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It's not difficult to travel to Bulgaria by train, in fact it's safe, comfortable and a very interesting journey.  The journey from London to Bulgaria takes two nights, using Eurostar to Brussels and a connecting Thalys high-speed train to Cologne, the excellent overnight "City Night Line" sleeper train from Cologne to Vienna, and either a direct sleeping car from Vienna to Sofia via Belgrade or a direct sleeping-car from Budapest to Sofia via Romania.

Train times London ► Sofia  (option 1, via Belgrade):

• Day 1:  Travel from London to Brussels by Eurostar, leaving London St Pancras at 12:57, arriving Brussels Midi 16:03.

• Day 1:  Travel from Brussels to Cologne by high-speed Thalys train, leaving Brussels Midi at 17:25 and arriving Cologne Hauptbahnhof at 19:45.

• Alternatively, if you'd prefer a safer connection in Cologne (and perhaps time to climb Cologne cathedral towers and have a meal), you can leave London earlier, at 10:00, changing in Brussels to arrive Cologne at 15:45.

• Day 1:  Travel from Cologne to Vienna on the excellent City Night Line hotel train 'Donau Kurier', leaving Cologne Hauptbahnhof at 20:06 and arriving in Vienna (Westbahnhof) at 08:35.  The 'Donau Kurier' has sleeping-cars (1 & 2 berth deluxe with shower, 1, 2 or 4 berth standard sleepers with washbasin), couchettes (4 & 6 berth compartments), reclining seats & a bar-restaurant car, see the photos & information below.  The train travels along the famous Rhine Valley between Koblenz and Frankfurt, so if you are in a sleeper and your compartment happens to be on the left-hand side of the train, switch off the lights and watch the Rhine pass by, mountains and castles lit by moonlight, while sipping a glass of Riesling.  Wonderful..!

• Alternatively, you can travel from London to Vienna via Paris, Strasbourg & the (real!) Orient Express, see the London to Austria page.  However, as only full fares are available for the Strasbourg-Vienna Orient Express, this usually works out more expensive.

• Day 2:  Travel from Vienna to Sofia by direct sleeping-car, leaving Vienna at 19:48 and arriving in Sofia at 18:15 next day (day 3 from London).  This train travels via Budapest and Belgrade (Hungary & Serbia).  Just one sleeping-car of the Bulgarian railways runs direct Vienna-Sofia, with 1- 2- & 3-bed compartments with washbasin, see the photos below.  There is no restaurant car, so take you own food, water and beer or wine, and enjoy the ride...

Train times London ► Sofia  (option 2, via Romania):

• Day 1:  Travel from London to Brussels by Eurostar, leaving London St Pancras at 12:57, arriving Brussels Midi 16:03.

• Day 1:  Travel from Brussels to Cologne by high-speed Thalys train, leaving Brussels Midi at 17:25 and arriving Cologne Hauptbahnhof at 19:45.

• Day 1:  Travel from Cologne to Vienna on the excellent City Night Line hotel train 'Donau Kurier', leaving Cologne Hauptbahnhof at 20:06 and arriving in Vienna (Westbahnhof) at 08:35.  The 'Donau Kurier' has sleeping-cars (1 & 2 berth deluxe with shower, 1, 2 or 4 berth standard sleepers with washbasin), couchettes (4 & 6 berth compartments), reclining seats & a bar-restaurant car, see the photos & information below.  The train travels along the famous Rhine Valley between Koblenz and Frankfurt, so if you are in a sleeper and your compartment happens to be on the left-hand side of the train, switch off the lights and watch the Rhine pass by, mountains and castles lit by moonlight, while sipping a glass of Riesling.  Wonderful..!

• Alternatively, you can travel from London to Vienna via Paris, Strasbourg & the (real!) Orient Express, see the London to Austria page.  However, as only full fares are available for the Strasbourg-Vienna Orient Express, this usually works out more expensive.

• Day 2:  Travel from Vienna to Budapest on air-conditioned InterCity train 'Avala', leaving Vienna at 09:52 and arriving in Budapest (Keleti station) at 12:53.  A restaurant car is available.

