Nights on Tracks

One of the main reasons why travellers decide against taking the train is unreliability in some countries. Especially when a connection has to be caught, stress seems almost inevitable for many passengers. But how justified is this fear of changing trains? Are trains really as unreliable as they are often said to be? To find…

I have travelled around the UK many times, but now it’s time to see something different besides city centres like London or Manchester. Away from the crowded shopping streets, a completely different, unspoilt world awaits, just a train ride away from London. After all, who doesn’t dream of watching deer from the train window? In…

Do you love travelling by train but are wondering how you can get the most out of your travel budget? Then take a look at the following comparison between travelling by day train and travelling overnight. In total twelve randomly selected day and night trains in the German-speaking part of Europe are compared. The prices…

Some night train fans may wonder why there aren’t more connections in Europe. However, there are many routes that have already been planned but were never realised. In this article, you can find out why Zurich doesn’t have more night trains on its departure board or how a night service almost ran through the Channel…

It sounds like a journey back in time: By train from the Thames in London to the Bosporus in Istanbul, which separates the continents of Europe and Asia. While the journey by Orient Express was revolutionary back in the 1880’s, hardly anyone today would think of covering the 2.500 km linear distance by rail. But…

We’ve all been there: You want to travel by night train, but the train is already fully booked or the ticket is too expensive for your holiday budget. But that doesn’t have to be the case! In the following article, you will find out how you can get the best deals on night train bookings…

Getting on the train in the evening and waking up in a foreign city in the morning is something that is inspiring more and more people. So you might ask yourself why there aren’t more night train connections in Europe. In this article, you will find out many of the reasons night train operators are…

Night trains used to characterise the evening scene at European railway stations. But then, unfortunately, many connections were cancelled between 2005 and 2015 (Gardner & Kries, 2024). There are many reasons for this. In addition to competition from low-cost airlines, profitability played a major role. Routes with low profitability were cancelled. A prime example of…

Many people complain about the railway. The trains are late too often and people miss their connecting trains as a result. But is there any truth in this statement? To find out, I recorded my train journeys, including delays, over the entire year of 2024. The list mainly focuses on trains in Austria, Germany and…

Travelling by night train used to be considered noble, expensive and reserved for the well-heeled upper class. As early as the 1830s, the world’s first trains with so-called bed carriages were in use (Curtale et al., 2023; Burman, 2015). Legendary trains such as the Orient Express offered passengers journeys throughout Europe, from Paris or London…