According to European Sleeper, which shared the news with Treinreiziger.nl, French railway infrastructure manager SNCF Réseau conducted a feasibility study stating an acceptable timetable is possible in France for the European Sleeper night train to Barcelona in Catalonia.

However, as usual, a key obstacle remains: the availability of rolling stock. At present, European Sleeper does not have the necessary carriages to launch the service. Co-founder Chris Engelsman told Treinreiziger.nl that, as a result, it is unrealistic to expect the train to start running in 2026, though he added that the company would aim for that timeline if suitable rolling stock is secured.

Departure from Amsterdam?

Plans for the night train to Barcelona have been in development for some time, but until now, there was no viable timetable for the route through France. That issue has now been resolved, although a precise schedule has yet to be determined. 

Due to travel times within France, it remains uncertain whether the service will start in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. While this is still the preferred option, if an earlier departure is required, the train may instead start and terminate in Brussels in Belgium. Engelsman stressed that Amsterdam remains the goal, but the final decision will depend on scheduling constraints.

European Sleeper continues to prepare for the new connection, though a concrete launch date has not been set. The company initially aimed to introduce the service in 2025, later postponing it to 2026, while always acknowledging that a later start was possible. For travellers eager for a direct night train to Barcelona, the wait is set to continue.

Phased expansion

European Sleeper plans to expand its network in phases. In May 2023, the company introduced its first night train between Brussels and Berlin in Germany, with a stop in Amsterdam. This service is set to extend to Dresden and Prague in Czechia in 2024. 

Earlier this year, a winter night train between Brussels, Eindhoven, and Innsbruck in Austria (with an extension to Venice) was launched. But that itinerary experienced a false start.

Barcelona in Spain is the next major expansion, further advancing European Sleeper’s ambitions for sustainable and cross-border night train travel.

European support

The Amsterdam – Brussels – Barcelona night train is a project which receives support by the European Commission. The Commission supports ten cross-border train travel ‘pilot projects’.

Rolling stock

Finding coaches for night trains is near impossible. Sure ÖBB ordered some units for its Nightjet services. Siemens is building some modern sleep trains. But there almost no second-hand carriages available. 

What still ís available is old and outdated. We took the European Sleeper to Germany in October 2024. You’ll read that review soon. Bottomline there is European Sleeper offers a good soft product but the hard product isn’t great.

For now, night trains in Europe are mostly for sleep trains amateurs and adventurers. 

More on night trains and transcontinental train travel

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