"Understaffed"

Understaffed. No conductor to be found. Nobody really knew if we were boarding the correct train due to station change, so lots of late-night stress. Nobody came around to show us the ropes as they’d announced. No toilet paper, but could steal paper towel from sink rooms. Loved the idea of the sleeper. And the beds were comfy. Sheets clean. Expensive.

"Horrible experience"

We paid for a sleeper compartment for two people, but we finally travelled in a very very old couchette. No travel kit, no toillette. They said that their are going to pay a refund but i have doubt about it.

7 weeks later, i'm still waiting for the refund.

"Confortable,Quick,neat and unpolluting"

Confortable,Quick,neat and unpolluting

"Private night train company usually on the right track"

I have traveled 5 times with European Sleeper in the last year - 4 times eastward, 1 time westward. During the same time period, I have also traveled with other night trains in Central Europe, as well as long-distance trains during the day, on average a few times per month.

Firstly: all international (night) trains in Europe face many challenges: lack of modern equipment, aging rail infrastructure, lots of national train networks which follow their own rules and don't have night trains at the top of their priority list, etc. As such, when traveling by (night) train, you should mentally prepare for delays, cancelled stops, changes in train composition, unreliable behaviour of onboard facilitaties like airco or power outlets, and other unpleasant surprises. A somewhat adventurous mindset is a must, otherwise this night trains are currently not for you. One should evaluate them based on how they deal with these issues when they inevitably occur, and how they care for their passengers. In this regard, I think European Sleeper does many things right, although there is room for improvement too.

The trajectory: What's nice is that there are no stops between Berlin and the Dutch-German border, so you have at least 5 hours of uninterrupted sleep. This is pleasant compared to many other night trains or buses, which often make regular stops during the night to pick up passengers, or which have to rearrange carriages - a noisy operation. The main disadvantage is that, when traveling between final stations Brussels and Prague, the travel time is quite long because of the detour via Berlin and Amsterdam: the total travel time is at least 15 hours, much longer than by day train, even longer than by FlixBus.

The equipment: I have mainly traveled in couchette class. The carriages themselves are several decades old and look like it, but they have been refreshed and are in the end more than sufficient. You get a pillow, some bed linen, and a blanket. The pillow and linen have always been perfectly clean, the compartment itself was sometimes cleaned a bit too superficially, but overall I have no complaints.

The staff on board: The European Sleeper staff are always very friendly and helpful in all parts of the train, and this is a big plus: I found this to be noticeably different in other night trains in Europe in couchette class.
However, it has also happened to me that I was looking for a member of staff throughout at least 3 carriages, but that none could be found. 2 times this was just a minor inconvenience - I wanted to order some coffee but I could not find anyone, or they all seemed so busy that stopping them for a frivolous order seemed inappropriate. 1 time there was a more serious issue where another passenger had somehow received the exact same seat/bed reservation as I had; this issue was quickly resolved once a staff member was found, but only after I spent half an hour at night running through different carriages looking for a member of staff, and then insisting that they give our problem some amount of priority. I don't know how the staff are organised, but they really should make sure that at least every second carriage has some approachable member of staff in case of issues (and communicate about this).

Issues: On my 5 trips, there were 2 severe delays (> 60 minutes), 1 last-minute cancellation of a stop (not my stop), 1 false fire alarm at 5 am in the morning, and then the aforementioned double booking of a bed. Overall the issues were handled well, although the quantity of communication on the train varies: in my experience communication with passengers is very good in the evening in Belgium/the Netherlands, and worst in Czechia, where delays and other issues are suddenly no longer announced and staff can be hard to find. I presume this might be related to the way the operation of the train is organised with the Czech railways, but it's an odd experience. On my 1 journey from Prague to Brussels, there were no announcements over the intercom whatsoever, despite the severe delay and cancelled stop in the Netherlands.

Helpdesk: Luckily I never had any big issues with my travels, so I cannot comment on how European Sleeper resolves e.g. cancelled trains. But my interaction with the helpdesk has always been friendly and quick. Cancellation of tickets is handled super fast. Compensation for delays is handled too slowly (> 6 weeks), but nevertheless in a friendly and hassle-free way.

Overall, I have been satisfied with my trips with European Sleeper and plan to travel with them again. I hope the aforementioned small issues will become less frequent as they become more streamlined and professional, and that they will manage to run more night trains soon.

"Prices paid were more than what was…"

Prices paid were more than what was shown on the Eurail app. We and three other people (one a toddler) barely got into our compartment when the train, which was late, started moving. This made it very difficult to sort out luggage etc. There was no chance to spread out the linens and blankets.
I'm 6'2" and my bunk was too short, but fortunately another passenger swapped with me.
It makes little sense to place the ladder right in front of the compartment door.
All in all, the experience was on par with a one- or two-star hotel. Still, it got us to Brussels earlier and saved us the expense of a costly hotel in Berlin.

"The nearly last-minute downgrading from…"

The nearly last-minute downgrading from single sleeper compartment to a couchette was a big disappointment, with inadequate compensation promised and rejection of my suggestion to apply the proposed future reduction to my return trip ticket. If my return trip is not significantly better, then it's unlikely that I will try this service again.

"Good trip"

I had a good trip from Brussel to Berlin, and back.
However, the return train from Berlin to Brussel was delayed with more than 1h, but we were warned one day before departure, so that I was able to change my connexion from Brussel to Lyon (final destination).
Overall a good experience. On board staff is present and helpful at our disposal.

"Een goeie manier om te reizen:"

Een goeie manier om te reizen:
1. Je spaart een vliegticket uit
2. Je wint vooral tijd
3. daarenboven heb je een goedkope overnachting
4. bovendien is het goed voor het milieu
Een prachtige combinatie om zo te reizen!

"Great experience with this night train"

I made a round trip from Brussels to Berlin with the European Sleeper night train. The staff on board was really nice and helpful. The comfort of the couchette was in line with my expectations. I arrived both times on time to my destination. Recommended!

"A very goooood experience!"

The company kept us well informed about an altered departure station due to construction works on the line.
The crew on board was very polite and helpfull, brought our breakfast at the agreed time in the morning.
The ride itself was smooth and comfortable. The toilets were clean during the entire trip.