European Sleeper
European Sleeper (stylised as European sleeper) is a Belgian-Dutch cooperative[1] which operates a thrice-weekly open-access night train service between Berlin, Germany and Brussels, Belgium, with plans to expand to daily service in the near future[2] as well as extend the line to Dresden and Prague in 2024. There are also plans for services linking Amsterdam, Brussels and Barcelona via France, expected to commence during the spring of 2025.[3]
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Overview | |
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Headquarters | Utrecht |
Founders |
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Dates of operation | 2023– |
Predecessors | Moonlight Express |
Other | |
Website | www |
History
European Sleeper was launched in 2021, with an announcement in April 2021 of a proposal to operate a sleeper train service between Prague and Brussels, with Czech operator RegioJet announced as a partner, providing rolling stock as well as hauling the service in Germany and the Czech Republic. The National Railway Company of Belgium (SNCB) would be responsible for hauling the service in Belgium, and at the time an operator had not been selected yet to haul the service in the Netherlands. The service was expected to begin in spring of 2022, and a second service was slated to begin in December that year.[4]
Around the same time, Belgian startup Moonlight Express announced its intention to commence night train services between Berlin and Brussels, via Liège, with an expected commencement date of April 2022.[5] Having been announced at around the same time, coincidentally, both services from European Sleeper and Moonlight Express were also scheduled to begin at around the same time.
In May 2021, European Sleeper launched a crowdfunding campaign and managed to raise €500,000 in seed capital by selling shares in the cooperative to more than 350 small investors,[3] reportedly in just fifteen minutes.[6]
One month later, in June 2021, it was announced European Sleeper and Moonlight Express would join forces, with the combined entity taking up the European Sleeper name and pursuing the European Sleeper proposal of a Brussels to Prague route with a start date of spring 2022.[7]
A subsequent fundraising round was launched just before the summer of 2022, with €2,000,000 worth of shares sold to 1400 investors.[3] Around the same time, the company announced that the Brussels to Prague route would be indefinitely delayed, with no revised start date provided.[8]
In June 2022, a partnership with tour operator Sunweb Group was announced, with plans to start new night train services between the Netherlands and French ski resorts by the summer of 2023, and an extension to Southern France the following year.[9] In November, it was announced by the two parties that these plans would be put on hold, citing difficulties in securing rolling stock, track access rights and an operator for the services.[10]
The cooperative announced in December that the planned Brussels to Prague route would initially terminate in Berlin due to track capacity constraints imposed for 2023, with German authorities only permitting one long-distance train every two hours south of Dresden due to infrastructure works. The scaled-back route would commence operations on the 25th of May, 2023 with a view to extending service to Prague to complete the original proposal in December 2023, dependent on whether track rights can be secured. The company cited the lack of availability of suitable rolling stock as its biggest challenge, and said that the service would initially operate with leased rolling stock, with plans to purchase new rolling stock afoot, with plans eventually calling for services to be operated with a mix of new and refurbished rolling stock.[11]
European Sleeper's proposed service from Amsterdam to Barcelona was selected in January 2023 to be a pilot project as part of the European Commission's efforts to improve cross-border rail service and encourage new links to be established. It joins two other night train proposals from Snälltaget and Midnight Trains.[12]
Bookings for the service opened on the 20th of February, with tickets only able to be purchased through the European Sleeper website.[2] Work is in progress to allow tickets to be booked with Interrail passes.[3]
Services commenced on the 25th of May, 2023, with the inaugural service running from Berlin towards Brussels, arriving at its Belgian terminus 45 minutes behind schedule. Deputy Prime Minister and Mobility Minister of Belgium Georges Gilkinet met the service at Brussels South on its arrival on the morning of the 26th and saw off the train on its return leg to Berlin that evening.[13]
