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The Cologne to Vienna sleeper train
is now a modern EuroNight train, run by Austrian Railways (ÖBB). By taking
a connecting train to Cologne, you can use it to travel from London, Brussels or
Amsterdam to Vienna, without flying. It's a safe and comfortable
flight-free way to reach Austria! Similar Austrian EuroNight trains link
Vienna with Venice, Hamburg & Rome.
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All aboard for Vienna!
The overnight sleeper train to Austria about to leave Cologne... |
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There are three types of
accommodation on board...
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Sleeping-car
= 1 or 2 berth sleepers with washbasin, or 1, 2 or 3 berth
deluxe sleepers
with
shower & toilet.
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Couchettes
= simple bunks in shared compartments, either 6-berth compartments or
more spacious 4-berth compartments.
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Ordinary
seats = the cheapest option, in
a 6-seat compartments. But a couchette or sleeper is recommended.
Which type of accommodation should you choose?
If your budget allows, a berth in the
sleeping-car ('schlafwagen') is the most civilised,
comfortable & romantic way to travel, and in a deluxe compartment you even
get a
private toilet & shower. Couchettes ('liegewagen') are the economy option, simple bunks
supplied with sheet, rug and pillow, great for families or groups of friends or
individual travellers on a budget. A berth in a less crowded 4-berth
compartment is well worth the extra over a berth in a 6-berth compartment, the
4-berth couchette compartments are the same size as the 6-berth rooms, just with
fewer passengers per room. Ordinary seats are in
6-seat compartments with no lock on the door and no attendant on duty.
Travelling overnight in a basic seat is not comfortable and the best advice
is to always book a couchette or sleeper for a safe & sound night's
sleep, even if you're on a budget.
This is the most comfortable,
civilised & romantic way to travel. The fully-refurbished 'T2S' sleeping-cars
used on this train have 13 standard compartments with 1 or 2 berths with washbasin and
two
deluxe compartments with 1, 2 or 3 berths and private toilet & shower.
1 or 2-berth sleepers
with washbasin...
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| Standard sleeper, set up as a 2-berth compartment... |
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Standard sleeper,
this time set up as a single-berth compartment... |
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The same compartment in
daytime mode with beds folded away... |
1, 2 or 3 berth deluxe sleeper with shower &
toilet...
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The sleeping-car attendant will greet you at the
door to the sleeper, check your reservation and direct you to your room.
He or she will come round shortly afterwards to take your rail tickets &
passport, so you
will not be disturbed by ticket inspections or any passport spot checks. Your tickets
& passport will be handed
back to you at the end of your journey.
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Each compartment is very compact, just big enough for a
bed and space to stand next to it. There are 15 very narrow compartments
in each 26-metre long sleeping-car, so please don't expect a hotel-room size compartment taking up half the car. The photos above were taken from the doorway and
accurately show the size of the compartment, so what you see is what you get.
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Each bed has fresh clean sheets, a
fluffy pillow, snug duvet, and its own individual reading light.
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Soap, towels, mineral water, and a
small evening 'welcome drink' and chocolate are provided.
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There is no restaurant or buffet car,
but the sleeper attendant can provide
'room service' of tea, coffee, wine, beer & soft drinks. Or feel
free to take your own bottle of wine or picnic on board.
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Breakfast is included in the fare,
served in your compartment. You can choose which items you get from a
simple menu.
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There's room for luggage
under the bottom berth, on the racks above the window and in the recess above
the door projecting over the corridor ceiling.
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All compartments have 220V power sockets
for shavers, which might be used to recharge a phone.
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For the evening & morning parts
of a journey, the attendant can fold the beds away and convert the compartment into a private
sitting room with sofa and small table.
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Each compartment can be booked for
single or double occupancy, or (in the case of the two deluxe compartments)
triple occupancy. Berths can also be booked
individually: Passengers
travelling alone do not have to pay the fare for a
single-berth sleeper (which can be expensive), but can pay for
a bed in a
2-berth sleeper and share with another civilised sleeper passenger of the same sex.
Once snug
in your berth you cannot see the person above or below you, giving you all the
privacy you need.
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If there's a small group of you, ask
to book a pair of adjacent sleeper compartments with an inter-connecting door,
which opens to make a suite for 2 to 4 persons.
Couchettes are basic,
inexpensive sleeping accommodation, and on Austrian EuroNight trains couchette
passengers get a light breakfast with tea or coffee included in the fare.
6-berth couchettes
have six padded bunks per compartment (upper, middle & lower each side of the
compartment), 4-berth couchettes have four bunks (upper and lower each side).
