New sleeper trains are set to run between Paris and Berlin next year – but night train fans be warned: they will be missing a key feature.
Dutch operator European Sleeper, has confirmed it will take over the Paris-Berlin route, with the first trains departing on 26 March, 2026.
The new service will run three times a week, leaving Paris Gare du Nord on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday evenings, and returning from Berlin Hauptbahnhof and Ostbahnhof on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.
It comes after the revival of Europe’s sleeper trains hit a setback earlier this year, when Austria’s state railway company, OBB, announced it would stop running its popular Nightjet routes between Paris and Vienna, and Paris and Berlin, in December.
The company blamed the ending of the French government’s subsidies for the cuts.
Unlike OBB’s Nightjet, which travels through Strasbourg and Frankfurt, the new route on European Sleeper will go via Brussels – though exact timings are yet to be confirmed.
European Sleeper’s co-founder, Chris Engelsman, said the company endeavours to offer higher capacity than the Nightjet.
Speaking to the Guardian, he said: ‘OBB operates 12 coaches from Paris but it splits to Vienna and then Berlin. On the other hand, we have 12 to 14 coaches that will run entirely to Berlin, with a capacity of 600-700 passengers.’
Dutch operator European Sleeper, has confirmed it will take over the Paris-Berlin route, with the first trains departing on 26 March, 2026
The new service will run three times a week, leaving Paris Gare du Nord on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday evenings, and returning from Berlin Hauptbahnhof and Ostbahnhof on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
European Sleeper, a cooperative based in the Netherlands, already runs night trains linking Brussels, Berlin, Dresden, and Prague, and has carried more than 230,000 passengers since its launch in 2023.
In recent years, the company has faced criticism over delays and weathered carriages, though many travellers continue to praise its nostalgic feel and laidback environment.
For the new route, the company will use coaches originally built in Germany from the 1990s, offering comforting conditions similar to the Nightjet.
However, one beloved element will be missing when the route launches – a dining car.
According to Engelsman, operating a dining car will be too expensive for the time being, as he noted the difficulty of ‘making it profitable.’
So, for night train enthusiasts across Europe who don’t mind tucking into a packed lunch while crossing borders, tickets will be available from 16 December, 2025, with prices starting from €59 (£52) or €69 (£60) for a couchette compartment.
The announcement has since been welcomed by Oui au train de nuit!, a French group campaigning to protect and expand night train services.
In September, the group made headlines when members held a ‘pyjama party’ protest in Paris after OBB announced the cuts.
European Sleeper, a cooperative based in the Netherlands, already runs night trains linking Brussels, Berlin, Dresden, and Prague, and has carried more than 230,000 passengers since its launch in 2023
However, one beloved element will be missing when the route launches – a dining car
Nicolas Forien, a spokesperson for the group, said: ‘This is a partial victory for the 91,000 who signed our petition.’
It comes as one of the world’s most opulent sleeper trains has announced a new route across Europe – but tickets for the notoriously extravagant journey don’t come cheap.
The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express will debut its new service from Paris to Italy’s Amalfi Coast on 4 May, 2026.
In addition to their stay on the luxury train – renowned for its five-star service, plush private cabins and award-winning, high-end dining – guests will have the opportunity to spend two nights at the exclusive Caruso, a Belmond hotel on the Amalfi Coast.