In June 2023, a third fundraising round for €3 million of growth capital[14] was announced, which will open on the 21st of June and be available to both new and existing investors, who can invest at a starting price of €250, with shares worth €3 to be issued. The cooperative announced it would be the last fundraising opportunity for some time. Funds raised would go towards enabling technical integrations to sell tickets through additional sales channels, hiring a restaurant car for the existing service, preparing service expansions to Prague as well as the proposed services between Amsterdam and Barcelona and ordering new rolling stock. At the same time, the cooperative announced it had sold 10,000 tickets for its existing Berlin-Brussels service,[15] with expectations that €5-6 million worth of tickets would be sold by the year's end. It also announced that Interrail and Eurail passes would be able to be used on services from the 1st of July, with reservations able to be made from the 12th of June.[14]
Service
Brussels - Berlin service | |
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Overview | |
Service type | International sleeper train |
First service | 25 May 2023 |
Route | |
Termini | Brussels Berlin |
Stops |
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Distance travelled | Approximately 1,000 km (620 mi) |
Average journey time | Approximately 12 hours |
Service frequency | Thrice-weekly |
On-board services | |
Seating arrangements | Six-seater compartments (can also be booked privately) |
Sleeping arrangements | |
Catering facilities |
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Other facilities | Bicycle storage available for a fee |
European Sleeper's only service between Berlin and Brussels commenced operations on the 25th of May, 2023.[2] Currently, service is thrice-weekly, with trains from Brussels to Berlin leaving on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and trains from Berlin to Brussels leaving on Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday.[16]
In an article in The Sunday Times about the inaugural Brussels to Berlin service, travel writer Kate Leahy commented, "Orient Express-style luxury this is not,"[17] but concluded:
"Those tired trains are certainly not the most glamorous way to travel, nor the fastest and, as I found, not even always the most reliable. But they are undeniably an adventure — and that part seemed really to have everyone on board."[17]
Towards Berlin (operates Monday, Wednesday, Friday) | Towards Brussels (operates, Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday) | ||
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Station | Departure Time | Station | Departure Time |
Brussels-South | 19:22 | Berlin Hbf | 22:56 |
Antwerpen Centraal | 20:01 | Bad Bentheim | 04:09 |
Roosendaal | 20:44 | Deventer | 05:16 |
Rotterdam Centraal | 21:21 | Amersfoort Centraal (does not stop) | - |
Den Haag HS | 21:42 | Amsterdam Centraal | 06:31 |
Amsterdam Centraal | 22:34 | Den Haag HS (does not stop) | - |
Amersfoort Centraal | 23:13 | Rotterdam Centraal | 07:32 |
Deventer | 23:49 | Roosendaal | 08:16 |
Bad Bentheim | 01:09 | Antwerpen Centraal | 08:43 |
Berlin Hbf | 06:48 | Brussels-South | 09:27 |
References
- "European Sleeper". European Sleeper. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- "EUROPEAN SLEEPER Brussels & Amsterdam to Berlin by sleeper train". The Man in Seat Sixty-One. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- "Night trains: Inside Europe's newest sleeper train service". Euronews. 20 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- Vosman, Quintus (6 April 2021). "European Sleeper announces first international night train service". International Railway Journal. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- Orban, André (8 April 2021). "Belgian start-up Moonlight Express to launch night trains between Brussels, Liège and Berlin in April 2022". Aviation24.be. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- Harris, Ainsley (27 May 2023). "Sleeper trains are returning to Europe". Fast Company. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- Burroughs, David (16 June 2021). "Private night train operators join forces as European Sleeper". International Railway Journal. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- "Amsterdam to Prague night train delayed indefinitely | NL Times". nltimes.nl. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- Cunningham, Ed (14 June 2022). "A new sleeper train route will soon link up Amsterdam and the south of France". Time Out Worldwide. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- "European Sleeper's winter night train to France put off". RailTech.com. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- "Brussels – Amsterdam – Berlin night train launch date announced". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- "Connecting Europe by train: 10 EU pilot services to boost cross-border rail". transport.ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- "Europe's sleeper train awakens". Politico. 30 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- Burroughs, David (13 June 2023). "European Sleeper launches third funding round". International Railway Journal. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
- "European Sleeper announces third funding round". Railway Gazette International. Retrieved 9 June 2023.
- "The Good Night Train". European Sleeper. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- Leahy, Kate (4 June 2023). "What it's like to ride the new sleeper train from London to Berlin". The Times. Retrieved 4 June 2023.