Train Station's in Early Morning

You must disembark immediately irregardless of your arrival city.

Depends on the city if you want to hang out.

Jenny - You need to disembark from the train when it arrives in the station. Depending on what city you are in getting in at 5 or 6 in the morning is one of my favorite times. Go out and walk to the city center there will be no tourist about. Sometimes the street cleaners are out, shop and cafe owners are going into work it is really a great time. Get a cup of coffee and a pastry and just enjoy watching a city wake up.

Whether or not you can stay on the night train after it arrives at the final station, and for how long, depends on the individual railway, and their schedule. For example, the Scotrail train from London to Edinburgh allows passengers to stay on the trains. But even at that, the amount time varies according to the day to the week. Some days, you can stay up to an hour. I suggest that you consult their schedule. Also, it might not hurt to consult the train manager once you are on board just to be quite certain.

Some rail stations have showers which I find very handy and refreshing.

And the other posters are right. Seeing a city wake up can be quite a sight. I remember fondly having breakfast with taxi drivers in a local eatery in London.

Jenny, to remove any doubt on any particular train, have a conference with the train's conductor. You won't find a more friendly audience anywhere. Have a great trip! P.

Thanks everyone. The cities we will get in really early will be Venice and possibly Munich. How do you know when to wake up if you have a bed on the train? Do we need to have our own alarm clock? Thanks!

Jenny, if you have a sleeping compartment, the conductor will wake you before arrival. Since Venice and Munich are usually at the end of overnight train routes, it's not as big of a problem as if it were a midpoint stop. Nonetheless, the conductors are pretty good and keeping on top of things.

I haven't done it but I would think the conductor would go through the train announcing the last stop and making enough noise to wake people. It is in their interest I would think to empty the train when they stop and get the train ready for the next leg of it's journey. An alarm clock may be a good idea though.

I could not imagine anything more beautiful than a virtually empty vaporetto down the Grand Canal at that time of the morning. It's a fantastic ride at any time of the day but early morning with the sun coming up would be magic.

There also is a large cafe at the Venice station which may well be open. You could sit and have a coffee and pastry and catch your breath before heading off.

Jenny - ditto what others have commented - the conductor will wake you in time if you have a sleeping compartment. No worries. And my favorite time in Venice was early in the morning - it is everything you hope it will be and more. Venice is so very crowded during the days (and hot and humid when I was there in July) - take advantage of those early hours - you won't regret it. Not unlike hitting the beach in So. Calif on a perfect sunny day January vs. trying to go July 4th!

I would ask the conductor to wake you, don't assume they will. I almost didn't get off the train from London to Edinbourg in time - no one woke us..

In Munich they asked us to leave. We had a sleeper car ,and I believe our person asked us what time we wanted a wake up call. Then he greeted us with a cup of coffee or tea.

As soon as we got in to Munich, they asked us to get off the train. At 6 am the city was waking up so don't worry about having nothing to do. We took our stuff to the hotel, dropped off luggage and then found a cafe for a breakfast! YUM

Arriving early in Venice is a great way to enjoy the Rialto Market. It's an easy walk from the train station.