Deluxe Sleeper Train from Istanbul to Sofia (SUPER DELAYED!)
Tonight we’re taking the night train from Istanbul Turkey to Sophia Bulgaria on one of the best first class sleeper compartments around so let’s go and check it out Together [Music] hello and welcome to the craziness that is Istanbul turkey’s largest city which has a population of 16 million people and straddles the European and Asian Continental Divide this is without doubt one of my top 10 favorite cities in the world in a country
That I’ve now visited more than 25 [Music] times there’s so much to do see and experience here from boat rides along the Bosphorus visiting bustling markets and eating in amazing restaurants Istanbul is also the gateway to the rest of turkey with its huge diversity of people
Along with everything from beautiful beach resorts to stunning mountainous Landscapes our journey tonight is on board one of the very few train services that cross an external EU border we start from halali station in the far west of the city this is linked to
The muray commuter Network and its Western Terminus on the European side the Eastern Terminus is at GB some 77 km away on the Asian Side howal Station dates back to 1872 and is the main Freight Terminus for goods heading to and from the EU it also serves a few daily highspeed
And sleeper trains heading east to Turkey’s capital anchora if you’re arriving here on the train from Bulgaria or Romania the easiest way to get into the city is using the marmay service you need to buy an Istanbul cart travel card
From one of these machines and top it up with a minimum of 50 Turkish L some of the ticket vending machines here now accept International credit and debit cards if you don’t have cash yet our train tonight is the 8:00 P.M service from Istanbul H C to
Sophia boarding starts around 35 minutes before departure after a brief ticket and security check lifts are available to provide step-free access to all platforms let’s head down now where our train is ready and waiting this is formed of a mix of two- bed sleeper
And four bed cochet compartment coaches all being tead or Turkish Railway stock up until the Bulgarian border haage will be provided by this tead e6800 electric locomotive 80 of these were built for Turkish Railways by Hundai rotm in South Korea between 2013 and
2018 they have a top speed of 140 km/ hour and a total power output of 5,000 KW ticket in hand let’s go and find our coach between June and October there are also coaches on this train that go all the way through to Bucharest Romania
Unfortunately level boarding is not provided and there are a few quite large steps up to the coach you would have to ask station star for a ramp if required I’ve booked so occupancy of one of the two bed sleeper
Rooms and here it is home for the next 13.5 hours or so I thought first impressions of the room are that it’s spacious and looks very comfortable and well appointed we’ll check it out in more detail once we get going but first let’s have a look at our route from Istanbul to Sophia
Tonight [Music] We depart on time at 8:00 p.m. this trip is 592 km and is scheduled to take 13 hours and 37 minutes of travel time arriving in the Bulgarian Capital at 09:37 tomorrow morning solo occupancy of a two- bed compartment as I’m doing costs 1,985 Turkish l a ticket in the two-
Bed sleeper costs 1,55 Turkish l a ticket in the four bed couet costs 900 Turkish L unfortunately none of these tickets are bookable online so you need to book in person at the ticket office in Sophia or Istanbul or you can email my friend Andy from discover by rail who
Can order them through his local contact send him a message at tickets discover by rail.com if you want add free Early Access to every video great perks and to help me do bigger and better reviews then become a channel member from just £1.99
Per month just click the link above now or the join button in every video thank you okay let’s check out our private compartment the door can be locked but only from the inside there is an opening Hopper window for ventilation and F length curtains for
Privacy in day mode there are two comfy armchair style seats they are well padded have adjustable armrests and a small storage shelf in between a ladder is located by the door to access the top bunk which folds down like this as I’m
The only one in the room this is not made up the mattresses are thick and comfy as are the pillows the bottom bunk folds down like so giving way to the already made up bed it looks great I’m sure I’ll be very comfy in here
Tonight light switches and an attendant cool Bell are positioned above the door along with the AC controls for the room which seem to have a mind of their own in the corner of the room there is a bin a sink with soap dispenser a
Vanity light the room’s only power socket which is European style and the [Music] mirror three coat hooks are located under the luggage rack with blankets on top of it should you need additional bedding one of the things that distinguishes this room from most European and sleeper
Compartments is this area here which features a countertop desk cupboard and mini fridge complete with complimentary snacks and drinks a lovely touch in my opinion overall I think it’s an excellent product well equipped clean and tidy great job we make a few stops on Route in Western turkey as
We head towards Bulgaria unfortunately the immigration border check times are horrible made worse by the everpresent chance of delays but more on that soon let’s quickly check out the bathroom facilities there is at least one toilet in every coach while definitely showing their age and far from the cleanest they were certainly