• Day 2:  Travel from Budapest to Sofia in a direct sleeping-car, leaving Budapest Keleti station daily at 17:45, arriving Sofia at 21:43 next day (day 3 from London).  The sleeping-car has 1- 2- & 3-bed rooms with washbasin.  It is routed via Romania, being detached from the EuroNight 'Ister' and attached to the Bucharest-Athens 'Romania' in Bucharest.  In the comfort of a sleeper, it's a safe, pleasant and scenic journey, but there's no restaurant car, so take you own food, water and beer or wine.

On board the City Night Line hotel train from Cologne to Vienna...

The City Night Line 'Donau Kurier' is a travelling hotel, with bar-restaurant-reception car, distinctive double-decker sleeping-cars with 1 & 2-bed deluxe sleepers with private shower & toilet, 1, 2 & 4 bed standard sleepers with washbasin, single-deck couchette cars with 4 & 6 berth compartments, and reclining seats.  A wonderful way to travel..!  The sleeper berths come fully made up with sheets and duvets.  All sleeper passengers get mineral water in the evening and a light breakfast served in their compartment next morning, deluxe sleeper passengers also get a complimentary glass of wine in the evening.  Towels and toiletries are provided, including shampoo and shower gel in the deluxe sleeper.  Couchette passengers get mineral water, each couchette is provided with clean sheets, blanket and pillow.  The bar-restaurant is open to all passengers, and it's normally open to about 2am.  If you like, you can book a table for dinner in the restaurant car before you travel, by emailing service@citynightline.ch or using the online form at www.bahn.de/citynightline.  When waiting for the northbound City Night Line train at Vienna Westbahnhof, if you have a sleeper ticket (as opposed to couchette or seat ticket), you can use the first class station lounge, with complimentary drinks.

				3-D panorama of a City Night Line 2-berth deluxe sleeper 3-D panorama of a City Night Line double-deck sleeper corridor City Night Line sleeper, couchette & seat numbering plans City Night Line website: www.bahn.de/citynightline.
One of the impressive double-deck sleeping-cars in the new City Night Line red & white livery...		A table for dinner in the train's bar-restaurant.  There's also a bar serving drinks & snacks.

Deluxe sleeper: Compact rooms on top deck, 1 or 2 berths, table & chairs, shower & toilet.  3-D panorama.		Standard sleeper:  Very compact 1 or 2 berth rooms with washbasin.  Mainly lower deck.		4-berth couchettes:  Ideal for families.  Much more space per person than 6-berth, so worth the extra few euros.		6-berth couchettes:  Shown here with middle bunks lowered to form sofa.  Very economical, far better than a seat.		Reclining seats:  The cheapest way to travel, but a couchette is a far better option.

From Vienna to Budapest by EuroCity train...

Above:  2nd class seats on an air-conditioned EuroCity train from Vienna to Budapest...		Above:  The Hungarian restaurant car on a Vienna to Budapest EuroCity train.  The set menu costs around 15 euros, a small bottle of wine about 2.80 euros.  Treat yourself..!

From Budapest or Vienna to Sofia by sleeping-car...

Above left:  A Bulgarian railways 1- 2- or 3-berth sleeper compartment as used from Vienna to Sofia and from Budapest to Sofia.  You can clearly see the beds, the washbasin (with the top down to form a small corner table) and the toilet cabinet above it.  These Bulgarian sleepers are a bit more basic than western European sleepers.  Photo courtesy of Shuhei Terashima Above right:  The Budapest - Sofia sleeping-car at Bucharest.  Photo courtesy of Alexandru Dumitru.

Train times Sofia ► London  (option 1, via Belgrade)

• Day 1:  Travel from Sofia to Vienna by direct sleeping-car, leaving Sofia at 12:40 and arriving at Vienna station at 08:57 the next day (day 2).  The sleeping-car has 1- 2- & 3-bedrooms with washbasin.  There is no restaurant car, so take you own food, water and beer or wine.  In the sleeping-car, it's a safe, pleasant and scenic journey.

• Day 2:  Travel from Vienna to Cologne overnight, leaving Vienna (Westbahnhof) at 20:35 and arriving at Cologne at 08:42 next morning.  This train is the excellent City Night Line hotel train 'Donau Kurier', with double-deck sleeping-cars (1 or 2-bed deluxe sleepers with en suite shower & WC, 1- 2- or 4-bed standard sleepers with washbasin), couchettes (4-bunk or 6-bunk), reclining seats and a bar-restaurant car.  See the photos & information above.

