Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => The Knowledge => OT Knowledge => Topic started by: Wowbagger on 13 January, 2020, 07:31:17 pm
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https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2020/jan/13/rail-itineraries-europe-tarian-holidays-austria-netherlands-coast-france-burgundy-vineyards?CMP=share_btn_fb&fbclid=IwAR3rWQt4lUSmmU0KZJ4uGDzeDioQ5CIZzcEHT6n0ZlWBWKM2FbC2KXWhe_Y#comment-137345484
That's interesting. In 2018 we caught the sleeper from Köln to Wien.
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Version without the tracking info:
https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2020/jan/13/rail-itineraries-europe-tarian-holidays-austria-netherlands-coast-france-burgundy-vineyards
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OBB are still redeveloping the network, expect various new routes to appear over the next few years if flight shaming continues to be a thing.
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It's a long time since I took a sleeper anywhere. I'm not sure it's something I'd do again, at least not in (most of) Europe. You get woken up too often crossing all those borders! OTOH several days in a Russian sleeper was great for several reasons, but one of them was probably that I was only 19. Also, their carriages are bigger!
OTOH Gloucestershire-London-Brussels-Cologne in a day was good, as was more recently and much shorter Prague-Vienna. And just to bust a tourist cliche, I actually preferred Vienna.
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It's a long time since I took a sleeper anywhere. I'm not sure it's something I'd do again, at least not in (most of) Europe. You get woken up too often crossing all those borders! OTOH several days in a Russian sleeper was great for several reasons, but one of them was probably that I was only 19. Also, their carriages are bigger!
OTOH Gloucestershire-London-Brussels-Cologne in a day was good, as was more recently and much shorter Prague-Vienna. And just to bust a tourist cliche, I actually preferred Vienna.
Unless you're leaving Schengen most of the borders are interruption free.
Best sleeper I've been on was the Swedish one, loads of room in the top bunk of a 3 berth and the supplement on top of my interrail was something like €30 for Malmo to Stockholm.
The carriage itself would have given the british press a fit as it was built late 1950s IIRC.
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Unless you're leaving Schengen most of the borders are interruption free.
Best sleeper I've been on was the Swedish one, loads of room in the top bunk of a 3 berth and the supplement on top of my interrail was something like €30 for Malmo to Stockholm.
The carriage itself would have given the british press a fit as it was built late 1950s IIRC.
I've done a lot of night trains and have never been woken up for a passport check. But then they have all been done within the EU.
J
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I didn't even enter Schengen! Slovakia-Czech-Poland back in ~2000. Two checks at each border, SK/CZ was followed pretty swiftly by CZ/PL, the line just cuts through a corner.
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These days, if you take the Highland Sleeper, you get woken up to move your bike into the correct bit of train before they go their separate ways to Ft. Bill, Furryboottoon and Inverness.
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These days, if you take the Highland Sleeper, you get woken up to move your bike into the correct bit of train before they go their separate ways to Ft. Bill, Furryboottoon and Inverness.
Should only be a Fort William problem.
The combined train is too long so the seated/guards carriage and lounge carriage for Fort Bill get left at Waverly on the way south and added on the way north.
Been happening for as long as the current highland service pattern has existed (I first used it 2003ish and it was done then)
I've done a lot of night trains and have never been woken up for a passport check. But then they have all been done within the EU.
J
I've had a random Czech passport check at the German/Czech border but that was around 8am.
A non-EU person answered a question to the dissatisfaction of the Czech border guard; (Glasgow is not Liverpool so if you haven't updated your passport with a new address remember you live at the one on the passport, nor is it in Schengen so you can't enter the area there, etc.)
Also had checks on day trains between Germany and Denmark, and at Malmo on entering Sweden from Denmark.
The later I knew would happen, the former was random.
I also got a few extra questions when I confused the border guard asking me where I'm from with asking where I got on the train.
While he didn't ask me whar ah bide or stay, his question structure was closer to Scottish English than Standard English for what he was asking.
