Two new Nightjet lines are launching in Europe, providing night-time rail travel between Vienna – Munich – Paris and Zurich – Cologne – Amsterdam.
First announced in October, the new lines have come to fruition through a partnership between Austrian Federal Railways (ÖBB), Deutsche Bahn (DB), SNCF and the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), in collaboration with Dutch Railways (NS).
A Nightjet will now travel from Vienna to Paris every Monday, Thursday and Saturday. Leaving Vienna Central Station at 7.40pm, it will stop at St. Pölten, Linz, Salzburg, Munich (East) and Strasbourg before arriving at to Paris Gare de l‘Est at 9.42am the following morning.
The connection from Paris to Vienna will travel every Tuesday, Friday and Sunday.
The second line, from Zurich via Basel and Cologne to Amsterdam will begin when the timetable changes.
This journey will particularly interest day trippers from North Rhine-Westphalia. With the early departure in Cologne, passengers can reach Amsterdam just after 9am.
The late return trip around 8.30pm enables a stay in Amsterdam of eleven and a half hours – two and a half hours longer than previously possible by rail.
“With the Nightjet we’re offering a climate-friendly alternative to short-haul flights within Europe. The new connections are a strong sign of international cooperation between European railways. Only together can we build a European night train network for environmentally conscious travel.”
Nightjet passengers can choose from single seats, couchette carriages with four-person compartments or sleeping cars, with prices available from 29.90, 59.90 or 89.90 euros (34.51, 69.14 or 103.77 USD).
ÖBB, DB, SNCF and SBB have further night train lines planned. This includes the Berlin – Brussels and Berlin – Paris lines, scheduled to begin operation in 12 months’ time.