• Day 3:  Travel from Cologne to Brussels by high-speed Thalys train, leaving Cologne at 10:14 and arriving Brussels 12:35.

• Day 3:  Travel from Brussels to London by Eurostar, leaving Brussels at 14:59 arriving London St Pancras at 15:56.

• Alternatively, you can travel from Vienna to London via Paris, Strasbourg & the (real!) Orient Express, see the London to Austria page.  However, as only full fares are available for the Vienna-Strasbourg Orient Express, this route usually works out more expensive.

Train times Sofia ► London  (option 2, via Romania)

• Day 1:  Travel from Sofia to Budapest by direct sleeping-car, leaving Sofia at 08:18 and arriving at Budapest Keleti station the next day at 07:37 (day 2).  The sleeping-car has 1- 2- & 3-bed rooms with washbasin.  There is no restaurant car, so take you own food, water and beer or wine.  In the sleeping-car, it's a safe, pleasant and scenic journey.

• Day 2:  Travel from Budapest to Vienna by air-conditioned InterCity train, leaving Budapest (Keleti) station at 11:10 and arriving Vienna at 14:08.  A restaurant car is available for lunch.  There is also another train at 15:10 arriving Vienna at 18:08.

• Day 2:  Travel from Vienna to Cologne overnight, leaving Vienna (Westbahnhof) at 20:35 and arriving at Cologne at 08:42 next morning.  This train is the excellent City Night Line hotel train 'Donau Kurier', with double-deck sleeping-cars (1 or 2-bed deluxe sleepers with en suite shower & WC, 1- 2- or 4-bed standard sleepers with washbasin), couchettes (4-bunk or 6-bunk), reclining seats and a bar-restaurant car.  See the photos & information above.

• Day 3:  Travel from Cologne to Brussels by high-speed Thalys train, leaving Cologne at 10:14 and arriving Brussels 12:35.

• Day 3:  Travel from Brussels to London by Eurostar, leaving Brussels at 14:59 arriving London St Pancras at 15:56.

• Alternatively, you can travel from Vienna to London via Paris, Strasbourg & the (real!) Orient Express, see the London to Austria page.  However, as only full fares are available for the Vienna-Strasbourg Orient Express, this route usually works out more expensive.

Fares:

You might consider using an InterRail pass for this journey, especially if you are under 26 years old, see the InterRail page.  However, especially if you are over 26, an InterRail card may not necessarily be cheaper once sleeper supplements and the Eurostar fare are added, so here are approximate point-to-point fares via Romania.  The fare via Belgrade will the same between London & Vienna, but Vienna-Sofia via Belgrade will be slightly less than the sum of the Vienna-Budapest & Budapest-Sofia fares shown here.

1. London to Cologne  by Eurostar + Thalys:	London to Cologne by Eurostar+Thalys or Eurostar+ICE starts at just £79 return. Book in advance to get the cheapest fares, as the fare rises as cheaper seats are sold.  One-way fares usually cost more than a return, so for one-way trips buy a return and throw away the return half.
2. Cologne to Vienna  by City Night Line:	In a reclining seat:	In a couchette		In the sleeping-car
		6-berth	4-berth	4-berth	2-berth	single	deluxe 2-berth	deluxe single
Savings fare one-way *	£21	£36	£44	£51	£58	£103	£73	£140
Savings fare return *	£42	£72	£88	£102	£116	£206	£146	£280
Normal fare one-way:	£88	£99	£106	£114	£129	£159	£172	£201
Normal fare return:	£176	£198	£212	£228	£258	£318	£344	£402
Child under 14 with own berth:	£44	£49	£53	£58	£60	£78	£65	£100
Child under 6 without own berth:	Child under 6 sharing a berth travels free...
* Savings fares = special book-in-advance fares, no refunds, no changes, limited availability at this price. On City Night line, couchettes are sold individually, but only whole sleeper compartments may be booked.
3. Vienna to Budapest  by EuroCity train:	£24 one-way, £48 return 2nd class  £38 one-way, £76 return 1st class
4. Budapest to Sofia:	£79 each way in 3-bed sleeper, £89 each way in 2-bed sleeper (all per person).
Alternatively:
3. Vienna to Sofia:	£100 each way in 3-bed sleeper, £110 each way in 2-bed sleeper (all per person).

