Nightjet: New generation modern night trains to lure young travellers coming soon

European travellers will soon have another option for their trips with the launch of a new generation of night trains. The concept combines sleek design with an ecological alternative to air travel for comfortable travel across the continent.

Starting in 2023, passengers on Nightjet night trains will be able to travel in new, more comfortable sleeping cabins. These new cars will feature a completely new, more streamlined design, with sliding doors, mood lighting and more space for resting. The interiors have been designed to offer enhanced comfort and privacy, as well as more security for passengers, with a lockable compartment for each passenger.

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The aim of this overhaul is to inject new energy into the sector and above all to attract a maximum number of travellers and convince them to choose the train over the airplane, in this period when energy sobriety is at the heart of concerns in Europe. It remains to be seen whether the proposed prices, which are relatively affordable, will also be attractive. For example, a Paris-Vienna night journey is available from 29 euros for a seat and 49.90 euros for a sleeper compartment.

Nightjet is the sleeper train division of the Austrian national railway company OBB. In 2020, a Europe-wide agreement was signed to expand the Nightjet network, in cooperation with Germany’s Deutsche Bahn, Switzerland’s Federal Railways and France’s SNCF, among others. Today, the Nightjet train fleet provides night-time connections to major cities such as Paris, Rome, Berlin, Amsterdam, Budapest and of course Vienna. More than 250 passengers can travel (and sleep) in these trains.

Another company looking to launch in this market is French start-up Midnight Trains, with plans to start journeys in 2024.