Caledonian Sleeper

[Collins85]

Hi Everyone

Just looking for some advice. Wanting to book a special trip for someone and he mentioned a while ago that he would like to try the Caledonian Sleeper. Does anyone else have any suggestions of good railway experiences? Have looked at Orient Express but it is a bit expensive...

Thanks

 

[rail-britain]

Where in Britain are you travelling from?

For the Caledonian Sleeper, look at Fort William or Inverness
It is also possible to do both
Northbound to Fort William, coach to Inverness, then return on the Inverness sleeper

You could also try the First Great Western sleeper
Sadly even in summer it is dark northbound, but southbound you should be able to enjoy the scenery from Exeter onwards

The Arriva Trains Wales Premier Service
It's not easy to get to, but worth the effort
If you can board whilst it is travelling southbound (Holyhead or Chester) have breakfast on-board then you can have a day out in Cardiff, then have an evening meal on the way back northbound

I am currently working on some other Tours By Rail :
http://www.rail-britain.co.uk/tours_by_rail.html
Sadly the majority now are escorted tours typically on normal passenger services

 

[atillathehunn]

The Caledonian sleeper is a lovely ride when up in the Far North, however you might not be assured of the best sleep all the way! The stock is also nothing special.

It depends on how much time and money you have. I wouldn't say that, for a special event, the Caledonian sleeper is the most exciting!

The best rides I have ever done by train, are Vancouver to Banff through the Rocky Mountains. Absolutely stunning.

The Trans Siberian is always amazing (although can get a little tedious through the tundra.

Although some of the best still have to be in Africa! The ride from Mombasa to Kisumu via Nairobi is brilliant! And incredibly cheap. A few hundred Kenyan shilling First Class (wouldn't recommend going any other way!). The ride takes you from the coastal city of Mombasa across the plains to Nairobi. The food is pretty good, and very cheap. A good bottle of wine will be under a fiver, and beer is under £1. You watch the world go by from the dining car, and the sunset is something to behold! You can also treat it as something of a safari - plenty of wildlife around!

Also, the Blue Train in South Africa is in a similar vein - very old world splendour through some spectacular areas!

However, I suspect that if the Orient Express was on the expensive side, these trips might well blow the budget! Although, don't rule them out until you have done some research. There are normally some very good deals around and they may well come out cheaper than the Orient Express even though the distance is much greater!


Sorry if that's not all that much help, but they are the best ones that I have done !

 

[Collins85]

Thanks for the replies! That was my main worry, that the Caledonian Sleeper trains aren't all that special... I have seen some steam train trips through the lake district, do you know much about these?

I would love to send him to Africa for a trip but sadly can't afford it..
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
Also, meant to say location isn't too much of an issue as he lives in the midlands so it isn't too bad to get to london or the north!

Thanks again

 

[Techniquest]

Wanting to book a special trip for someone and he mentioned a while ago that he would like to try the Caledonian Sleeper.

Hmm, I note a couple of things in your post worthy of discussion. I've only quoted the above part for a reason, I'll come to that in a moment. The key things here appear to be:

It's a special trip for this gentleman;
Cost;
Finding somewhere interesting to go/do once arriving there.

Apologies if that's not the case, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. Taking the above points into account, I refer back to the part of the post I've quoted. This is obviously going to be a special trip, a gift, for this gentleman. Whilst I see no mention of why the gentleman would like to try the Caledonian Sleeper (just for the experience I would guess, not for any motive power reasons), or how many people are making the trip - I guess two people - what matters most here is that the trip should be what he wants to do.

If he has expressed interest in trying out the Caledonian Sleeper, and it's a trip that's within financial constraints, then I say it's worth doing. Plenty could be found to do within the 12 hours or so between arrival and departure on the Inverness sleeper I should think. Some time to explore the city in the morning before lunch then a trip out to, say, Loch Ness in the afternoon before tea and a trip to the pub before departure. Or a trip out to Kyle of Lochalsh, even just a straight out and back trip, it's worth it for the lovely scenery. Off the Fort William sleeper, there's that cable car line that could well be worth checking out, indeed a ride up the stunning Mallaig line is worth doing. Up to Fort William, onto The Jacobite to Mallaig, time for some fresh fish and chips before returning to Fort William for some exploring before returning on the sleeper.

Just some ideas really, but as I say if he's expressed an interest in trying out the sleeper then why not I say. It's an experience that's worth doing at least once in your lifetime, although I must admit to being slightly biased towards sleeper train travel due to it being a great time saving trip as well as raking in the mileage during otherwise dead time!

I'm not saying things like the Orient Express aren't worth doing, crikey I'd love to do such a trip, merely defending the Caledonian Sleeper idea.