How to buy tickets online:

You can book all the trains from London to Vienna and back online.  This is the best and cheapest way to book, because there's no booking fee and all the special offers are there for you to see.  It involves two websites, so do a dry run on both sites to check prices and availability before booking for real.  Here's how:

• Step 1, go to www.raileurope.co.uk and using the train times on this page as a guide, buy a combined Eurostar+Thalys ticket from London to Cologne.  On the Rail Europe home page, simply select 'London' and 'Cologne' from the drop-down lists and enter your dates of travel.  The further ahead you book, the more likely you are to see the cheapest fares.  Tickets can be posted to any UK address.  Obviously, remember that your return date of travel from Cologne to London will be the day after your departure date from Vienna.  One-way fares are usually more expensive than a cheap return fare, so for one-way trips buy a return ticket and throw away the return half.  Bookings for Eurostar+Thalys open 90 days (3 months) before departure.

• Step 2, go to www.bahn.de/citynightline, select 'English' top right, and buy a ticket from Cologne (Köln in German) to Vienna aboard the "Donau Kurier" City Night Line sleeper train.  Your simply book online and print out your own ticket in .PDF format using your PC printer.  Easy!  Make sure you select the type of couchette or sleeper that you want.  Bookings for City Night Line open 180 days (6 months) before departure.

• The remainder of the journey, from Vienna to Sofia, cannot be booked online and will need to be booked by phone, for example with Deutsche Bahn's UK office on 08718 80 80 66 (lines open 09:00-17:00 Monday-Friday, no booking fee).  They will not be able to make your return reservation from Sofia to Vienna or Budapest, as Bulgaria isn't linked to the western European computer reservations system, so this reservation will need to be made at the station when you get to Sofia (but it's unlikely to be any problem).

How to buy tickets by phone:

You may prefer to book all your tickets by phone.  The whole of the outward journey from London to Sofia can be booked from the UK through any European rail agency.  For this trip I'd recommend Deutsche Bahn's UK office on 08718 80 80 66 (lines open 09:00-17:00 Monday-Friday, no booking fee), www.europeanrail.com on 020 7619 1083 (lines open Mon-Fri, £25 booking fee), or www.trainseurope.co.uk on 0871 700 7722.  Click here for more booking information and a list of agencies.

The return journey can also be booked in advance from the UK, except for the train from Sofia to Vienna or Budapest.  This is because the European computer reservations system covers all of Western Europe and much of Eastern Europe, but not trains originating in Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, Russia, etc..  You will simply need to make the booking for the return Sofia to Vienna/Budapest leg yourself at the reservations office when you reach Sofia.  This is unlikely to be a problem.

You can, of course, still buy a travel ticket for the return Sofia to Budapest section (i.e. a ticket without a reservation) from your UK rail agent.  This is a good idea, as it is one less thing to buy when you get there.  It also gives you the flexibility to approach the sleeping-car or couchette car attendant on the day and ask if any berths are free.  If one is available, you will simply need to pay the couchette or sleeper supplement to the attendant.

The Thomas Cook European timetable has train & ferry times for every country in Europe, plus currency & climate information.  Published since 1873 and costing £13.50, it's essential for any serious traveller and an inspiration for armchair travellers.  More information on what the Thomas Cook Timetable contains.  You can buy the latest monthly edition online at www.thomascooktimetables.com with worldwide delivery, or buy it in person from any UK branch of Thomas Cook (ask at the bureau de change).  Or buy the independent traveller's edition from Amazon.co.uk:  Winter 2007/8 edition (December 2007 to June 2008) or Summer 2008 edition (June to December 2008). 

The Thomas Cook Rail Map of Europe is the best and most comprehensive map of train routes right across Europe, from Portugal in the west to Istanbul, Moscow & Ukraine in the east, from Finland in the north to Sicily & Crete in the south.  High speed & scenic routes are highlighted.  Highly recommended!  Buy online at www.amazon.co.uk (worldwide delivery).  See an extract from the map.

To get the most from your visit, you should take a good guidebook.  For the independent traveller, I think this means one of two guidebooks, either the Lonely Planet or the Rough Guide.  Both series are excellent.  You can buy an in-depth guide for Bulgaria or a guide covering all the countries in Eastern Europe.  Lonely Planet Eastern Europe - Rough Guide Bulgaria.

Click the images to buy online...

Or buy direct from the Lonely Planet website, with shipping worldwide.