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It's been happening, but train staff used to shift the bikes up until fairly recently.
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It's been happening, but train staff used to shift the bikes up until fairly recently.
Ah! Serco...
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I've been woken a long time ago for a passport check on an overnight train from Prague to Budapest and, even longer ago, Rome to Paris.
I love the idea of sleeper trains but I have to say I hardly sleep on them because it is so bumpy. Especially when they join / split the trains and you get a good shunting!
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I've been woken a long time ago for a passport check on an overnight train from Prague to Budapest and, even longer ago, Rome to Paris.
I love the idea of sleeper trains but I have to say I hardly sleep on them because it is so bumpy. Especially when they join / split the trains and you get a good shunting!
This.
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I've found my sleep quality on them to be variable
Cally sleeper North to South, the ride quality isn't great down to track and speed limit changing and the Carstairs/Waverly shunts, but heading north I can be asleep on the smooth running of the WCML before Watford.
Cologne to Prague, took a while to get to sleep, but never felt the shunt at Lichtenberg.
On the return I went to Amsterdam and only woke up a bit past the border because we were over an hour late, the loco had already been changed.
I'll wake up between sleep phases on boats.
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Especially when they join / split the trains and you get a good shunting!
Ooh, you can't beat a good shunting! ;)
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https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2019/dec/16/locals-guide-vienna-austria-10-top-tips-city-break-museums-cafes-music (https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2019/dec/16/locals-guide-vienna-austria-10-top-tips-city-break-museums-cafes-music?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other)
Vienna is a good place for a visit.
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These days, if you take the Highland Sleeper, you get woken up to move your bike into the correct bit of train before they go their separate ways to Ft. Bill, Furryboottoon and Inverness.
You actually managed to sleep? I'm impressed. Easily one of the worst train journeys I've been on.
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These days, if you take the Highland Sleeper, you get woken up to move your bike into the correct bit of train before they go their separate ways to Ft. Bill, Furryboottoon and Inverness.
You actually managed to sleep? I'm impressed. Easily one of the worst train journeys I've been on.
The last couple of times I went, which was in July, yes, I did get some sleep. Not enough, but it was about the best couple of nights I've had on a sleeper. It was on the new rolling stock.
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That Nice Mr Paulley seems to be having weekly excursions on the Highland Sleeper funded mainly by the compensation for the access cockups on his previous Highland Sleeper excursions. From this I conclude that it's Type 2 Fun for all but the most determined wheelchair-using track-bashers, and probably only marginally better if you've got a bike.
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I got a big refund from my outward journey in July, as it arrived 2 hours late. That wasn't down to the rolling stock though: there was some sort of major signal failure in the Kilburn area and the train is kept in sidings at Wembley, so it was delayed arriving in Euston until at least an hour after it was scheduled to leave.
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On my 80s interrail trip I did Munich-Athens, 1full night and then Athens at midnight and then Athens-Venice which was two nights, slept well.
Late 80s I did a Paris - Chamonix sleeper, again a decent sleep.
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Mrs M and have had sleeper journeys with great success over the years. Highlights included New York - Chicago., Chicago - Seatle, Vancouver - Toronto. And, all being well this summer we'll be embarking on a Senior Interrail trip that will include the Vienna - Brussels run. Plan A was the Russian sleeper between Warsaw - Paris, but we'd like to see Budapest and Vienna.
Watch this (or another) space.
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I highly recommend Vienna.
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I highly recommend Vienna.
good - we're off there in a few weeks time, hope its open in Feb?
sadly we're flying, we did consider the train but it was going to be stupid money (>£1200)
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If you get the train from the airport to the centre and back (fast and reasonably priced) you can check you luggage in at the train station on the way back rather than at the airport.
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Sleeping on a sleeper? Try the 'Ghan. Adelaide to Darwin. I swear the train's running off rails on a cart track from Port Augusta to Alice Springs. Sleep? You're joking! Still a fantastic once-in-a-lifetime experience though. At a price!
