How To Take An Overnight Train From Split
Last Updated on: 13th August 2023, 10:25 am
When we left Split, we wanted to travel by night. This was because the journey was so long and we didn’t want to spend 6 or 7 hours through the day travelling. And sleeping on the train overnight was quite adventurous and as Tilly is a teen, it was an awesome thing for her to do. This article will help you to take an overnight train from Split (or to Split).
Book The Train In Advance
You cannot book the trains until you get to Croatia. So you need to be there for a few days. Book the train on the first day before you do anything. Especially in the summer, you don’t want to be stuck without a space on the train. Booking a train is easy enough. You need to show the attendant at the station your interrail pass. They need the QR code to scan.
You need to know what train you want to use. But as you are on an interrailing trip, you will have already done your homework (I hope). We booked to 20.59 train from Split to Zagreb. What we didn’t know was that we had booked ‘the party train’. It was a totally different experience than the other night trains we had taken.
The Different Accommodation To Book On An Overnight Train From Split
On the overnight train from Split, you can choose to sleep in a seat in a carriage. These seats are in small compartments, so you get 6 seats per compartment. If nobody else books the seats in there, you get the whole compartment to yourself. Then you can use the seats as a bed. Would you believe these seats cost only 1 Euro to reserve a seat?
You can use a couchette with 4 or 6 beds in it. These reservations cost a little more, but you get bedding and pillows to sleep with. You will end up sharing with strangers if you don’t book out the whole compartment.
We booked a sleeper room. These rooms are designed for 2 or 3 people and they are more private. At the time of booking, we didn’t know what we were booking. But it was about 9 Euros each and we were happy to pay for that for somewhere to sleep as we travelled.
In the sleeper cabin we had, there was a table and chair, a sink and somewhere to hang your clothes. The beds were all above each other. So there were 3 beds against one wall. There was a rope safety barrier to stop the people on higher beds from falling out. There was also a ladder to get to the higher bunks.
The sleeper cabins also come with some bottles of water, croissants and snacks for the morning.
The Cafe/ Bar On The Party Train
As it was classed as a party train, there was a coach that was just like a cafe on the tracks. It was well equipped with all sorts of alcohol as well as snacks, soft drinks and hot drinks. The seats are comfortable and it makes a change from laying on your bed in your cabin.
What We Thought Of The Overnight Train From Split
At first we had trouble finding our sleeping cabin. And as everyone gets on the train in a rush, desperate to get to their seat or couchette the aisles get blocked. It all comes to a standstill and conversations get heated as people refuse to move. We came across a group of selfish teens who did just this. As someone who suffers from anxiety and struggles in crowds. This was very difficult for me to deal with. These teens stood in aisles for most of the journey and refused to move and let people pass.
The train was so slow, in fact, if it had gone any slower, it would have gone backwards. It literally went about 30 miles an hour, so be prepared for this. This meant we missed any trains heading towards Hungary, despite the fact that we were supposed to be there by 5 am. We finally arrived at Zagreb 2 hours late and had to find a new route to Budapest.
Everyone on these trains is doing the same thing as you. So chat with them and share travel stories. they might have been somewhere that you want to go to.
The trains are not luxurious, so please do not expect anything special on the overnight trains. they are basic, but it is what you need to get from a-b.
