Cologne - Berlin - Prague (City Night Line Sleeper Train)

Posted by Ed
Last updated on Sun, 03/04/2011 - 3:05pm
CC Image by tristanf
Introduction

There is one direct service per day between Cologne and Prague, although there are plenty of indirect services that involve a change at Berlin (although that route is dealt with on a separate page). This service is operated daily by Deutsche Bahn's City Night Line sleeper service, Kopernikus / Phoenix, and calls at Berlin en route.

City Night Line

City Night Line services operate between a variety of European cities, allowing passengers to make the most of their travels, whilst saving on hotel bills. There are two fare classes; economy and deluxe, and three classes of comfort on-board the City Night Line service:

Sleeper Car
Counchette Car
Seated Car

Sleeper Car

Sleeper cabins are the most comfortable way to travel (although also the most expensive). You can choose to take a bed in a shared cabin (single sex double, triple or quad berths), or pay for a private cabin (for one, two, three or four people). 

Included in the price of your sleeper car ticket is bedding (incl. duvets and pillows), air conditioning, breakfast, washing facilities (shared toilet per carriage), toiletries, towels, and drinking water. Passengers travelling in deluxe class also benefit from a free drink on arrival, as well as a private en-suite shower/toilet.

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Couchettes

Four and six berth couchettes are available, both privately or shared. Single sex and wheelchair accessible cabins are also available. Each couchette features bunk-bed style beds, a lockable door for the room, luggage storage, pillows, blankets, sheets, shared washing facilities and toilets in each carriage, and temperature controls in each room.

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Seats

The cheapest travel option on-board the City Night Line service is in the seating car. Two seating types are offered: open-plan reclining seats, and six-seat compartments. Shared washrooms and toilets are available in each coach, and blankets are available upon request. 

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Timetable

There is only one direct City Night Line sleeper train service per day in either direction, although indirect daytime services via Berlin are available.

Station 457 Station 456
Cologne Hbf 22.28 Prague Hiavni 18.31
Wuppertal Hbf * 23.14 Prague Holesovice 18.40
Dortmund Hbf * 23.56 Decin 20.03
Hamm (Westf) * 00.14 Bad Schandau 20.20
Bielefeld Hbf * 00.43 Dresden Hbf 20.54
Berlin Hbf. 04.28 Berlin Ost. 23.59
Berlin Ost. 04.36 Berlin Hbf. 00.12
Dresden Hbf 06.55 Bielefeld Hbf + 03.58
Bad Schandau 07.33 Hamm (Westf) + 04.29
Decin 07.52 Dortmund Hbf + 04.51
Prague Holesovice 09.16 Wuppertal Hbf + 05.38
Prague Hiavni 09.28 Cologne Hbf 06.14

* - Picks up passengers only.
+ - Drops off passengers only.

Pricing

Two fare classes are available; economy and deluxe. Children up to and including the age of 5 are permitted to travel for free. Children over the age of 5 can take advantage of lower than adult fares, although promotional/special fares are only slightly cheaper for children than for adults, and around 60% cheaper for normal fares. 

City Night Line services are very affordable, with a range of fare classes and accommodation options available. Upgrades are available to ticket-only reservations (most likely to be applied to InterRail/EuroRail tickets). Fares will vary depending on your origin and destination station, so check the exact fare using the link at the bottom of the page.

Class  Car Category Upgrade Europa Special
(ticket + upgrade)
Normal Price
(ticket + upgrade)
 1st  Sleeping  Deluxe 3 berth
(shower, w/c)
 40 €  89 €  212 €
 1st  Sleeping  Deluxe 2 berth
(shower, w/c)
 60 €  109 €  232 €
 1st  Sleeping  Deluxe 1 berth
(shower, w/c)
 100 €  149 €  272 €
 2nd  Sleeping  Economy 4 berth  40 €  69 €  155 €
 2nd  Sleeping  Economy 3 berth  40 €  69 €  155 €
 2nd  Sleeping  Economy 2 berth  60 €  89 €  175 €
 2nd  Sleeping  Economy 1 berth  100 €  129 €  215 €
 2nd  Couchette  6 berth  20 €  59 €  135 €
 2nd  Couchette  4 berth  30 €  69 €  145 €
 2nd  Seating  Compartment  4 €  33 €  125 €
 2nd  Seating  Standard  10 €  39 €  119 €
 

All fares are one-way, return prices are twice the single fare.

Rail Pass Fares:

If you are planning to travel on the City Night Line with your rail pass (InterRail or Eurail), you must pay a surcharge/reservation fee to book a seat/couchette/bed. You must also hold a valid pass for all the countries that the train is passing through, not simply the origin and destination countries. Rail pass passengers may only book a deluxe sleeper room if they hold a first class rail pass.