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I think the only actual sleeper train I’ve been on is “Carpet Class” in Japan (https://raillynews.com/2019/02/japanese-sleeping-trains/), which is exactly what it sounds like. I slept surprisingly well.
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Paris to Lisbon although small matter of changing trains in Hendaye/Irun due to Iberian gauge. On the way down the change was sometime around midnight and on the way back it was in the morning.
Viedma to San Carlos de Bariloche. Not much to see out of the window except pampas for large periods of that journey.
Slept quite well on all of them.
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I usually manage an acceptable sleep on a sleeper - and often better use of annual leave than the alternative. Arriving in Venice (boat outside the station levels of arriving) after an overnight from Paris was particularly agreeable.
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As a leisure traveller I love the sleepers, I don't expect to get a full nights sleep, that dozing off and being woken not knowing what's outside the window is part of the fun. If I had something important to do the following morning, I might feel different, but I don't.
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I recently learnt that the Penzance sleeper is now the only train regularly arriving in Paddington on diesel.
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And now plans for a new sleeper from Malmö and Copenhagen to Cologne. Allows for connections to Brussels and London.
https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/sweden-london-train-sleeper-malmo-amsterdam-cologne-munich-rail-a9288206.html
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And now plans for a new sleeper from Malmö and Copenhagen to Cologne. Allows for connections to Brussels and London.
https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/sweden-london-train-sleeper-malmo-amsterdam-cologne-munich-rail-a9288206.html
And a nice connection to Amsterdam. Just don't expect to be able to take your bikes on it. Swedish railways are awful for taking bikes.
J
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I was talking to a Man in the UK railway industry yesterday who said that there is an established company with a passenger licence (Open Access Operator?) who are working up a business case for two new UK sleeper routes.
He didn't know the details (or wasn't saying) but he said that the terminal points weren't necessarily London.
Apparently the issue with the new Night Calledonian rolling stock is poor ride quality due to the lightweight construction, and this mysterious company is talking to OBB about how they've specified their new carriages that are on order - presumably to get a baseline cost.
It'll probably come to nothing, but at least the thoughts are there.
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I was talking to a Man in the UK railway industry yesterday who said that there is an established company with a passenger licence (Open Access Operator?) who are working up a business case for two new UK sleeper routes.
He didn't know the details (or wasn't saying) but he said that the terminal points weren't necessarily London.
Apparently the issue with the new Night Calledonian rolling stock is poor ride quality due to the lightweight construction, and this mysterious company is talking to OBB about how they've specified their new carriages that are on order - presumably to get a baseline cost.
It'll probably come to nothing, but at least the thoughts are there.
OBB ordered their new stock on the basis of needing to meet the various different fire regulations around Europe.
It's entirely possible they would be willing to order some stock to EuroTunnel and UK fire and gauge requirements.
One of the biggest problems SJ are expected to meet with the new services from Sweden is the German's restrictions on subsidies.
Iv'e not heard of ride quality problems on the new sleepers yet, the Mk3 SLE(P) ride quality wasn't great either, but I've always put it down to the track...
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Took the sleeper train from Istanbul to Ankarra (and return), which was decent.
The cross-Canada train is tempting, but it takes a week and is expensive.
https://www.viarail.ca/en/explore-our-destinations/trains/rockies-and-pacific/toronto-vancouver-canadian/classes-and-services#sleeper-plus
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I've a very early memory of taking the Auto-Couchette to the Riviera. One of the best bits was when our diesel locomotive broke down and was replaced by a real live steam engine.
Think what you'd have to pay for that now..
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Sleeping on a sleeper? Try the 'Ghan. Adelaide to Darwin. I swear the train's running off rails on a cart track from Port Augusta to Alice Springs. Sleep? You're joking! Still a fantastic once-in-a-lifetime experience though. At a price!
When Chris Tarrant followed that, he followed a bit of diverted track where then had been plonked down onto the desert floor.
And pointed it out on bits of the current route, who needs ballast when the grounds so dry and hard...