Latest news with #ComfortJet
The Guardian
2 days ago
- The Guardian
Timetables, tricky tickets and high prices: the problems with European cross-border rail travel
At 9.55am every day since December, a German ICE high-speed train has left the Gare de l'Est in Paris headed, via Strasbourg, Karlsruhe and Frankfurt, for Berlin Hauptbahnhof, where – all being well – it pulls in just over eight hours later. Remarkably, the service is the first direct, high-speed, centre-to-centre rail link between the capitals of the EU's two biggest countries. Run by Deutsche Bahn (DB) and France's SNCF, it has been hailed as a milestone in European train travel. It is not the only new service linking Europe's cities. From next May, the ČD ComfortJet, operated by the Czech, German and Danish railways, will carry you all the way from Prague to Copenhagen, calling at Dresden, Berlin and Hamburg, in just over 11 hours. Major new routes are being built: a high-speed Alpine tunnel linking Lyon and Turin; the Fehmarn Belt connecting Germany and Denmark; Rail Baltica, which will join Tallinn in Estonia to Warsaw via Riga in Latvia and Kaunas in Lithuania. On the face of it, then, high-speed, long-distance rail travel in Europe seems to be finally taking off. But in fact, fast, efficient cross-border rail services between the continent's major urban centres remain, for all the media fanfare, very much a rarity. For a whole raft of reasons – inadequate infrastructure, unwilling operators, incompatible systems, incomprehensible timetabling and (last but not least) impossibly complicated ticketing – long rail journeys across Europe are all too often a pastime rather than a practical travel alternative. Imagine, for the sake of illustration (few except slow-travel aficionados would ever actually attempt it), a four-country trip from Spain's second-biggest city, Barcelona, to Marseille in France, then on to Italy's largest port, Genoa, ending in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. For starters, says Jon Worth, an independent writer and campaigner on European cross-border rail travel, while there is a high-speed line across the Spanish-French border, for most of the year it carries only four trains a day, and five in summer. 'Why?' Worth says. 'Because the new trains run by the Spanish operator, Renfe, haven't been approved to run in France, and SNCF has cut the size of its fleet capable of running in Spain. So the trains that do run are invariably packed, and prices are sky-high.' Next, only one of those four or five daily trains will run direct from Barcelona to Marseille, and it arrives in France's biggest port so late that you miss the last service to Nice, which is where you need to be in order to catch a train to Italy. So, you must then board a slow regional train the next morning for the hour-long ride to Ventimiglia, followed, with luck and good timing, by a relatively fast intercity connection along the Ligurian coast to Genoa. From there, things only get worse. Trains crossing the Italy-Slovenia border at Gorizia-Nova Gorica run at weekends only. Those doing so at Villa Opicina, near Trieste, are daily but very irregular. So the 370 miles (600km) to Ljubljana via Milan and Venice will take up to 13 hours and probably involve travelling via Villach in Austria. 'It's one of the worst borders to cross anywhere in the EU,' says Worth. 'Very few, very slow trains.' Moreover, although European night trains are making a much-hyped but in reality slow and difficult comeback, there isn't one on this route. (Actually, that's not strictly true. The Espresso Riviera, operated by Treni Turistici Italiani, is a delightful upmarket sleeper service from Rome to Marseille and back. Unfortunately, it runs only in July and August, and then just once a week.) Leaving aside the nonexistent connectivity, the obstacles facing the long-distance European rail traveller will have become apparent long before they actually get on a train. Planning a trip and buying tickets (as well resolving problems if things go wrong) are daunting challenges in themselves. Seasoned travellers recommend Deutsche Bahn's website as the best and most comprehensive planning tool for navigating the seemingly infinite complexities of Europe's train schedules, but few novices would describe even that as user-friendly. Sign up to This is Europe The most pressing stories and debates for Europeans – from identity to economics to the environment after newsletter promotion It is also unlikely to be able to sell you all the tickets you need, which will have to be bought separately from the various national operators. Unlike plane travel, through train tickets are rare – and if they exist, they are often more expensive than a combination. Moreover, although services such as Trainline – which anyway only offers only a small selection of possible routes – can sell you a through journey from, say, Barcelona to Nice, it will be two tickets with two different operators, sold in one transaction. 'That means,' says Worth, 'if anything goes wrong – say, a train is late and you miss your connection – you have no passenger rights at all. Worse, few stations will be able to help. Unlike in an airport, you'll have to sort it out yourself.' Across the continent, similar issues recur, vastly complicating journeys that could, in principle, be smooth, practical, sustainable travel alternatives – and pushing even those willing to accept a longer and more expensive trip on to Europe's ferociously competitive airlines. Sometimes, infrastructure is the main obstacle. French TGVs and Italian Frecciarossas link Paris to Milan in seven hours, for example, but must crawl through the Alps until the new Lyon-Turin high-speed line and tunnel is completed, theoretically in 2033. Meanwhile, the current route is heavily susceptible to damage from increasingly frequent landslides: after reopening in April following a 20-month closure for mudslides, it had to shut down again for several days in July for the same reason. At other times, the issue is a lack of cooperation between rail operators. Astonishingly, there has been no direct train connection between Madrid and Lisbon – two neighbouring European capitals – since a Spanish sleeper service was discontinued in 2020. The 450-mile journey now requires two changes and multiple tickets and takes more than eight hours. Lines are being electrified but there is no guarantee that Renfe and Portugal's CP, which have very different strategies, will combine forces and deliver a through service. 'Operators still mostly think and work nationally,' says Worth. 'CP is old-style, regular, but has only just started work on its first high-speed line. Renfe is modern, high-speed connections between Spain's major cities. They're just not a good fit.' Different technologies and operating systems are a major block. In principle, that can be overcome with modern, multi-system rolling stock, but it is significantly more expensive. A pan-European signalling system, ECTS, is on its way but not there yet. Other obvious European rail connections badly in need of upgrading, Worth argues, could include Berlin-Warsaw, which still runs on slow tracks for much of its six-hour journey (though that may change, given Poland's ambitious high-speed rail plans). And in Scandinavia, a high-speed service linking Oslo to Stockholm or Copenhagen remains a pipe dream. A project that would slash travel times between the Norwegian capital and Gothenburg in Sweden to an hour has, so far, made zero progress.
The Irish Sun
10-07-2025
- The Irish Sun
New European train to connect two popular cities for the first time in 10 years – and there's even an onboard cinema
A NEW train connecting three major European cities will launch next year. Connecting Prague and Copenhagen via Berlin, the new train service will be established by Czech Railways (ČD), Deutsche Bahn (DB) and Danish State Railways (DSB). 3 A new train connecting three major European cities will launch next year Credit: 3 The new service will connect Prague and Copenhagen via Berlin Credit: The new route has been announced following the completion of the Berlin to And it will be the first direct service between Prague and Copenhagen to operate in 10 years. The service is likely to run twice a day, all year round with trains departing from During the summer season, there will also be an additional service at 4:30pm. Read more on travel inspo The journey will take seven hours between Berlin and However, these times are expected to be further reduced when the Fehmarn Belt Undersea Tunnel between Denmark and According to Travel Mole, other stops will include Odense in Denmark , Hamburg and Dresden in Germany as well as Ústí nad Labem in the The trains will be ČD's ComfortJet trains which can seat up to 555 people - 99 of which are in first-class - and travels up to 230km per hour. Most read in News Travel On the train itself, passengers can explore a dining car and a children's cinema. In the dining car, there will be 18 seats and passengers will be able to buy hot or cold meals and other refreshments during the journey - including beer. Iconic steam train Tornado delights crowds as it powers through Cornwall on rail tour In addition, the train will boast window tech which will allow passengers to have better mobile signal. If travelling with a bike, there will be space for 12 bikes on board too as well as wheelchair lifts. There could also be a seasonal night-time connection service. Whilst there is already a train that runs between Hamburg and Copenhagen during the summer at night, from 2026 it will be extended to Prague via Berlin and The three railway carriers aim to start selling tickets six months before the train journey actually commences. The new service is the first of 10 pilot projects that the European Commission is supporting to promote cross-border rail connections. Other projects include a new direct connection between Munich, Huge UK train station to get major makeover LONDON St Pancras station is set to double its capacity to 5,000 passengers per hour with a £60million investment. London St Pancras Highspeed and Eurostar have signed a letter of intent to work together to create more room and routes for travellers at the major station. The aim of the combined project is for St Pancras International to become one of Europe's busiest international rail hubs and support the demand for travel international travel. London St Pancras Highspeed and Eurostar have agreed to collaborate through three phases. The first will review short term improvements within the current station layout. This includes optimising the security and border crossing processes to deliver an uplift of 2,700 passengers per hour in the next three to four years. Phase two will see the improvement of the international area and its connection to the main concourse. This is expected to be complete by 2028. The final phase will take place in the 2030s, which is set to further enhance capacity. This might mean the change of the station layout with arrivals potentially being relocated upstairs. There is also a Plus, the 3 The journey will take seven hours between Berlin and Copenhagen or 11 hours between the Danish capital and Prague Credit:
Scottish Sun
10-07-2025
- Scottish Sun
New European train to connect two popular cities for the first time in 10 years – and there's even an onboard cinema
Plus, a massive UK train station has revealed plans to double passengers in a £60million masterplan ON TRACK New European train to connect two popular cities for the first time in 10 years – and there's even an onboard cinema A NEW train connecting three major European cities will launch next year. Connecting Prague and Copenhagen via Berlin, the new train service will be established by Czech Railways (ČD), Deutsche Bahn (DB) and Danish State Railways (DSB). 3 A new train connecting three major European cities will launch next year Credit: 3 The new service will connect Prague and Copenhagen via Berlin Credit: The new route has been announced following the completion of the Berlin to Hamburg rail line. And it will be the first direct service between Prague and Copenhagen to operate in 10 years. The service is likely to run twice a day, all year round with trains departing from Prague at approximately 6:30am and 10:30am. During the summer season, there will also be an additional service at 4:30pm. The journey will take seven hours between Berlin and Copenhagen or 11 hours between the Danish capital and Prague. However, these times are expected to be further reduced when the Fehmarn Belt Undersea Tunnel between Denmark and Germany is completed. According to Travel Mole, other stops will include Odense in Denmark, Hamburg and Dresden in Germany as well as Ústí nad Labem in the Czech Republic. The trains will be ČD's ComfortJet trains which can seat up to 555 people - 99 of which are in first-class - and travels up to 230km per hour. On the train itself, passengers can explore a dining car and a children's cinema. In the dining car, there will be 18 seats and passengers will be able to buy hot or cold meals and other refreshments during the journey - including beer. Iconic steam train Tornado delights crowds as it powers through Cornwall on rail tour In addition, the train will boast window tech which will allow passengers to have better mobile signal. If travelling with a bike, there will be space for 12 bikes on board too as well as wheelchair lifts. There could also be a seasonal night-time connection service. Whilst there is already a train that runs between Hamburg and Copenhagen during the summer at night, from 2026 it will be extended to Prague via Berlin and Dresden. The three railway carriers aim to start selling tickets six months before the train journey actually commences. The new service is the first of 10 pilot projects that the European Commission is supporting to promote cross-border rail connections. Other projects include a new direct connection between Munich, Milan and Rome. Huge UK train station to get major makeover LONDON St Pancras station is set to double its capacity to 5,000 passengers per hour with a £60million investment. London St Pancras Highspeed and Eurostar have signed a letter of intent to work together to create more room and routes for travellers at the major station. The aim of the combined project is for St Pancras International to become one of Europe's busiest international rail hubs and support the demand for travel international travel. London St Pancras Highspeed and Eurostar have agreed to collaborate through three phases. The first will review short term improvements within the current station layout. This includes optimising the security and border crossing processes to deliver an uplift of 2,700 passengers per hour in the next three to four years. Phase two will see the improvement of the international area and its connection to the main concourse. This is expected to be complete by 2028. The final phase will take place in the 2030s, which is set to further enhance capacity. This might mean the change of the station layout with arrivals potentially being relocated upstairs. There is also a new major train route connecting an underrated UK city to popular beach town. Plus, the seven stunning European cities that Brits could take direct trains to as a London station plans huge expansion.
