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We did the Paris -> Barcelona night train back in 2013 - reading TFA this sounds like it was just before they stopped running them, though I recall back then th

by Jedd 6y ago

We did the Paris -> Barcelona night train back in 2013 - reading TFA this sounds like it was just before they stopped running them, though I recall back then that they'd only recently re-fitted out a lot of the carriages. It was a 2-berth cabin, with big comfy chairs and a teeny tiny shower/bathroom. Boarded at around 9pm, disembarked at 9.30am. On boarding they showed us to the cabin, then ushered us off to the dining carriage (while they converted the room to bunks). The package was £289.00 for the two of us, but in addition to a quite fancy meal, as others note, that covered transport and accommodation for two people. Part of the motivation of course was just to try something different. But would, had we stayed in Europe, done overnight trains semi-regularly. (The only other overnight train we've done was Mumbai to Bangalore - a profoundly different experience.) More anecdata - the sleep quality was excellent, and I usually sleep very lightly & poorly the first night somewhere new.

leipert 6y ago
Last year I did Berlin -> Paris and Hendaye (French-Spanish border)-> Lisbon. The Berlin -> Paris connection was amazing and actually part of the Moscow-Paris connection that runs once per week. The food on board was nice (Polish catering wagon). The Train to Lisbon though was really old and the food well eh. But arriving at sunrise in Lisbon was well worth it. I am happy that the sleeper trains come back to existence, more eco friendly, more relaxed traveling, more cargo and less restrictions than with air travel (e.g. > 100ml liquids)
- gpvos 6y ago
  The food on Polish trains is excellent and very affordable. I've heard good things about Slovak restaurant cars as well. (Swiss are also fine I hear, but expect Swiss prices.)
tauchunfall 6y ago
I'm lucky to live in a city (Hanover, Germany) on the intersection of many night train routes. Back when Deutsche Bahn operated their night trains one could travel to Amsterdam, Brussels, Warsaw, and Prague. Now with ÖBB operating them one can ride to Hamburg, Vienna, Innsbruck, and Zurich. Some years ago I did Hanover -> Warsaw and Hanover -> Prague. It was very chaotic to board at night and all the confusion which one of the train parts goes to which end station. Clearly other passengers had the same problem. Seems to be part of the adventure. You also have to get used to sleep in those trains. When ÖBB started to operate them I did Hamburg -> Hanover to ride back home (which continues to Vienna) and Munich -> Venice. Of course your riding experience depends on whether you book seats, beds, cabins, or just the train ride. One time when I woke up I saw the polish worker standing by the window having his first beer. I didn't even notice him enter the cabin in the middle of the night. We talked for hours. Another time I just booked the train ride and when boarding the train spend minutes to cross the compartments full of people to find a nice spot. There were even some sleeping on the floor. I was lucky to reach the Czech part of the train, which had a lot of empty seats. The ride on the tracks next to Elbe and Vltava rivers is very magical. For the train ride to Venice I reserved a single cabin which was very comfy. And the one departing from Hamburg had a delay of 120 minutes. I entered the train a searched for a cabin and was greeted by someone who smiled at me. So I entered the cabin and had a chat with her. She told me the delay was due to ÖBB having problems with loading all the cars and motorcycles on the train, and added there seems to be a delay between 60 and 120 minutes every day, because the problems don't go away.
- gpvos 6y ago
  The trains were shunted in Hannover, but as far as I remember it wasn't an official stop that you could book when I was using them (late 2000s, and 2010s while DB were running them). Or did you just book from the station before and got on clandestinely at Hannover anyway?
  - tauchunfall 6y ago
    Nope, 2014 and 2015 (when I travelled) Hanover was an official stop and there was a train to Amsterdam/Brussels and one to Warsaw/Prague. Both stopped in Hanover between 2am and 3am. I remember the train eastwards was split in Berlin-East. In Hanover I gave my printed reservation to the polish train conductor who told me he'll wake me up when we'll arrive.

by Jedd 6y ago

leipert 6y ago

Last year I did Berlin -> Paris and Hendaye (French-Spanish border)-> Lisbon. The Berlin -> Paris connection was amazing and actually part of the Moscow-Paris connection that runs once per week. The food on board was nice (Polish catering wagon). The Train to Lisbon though was really old and the food well eh. But arriving at sunrise in Lisbon was well worth it. I am happy that the sleeper trains come back to existence, more eco friendly, more relaxed traveling, more cargo and less restrictions than with air travel (e.g. > 100ml liquids)

gpvos 6y ago
The food on Polish trains is excellent and very affordable. I've heard good things about Slovak restaurant cars as well. (Swiss are also fine I hear, but expect Swiss prices.)

tauchunfall 6y ago

I'm lucky to live in a city (Hanover, Germany) on the intersection of many night train routes. Back when Deutsche Bahn operated their night trains one could travel to Amsterdam, Brussels, Warsaw, and Prague. Now with ÖBB operating them one can ride to Hamburg, Vienna, Innsbruck, and Zurich. Some years ago I did Hanover -> Warsaw and Hanover -> Prague. It was very chaotic to board at night and all the confusion which one of the train parts goes to which end station. Clearly other passengers had the same problem. Seems to be part of the adventure. You also have to get used to sleep in those trains. When ÖBB started to operate them I did Hamburg -> Hanover to ride back home (which continues to Vienna) and Munich -> Venice. Of course your riding experience depends on whether you book seats, beds, cabins, or just the train ride. One time when I woke up I saw the polish worker standing by the window having his first beer. I didn't even notice him enter the cabin in the middle of the night. We talked for hours. Another time I just booked the train ride and when boarding the train spend minutes to cross the compartments full of people to find a nice spot. There were even some sleeping on the floor. I was lucky to reach the Czech part of the train, which had a lot of empty seats. The ride on the tracks next to Elbe and Vltava rivers is very magical. For the train ride to Venice I reserved a single cabin which was very comfy. And the one departing from Hamburg had a delay of 120 minutes. I entered the train a searched for a cabin and was greeted by someone who smiled at me. So I entered the cabin and had a chat with her. She told me the delay was due to ÖBB having problems with loading all the cars and motorcycles on the train, and added there seems to be a delay between 60 and 120 minutes every day, because the problems don't go away.

gpvos 6y ago
The trains were shunted in Hannover, but as far as I remember it wasn't an official stop that you could book when I was using them (late 2000s, and 2010s while DB were running them). Or did you just book from the station before and got on clandestinely at Hannover anyway?
- tauchunfall 6y ago
  Nope, 2014 and 2015 (when I travelled) Hanover was an official stop and there was a train to Amsterdam/Brussels and one to Warsaw/Prague. Both stopped in Hanover between 2am and 3am. I remember the train eastwards was split in Berlin-East. In Hanover I gave my printed reservation to the polish train conductor who told me he'll wake me up when we'll arrive.