Night trains from Budapest to European cities and the Adriatic

The night trains commuting between Budapest and major European cities were immensely popular last year.

According to turizmus.com, there are 13 different night trains connecting the Hungarian capital with European cities and capitals, and more than 280 thousand people travelled with them in 2023.

Among other destinations, you can reach Berlin, Zürich, Brassó (Brasov, Kronstadt), Prague and Stuttgart by direct night trains from Budapest. In the summer, you may get on MÁV’s Adriatic night trains commuting between the Hungarian capital and the seashore.

You can buy your ticket to a couchette with 4-6 beds or a sleeping car with 1-3 beds. The latter offers more privacy and intimacy, close to hotel rooms, MÁV writes on their official website. You can feel safe during the journey since you can lock your door and there is a steward on the train.

In the couchettes, food and drink are included. If you feel like it, you can buy more from the stewards. Beds are equipped with pillows, sheets and blankets, but passengers have to make the bed.

Couchettes are coed, but “on some routes, ladies’ compartments are also available”, MÁV wrote. Service included in couchettes contains a welcome package in the evening (still mineral water, chocolate-rum candy) and breakfast (hot drink with sweet or savoury pastry).

In sleeping cars, there are a washbasin, ready-made beds and an extended welcome package (peanuts, apple juice, champagne). For breakfast, you can choose seven components from the menu card. Thus, you can feel almost like you’re in a hotel room.

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Swiss and German cities are the most popular

The overnight journey to Stuttgart is via Vienna and Munich. You can take off in Vienna, Innsbruck and Feldkirch while travelling to Zürich. On the way to Berlin, the train stops in Pozsony (Bratislava) and Dresden. Meanwhile, if you travel to Brassó (Brasov), you can get off in Csíkszereda (Miercurea Ciuc), Gyergyószentmiklós (Gheorgheni) and Sepsiszentgyörgy (Sfântu Gheorghe).

Of course, you are not obliged to sleep during your travel. You can travel sitting in a conventional 2nd class seat, as well.

To Berlin, Stuttgart, Zürich and Brassov, 10 couchettes and 8 sleeping cars commute each day. During summers, 6 sleeping cars travel to Split (Spalato) and 4 to Fiume (Rijeka) in Croatia and Koper in Slovenia.

In 2023, 90 thousand passengers chose to travel on the Budapest-Zürich EuroNight train. The second most popular ride was the Kálmán Imre EuroNight to Stuttgart with 60 thousand passengers. Berlin stands in third place with 50 thousand travellers.

In 2022, The Guardian chose the Budapest-Adriatic train journey as one of Europe’s ten best routes. We wrote about that HERE. Below are some photos: