A new train journey linking seven European cities has been unveiled, with the cheapest tickets priced at £99 — and it’s ruffled feathers among UK travellers.
The European Sleeper service runs from Brussels to Venice and stops at Eindhoven, Cologne, Munich, Innsbruck and Verona along the way.
Running in both directions once a week until the end of March, the journey takes 21 hours and prices start at €119 (£99) — which works out at roughly £4.70 an hour.
The new route has caught the attention of Metro readers, and opinions are divided.
While some were pleased to hear about the journey, saying it ‘looks fantastic’ and ‘would be an amazing trip’, many responded less positively to the news, saying the low-cost tickets puts the UK to shame.
Liz Leigh said it is ‘such a pity such good prices etc are not available in the UK’, while Pip Claire Gofton added:’This goes to show how overpriced the rail system is in the UK, it’s so expensive here’.
Colin Wright wrote: ‘If it ever gets to the UK, the price will automatically treble. We are mugged off at every turn.’
Another reader calling themselves Humpty_Dumpty added: ‘The moment the wheels touch any track in the UK, the price goes through the roof!’
Others compared the price to journeys they’ve taken in the UK, with Carol Estava commenting: ‘That’s cheaper than a train ticket from Manchester to London!!!’
Terry Nye revealed: ‘A friend just got a taxi from Plymouth to Bournemouth because it’s cheaper than the train. Madness.’
And Janet McCubbin said: ‘Last time we went to the UK we thought about getting the train from Gatwick to Chippenham instead of flying to Bristol and a single fare for one person cost more than two return flights from Spain!’
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It’s true that UK train fares have been climbing in recent years — and they’re set to rise further.
In March 2025, rail fares will go up by 4.6%, a move which was revealed in the Labour Government’s Autumn Budget.
In an era where air travel is more accessible than ever, it is often cheaper to fly abroad than purchase a ticket for a UK train journey, as Metro readers have pointed out.
Destinations you can fly to for less than a train from London to Glasgow
We’ve found 11 destinations you can fly to on March 7-14 for less than a return ticket from London to Glasgow that same week — a fare that costs £127.
- Riga, Latvia, from £48
- Budapest, Hungary, from £60
- Tirana, Albania, from £36
- Poznan, Poland, from £29
- Ostrava, Czechia, from £59
- Antalya, Turkey, from £65
- Seville, Spain, from £91
- Marrakech, Morocco, from £49
- Vilnius, Lithuania, from £61
- Naples, Italy, from £80
- Hamburg, Germany, from £87
Meanwhile, others discussed the affordability of rail travel across mainland Europe.
Kate Katiekate shared: ‘Here in Spain you pay €10 (£8) for a ticket and if you use it more than 16 times they reimburse it.’
Steve Osman added: ‘In Germany, you can buy a Deutschland ticket for €58 (£48) which covers your travel on all transport in the country for a whole month’.
How to travel on the European Sleeper
Travellers can book a ticket on the European Sleeper by visiting europeansleeper.eu.
The inaugural journey set off on February 5 and there are two services a week until the end of March.
The Belgium-Italy service starts at 18:06 at Bruxelles Midi/Brussel Zuid and finishes at Venezia Mestre at 15:00 the following day, while the return service begins at 16:15 and finishes at 12:38.
Prices start at €119 (£99) for seats, but if you want a more opulent experience (i.e. a bed), you’ll pay up to €239 (£199).
It’s still a pretty good deal though, considering it works out at £9.40 per hour.
All the stops on the Brussels-Venice sleeper train
Belgium-Italy:
Venezia Mestre – 3.00pm
Bruxelles Midi/Brussel Zuid – 6.00pm
Breda – 8.31pm
Eindhoven Centraal – 9.11pm
Köln Hbf – 11.38pm
München – 07.20am
Kufstein – 08.52am
Wörgl – 09.05am
Jenbach – 09.27am
Inssbruck Hbf – 09.59am
Brennero – 10.30am
Bressanone – 11.30am
Ponte Gardena-Laion – 11.45am
Bolzano/Bozen – 12.00pm
Verona Porta Nuova – 1.45pm.
Italy-Belgium:
- Venezia Mestre – 4.15pm
- Verona Porta Nuova – 5.30pm
- Bolzano/Bozen – 7.00pm
- Ponte Gardena-Laion – 7.15pm
- Bressanone – 7.30pm
- Brennero – 8.27pm
- Innsbruck Hbf – 9.24pm
- Jenbach – 9.51pm
- Wörgl – 10.12pm
- Kufstein – 10.26pm
- München – 11.45pm
- Köln Hbf – 07.07am
- Eindhoven Centraal – 09.28am
- Breda – 10.20am
- Bruxelles Midi/Brussel Zuid – 12.38pm.
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