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Budapest:  Fisherman's Bastion, Castle Hill.

The train journey from London to Budapest is easy and takes just 24 hours, by Eurostar and high-speed Thalys train from London to Cologne, then overnight to Vienna aboard the excellent City Night Line hotel train for a fast EuroCity train to Budapest.  Or there are connections via Paris and Munich, or Paris, Strasbourg and the (real) Orient Express.  All three options are explained here.

London-Budapest via Brussels & the Cologne-Vienna City Night Line sleeper

London-Budapest via the Paris-Munich City Night Line sleeper

London-Budapest via Paris, Strasbourg & the Orient Express

...via the Cologne-Vienna sleeper...

London ► Budapest  (via the Cologne-Vienna sleeper):

This is probably the cheapest, easiest and most comfortable route.

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

• Travel from Brussels to Cologne by high-speed Thalys train, leaving Brussels Midi at 17:25 and arriving in 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.

• 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, couchettes, 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!

• Travel from Vienna to Budapest by air-conditioned InterCity train the 'Avala', with restaurant car and bar, leaving Vienna at 09:52 and arriving Budapest Keleti station at 12:53.  3D virtual tour of a 2nd class car on the 'Avala'.  Map of Budapest showing Keleti station.

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.

				3-D panorama, City Night Line 2-berth deluxe sleeper 3-D panorama, 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.

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

Budapest  ► London  (via the Cologne-Vienna sleeper):

• Travel from Budapest to Vienna by air-conditioned InterCity train, the 'Avala', leaving Budapest Keleti station at 15:10 and arriving Vienna Westbahnhof at 18:08.  The train has a restaurant car & bar.

• 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 information & photos above.

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

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

Fares  (via the Cologne-Vienna sleeper)

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...
3. Vienna to Budapest  by InterCity train	Around £24 one-way, £48 return 2nd class  Around £38 one-way, £76 return 1st class

Savings fare = Special cheap fare, book in advance, limited availability, no refunds, no changes to travel plans. 

Normal fare = fully flexible, refundable, buy any time.

Note that couchettes are sold individually in shared 4 or 6 berth compartments, but as from December 2007, only whole sleeper compartments on this route can be booked, it will no longer be possible for solo passengers to book one sleeper berth in a 2 or 3 bed compartment and share with other passengers.

How to buy tickets online:

The cheapest way to book this trip is online.  It involves two websites, so do a dry run on each site first to check prices and availability before booking for real.

• Step 1, go to either www.raileurope.co.uk or www.eurostar.com and using the train times on this page as your guide, book a ticket from London to Cologne & back (Cologne is listed as Koln on the Eurostar website).  It's a good idea to try both of these websites, as sometimes one is cheaper than the other, for some strange reason.  Bookings for Eurostar+Thalys open 90 days (3 months) before departure, and the further ahead you book, the more likely you are to see the cheapest fares.  Tickets can be posted to any UK address or collected at St Pancras on departure.  One-way London-Cologne fares are usually more expensive than a cheap return, so for one-way trips buy a return ticket and throw away the return half.   Make sure you allow plenty of time for the connection in Cologne, preferably between 1½ & 2 hours when connecting with a sleeper train.  It's obvious, but remember that your return departure date from Cologne will be the day after your departure date from Budapest!

• Step 2, go to www.bahn.de/citynightline, select 'English' at 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.

• Step 3, you can easily buy a Vienna-Budapest ticket at the station when you get to Vienna, as no advance reservation is necessary, you just buy a ticket and hop on.  Or to save time at the ticket office you can buy a ticket online at www.oebb.at, the Austrian Railways website, printing out your ticket in .PDF format.  Alternatively, you can easily buy  Vienna-Budapest tickets at www.raileurope.co.uk for £27.50 one-way, £55 return, tickets sent to any UK address.

• Advice on buying connecting train tickets from other UK towns & cities

How to buy tickets by phone:

The best agency to call to book this trip is probably Deutsche Bahn's UK office on 08718 80 80 66 (lines open 09:00-17:00 Monday-Friday, no booking fee).  Alternatively, call www.europeanrail.com on 020 7619 1083 (lines open 09:00-17:00 Monday-Friday, £20 booking fee but may have more time to help).  Click here for more information on how to buy European train tickets.

