This new train journey links seven European cities — and it costs £99 for a 21-hour trip

Eleanor Noyce

Published February 3, 2025 10:57am Updated February 5, 2025 8:44am

The side of a European Sleeper train as it travels through plush green hills next to a river. — A new sleeper train linking seven European cities is launching this week (Picture: European Sleeper)

From vast valleys to soaring mountains, the diverse terrain of Europe is endlessly beautiful – so beautiful, in fact, that it’s currently experiencing a booming railway renaissance.

Now, there’s a new breathtaking train journey linking seven European cities. And with the cheapest tickets coming in at £99 (€119) for a 21-hour trip (just over £4.70 per hour), there’s impressive value for money.

The European Sleeper service will run from Brussels to Venice, two polar-opposite destinations known for moules frites and sprawling canals respectively, with the inaugural journey running on February 5.

Along the way, the service will be stopping at Eindhoven, Cologne, Munich, Innsbruck and fair Verona, and was created to provide a sustainable travel option between the cities – many of which are notable winter sports destinations. Après-ski, anyone?

Guildhalls at Grand Place — The new service will connect Brussels and Venice (Picture: Getty Images)

This new train journey links seven European cities - and it takes just X hours — The route will be run by European Sleeper (Picture: European Sleeper)

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These seven cities aren’t the only destinations, as there are 15 stops in total, including Innsbruck, Brennero, and Jenbach.

The Belgium-Italy service starts at 18:06 at Bruxelles Midi/Brussel Zuid and finishes at Venezia Mestre at 15:00 the following day, while the return service begins at 16:15 and finishes at 12:38. Both will run once a week until the end of March.

While prices start at €119 (£99) for seats, if you’re wanting a more opulent experience (i.e. a bed), you’ll pay up to €239 (£198.91). It’s still a pretty good deal though, considering it works out at £9.40 per hour.

The most beautiful European train routes to travel in 2025

From towering mountains to golden shores, Europe’s diverse landscape is perfect for exploring by rail.

And tourists are catching on. A ‘rail renaissance’ has seen increasing numbers of holidaymakers swapping planes for trains, driven partly by a desire to travel more sustainably — something that’s now important to 83% of travellers, according to a recent Booking.com report.

Amid this uptick in interest, Lonely Planet ranked the world’s most incredible train journeys to take in 2025. There are seven European routes on the list, while one UK journey has been crowned the most beautiful train ride in Europe.

Cannes to Menton, France.

Settle to Carlisle, UK

The Bernina Express, Switzerland and Italy

The Bergensbanen, Norway

The Caledonian Sleeper, UK

The Glacier Express, Switzerland

Venice Simplon-Orient-Express

Nova Gorica to Jesenice, Slovenia

Meanwhile, fancy trying out the longest train journey in the UK?

Spanning 13 hours and 20 minutes and 36 stops, the Aberdeen to Penzance route covers a whopping 785 miles of terrain – and, first introduced in 1921, has been running for more than 100 years.

You’ll definitely want a window seat for this one, as the train zooms past the likes of Edinburgh Castle, Bamburgh Castle, the Fife coastline, the Royal Albert Bridge and, eventually, the Dawlish seawall down in Devon.

Aerial view over St Mark's square and city of Venice at sunset — This month, the Venice Carnival will be running (Picture: Getty Images)

It ticks off many of the major cities in the north, including Edinburgh, Newcastle, Durham, York, Leeds and Sheffield, and as such, spends around two hours in total waiting for passengers to get on and off the train at each stop.

Leaving Aberdeen at 8.20am once a day, the service only runs directly one way – so if you want to get back to Aberdeen afterwards, you’ll need to be prepared to either change in London for the simplest route, or make a maximum of five stops between the likes of Bristol, Newport, Crewe, and Edinburgh.

Win a week in a dreamy ski chalet in the French Alps

Metro have teamed up with Ski Beat to give one lucky winner and their even luckier travel companion a chance to experience the ultimate winter getaway from the UK’s leading ski chalet provider in France.

Scenic view of LA ROSIERE ski resort — The winner will stay in stunny La Rosiere (Picture: Getty Images)

Simply enter our prize draw and you could be jetting off to the French Alps to spend a week in Ski Beat’s stylish Chalet Perdrix in the pretty, high-altitude resort of La Rosière, staying in a private, ensuite, double or twin room.

Sound like a dream? This amazing holiday can be taken on the 5th or 12th of April 2025 or 13th Dec 2025, so you can pick the perfect ski time to suit your preference.

To enter, simply share your name and contact details below for a chance to win. Entries close at 23:59 on 21 February 2025. Good luck!

Form not loading? Enter here.

Full T&Cs apply, see here.

_{Open to UK (excluding Northern Ireland) residents aged 18 or over.} _{Promotion opens at 00:01 on 24/01/2025 and closes at 23:59 on 21/02/2025.} _{1 prize available: The prize includes 7 nights’ accommodation, with a chalet host to prepare breakfast, afternoon tea with home-made cakes, three course evening meals with wine (6 nights), return flights from Manchester or London Gatwick to Lyon Saint-Exupéry and transfers to La Rosière.The prize does not include ski passes, ski equipment hire and the winner is solely responsible for obtaining mandatory winter sports travel insurance.} _{1 entry per person or email address.}