Mother
Traveller
1 comments
Posted 1 year ago
Trying to plan a fairly reliable route from Brussels to Varna in 4 days, with an Interrail ticket.
A bit stumped by lack of service from Nightjet trains. Do you know why they have reduced or stopped this service?
Can you tell me more about the EN347 Dacian EN347 Vienna to Bucharest night train. If possible, send me a link to book a couchette which recognises the Interrail pass.
Also, I would like some advice on getting from Bucharest to Varna, leaving on Wed 26th or Thursday 27th July. I would like to travel by day as I have heard the route through Transylvania to the Carpathian mountains is spectacular.
Please advise me if you can. many thanks,
Naomi
MisterSteve
Traveller
907 comments
Nightjet is the overnight services division of Austrian Railways, they do a few international servies via Germany and into Italy but have never really been that big on going east. Most western European operators have given up on night trains. Nightjet act as sales agents for overnight trains from Austria to the east like Dacia, which is operated by CFR of Romania. Getting a reservation without buying a ticket is pretty much impossible without visiting a station in one of the countries. Services were cut because of a little thing called covid. Even now where services run people may be booking whole compartments to reduce risk of infection - which reduces the chance of others getting a place. Your problem is made worse by Serbia stopping most international services which has forced many trravellers to Bulgaria to use the route via Romania. This will not be an easy journey.
Flo
Traveller
10723 comments
Hi!
It is not that complicated.
The nightjet Brussels - Vienna runs on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, not much changed here since the introduction of this service (ÖBB does not have enough carriages for all services so they can offer the Brussels and Paris trains every other day only).
You should be able to order online reservations at ÖBB website öbb.at - select discount "Interrail".
Alternatively you can of course also travel to Vienna during the day, using one of the two-hourly ICE services to Cologne/Frankfurt and change to another ICE to Vienna.
If you take the early ICE (0625) you could reach Vienna as early as 1645, giving you plenty of time for the connection to Dacia night train to Bucuresti (departure 1942).
Reservations for Dacia are also available at öbb.at
From Bucuresti to Varna you have to take the only international service available, running to Sofia via Ruse. In Ruse you have a connection to Varna.
So, possible schedule can be:
Day 1: day train Brussels - Vienna and night train to Bucuresti
Day 2: arrival in Bucuresti (no onward connection to Bulgaria available, overnight stay necessary)
Day 3: Bucuresti - Varna
Flo
Mother
Traveller
1 comments
Thankyou Flo - this has given me some hope.
Flo
Traveller
10723 comments
You´re welcome.
By the way, you will cross the Carpathians during daylight on your way from Vienna to Bucharest, roughly betwenn Brasov and Ploiesti; on the way to Varna you will cross the Danube.