GERMANY: Open access operator FlixTrain is to launch an overnight service between Hamburg, Berlin and München on June 17. The company says many FlixBus passengers like to travel overnight, and that it has always believed there is ‘great potential’ for a night train service. ‘We would now like to gain experience to see how passengers react to the new offer’, FlixTrain said.
Running northbound on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays and Sundays and southbound on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, the trains offer a guaranteed reserved seat. Advertised fares start at €4.99.
Rolling stock will consist of refurbished seating cars with new seats, power sockets, modernised toilets and free wi-fi including entertainment options. Cycles will be carried in two cars of the 10-car formation and accommodation for passengers with reduced mobility will be available in a car marshalled in the centre of the train.
Northbound trains will leave München Hbf at 23.54 and run via Nürnberg, Bamberg and Leipzig, arriving in Berlin Hbf at 08.04 and reaching Hamburg Hbf at 10.07. Southbound trains will depart at 19.49 from Hamburg and at 21.59 from Berlin Hbf, reaching München Hbf at 05.59.
Emphasising rail’s low environmental impact, the company points out that its trains are powered entirely from renewable electricity.
Daytime FlixTrain services run on five routes in Germany: Berlin – Stuttgart, Berlin – Köln – Aachen, Hamburg – Köln, Hamburg – Leipzig and München – Frankfurt am Main. FlixTrain also operates between Stockholm and Göteborg in Sweden.
