The Caledonian Sleeper offers overnight train journeys from Birmingham International for the first time in 30 years, meaning we can explore some wild, stunning landscapes without the long journey to London
The train has a fresh new route(Image: Construction Photography/Avalon, Getty Images)
The Caledonian Sleeper has announced its overnight train journeys from Birmingham International for the first time in 30 years, starting from January 2026.
This means that travellers wishing to experience Scotland’s famous sleeper service no longer need to travel to London to board.
With fares starting from just £60 one-way, passengers can enjoy some of the most breathtaking landscapes en route to Fort William, including Ardlui at the head of Loch Lomond, Rannoch, the village of Dalwhinnie (famed for its distillery) and the Bridge of Orchy.
Those opting for the Aberdeen route will be treated to views of the stunning seaside haven of Lunan Bay.
The train journey itself is an experience, winding through beautiful landscapes on the way north.
Onboard, there are rooms with double beds, ensuite bathrooms and breakfast, as well as bunk bed rooms and accessible rooms.
Budget travellers can opt for a less expensive spot in the seated coach, which offers a seat tray table, a footrest, a safe and a sleep kit. There is also an individual reading light for comfort during the long journey.
These tickets start from £60.
Destinations such as Dundee, Inverness, Perth and the Cairngorm National Parks will now be within reach for Brummies, with a club car available for late-night drinks and snacks, reports Birmingham Live.
You can secure your spot on the Caledonian Sleeper by booking directly through their website.
People will be bale to easily access picturesque views of Scotland easier from the Midlands as the popular Caledonian Sleeper Train has announced a brand new route
The new route makes travelling to Scotland much easier for many people(Image: PA)
A popular sleeper train has announced a brand new route – offering the chance for more people to experience the journey to Scotland.
The Caledonian Sleeper has announced a band new route, making it the biggest timetable change in 30 years as it will now link Scotland with Birmingham.
According to the operators, Aberdeen, Inverness and Fort William train services will travel to and from London via Birmingham, and have also assured the new stop won’t affect journey lengths or departure times either.
The Scottish government took over the Caledonian Sleeper in 2023 after its previous operator Serco had its contract ended seven years early and it came at the time when the government was looking to increase the number of people using the service.
According to BBC, Caledonian Sleeper’s interim managing director Graham Kelly said research suggested there was demand for Birmingham to be added to the route and it was hoped the change would help contribute to tourism in the north of Scotland and the West Midlands.
He told BBC Scotland News: “We are continuing to run our service in its existing and current format. It is about adding in Birmingham as that additional opportunity. So in terms of the length of the trains and the resourcing on board, it will all continue to remain.”
The new service will depart from Birmingham International on 15 January 2026 and will run six days a week, with no services departing stations on a Saturday night. The Lowland service that goes to Glasgow and Edinburgh is unaffected by the change.
Richard Parker, Mayor of the West Midlands, said: “This iconic service means people from across the West Midlands will soon be able to travel comfortably and sustainably to discover the stunning beauty of northern Scotland. But this also means our Scottish friends can come and explore the wonderful West Midlands. That’s a win-win for our tourism and hospitality businesses on both sides of the border.”
It comes after one of the most picturesque train lines in Britain is to get a new service for the first time in ten years. The West Coast Main Line will be blocked while Network Rail replaces the rail bridge over M6 near Penrith, which has led Avanti West Coast to divert its Class 805 Evero fleet onto the Settle to Carlisle line.
The stretch of railway, which is renowned for its beautiful scenery, will be used as a diversionary route when the West Coast Main Line is blocked between Preston and Carlisle for two weeks in the new year.
To keep customers moving on trains across the North West and into Scotland, Avanti West Coast is planning to run a shuttle service broadly every two hours between Preston and Carlisle non-stop via the Settle to Carlisle route.
You may dash for your morning commuter train, but you won’t want to rush for the sleeper to Vienna. The Nightjet train to the Austrian capital is the most illustrious departure of the day from Amsterdam. There is an art to conducting the perfect departure and the perfect arrival, the bookends of a thrilling overnight journey.
There are four major hubs for sleeper services across western and central Europe: Amsterdam, Berlin, Vienna and Zurich. Then there are secondary nodes at Budapest, Brussels, Milan, Munich, Paris and Prague. Most of the region’s night trains start or end in one of these 10 cities. Whatever your departure point, savour the moment by going for an aperitif and a relaxed dinner before boarding. And upon arrival, don’t just dash on – linger over a coffee and let the morning, and the city, develop around you.
Don’t miss the excellent Grand Café Restaurant 1e Klas in the former first-class waiting room (entrance via platform 2B). It opens at 9.30am, so the perfect spot for breakfast after decanting from a Nightjet (or an early-morning Eurostar from London), and stays open till late evening, so also ideal for pre-departure supper. It serves fairly priced Dutch staples in a space that oozes retro flair. The Guardian, no less, has called it one of the “finest station eateries in Europe”.
An alternative pre-departure option for drinks and dinner is Bistro Berlage in the undercroft of the former Beurs (stock exchange), seven minutes walk from the station.
The Grand Café Restaurant 1e Klas in Amsterdam Centraal. Photograph: Greg Balfour Evans/Alamy
This can be a frustrating station, with fierce ticket barriers guarding platform access (luggage lockers in the east wing from €10 per day). It gets another black mark for the lack of showers for passengers arriving on overnight trains, but a big plus for being at the very heart of the city it serves – its enchanted canal network is right outside the station.
Just head south from the station to hit the main sights. If, like me, you prefer to cut away from the crowds, then leave the station on the north side and hop on the F4 ferry for a free 15-minute ride to the NSDM Wharf, an old shipyard that is now a creative and cultural hub with many alt-vibe cafes.
Berlin Hauptbahnhof
A stroll by the Spree River is an ideal prelude for a long distance train journey from Berlin. Photograph: John Kellerman/Alamy
For ÖBB Nightjets to Basel, Graz, Paris, Vienna and Zurich; SJ/RDC or Snälltåget to Stockholm; MÁV Euronight to Bratislava, Prague and Budapest; European Sleeper to Amsterdam and Brussels; and, from later this year, PKPIC night sleepers to Chelm and Przemyśl in eastern Poland
A multi-level essay in glass with a striking vaulted roof, the station is on five levels, with level 0 in the middle and trains departing/arriving on levels -2 and +2 – all utterly confusing for a first-timer. The station isn’t the most relaxing spot to linger, but for the exalted few, Deutsche Bahn’s premium (first-class) lounge is an oasis of calm.
For an extraordinary breakfast in a stunning setting, book a table at Käfer on the roof terrace of the Reichstag (900 metres from station, open daily from 9am). For a posh pre-departure dinner, Paris-Moskau at Alt-Moabit 141 (open from 6pm) is a traditional Berlin restaurant in a half-timbered building just 400 metres away.
Breakfast at Käfer on the roof terrace of the Reichstag. Photograph: Thomas Rosenthal
With time on your hands, catch the vibe of the German capital by wandering along the banks of the River Spree, passing the Reichstag en route to the Brandenburg Gate.
Leave luggage at the DB Gepäck lockers (levels -1 and +1, from €2 for two hours or €4 a day). Shower for a fee at the “rail and fresh” facility on level 0.
Vienna Hauptbahnhof
A visit to Vienna’s stunning Amelienbad pool will help compensate for the lack of showers at the city’s railway station. Photograph: Viennaslide/Alamy
For ÖBB Nightjets to Amsterdam, Berlin, Bregenz, Brussels, Cologne, Dresden, Hamburg, Hanover, Milan, Paris, Venice and Zurich (also until late September, additionally with ÖBB Nightjets to Florence, Rome and Verona); for Euronight to Kraków, Stuttgart and Warsaw; and other operators to Bucharest, Braşov, Kyiv and Lviv, plus summer-season overnight trains to Rijeka and Split
Fully opened 10 years ago, Vienna’s Hauptbahnhof rates as one of Europe’s most efficient transport hubs and boasts a greater range of destinations than any other station in Europe.
For a relaxed breakfast, skip the fast-food options in the station and head for Café Goldegg, with its elegant wood panelling and art nouveau style (on corner of Goldeggasse and Argentinierstrasse). Ask nicely and they’ll even knock you up a full English.
For evening eats, I recently followed the advice of Mark Smith, the legendary Man in Seat 61, and tried the excellent Ringsmuth at Johannitergasse 1 (closed Sun and Mon), a traditional Viennese restaurant with schnitzel galore as well as fish and veggie options.
Vienna Hauptbahnhof is south of the city centre. Three stops north on the U1 metro is Stephansplatz, where you can cleanse your soul at the lovely St Stephens Cathedral. Or go two stops south on the U1 to Reumannplatz to cleanse the body in art deco elegance at the wonderful Amelienbad indoor pool – a triumph of progressive socialist design. A visit will help make up for the lack of showers at the railway station for those arriving on night trains (but there are luggage lockers aplenty, from €2).
Zurich Hauptbahnhof
A colourful angel floats over the concourse at Zurich Hauptbahnhof. Photograph: eFesenko/Alamy
For ÖBB Nightjets to Amsterdam, Berlin, Bremen, Cologne, Graz, Hamburg and Vienna; and Euronight to Budapest, Dresden, Ljubljana, Prague and Zagreb
Zurich’s main station is a place for grand arrivals – check out the colourful flying angel pivoting over the concourse. Then freshen up with a shower (mezzanine level, €12). And now it’s time for breakfast …
My go-to spot is Roots on Lintheschergasse, just two minutes from the platforms. Power porridge and avocado toast go down a treat after a night on the rails, as do all sorts of shakes and juices. For pre-departure supper, try Maru, a little oasis of Japan on level 2 of the shopping complex under the station serving matcha and “Japanese comfort food”.
I love Zurich for its small-town feel. Having arrived on a night train and lingered over breakfast, I usually wander down pedestrianised Bahnhofstrasse and make for St Peterhofstatt, a haven of calm in the historic heart of the city.
London
The Caledonian Sleeper chugging through the Highlands
Paddington station for the GWR Night Riviera for 11 destinations in Cornwall;Euston station for Caledonian Sleeper trains to 40-plus stations in Scotland
Let’s not forget London. The last direct night sleeper service to the continent stopped 45 years ago (that was the Night Ferry to Brussels and Paris, which for a spell even conveyed a through sleeping car to Switzerland) but you can slip between crisp, clean sheets in sleepers departing the UK capital for the Cornish coast or Scottish Highlands.
Arriving passengers can benefit from posh arrival lounges with free showers at both Paddington and Euston, although the facilities at the latter are only for those who booked en suite accommodation on the train.
Passengers departing Euston should board early and head straight to the Club Car (seats are limited) for dinner for a taste of Scotland and a wee dram as they head north. Those departing from Paddington to Cornwall should take a chilled bottle of champagne to enjoy in the GWR lounge (the former royal waiting room) on Platform 1.
Snug, I stretched in the darkness, waking as the thump of wheels slowed to the tempo of a heartbeat. I could sense that the train was approaching our destination, so shuffled down the berth, easing up the blind to find a ruby necklace of brake lights running parallel with the tracks.
It had rained overnight and the road was slick, the sky a midnight blue, a D-shaped moon fading in the corner. Dawn was minutes away, and I could just make out the jumble of houses on hills, lights flicking on as though fireflies lay between their folds.
I stepped into the corridor as the train curved around a lake that gleamed like a pool of pink metal as first light fell upon its surface. Around me, passengers were now zipping up bags, brushing their teeth and locking berths into place, pausing to look out of the windows as a pair of minarets rose into view like sharpened pencils. Istanbul’s skyline was coming into focus.
The writer and family on the Santa Claus Express in Finland. Photograph: Monisha Rajesh
Five days earlier, I’d set off from London St Pancras hoping to retrace the original route of the Orient Express via Paris, Vienna and Bucharest, with the final leg passing through Sofia. Journeying 2,450 miles by rail, I now felt a deep satisfaction as the doors banged open and the sound of the second call to prayer greeted me on the platform. But I felt something else too: a rekindling of my love affair with night trains.
It all began in 2010, when I spent four months riding around on the trains of Indian Railways. At first the rail network represented little more than a mode of transport, a means to an end. But I soon realised that the trains possessed spirit and personality, each a character in its own right. As much as I enjoyed journeys by day – hot chai in one hand, fresh samosa in the other – and constant commotion around me, I relished the nights. It was after dark when I would find peace in the cool of the open doorway, talking to hawkers and ticket inspectors, making notes on the day gone by. As others slept, life beyond the carriage continued and I stayed awake to bear witness to it: a pack of pye-dogs being fed down an alley; bored drivers playing cards on car bonnets; the twentysomething winking at me from the back of her boyfriend’s moped as they careered towards the beach. Each moment felt like a gift, and while I hadn’t realised it at the time, I was already immersed in slow travel.
Three years ago, I made that jaunt from London to Istanbul, which involved three sleeper services: a shabby old Nightjet from Paris to Vienna; the surprisingly smart Dacia from Vienna to Bucharest; and the severely delayed Sofia-Istanbul Express. Three extraordinary journeys with wildly differing compartments, companions and scenery. Still, the madness of sharing with strangers, drinking whisky at 10am and trying to sleep to trance music was enough to spark an adventure that would take me from Palermo to Peru as I documented the resurgence in night trains.
Nice-Ville station. Photograph: Peter Cavanagh/Alamy
Only a decade before, such journeys were fizzling out in Europe, the rise of budget airlines and high-speed rail leading to a cull of sleeper services. But who knew the world was going to shut down? After lockdown, rail travel began making its way back on to travellers’ radars. With climate change undeniable, people were keen to control their carbon footprints by exploring closer to home. Private companies, such as the Belgian–Dutch co-operative European Sleeper, popped up with plans to launch new sleepers across Europe, and existing operators – including Sweden’s Snälltåget and Austria’s Nightjet – wanted to extend routes, encouraged by campaign groups such as Back-on-Track and Oui au train de Nuit!.
With a bucket list of trains in hand, some of which were yet to start running, I set off to discover whether sleeper trains still held an allure – and who was using them. It didn’t take long to find out as I swept up the wintry backbone of Sweden on the Norrland night train to Narvik, surrounded by a cohort of school teachers from Stockholm on a skiing weekend to Kiruna in Swedish Lapland. In the din of a neon-lit dining car they offered me creamed cod’s roe on crispbread while explaining where I could chase the northern lights. They told me they regularly used the sleeper for weekends away, in both summer and winter, preferring the overnight ride to frantic queues at the airport – and the fraught disposal of liquids, they added, shaking bottles of wine in my face.
The Brussels to Berlin sleeper passing through the Netherlands. Photograph: ANP/Alamy
During the period of the midnight sun in Norway, I met Ludwig, a chief mate for the coastguard who commuted all the way to Tromsø at the northern tip of the country in a refusal to contribute to climate change. He had travelled the route more than 20 times and recounted his encounters with elderly women and happy drunks who shared their moonshine, presenting him with cured deer hearts in return for companionship. And on the Santa Claus Express in Finland, I tucked into smoky reindeer stew with my children, surrendering to the journey’s festive charms as snow fell around us, the train sweeping quietly up the country to the depths of Finnish Lapland, where the sun never rose and the howl of huskies carried across the treetops.
I found passengers travelling solely for the thrill of riding on a night train: on the Good Night Train from Brussels to Berlin, pouring out wine and beer; young families spread out and enjoying the space on the Intercity Notte from Rome to Palermo; and honeymooning couples loving the thrill of the Intercités de Nuit between Paris and Nice.
Of course, despite the romance of it all, I soon accepted the reality of being slung around as I slept, brakes wailing as the trains jerked to a halt in the small hours. Carriages were sometimes too hot or too cold, blankets too thin, pillows too flat, and companions just too damn loud. I’d sometimes wake with a headache, dreading the border crossings where I’d have to haul my bags or sleep with my passport in hand to make checks faster and more efficient. But all was forgiven during those moments of pure magic, when I’d nudge up the blind, eager to see where we were. Would the sun be firing streaks into the sky? Would the moon be hanging on? I’d sit in my blanket, coffee in hand, watching as farmers fed their flocks and children caught my eye from bedroom windows, a friendly wave never failing to make my day.
In Istanbul ‘I looked out of the window as a pair of minarets rose into view like sharpened pencils.’ Photograph: Mauritius Images/Alamy
Even when we were delayed, no one seemed to mind – my fellow passengers shrugging, pottering around and enjoying the extra time to read, chat or snooze. Because time was what these night trains were giving us. Time to reconnect with friends as we moved through the darkness, with nothing but our own reflections in the window to distract us as we drifted into a state of confession, or opened up to family as though locked in a therapist’s room for the night. I had time for myself too, time to slow down and shut off, watching as the world whipped by my window and my thoughts calmed to a kind of meditation.
Since I began my journeys, new routes have opened, old routes have returned and the feeling is one of hope that night trains will stand the test of time. I don’t know what the future holds for them, but I know that when I board a night train and shift up to the window as we set off beneath the moonlight, it feels like coming home.
Monisha Rajesh’s new book, Moonlight Express: Around the World by Night Train (Bloomsbury, £22), is published 28 August. To support the Guardian, order your copy for £19.80 at guardianbookshop.com. Delivery charges may apply
Is there anything more glamorous than an overnight train? Even when you’re climbing aboard wearing your husband’s raincoat, carrying an oat-encrusted car seat, with a six-month-old in a sling and an apple core fermenting gently and secretly in the side pocket of your rucksack?
Not that I know of. I love travelling by train – even now, when it’s as comprehensively bad as British rail privatisation has made it for, well, just about everyone save a few shareholders and the CEO of Pumpkin Cafe. But travelling at night? With the whisper of romance in the buffet car, the flash of sunset from the vestibule and a white-sheeted bunk bed to call your own? I love it even more.
Fourteen minutes before being invited on to the night train from London to Penzance, you would have found me in the customer lounge, eating shortbread and drinking apple juice like a woman who has just been told she must consume 7,000 calories in 15 minutes or the whole of Paddington station is going to blow. Luckily, I wasn’t averting an extremely specific act of terrorism; I was just getting my money’s worth because, let me tell you, night trains aren’t cheap. My husband and son managed to get to Italy and back by rail for less than it cost me to cross the Tamar on Great Western Rail.
But then again, can you really put a price on the extremely low-key glamour of washing your feet in the basin of a cabin that’s approximately the dimensions of an understairs coat rack but with more lighting options than my entire house? To lose none of your holiday but be offered a shower at five in the morning at Truro station? To wake up in the middle of the night and take a pee outside Plymouth at 80mph? To get porridge delivered to your door by a woman in a bottle-green polyester uniform before looking out of the window and muttering “Erth?” This is heaven. Or as Philip Larkin wrote, probably while on the 21.19 British Rail service to Hull: “Here is unfettered existence: Facing the sun, untalkative, out of reach.”
Sleeping in the heat has interrupted my sleep pattern but Simba’s Summer Hybrid Duvet has been a game changer for regulating body heat at night
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The summer hybrid duvet has a cool touch to help regulate body temperature
Sleeping in summer has been a struggle for me especially when the heatwave hit and I ended up tossing and turning in bed all night, but that’s not the case until I tried Simba’s Summer Hybrid Duvet, a down-like comfort designed for lightweight warmth.
Available in Single, Double, King and Super King with prices starting from £129, the Hybrid Duvet is a 4.5 Tog bedding that features innovative Stratos tech to keep hot sleepers like me to slumber down for a restful sleep. I don’t own a cooling fan so the special webbing pattern stitched to the bottom of the duvet is the next best thing that keeps me from oversweating at night.
While 10.5 Tog is generally considered for all-year use but for those who are prone to cold might want to invest in a two-in-one duvet such as Dusk’s Feels Like Down Duvet Collection, their All Seasons duvet is comprised of two separate 4.5 and 9 tog duvets, fastened together with buttons. It’s retailed at £63 but shoppers can enjoy 20% off with code EXTRA20 at checkout.
I have been sleeping with open windows and legs out of my duvet cover but the traffic noise and night owls on the street have made an impact on my sleep quality. Since I swapped my duvet to Simba’s Hybrid Duvet, I’ve had some of the most peaceful sleeps and it kept my body temperature cool.
The special square stitched Simba Renew Bio Fibres fill prevents any uneven coverage and the fresh cotton cover had me ditching the duvet cover. Having said that, there is a risk of getting stains on the pristine white fabric.
Offering superbly light and gentle warmth, it’s made from recycled plastic bottle fibres combed into airy layers, and is designed to allow plenty of airflow through the duvet for wonderful, drier warmth.
But shoppers will be pleased to know that it is machine washable and it fits in most at-home washing machines and it also dries pretty fast (when the sun is out and about).
For those who prefer to add colours or patterns to their bedding essentials, the Night Lark Gingham Print Coverless Duvet in blue and taupe are perfect for summer styles and they are available in both 4.5 and 10.5 tog with prices starting from £60.
I’ve been sleeping soundly in hot days with this new duvet
I enjoy using the Simba duvet however, my brother is not a big fan as he finds it “too cold”. He said: “It’s nice to sleep in it but after a few hours, I felt cold and had to grab a fleece throw instead. It’s too lightweight and I like to sleep with a weighted blanket.”
While some customers find it pricey but for me, it saved me from buying a cooling fan, which could cost £100 extra. One shopper added: “A wonderful duvet, I cannot recommend it more. Just like a feather on top of you, and seems very temperature regulating.”
Another shared: “Warm yet light and regulates temperature so well. We are using the duvet now when we would have changed to a low tog summer duvet to keep cool. It’s not immediately obvious which is the top and bottom side so adding a label which states top and underside would be helpful.”
The Simba Hybrid Duvet is available to purchase here.
