Night Train Question

It's very individual. Good sleepers will sleep well, light sleepers will have trouble sleeping. I myself would get some sleep but not much. I went by sleeper train few times: from Czech R. to Romania, from Baku in Azerbaijan to Tbilisi in Georgia, from Istanbul to Ankara and from Seattle to San Jose in CA.

have taken them 3 times, but won't anymore.

1 trip went perfect. On another they actually changed the train makeup and the coach we were supposed to be in was not on the train; unhelpful conductor eventually found us a spot in a cheaper class of accomodation than we paid for (lot of fun to be doing this at 10pm), and Deutsche Bahn never refunded the difference after we filled out a claim. On 3rd trip the A/C didn't work. Trains get hot sitting in the sun all day, so our choices were open the windows and get the screaming noise and wind, or close it and sweat.

If you take it, let us know how it goes.

Used to. Not any more.

From Prague to Budapest. It was fine, except we were woken in the middle of the night by the police checking passports.

Hi Robert,

As others have stated, it's really a matter of personal preference. Some people really like night trains, others hate them. As for myself, I've taken quite a few and prefer not to take any more. That being said, it is an experience, and if you haven't taken one before, why not give it a shot? As you have already found out, you can save money and travel time by sleeping on the train, since you are traveling at night, maximizing your sightseeing time in both your departure and arrival cities. A flight is faster, but you use up a good part of the day traveling and would need to pay for another night in a hotel. With the influx of so many low cost airlines, many night trains are disappearing. If you are curious, it might be a good time to take one while you still can!

Arriving dirty and tired.. not a great way to spend a day.. dirty and tired..

Bathrooms are grotty. Gosh .. even on shorter trips of 4-5 hours the bathrooms get nasty.. think airline bathrooms ( wet floors ew)

Cheapest cabins are shared.. and who you get is a complete gamble.

Took one decades ago ( Paris-Rome) and I would never do it again. Ever.

However if you are young and want to try an adventure.. ( ps BRING food.. )

We took CNL from Munich to Paris (now discontinued) and I (5'4" and heavy sleeper) had no problems with the couchette but my husband (6') had a hard time getting comfortable ... or even getting in the couchette. So we lost some of the next day walking around half-asleep. Maybe if you spend the extra money for a private compartment. I have taken Amtrak sleeper cars cross-country (3 days) and loved doing it.

I've done City Night Line trains several times, and love it! Only booked the Deluxe Sleepers cabins. They include a private bathroom with toilet/sink/shower, table with chairs, lots of storage space for your gear, individually controlled AC, and beds aligned with the windows so you can watch the scenery go by while relaxing in bed. I would do it again in a heartbeat it's a great way to travel!!

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We've done night trains a couple of times but will never do it again. We're not sound sleepers and therefore never did get any sleep either time - thus arriving at our destination doubly exhausted from jet lag and then our self-imposed ordeal on the train. We found it to be a false economy - sounded great but it wasn't. My advice - If the cost is remotely comparable - fly.

I've done it several times with a normal seat (never again but I didn't have a choice), couchette (ok but I'm a sound sleeper), full private room (the way to go if the cost is reasonable). I'd do it again if there was some reason the flights were too expensive.

DJ

Over the years I have done ... Milan - Rome / Venice - Vienna / Amsterdam - Copenhagen / Genoa - Barcelona / Madrid - Lisbon / Brisbane - Sydney / Varanasi - Agra / Udaipur - Delhi.

Some of these were fairly uncomfortable, which in my youth was more tolerable than it would be now.
I find I can block out background noise (I hate ear plugs) and quite like the rocking motion.
These days I would not choose to 'sit up', yet tolerate a shared couchette, but prefer a private compartment.

Hi,

I took night trains 44 years ago my first time in Europe and still do it. They're better now than back then. The CNL is what I take, it's the top of the line night train, Germany's best. The compartment seat is all right but I much prefer the sleeperette , the Ruhesessel, no problem sleeping at all, ie, I calculate at least 6-7 hrs of good sleep before the first announcement is made at 0600 or earlier. OnIy the CNL offers the sleeperette, which is also the cheapest way to go, ie, cheaper than a dorm bed in a hostel. Regardless of the type of sleeping accommodations you choose, keep in mind if the locals can take a night train, so can you. I board a night train anytime from 1900 to 2200 and arrive at 0600 to 10:00 or so, I gain an extra day.

Personally, I hate night trains. I can't sleep, it's loud because of the train stopping and starting, people getting on and off, train officials knocking on doors, etc. Stuffy, often no AC. Bathrooms are just horrible!

Only once, going from Fulda to Copenhagen. No sleep for either one of us. Train would stop at stations, cars would be unhooked and hooked, slamming the train. The workers were all yelling, and once, the train seemed to have stopped on a curve, as the bed was on an angle for about 30 min. Really uncomfortable. The lady they put in our 6 bed compartment snored loudly all night long. Toilets as already mentioned, are fairly disgusting. We arrived completely exhausted.

If taking the train, I like to see the scenery of the country I am traveling through. Hotels are so cheap in Germany, this would be a no brainer for me.