Serviceable there was water and hand towels but no soap a power socket bin bag toilet paper and a toilet with b-day function were also present by the way there there is no dining car on this train so make sure you stock up and include some contingency food and water I’m glad I
Did the two bed sleeper coaches are also meant to have a shower available but on this occasion it looked like it was being used as a store room for cleaning equipment if you want to check out my video on the super impressive Turkish
Highspeed trains between Istanbul and Ankara then click my link above now we roll into capule the Turkish Border Station at just before 1:00 a.m. around 5 minutes before our scheduled time adjacent is the eastbound service of our train they had just arrived too
And now we have to wait for all of their border formalities to be completed fortunately it’s a lovely warm SE September evening and I get out to watch the train crew switching our Loco out for the one that arrived from Bulgaria on the other
Service it’s a bdz class 44 electric locomotive which was built by scoda in Czechoslovakia in the late 1970s they have a top speed of 130 km/ hour and a power output of 3,140 KW I love these Old Eastern European Locos they have such an
Aura of days gone by but are still going strong 50 plus years later in everyday service shortly after the shunting is finished we are called to go to immigration I was ready and waiting for this and was first in the queue I didn’t film anything except the lovely immigration cat on the way
Out after reboarding the train border staff came around and checked that everyone had been Stamped Out and then we progressed across the border we were due out at 2:40 a.m. it’s now 3:30 a.m. sigh the train is scanned at least three times upon entering Bulgaria
Does anyone know what these are actually for leave me a comment below and just like that we’re back in the EU hello Bulgaria it’s actually my first time here the Border checks are done on the train this time so you can just chill in your compartment until it’s your turn to be
Processed anyway eventually we pull out of Silling grad station at 055 a.m. running 1 hour and 40 minutes late now but the best is yet to come it’s definitely time for some sleep now so I’ll catch you in a few hours I wake up around 7:15 a.m. on the approach to PIV
Bulgaria’s second largest city with a metro population of around 675,000 people this historic city is situated on the banks of the Marissa River and occupation can be traced back over 2,300 years to the 4th Century BC this Railway line opened in 1874 to connect Sophia with modern-day Istanbul and has pretty much been in constant use ever since transporting goods and passengers alike now the train has quietened down a lot let’s go and check out one of the four bed couet
Compartments they are reasonably roomy and are perfect for Budget Travelers there’s no fridge or sink like in my compartment and be aware you will be sharing with strangers a plus side though is that they can be booked on an inter rail or EU rail pass for a supplement of just
€ as we make our way into Western Bulgaria the scenery really starts to pick up with amazing views of the rela mountains the tallest range in Bulgaria the highest peak is Mount musala at an elevation of 2,925 M somewhere along the way we picked up some bdz Bulgarian coaches which
Will now run with us to Sea you can see them at the very front of the train here everything was going so well albeit with nearly a 2hour delay when we suddenly grind to a hold no information was given at all and I was left admiring this pile
Of tires that had been left by the track side I can’t remember exactly where we were but it was within Yandex Uber range of Sophia so I was contemplating in cutting my losses and getting a taxi in the end I was so tired that I had a kip and around 2 hours later
We were shunted a short way back to the previous station then some locomotive musical chairs happened a local train turned up and between them all we were on the go again after another 20 minutes delay now we’re definitely on the final stretch and before long the Sophia suburbs come into
View we also pass near to the international airport and get a great view of the departing planes so to summarize the Turkish Railway sleeper train from Istanbul to sofhia in a private first class compartment despite the compounded delays I had a great trip these
Sleeper coaches are very comfortable ride well and the beds are great I’d love to see a few more power sockets in the room and a dining car on the train but I’m not sure if that would be possible due to its International EU non-eu
Nature honestly I think I’d have been more annoyed if I couldn’t have had some extra sleep and didn’t have plenty of food and water along with the contents of the mini bar to keep me going I’d like to think that if the delays went on for
Much longer then some sustenance would have been provided by the train company but who [Music] knows we finally arrive at 1:55 p.m. 4 hours and 20 minutes Late have you been on any trains that have been seriously delayed before which one was it and how long was the delay let me know in the comments [Music] below by the way I’m always open to new video ideas so send me a DM on Instagram
Or Twitter if there’s anything you really want to see on the [Music] channel don’t forget to subscribe as I publish a new review every Friday thanks for watching and I’ll see you next week [Music] you
Book Great Deals on Train, Plane, Bus & Ferry Travel through my Omio Affiliate Link here: https://omio.sjv.io/QO0XMx
Hello and welcome back to Turkey, where tonight we’ll be taking a special sleeper train to Sofia, Bulgaria!
This is one of the very few trains to cross an EU external border, and in my opinion, one of the best sleeper coaches out there! Come along and join me on a trip that didn’t exactly go to plan, but was still great fun!
