European Sleeper Confirms Prague - Brussels Night Train from March 2024

European Sleeper will extend its night service between Brussels, Amsterdam and Berlin to Prague from 25 March 2024.

The company announced this on its website, where the timetable has also appeared. The trains will run three times a week: from Czechia on Sundays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, and from Belgium on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. The journey will take around fifteen hours.

"We welcome the extension of the night connection to Prague, especially via stops in Děčín and Ústí nad Labem. The direct line for tourists from Belgium and the Netherlands is a shortcut on the way to explore the tourist attractions of the Ústí nad Labem Region,“ said Deputy Governor of the Ústí nad Labem Region and Councillor for Culture, Heritage Care and Tourism Jiří Řehák. “In addition, there is a subsequent use of the extensive network of tourist transport supported by the Ústí nad Labem Region, whether it be connecting train and bus connections or boat lines.“

Furthermore, Děčín is a suitable boarding point for cyclists on the Elbe Trail, for whom a carriage is allocated on the train for transporting bicycles. They can go in one direction to the Bohemian Switzerland and in the other direction to the Bohemian Central Highlands, where they will find plenty of natural beauties and sights, in short, an ideal destination for spending their holidays.

According to the timetable, the train will leave Prague at 18:04, and will also stop in Czechia in Prague-Holešovice, Ústí nad Labem and Děčín. In the direction of Brussels, the train will depart at 19:22, arriving in Prague at 10:56.  In addition to Brussels, the train will provide direct connections to Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Antwerp, for example.

“The stops in the Ústí nad Labem region will fit perfectly into the communication concept of the CzechTourism agency in the next year, when the main theme will be active tourism. We are targeting this in the long term, because active holidays in nature are the biggest attraction for tourists from the Netherlands and Belgium,” says Director of the Foreign Representation of the Czech Tourism Centre – CzechTourism for Benelux Petra Palečková. "Last year, the Ústí nad Labem Region ranked 7th and 8th in terms of arrivals from the Netherlands and Belgium with 6,949 and 2,164 arrivals respectively. A new train link could help increase the number of foreign visitors heading to Czechia.“ 

Ticket prices start at 79 euros for a seat, 109 euros for a lounge chair and 159 euros for a bed.

European Sleeper is not a traditional carrier, the organisation was formed in the Netherlands as a cooperative to revive night trains. Small investors backed the start-up with half a million euros last year, and the share issue sold out in fifteen minutes. It is planning another route, with plans to link Amsterdam with Barcelona.

The new route has made it onto the list of night routes the European Commission wants to support. The Brussels-Berlin line started running in May this year.