Euronews
10-07-2025
- Business
- Euronews
Copenhagen and Prague will soon be a direct train ride away
Europe's long-distance rail network is getting another boost in 2026. Starting next May, passengers will be able to ride the rail from Prague to Copenhagen via Berlin. Deutsche Bahn (DB), Danish Railways (DSB) and Czech Railways (ČD) are teaming up to offer the new direct connection, which will launch on 1 May 2026, when overhaul work on the line between Berlin and Hamburg is complete. The year-round daytime service will run in both directions and is expected to take just seven hours between Copenhagen and Berlin, and around eleven hours between Copenhagen and Prague. The operators will also extend a summer season night train that currently links Hamburg and Copenhagen onward to Prague. Additional stops are planned in key cities, including Dresden and Hamburg. The route will be served by ČD's new ComfortJet trains, offering a wide range of amenities, including an on-board restaurant, Wi-Fi, bicycle storage and space for 555 passengers. The high-speed trains also feature wheelchair lifts, a children's cinema and radio-transparent windows, which improve mobile connectivity and reception for passengers. Cross-border train travel picks up pace The Prague-Copenhagen connection is the first of 10 pilot projects selected by the European Commission to promote new cross-border train routes and improve international mobility. The initiative is designed to address persistent hurdles in long-distance rail, from infrastructure bottlenecks to market barriers. 'Rail is bringing Europe closer and closer together,' Michael Peterson, DB's board member for long distance passenger transport, said when the new link was announced. 'Journey times of over four hours are popular with our passengers in international long distance transport, and we are offering additional attractive services to meet the growing demand.' Other recent EU-backed rail connections include theBerlin-Paris route launched by DB and France's SNCF in December, and the newly announced Munich-Milan-Rome link set to launch in the coming years. Apostolos Tzitzikostas, the EU's commissioner for sustainable transport and tourism, called the Prague-Copenhagen route 'a strong example of progress' toward a greener and more connected continent. Europe's rail revival ramps up this summer and beyond Travellers seeking alternatives to short-haul flights now have more rail options than ever. In February, the Vilnius-Riga serviceexpanded to Tallinn. Then, in June,Polish Railways (PKP) launched a new summer route connecting Warsaw to Split on Croatia's Adriatic coast. The delightfully namedEspresso Riviera has also returned to service this summer, linking Rome and the French Riviera overnight. In the coming years, the rail links should continue to grow. Startup Dreamstar Lines plans to connect100 European cities via sleeper train – promising fares for less than the price of a hotel stay. These routes are part of a broader renaissance for European rail, with night trains especially seeing a resurgence after decades of decline. Barriers to seamless train travel remain While enthusiasm is growing for this greener method of travel, Europe's cross-border rail ambitions still face obstacles. Fragmented ticketing systems, differences in infrastructure and slow approvals for new routes continue tohinder progress. And passengers still struggle to find unified booking platforms or real-time updates when journeys involve multiple national rail companies. Still, EU leaders remain optimistic that the pilot routes – including Prague to Copenhagen – will set a precedent for a more connected, sustainable future. 'This direct rail link is not only good for travellers,' said Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner. 'It's an important step in decarbonising Europe's transport sector.'
Time Out
09-07-2025
- Time Out
Three of Europe's coolest capitals will soon be connected by direct train
Will announcements of new train routes in Europe ever stop rolling in? Who knows, but we're certainly here to ride the wave, and the latest addition to the long list of new services has just been announced. From as soon as May 1, 2026, a brand-new direct train will be connecting the brilliant capital cities of Prague, Berlin and Copenhagen – yes, you read that right. The project is a joint effort between Czech Railways (ČD), Deutsche Bahn (DB), and Danish State Railways (DSB), and has been supported by the European Commission, which is keen to encourage cross-border rail travel. Recommended: The incredible 2,500-mile train tour of France launching in September. It also comes after the completion of renovations on the Berlin to Hamburg train line, and according to Railway News, a stop there and in Dresden will be featured, too. So, what do we know so far about the service? Well, it will likely run twice daily, taking seven hours between Berlin and Copenhagen, and 11 between the Danish capital and Prague. A seasonal night train between Hamburg and Copenhagen will be extended to make use of the new route. The trains themselves will be ČD's ComfortJet trains, which can travel up to 230km per hour and seat 555 people, with 99 of those in first-class. Onboard, passengers will have access to a dining car, cinema area, and even adjustable seating. Stay tuned for everything you need to know about this service, including when tickets go on sale. In the meantime, have a look at the best things to do in Berlin, Copenhagen and Prague. Trains on Time Out