...via the Paris-Munich sleeper...

You may prefer to travel via Paris, with a convenient early-evening departure from London.  This route is equally easy and convenient, with some good fares available.  Feel free to stop off in Paris for a while if you like..!

Train times London ► Budapest  (via the Paris-Munich sleeper):

• Travel from London to Paris by Eurostar, leaving London at 18:00 (17:31 on Saturdays) arriving Paris 21:20 (20:53 on Saturdays).  The Eurostar arrives at the Gare du Nord, from where it is a 10 minute walk to the Gare de l'Est.

• Travel from Paris to Munich overnight by the City Night Line sleeper train 'Cassiopeia', leaving Paris Gare de l'Est at 22:45 and arriving in Munich at 08:58 next morning.  This train has sleeping-cars, couchettes and seats, see the photos & information below.  Important:  On certain dates the Cassiopeia leaves Paris earlier, at 21:45, so double-check times for your date of travel using www.bahn.de/citynightline.  On these dates, you'll need to catch an earlier Eurostar from London, at 16:25 arriving Paris 19:47.  Click for more pictures and information about this train.

• Travel from Munich to Budapest by air-conditioned EuroCity train 'Bartok Bela', with restaurant car, leaving at 09:27 and arriving in Budapest (Keleti station) at 16:53.  The sleeper from Paris normally arrives at Munich Hauptbahnhof at platform 11, the EuroCity to Budapest leaves from nearby platform 14, so it's an easy connection.  Map of Budapest showing Keleti station.

Introducing the City Night Line Paris-Munich sleeper ...

The Paris-Munich overnight train is one of the German Railway's excellent City Night Line sleeper trains.  Called the 'Cassiopeia', it has brand-new 'Comfortline' sleeping-cars (1, 2 & 3-berth deluxe rooms with private shower and toilet, 1, 2 & 3-berth standard rooms with washbasin.  There is a shower at the end of the corridor for passengers in standard rooms, and all rooms have power-points for laptop computers), modern air-conditioned couchettes (choose between a berth in a 4- or 6-berth compartment), and ordinary seats (not recommended).  Inclusive fares are charged covering travel plus sleeping accommodation.  The sleeping-car fare includes a light breakfast. Click for more pictures and information about this train.

1, 2 or 3 bed sleeper: The most comfortable & civilised option, with proper beds & washbasin.		4-berth couchettes:  Ideal for families, much more space per person than 6-berth couchettes.		6-berth couchettes:  A very economical option, far better than a seat for just a few euros more...		Above:  One of the new 'Comfortline' sleeping-cars on the Paris-Munich City Night Line sleeper train.  More pictures...

Train times Budapest ► London  (via the Paris-Munich sleeper):

• Travel from Budapest to Munich by air-conditioned EuroCity train, leaving Budapest at 13:10 and arriving in Munich at 20:34.  Earlier connections are available if you would prefer a more leisurely connection, see http://bahn.hafas.de.  However, this train normally arrives at Munich Hauptbahnhof platform 14 and the sleeper to Paris leaves from platform 13, so it's an easy connection.

• Travel from Munich to Paris by the City Night Line sleeper train 'Cassiopeia', leaving Munich at 20:53 and arriving at Paris Gare de l'Est between 06:46 & 09:38 next morning.  Arrival times vary on different dates, so check times for your date of travel using www.bahn.de/citynightline.  Couchettes (6-bunk and 4-bunk) and sleeping-cars (1, 2 or 3-bed rooms, deluxe with shower or standard with washbasin) are available.  Click for more pictures and information about this train.  Walk from the Gare de l'Est to the Gare du Nord.

• On dates when the Cassiopeia arrives in Paris at 06:46, a Eurostar leaves Paris Nord at 08:07 and arrives London St Pancras at 09:34.  When it arrives at 08:15, a Eurostar leaves Paris Nord at 10:13 arriving London at 11:28.  On dates when it arrives at 09:38, a Eurostar leaves Paris Nord at 11:13 on Sats & Suns (arriving London 1228) or 12:13 on Mon-Fri (arriving London 13:28).