Date of Filming: 4 to 5/9/23
Camera: GoPro Hero 10 Black
Operator: Turkish Railways
Departure: Istanbul Halkali, Turkey
Arrival: Sofia, Bulgaria
Cost: Solo occupancy of a 2-bed compartment:
1,985 Turkish Lira (£54.72, €63.00, $68.75)
2-bed sleeper costs: 1,055 Turkish Lira (£29.09, €33.50, $36.56)
4-bed couchette costs: 900 Turkish Lira (£24.75, €28.50, $31.10)
Check out my review of the Turkish high-speed train from Istanbul to Ankara here: https://youtu.be/QTSp9P8lspY
Become a valued YouTube channel member to get access to perks:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBqWe9KKYUavknEaaZLk7cQ/join
Kindly send me a tip! Any donations will be reinvested to make bigger and better videos:
https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/nonstopeurotrip
All music in this video is provided by Epidemic Sound, sign up for a FREE 30-day trial using my affiliate link here: https://share.epidemicsound.com/pspegs
Easily book GREAT VALUE Asian Flights, Trains, Buses & Ferries with my Baolau link:
https://www.baolau.com/?source=nonstopeurotrip
Follow me on Social Media:
http://www.instagram.com/nonstopeurotrip
Tweets by nonstopeurotrip
A HUGE thanks to my Valued Channel Members:
Pedro Rubio Tejero Mark Jaynes
amillionbooks George Dover
Holdymar V. Arndt Jr Fabricio Renovato
Linda Vainomae Will Getz
Westy331 Ingrid lengkeek
Oliver W eng91755
Sam Jennings Lebjohnson
Rahill Rick Sipes
Tim Crawford Daniel Young
Peter Harrison Peter Tuck
Chris Winchell Debbie Winchell
Leaving Behind Thomas Roell
Severity One Janet Rusky
Roy Parker Peter Russ
John Michael Dornoff Robert S
Luke211286 Ana Lämä
Dirk Schultz Tom Kennedy
Roy Meister Malcore Gaming
Piotr Kilczuk Colin Davies
Alz Brian Rosson
William Boon Cheng Tan
Shay Muhammad Nur Ihsan
Jak Marzhall False Prophet
Rafi Muhammad Agung Heryadi
Kiel Regmount
Luigi Bharath Ghanta
Avirup Some Co Akker
治那涧初 Dean Shaw
33 Comments
Book Great Deals on Train, Plane, Bus & Ferry Travel through my Omio Affiliate Link here: https://omio.sjv.io/QO0XMx
Please travel in Bhopal-New Delhi Vande Bharat Express
Funny, I didn't think DB still opporated any sleeper services
Turkey constructs a high speed line from Istanbul to Edirne
You don't always get complimentary snacks or running water, but it's OK overall. Like I properly say:
Nice job, but Turkish 😂
Two experiences of running (very) late spring to mind. The oldest was on the Intercité from Clermont-Ferrand to Béziers (although called an Intercité, the rolling stock were 2 X73500 'Baleines') who, after increasing delays stranded in Millau, where we had to wait for a replacement bus, which finally came some 2 hours later. We arrived in Béziers some 3 hours late, and my connection to Montpellier was of course long gone, so they had to put me in a taxi, for which I also had to wait an hour. I finally arrived in Montpellier around 1 am in stead of 9 pm. Should have taken them up on their offer to put me in a hotel in Béziers in stead…
The second story is on the (fantastic) IC Notte from Milan to Palermo. Probably the longest train ride in Western Europe, planned arrival 16:55(!), we were already 2 hours late cruising through Campania and Calabria, then having to wait an eternity in Villa San Giovanni to cross to Sicily, and again waiting a whole while in Messina for our train to be reconstituted and waiting for a new locomotive. We finally pulled into Palermo at 19:45, almost 4 hours late, missing the entire stretch of line along the Tyrrhenian Sea as it was already dark by then (it was November).
Nothing as bad as some, here, with delays of 9 hours and such…
The masochist's rail line. How didn't they had a dark compartment for passenger flogging?
When I still lived in the UK in the 1980s and 1990s and had frequently to connect from a local service on a Sunday at Doncaster on to an Intercity going to London or Edinburgh (depending where my job needed me to be at the time), the ICs were invariably late – often by 2 hours or so. Usually you had to reserve a seat in advance as the trains were crowded. More often than not you ended being put on an earlier train which was running late and had no spare seating capacity. 😗 The alternative being a hefty delay waiting for the train on which you had a seat reservation.
I also one weekend remember when, due to building works on the main line, and rerouting via Cambridge, taking 7 hours to do a journey scheduled to take less than half that!
