ADAC (one of Germany's AAA) provided an overview / selection of the best night and special train routes in Europe for 2026. The article is written in German language and contains maps and tables grouped by providers:
https://www.adac.de/reise-freizeit/reiseplanung/inspirationen/europa/nachtzug/
I recommend DeepL translator, apps and browser extensions for best translation quality to / from German.
Hopefully it helps other travelers.
"God tur" (Norwegian for "have a good journey").
In the past when I have looked at night train costs I have been shocked at the high cost of a bed in a sleeper cabin. Then I saw what you posted and I was shocked at how inexpensive it was. I looked at Vienna to Hamburg that shows in the article 89 euro so i decided to check it. Yes, I found 4 days in March when there was a bed available for 89 euro. VERY GOOD! But other than those four dates it looked to be 159 to over 200 euro. I even clicked on a few dates in April, May and June and more of the same. Looks that the cheap beds are 3 or four nights a month. Those prices are so misleading that, Mark, maybe I am doing something wrong? Did I click a wrong box? I am betting yes.
I do not think that you do something wrong because you seem to be experienced with travel and the Internet. In some cases I guess it is more Marketing that they can write "offers from ... EUR". The prices for beds are high because the comparison ... well you know already.
Same like with the World Soccer Championship this year. The lowest price category in stadiums are a few dozen tickets, so it cannot be a festival for all.
All travelers can do is to try to get good prices for this limited numbers of beds available.
Having checked a few dates though, even some of the pricier fares are potentially cheaper than a flight + hotel, and at least for me, that's the main calculation. If I lived near a bigger air hub or had a bigger budget, the situation might be different.
Also, I'm short enough - and can sleep like a log anywhere - to be perfectly comfortable sleeping and showering in a rattling shoebox. A taller light sleeper may not be.
As a side note: not a train line but I am a fan of Hurtigruten port-to-port when I travel with my car up in Norway. After driving a few hundred or thousand kilometers it is a real relaxation to load the car onto the ship and relax while one of the most beautiful landscapes is passed by. And after a few nights I can continue my journey with a refreshed energy.
The few times I have checked, mostly for other people, I have been surprised how often the night train worked. But there are a number of factors, not just the cost. MAV has one that goes to Split in the Summer. That might be worth taking. Also talk about one running to Belgrade next year. If that happens, then one could conceivably reach the coast of Montenegro with one change and that would be great.
Mark, why dont you post the websites for bookings.
A night train will get you to your destination in the morning. The good is you have the whole day to sightsee, the bad is you smell bad doing it. But when the flight doesnt arrive until 2pm, the train makes sense. Most I have checked have ended up being $500 for a couple (private compartment maybe with a shower) vs $200 for two on discount airlines and $150 on a nice hotel. But like I said, the arrival time is what makes the train appealing.
The article left out the Budapest to Kyiv night train. That one is a bargain at well under $100 and arrives about 8:30 if I remember correctly. Thats so much better than the ones that arrive at 6am.
Mark, one of the things I love about this forum is that it causes me to poke around and explore ideas. Now despite the fact that I had a little fun with it below, the train, seriously, isnt bad at all. Not sure why I would want to go to Berlin, but if I ever did have an "event" its a great option.
The night train to Berlin is 254 to 428 euro, depending on how much risk you want to take, for both of two beds in a cabin. Thats a bargain. Of course its a DB long haul train so you might leave on Tuesday and not arrive until Friday. The cabin has a sink, but you will still arrive sort of ripe. But there are only 19 stops so you will sleep well. No seriously, the last night train I took had about that many and I slept through all of it.
Compared to a flight, the flight would be (for two) $150 to $300 depending on luggage and cancelation requirements. Then a nice 3 star hotel (with a shower) in Budpaest would be right at 100 euro. Then you have taxi to the airport at each end (we will assume for the train its metro), lets say 30 euro in Budapest and 50 euro in Berlin. So a total of 330 to 480 euro vs the train cost.
But the flight will get you in at 11:30, probalby 1pm before you check into your hotel, while the train arrives at about 8:30 (scheduled 7:40 but its DB, so lets be realistic ...... ) which means you will be checked into your hotel (really just drop off your bags) by 9:15 and only have to walk around with a foul odor for 5 hours before they actually let you into the room.
The article also missed out most of the Scandinavian night routes- there are more routes in Finland than the Santa Claus route, also the routes in Sweden and especially in Norway.
The Norwegian routes especially are great value as against hotel costs. Oslo to Bergen now has lie flat seats as a cheaper alternative to a cabin.- the first in Europe.
Also it seems to miss those on the Asian part of Turkiye.