Fares:

1. London to Paris  by Eurostar:	Return fares start at £59 2nd class,  £149 1st class.  One-way fares start at £44 2nd class.  Advice on one-way Eurostar fares.  Child, youth & senior fares
2. Paris to Munich by  sleeper train (per person)	In a seat	In a couchette		In the sleeping-car (standard room)
		6-bunk	4-bunk	3-bed	2-bed	1-bed
Savings fare, one way:	29 euro (£21)	39 euro (£28)	49 euro (£35)	-	-	-
Savings fare, return:	58 euro (£42)	78 euro (£56)	98 euro (£70)	-	-	-
Normal fare, one-way:	110 euro (£79)	122 euro (£87)	127 euro (£91)	139 euro (£99)	156 euro (£111)	258 euro (£184)
Normal fare, return:	220 euro (£158)	244 euro (£174)	254 euro (£182)	278 euro (£199)	312 euro (£222)	516 euro (£368)
Child 0-14 with own berth:	55 euro (£39)	61 euro (£44)	64 euro (£46)	70 euro (£50)	78 euro (£56)	-
Child 0-5:	Child 0-5 sharing berth travels free...
3. Munich to Budapest	About £60 one way or £120 return 2nd class  About £90 one way or £180 return 1st class.

Savings fare = Special cheap fare, book in advance, limited availability, no refunds, no changes to travel plans. 

Normal fare = fully flexible, refundable, buy any time.

Couchettes are sold individually in shared 4 or 6 berth compartments, but as from 9 December 2007, only whole sleeper compartments on this route can be booked, it will no longer be possible for solo passengers to book one sleeper berth in a 2 or 3 bed compartment and share with other passengers.  Call DB's UK office for prices for sleepers with private shower.

How to buy tickets online...

The cheapest and easiest way to book this journey is online, although you have to use three different websites.  Do a 'dry run' first on all three sites to check prices and availability before booking for real.

• Step 1, go to www.bahn.de/citynightline, which is the German Railways official sleeper train website.  Select 'English' top right, then click through to the online booking system.  Or if the English button has disappeared again (!) you can click 'buchung' on the left, then 'fahrkarten buchung', then 'buchen sie jetzt ihre nachtzugreise', and a booking window then appears which definitely has an English language button.

• Book from Paris Est to Munich Hbf and back on the overnight sleeper train.  Availability of cheap 'sparnight' special fares and fully-flexible full fares will be shown, for each type of seat, couchette & sleeper.  You pay by credit card and print out your own tickets in .pdf format.  Easy!  Note that the prices shown on www.bahn.de/citynightline are in euros, and are the total cost for all passengers selected, not per person.  Top tip:  If the 29/39/49 euro special fares are sold out on www.bahn.de/citynightline so only full fares are available, you can sometimes find a 55-80 euro couchette fare for this train using www.raileurope.co.uk or www.voyages-sncf.com, which is still cheaper than the full fare.

• Step 2, go to www.eurostar.com to book your connecting Eurostar tickets between London and Paris, using the Eurostar times above as a guide.  By all means book an earlier Eurostar outwards, or a later Eurostar on the way back, if this has cheaper seats available of if you'd like to stop off in Paris for a while.  Return fares start at £59, for one-way fares on Eurostar see this advice.  Eurostar tickets can be sent to any UK address, or picked up at the station if you're travelling at short notice or booking from overseas.

• Step 3, now go to the German Railways main website http://bahn.hafas.de, use the journey planner to bring up the connecting Munich-Budapest trains shown in the train times above, and buy the ticket.  It will show if any cheap special fares are available.  Tickets can be sent to any address, or in some cases printed out yourself.

How to buy tickets by phone...

If you'd prefer to book by phone, just call Deutsche Bahn's UK office on 08718 80 80 66 (lines open 09:00-17:00 Monday-Friday, no booking fee, £3 credit card fee), or a booking agency such as European Rail on 020 7619 1083 (lines open 09:00-17:00 Monday-Friday, £25 booking fee applies).