In Indonesia train delay is a rare thing 😅
The worst delay I had was in a german ICE from Mainz to Leipzig via Frankfurt. The train had 2 ICEs coupled together and the part I'd been in had electricity problems (a short circuit in the emergency braking system). and we left Frankfurt with a delay of 45-50 minutes. At the next bigger station we had to stop again and then they tried to fix the problem again. After another 45 minutes they decided to separate the trains and go on with only 1 part… all passengers had to go in only one ICE (the shorter version of the ICE3 with 5 carriages, the de-coupled train was a 7 carriage ICE3… it was obviously too much and the train that had been de-coupled was pulled back to Frankfurt for repairs. I arrived at Leipzig in an overcrowded train with a delay of 1 hour and 50 minutes…
Overnight trains run longer distances than the average IC trains. Last september I traveled from Amsterdam to Bologna. To avoid connections in Germany ( you never get those because of delays) I took the Nightjet from Amsterdam to Innsbruck. On the way back there was a delay of 3 hours 45 minutes, due to track works in, you guessed it…., Germany.
The livery is too white. Solid blue in the lower part beneath the existing blue line would improve things considerably.
80mph ! Was it powered by Fred Flintstone and family 🤣
Hareketli, heyecanlı ve gecikmeli ama her şeye rağmen keyifli ve güzel bir yolculuk olmuş. Güzergah güzel manzaralarla dolu, tren de gayet iyi ve rahat. Tek eksik ne yazık ki yemekli vagon. Umarım Türkiye'nin bütün trenlerinde yakın zamanda yemekli vagonlar hizmete girer. İyi seyahatler..
Can you take cats with you on the train? I'd want to take one home with me they are all so cute!
I was just saying that the livery is knock me down stupendous. Then you asked what we think of it. Hehehe Sproing! As Baggins Supercat often says on Twitter. She's in England.
Thanks for the Immigration Cat. Means so much to me. Cats have befriended me since my sad childhood.
Worst delay I've ever had was back in the early 1990s on the Southwest Chief. My mom my brother and I were taking the train from Albuquerque to Los Angeles after visiting friends in Santa Fe. The train was supposed to leave Albuquerque at about 5pm but had struck a vehicle in Kansas damaging the lead locomotive (a brand new GE P40 or Dash 8) to the point where it couldn't continue. We got a room at a nearby hotel and eventually, at 1am the train pulled into Albuquerque behind a Santa Fe SD40-2 freight locomotive and one or two Amtrak Dash 8 "Pepsi Can" locomotives. What was normally a morning arrival into Los Angeles turned into an early afternoon arrival, and we had to run to catch the connecting San Diegan to Anaheim and Disneyland.
The other potential candidate for worst delay would've been when my California Zephyr, which had been running about an hour early to that point, was canceled in Omaha due to derailments blocking the train's route and potential diversion route. We ended up on coaches to Chicago. I've had numerous delays in the 1-2 hour timeframe, but I've tended to be relatively lucky with Amtrak.
Why do British railway company employees demonstrate so often? This often makes it difficult for customers when they go to work and come home from work. I'm Indonesian but my younger brother works around Birmingham. He takes the Commuter Train every day.
✌️🇧🇬👌
How do you use to Film videos
Alot of the views were interesting and the cat looked relaxed,,,paws tucked in.
Was it only a sleeper train????
The tyre nest looked "wanted".
A nasty, black, smoky blaze nobody wants,,,waiting to go up.
Very nice sleeper train I have to say. Very nice carriages and also very cute cat onboard as well.
So my longest delay was in an EC Zapadni Express from Prague to Munich it was the last one of the day and my train had about 250minutes delay due to late arrival from the other train from Germany because they change the loco in Plzen and we needed to wait for our loco. The horrible thing was the modern couches was replaced to old coaches.
This was so useful. We’ve never travelled around Istanbul via train or travelled to and from it, but this will be so useful when we do. We love Istanbul, never been to Sofia. It did looks super comfy day and night. Shame about your delays, but it’s all part of travel. Cheers for sharing 🍻
Of course I have been on a heavily delayed train, I've ridden VIA rail
My the biggest delay was 6 hours also on Bulgarian railways 😂
Those scanners if they are like the ones here on the US Interstate System, they scan for radioactive isotopes and radiation emissions, basically scanning for dirty bombs someone could smuggle into a bag and take into a city center
In an other rail channel, there are a train from istambul to villach in austria
Bro can you make a video on face reveal
Even old New York was once New Amsterdam.
An overnight Amtrak train, single occupancy sleeper, inside the U.S. approaches $1,000. Yes, it includes a dinner and light breakfast, but it makes this trip seem like a real bargain. Nice video!
How come I’m not surprised by this? I guess this from the delays I’ve experienced on Turkish Airlines? 🤷🏽