I haven't taken a night train in 35 years and I will never do it again. I can take a nap on a day train but almost never get good sleep on a night train - go figure. Same for ferries.

I'm normally a good sleeper but not on a night train. I can usually fall asleep pretty well but once I'm awake, I stay awake. There are plenty of things to wake you during the night, for me the jostling as they add or remove cars to the train in stations along the way does it. If they just went without stopping it might be fine, I don't need a super comfortable bed, but they don't. There will be noises, shifts, stops, people going by your compartment, etc. all trying their best to keep you from sleeping.

With the price of flights, there is really no good reason to take an overnight train ride.

Hi Robert, I'm on the love, love, love night trains side. I find them so much fun. However, I always get my own room. Also, in the sleeper car I haven't found the bathrooms, if you don't have your own, to be dirty. It's not like in the coach cars. I love going to sleep in one place and waking up in another. I have not taken the train you are considering. My last NT train was last year in Sweden from Umeå to Stockholm. It was clean, quiet, on schedule and I slept great. I did have my own bathroom. The bed was very comfortable. It was a full 9 hours on the train so I slept great: 9:30 to 6:30. I would follow Rich's suggestion, if you've never tried a NT, it would be a fun adventure regardless and then you will know which side you fall on. Wray

I have taken many over the years and in different classes and cabins. I do love the "romance" of it and have mostly had good experiences and never a really bad one, but have passed the point/age when I would want to do it again.

Even sound sleepers can have troubles. Once I had an alarm in the cabin next to mine go off for over an hour. Seems it was the conductor's cabin and he was not in there and didn't know the alarm was going off. There can be a lot of stopping and starting and noise from station stops. Your best sleep tends to happen when the train stops and sits on a siding for awhile.

In shared compartments you get meet nice people and some will be friendlier than others, but some will snore loudly, some might come in late and some might have B.O. or bad foot-oder. Or you could be there almost completely alone and have none of those issues.

Trying to sleep in a reclining chair is only slightly better than an airplane. Even if you can sleep ok in the chair, there are lots of people coming and going through the car all night and once I sat awake watching border guards grill several passengers and search their luggage at about 2:00 AM.

Wake up can be quite earlier, especially if one of your cabin-mates gets off sooner. The conductor will bring breakfast an hour before your arrival so if you think you can sleep until 7:30 for an 8:00 arrival, nope.

Bathroom cleanliness can be hit or miss. Usually not too bad but even if clean you might have to wait to use it.

You almost for sure will be groggy and feel icky the next day. You have to drop off your luggage at the hotel or a locker early and then wander around until afternoon before you can check into your hotel. By then I just want to spend an afternoon in the hotel getting cleaned up and taking a nap.

I've been on 10 night trains in this country, the most recent on last week (California Zephyr, Reno to Denver) and on one in Europe (1987, Brussels to Heidelberg). Athoug I can't sleep in an aluminum tube filled with people, I have never had any trouble sleeping on night trains. In this country, anyway, the train is more expensive than flying, but the experience and the scenery is well worth it.

I would certainly take a night train in Europe again, but for the most part I confine my travel to a smaller area and don't need the long trip by either means. In 21 weeks in the last 15 years, only three time have I taken a train trip of over 5 hours, and most of those (6½ hours) were not between towns with air service.

One thing to consider is that night trains basically make use of otherwise non-utilized time between evening and the next morning, while, unless you get up awfully early or get in awfully late, flying takes 5 or 6 hours right out of the middle of the day, prime sightseeing time. Since you can't make very good use of the rest of the day, you end up needing two nights in hotels on either side of your flight rather then one night on the train.

Hi,

As pointed out taking a night train and the ensuing experience is highly individual. It all depends on the person, whether you are negatively affected by everything pointed out on night trains (the bright lights, the screeching sounds,) and all that or , more accurately, let these things bother you on the night train. It is not matter if someone sleeps on the night train, I sleep perfectly well on the reclining seat, totally not groggy upon arrival, fit and fresh ready for breakfast, and admittedly much better than on a plane seat squished in Economy class, and better than sitting upright in a compartment seat where there is the chance of your neck being out of whack if you don't use a neck pillow...no such problem on the reclining seat. Everyone's travel experience vary due to numerous factors. Once the light goes out, it's quite until the snoring starts. People are respectful, civil, mindful of others, sometimes helpful...all satisfactory normal behaviour.

If there is a common thread in a CNL Ruhesessel coach regardless of its destination , Munich, Berlin, I've never seen any Americans except just one guy, a 20 something backpacker, on my last trip.

I've taken the CNL night at least 5 times, only once would I say it was barely satisfactory thanks to the others in the compartment, but that route Hannover to Paris Est is gone. Even if that route were still in operation, one time (neg) doesn't set a precedent. About not being allowed to check in, go to your room once you arrive and have to wait until 3 pm, not so, that's not been my experience in Austria, Germany, Paris, when I show up at the front desk , say 0930 after a night train ride, Only in London was that the case at different B&Bs.