...via Paris & the Orient Express

This used to be the simplest and most convenient route until June 2007, when the Orient Express (the real one, not the expensive tourist one, see the Orient Express page) was cut back to run Strasbourg-Vienna instead of Paris-Vienna, with TGV connection to/from Paris.  However, you can still go this way, with a change in Strasbourg.

Train times London ► Budapest  (via Paris & the Orient Express)

• Travel from London to Paris by Eurostar, leaving London St Pancras at 14:04, arriving at Paris Gare du Nord at 17:26.  Walk from the Gare du Nord to the nearby Gare de l'Est.

• Travel from Paris to Strasbourg by high-speed TGV, leaving Paris (Gare de l'Est) at 19:24 and arriving Strasbourg 21:43.  The TGV has 1st and 2nd class seats and a buffet-bar.

• Travel from Strasbourg to Vienna on the Orient Express (the real one, not the expensive tourist one, see the Orient Express page), leaving Strasbourg at 22:20 and arriving next morning in Vienna at 08:35.  The Orient Express has reclining seats (not recommended), comfortable modern Austrian couchettes (6-berth), and two sleeping-cars, one with very narrow 1 and 2-bed compartments (described in reservation systems as 1st class 'special' and 2nd class 'T2'), and another with larger 1, 2 and 3-bed compartments (1st class 'single', 1st class 'double' and 2nd class 'T3').  There are several deluxe sleeper compartments with private toilet & shower.  There's no restaurant car, so take your own food and maybe a bottle of wine, although the sleeper and couchette attendants can sell you snacks, tea and coffee.  For sleeper passengers, a light breakfast is included in the fare.  Note:  The Orient Express used to start in Paris, but has been cut back to run Strasbourg-Vienna with the opening on the new TGV-Est High Speed Line in June 2007.

• Travel from Vienna to Budapest by air-conditioned InterCity train the 'Avala', with restaurant car and bar, leaving Vienna at 09:52 and arriving Budapest Keleti station at 12:48.  3D virtual tour of 'Avala' 2nd class, 3D virtual tour of 'Avala' restaurant car.

From Strasbourg to Vienna on the Orient Express...

You can choose between a bed in the sleeping-car, a couchette, or a reclining seat...

Above:  The standard sleeping-car.  Each sleeper compartment can be used as a 1- 2- or 3-person room.  The centre picture shows a compartment with beds folded away to become a private sitting room.  The right-hand photo shows a compartment set up as a cosy 2-person bedroom.  More information about sleeping-cars.

Left:  Couchettes.  These modern air-conditioned Austrian Railways couchette cars have padded bunks with rug, sheet and pillow, in 4- or 6-bunk compartments.  The photo shows a 4-berth compartment.  More information about couchettes. Reclining seats

Train times Budapest ► London  (via Paris & the Orient Express):

• Travel from Budapest to Vienna by air-conditioned InterCity train, the 'Avala', leaving Budapest Keleti station at 16:10 and arriving Vienna at 19:09.

• Travel overnight from Vienna to Strasbourg on the Orient Express, leaving Vienna (Westbahnhof) daily at 20:28 and arriving Strasbourg at 06:43 next morning.  There are reclining seats (not recommended), couchettes (6-bunk compartments) and two sleeping-cars, one with very narrow 1 and 2 bed rooms (referred to as Special & T2) the other with larger 1, 2 and 3 bed rooms (referred to as Single, Double & T3).  For sleeper passengers, a light breakfast is included in the fare

• Travel from Strasbourg to Paris by high-speed TGV, leaving Strasbourg at 07:15 and arriving Paris (Gare de l'Est) at 09:34.  The TGV has 1st & 2nd class seats and a buffet-bar.  Walk from the Gare de l'Est to the Gare du Nord.

• Travel from Paris to London by Eurostar, leaving Paris Nord at 12:13 and arriving London St Pancras at 13:28.  On Saturdays & Sundays (daily 6 July-6 September), there's also an 11:13 Eurostar, arriving London St Pancras at 12:38.

Fares  (via Paris & Orient Express):

1. London to Paris  by Eurostar: