BOOK A NIGHT TRAIN: WHY AND HOW
BOOK A NIGHT TRAIN: WHY AND HOW
Booking a sleeper or couchette car on an overnight train? Private compartment or not? And what if the feeder train is delayed? We show you the most important advice from experts.
Travel comfortably by train at night and arrive at your destination in the morning: While having enough time to enjoy your time at www.betamo.com/en-CA/games/live-casino.
Sounds like a perfect journey.
WHAT TO KEEP IN MIND
- allow for a buffer when booking the night train
Sebastian Wilken, who publishes the “Zugpost” newsletter, advises anyone traveling to the night train’s departure point by another train to allow plenty of time for the changeover when booking.
While normal long-distance trains run at close intervals on many routes and you simply take the next one if you miss the first one due to a delay, a night train usually only runs once a day. If it’s gone, you’re stuck there and often can’t get any further that evening.
- book trains together
An additional problem is missing the departure if you have booked the night train and the feeder train separately. To be entitled to compensation in such a case – hotel accommodation and onward travel in the morning – the connections must have been booked together, says Patrick Neumann from “Back-on-Track”, an initiative for more night train services in Europe.
It may be cheaper to book separately, but then the connection risk lies with the passenger. In other words, if you miss the night train, your ticket expires. And you have to pay for the hotel for the night yourself as well as the new ticket to get to your destination.
Good to know here: Travel on ÖBB and DB trains can be booked together online. Deutsche Bahn travel centers also sell many train journeys on night trains operated by other railroad companies, including Trenitalia in Italy, SJ and Snälltåget in Sweden and PKP in Poland.
- book a night train: If in doubt, it’s better to ask
With a view to possible compensation claims, the key issue here is whether or not there is a so-called travel chain. This is not always the case, even with standardized booking processes, according to the Arbitration Board for Public Passenger Transport (SÖP), which can be contacted in the event of disputes with rail companies.
When in doubt, the best advice for the travel chain is to ask. According to the SÖP, the employees on site should be able to assess this correctly and should inform travelers of their rights.
- compromises on the price of night train travel
Seats in sleeping cars on night trains not only often fill up quickly, but are also comparatively expensive.
Those who cut back on comfort can save money. “Seats on night trains are sometimes available for 29.90 euros, while seats in couchettes often cost well under 100 euros,” says Wilken. “That’s the compromise.”
- to book a private compartment on the night train or not?
Of course, there can always be other passengers in a normal compartment. If you want to be on your own, make sure you book a private compartment on the night train. This is particularly worthwhile for larger groups or families.
And a special tip for anyone who likes it at least a little quieter: “The outer compartments above the bogies are louder.” So if you can, book compartments in the middle of the train.
- use an Interrail ticket
If you are making several journeys in a certain period, the Interrail ticket can also be worthwhile for booking night trains. Seats in sleeping cars or couchettes cost extra. However, the surcharges are manageable, especially for compartments.
WHERE TO GO
A number of night train connections run across Europe and take you to popular destinations in comfort while you sleep. We present five recommended routes.
Hop on the train in the evening and wake up in a new country in the morning: traveling by night train can be so relaxing. And it’s also more environmentally friendly than traveling by car or plane, as you save a lot of CO2 emissions. With these night train connections, you can travel overnight from Germany to beautiful destinations all over Europe.
You can also travel on some night train connections, such as the Berlin-Stockholm route, with your Interrail Pass. This Interrail map shows all other possible night train connections.
Night train connections: From Munich to Rome
Night train connections take you to popular destinations all over Europe. The Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB) offer a variety of night train connections across Europe. For example, if you board the ÖBB Nightjet NJ 295 in Munich in the early evening, you will arrive in Rome – the “Eternal City” with its countless sights such as the Colosseum or the Trevi Fountain – after a journey time of around 13 hours.
With ÖBB’s night train connections, you can also travel family-friendly: Children up to the age of five travel free of charge, while children aged six to 14 receive cheaper tickets.
With the night train from Berlin to Stockholm
Travel overnight from Berlin to Stockholm. If you are more interested in Scandinavia, there are also night train connections for this destination. For example, you can take the Berlin Night Express (ST2) operated by the Swedish railroad company Snälltåget to Sweden without any detours. The route runs from Berlin via Hamburg, Copenhagen and Malmö to Stockholm, where you arrive in the early afternoon – the ideal time to take the traditional Swedish coffee break “fika”.