Just over two weeks before a new Paris-Berlin overnight rail service starts, operators have confirmed the service’s route and three new stops.
Two popular night train routes, from Paris to Berlin and Paris to Vienna, were scrapped in December after the French government announced its assistance for the service was to be scrapped in a bid to cut the public deficit.
But Belgian-Dutch operator European Sleeper announced plans to operate a new service between the French and German capitals, starting on March 26th, 2026.
They have also now confirmed extra stops along the way – Aulnoye-Aymeries in France and the Belgian towns of Mons and Liège. This is in addition to the previously-announced stops at Brussels and Hamburg.
Services will leave Paris from Gare du Nord at 5.45pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, call at Aulnoye-Aymeries, Mons, Bruxelles Midi/Brussel Zuid, Liège-Guillemins, Hamburg Harburg (from July 13th), and arrive at Berlin Hauptbahnhof at 9.59am on Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Mondays.
The return service will leave Berlin Hauptbahnhof at 6.31pm on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, calling at Hamburg Harburg (from July 13th), Liège-Guillemins, Bruxelles Midi/Brussel Zuid, Mons, Aulnoye-Aymeries, and arrive at Gare du Nord at 10.45am the following day.
Tickets start at €39.99, with sleeping compartments available from €139.99.
Since it was founded in 2021, European Sleeper has raised €5.5 million in two separate fundraising campaigns.
“We saw a chance to keep an important connection alive, a journey that brings Paris and Berlin closer again,” it said when it announced the new service, adding individuals could “become a co-owner” from €280 and “help bring this night train to life”.
Night trains in Europe are enjoying a resurgence especially among young people concerned about the environmental impact of flying. But there has been concern over whether slow services running at night can be economically viable.
READ ALSO: Where can you get a night train from Paris?✎
Activists from France’s The Climate Action Network (RAC) welcomed the launch of the new service, calling it “very encouraging” for those who aspire to travel “in an environmentally friendly way”.
But “the development of night trains cannot rely solely on private actors, however committed they may be,” it warned, calling for continued subsidies to revive the Paris-Vienna line and secure the resumption of the Paris-Berlin line.
French Transport Minister Philippe Tabarot praised, “any initiative of this kind that increases service without taxpayer money, regardless of the operator”.
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