A pillow, sheet and blanket are supplied, and each berth has its own reading
light. Washrooms & toilets are available at the end of the corridor. The extra
space and privacy in a 4-berth is well worth the extra cost over travelling in a
6-berth. By day, a couchette
compartment is an ordinary seating compartment, with two bench
seats facing each other. At night, the attendant converts the
compartment into a sleeping berths by folding bunks out from the wall. The
sexes aren't normally segregated in couchettes as you don't normally
fully undress, but women travelling alone can book a berth in a ladies-only compartment
if they like. All couchette compartments have
a normal lock and a security lock on the door which cannot be opened from
outside, even with a staff key, so you'll be safe and snug. There's
plenty of space for luggage under the bottom bunks, on the racks and in the big
recess above the door which projects out over the corridor ceiling. There
is no restaurant or buffet car, but the couchette attendant may be able to sell
you tea, coffee, wine, beer & soft drinks. The
attendant will take your passport & ticket so you are not disturbed during
the night, and will return them next morning.
A couchette car on the Vienna to Cologne EuroNight train, about to
leave Vienna... |
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4-berth couchettes, ideal for families. |
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6-berth couchettes... |
This EuroNight train also
has ordinary seats, usually in 6-seat compartments. However, travelling overnight
in a seat with nowhere to lie down, no attendant on duty and no lock on the compartment door, is not
recommended. Always book a couchette or sleeper for a comfortable and safe
journey.
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If you book in advance and pick your date, you can find airline-beating cheap
deals for this
train, from as little as 49 euros including a couchette or 69 euro including a
bed in a 2-bed sleeper. Cheaper than a taxi to the airport!
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For details of how to buy train tickets between London & Vienna using
this EuroNight train, see the Austria page.
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To travel between Amsterdam & Vienna using this train, first book this
EuroNight train at
www.bahn.de, then book a connecting ticket between Amsterdam & Cologne also
using
www.bahn.de.
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To travel between Brussels & Vienna using this train, first book this
EuroNight train at
www.bahn.de, then book a connecting ticket between Brussels & Cologne also
using www.b-rail.be.
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www.bahn.de:
You can buy tickets for this EuroNight train, all City Night Line sleeper trains, German domestic trains and
many daytime German international trains online using the journey planner on the
German Railways (DB) website,
www.bahn.de. You print out your own ticket.
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www.oebb.at: You can also
book tickets for this train at the Austrian Railways website. How to
use oebb.at: Click 'Englisch' at top right. Now click
'Online-Ticket' top left. Now look for the bottom left
'EURO-Night' square and click it. On the enquiry form,
enter departure station as 'Cologne' and arrival station as
'Vienna', your age and dates of travel. Click 'search
for offers'.
On the results page, you'll see a long list of possible
fares. Ignore the 'flexible' open tickets at the top.
Instead, look down the list of fares shown as 'valid on a
specific train' until you see one for 'Ticket to Wien
Westbahnhof TRAIN EN 421 from 20:05 to 09:04, for the type
of seat, couchette or sleeper that you want. Select
it, don't bother reading about their 'thrift tip'. You pay by credit card and print out your own
tickets. Easy! The prices shown on
www.oebb.at
are in euros, and are the total cost for all passengers
selected, not per person.
Travel tips...
ÖBB lounge at Vienna: Sleeper passengers
can use the OBB lounge to wait for the train at Vienna
Westbahnhof. Complimentary tea, coffee, juice,
wine and beer are provided.
DB lounge at Cologne: Single sleeper &
deluxe sleeper passengers (but not double sleeper or
couchette passengers) can use the DB lounge to wait
for the train at Cologne Hauptbahnhof.
Complimentary tea, coffee, juice, wine and beer are
provided. You can also use the lounge if you
have a first class ticket for connecting trains to or
from Cologne.
Enjoy the Rhine Valley! The train runs
right along the famous Rhine Valley between Koblenz &
Mainz. Look out for castles perched on hilltops,
vineyards, Rhine villages and the legendary Lorelei
Rock. The Rhine will be on the left hand side of
the train southbound, on the right hand side
northbound (but northbound, the train reverses at
Frankfurt around 6am, so it's the left hand side on
departure from Vienna).
Why not climb Cologne Cathedral's tower? If
you're feeling energetic and have 30 minutes to spare between arriving from
Vienna on the sleeper and taking a connecting train to
London, Brussels or Amsterdam, you can climb
the cathedral's south (right-hand) tower for a fantastic view over
Cologne & the Rhine, 475 feet high, 533 steps, no
lift. The tower is open 09:00-16:00 in winter,
09:00-17:00 or 18:00 in summer, entrance 2.50 euros,
see
www.koelner-dom.de. Left luggage is
available at Cologne station.
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| Above: The
legendary Lorelei Rock on the Rhine Valley, seen from the train... |
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Above: The view
from the top of Cologne cathedral's south tower. |
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Cologne
cathedral... |
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