' - to help you get the most out of your next trip.
Related travel guides
Heading to Europe? Read this before you buy a Eurail Pass
Read the travel guide
More Questions & Answers
Cologne to Hanover bus services, operated by OrionBus, arrive at Südviertel, Essen station.
Cologne to Hanover train services, operated by Deutsche Bahn Intercity (DB IC), arrive at Hannover Hauptbahnhof station.
Yes, the driving distance between Cologne to Hanover is 290 km. It takes approximately 2h 36m to drive from Cologne to Hanover.
Book your Cologne to Hanover train tickets online with Omio.
Book your Cologne to Hanover bus tickets online with Omio.
There are 1426+ hotels available in Hanover.
Check out Blablacar's carpooling service for rideshare options between Cologne and Hanover. A great option if you don't have a driver's licence or want to avoid public transport.

