 

[BRX]

Hmm, I note a couple of things in your post worthy of discussion. I've only quoted the above part for a reason, I'll come to that in a moment. The key things here appear to be:

It's a special trip for this gentleman;
Cost;
Finding somewhere interesting to go/do once arriving there.

Apologies if that's not the case, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. Taking the above points into account, I refer back to the part of the post I've quoted. This is obviously going to be a special trip, a gift, for this gentleman. Whilst I see no mention of why the gentleman would like to try the Caledonian Sleeper (just for the experience I would guess, not for any motive power reasons), or how many people are making the trip - I guess two people - what matters most here is that the trip should be what he wants to do.

If he has expressed interest in trying out the Caledonian Sleeper, and it's a trip that's within financial constraints, then I say it's worth doing. Plenty could be found to do within the 12 hours or so between arrival and departure on the Inverness sleeper I should think. Some time to explore the city in the morning before lunch then a trip out to, say, Loch Ness in the afternoon before tea and a trip to the pub before departure. Or a trip out to Kyle of Lochalsh, even just a straight out and back trip, it's worth it for the lovely scenery. Off the Fort William sleeper, there's that cable car line that could well be worth checking out, indeed a ride up the stunning Mallaig line is worth doing. Up to Fort William, onto The Jacobite to Mallaig, time for some fresh fish and chips before returning to Fort William for some exploring before returning on the sleeper.

Just some ideas really, but as I say if he's expressed an interest in trying out the sleeper then why not I say. It's an experience that's worth doing at least once in your lifetime, although I must admit to being slightly biased towards sleeper train travel due to it being a great time saving trip as well as raking in the mileage during otherwise dead time!

I'm not saying things like the Orient Express aren't worth doing, crikey I'd love to do such a trip, merely defending the Caledonian Sleeper idea.

Yup the Caledonian sleeper to Fort William is a great trip. I've done lots of train travel all over Europe and elsewhere, including the trans siberian, the trans Canadian and the Mombassa - Nairobi mentioned above. And I'll still recommend the Fort William sleeper as one of the best trips there is.

 

[Collins85]

Hello, thanks for replies, they've been really helpful! Think I will go with the Caledonian sleeper then as like you say he def wanted to go on it! We can book a berth for him and his wife you see.. Would you say it is worth booking first class?

 

[rail-britain]

We can book a berth for him and his wife you see.. Would you say it is worth booking first class?

Depends on how the return journey is being made

First Class on the sleepers is pretty much wasted, only guarantees you a single berth and a slightly better breakfast
Upgrading to a Solo Berth is a more cost effective (leisure) option

Return by ScotRail service, then day train southbound
From Glasgow southbound this is where First Class is of benefit, so it may be beneficial to split the tickets (not for the purposes of saving money, but for the benefits)
Thus :
London - Fort William Standard Single Solo x 2
Fort William - Glasgow Standard Single x 2
Glasgow - London (or Warrington, see below) First Advance Single x 2
Compare prices and see what you get

Also they can then travel First Class between Midlands and London, thus travelling by Pendolino instead of Voyager between Glasgow and London
Alternatively, travel Glasgow - Warrington (on a London Service) then Warrington - Birmingham (or final destination in the Midlands)

 

[BRX]

Hello, thanks for replies, they've been really helpful! Think I will go with the Caledonian sleeper then as like you say he def wanted to go on it! We can book a berth for him and his wife you see.. Would you say it is worth booking first class?

If it's for him and his wife travelling together, and you think they would be happy sharing a cabin (a cabin has two beds, one upper and one lower like bunk beds) then it's not worth it.

see here for pictures -

http://www.seat61.com/CaledonianSleepers.htm

I'd suggest that returning on the sleeper from Fort William (instead of getting a day train to Glasgow) is best because it leaves relatively early in the evening (around 7-8pm) so you can enjoy the trip in daylight and see the sun go down, and have some dinner as you go. This only applies in the summer of course - in winter the whole trip is in darkness!

Unfortunately it can be a bit tricky getting the tickets for the sleeper, especially the Fort William one. You might be misadvised on cost - don't necessarily trust what they tell you on Scotrail telesales. And the online booking system will put you on the Glasgow sleeper (continuing by day train) if you try to book to a station beyond Fort William.

Check on here that you've been offered the right tickets before committing.

 

[Collins85]

If it's for him and his wife travelling together, and you think they would be happy sharing a cabin (a cabin has two beds, one upper and one lower like bunk beds) then it's not worth it.

see here for pictures -

http://www.seat61.com/CaledonianSleepers.htm

I'd suggest that returning on the sleeper from Fort William (instead of getting a day train to Glasgow) is best because it leaves relatively early in the evening (around 7-8pm) so you can enjoy the trip in daylight and see the sun go down, and have some dinner as you go. This only applies in the summer of course - in winter the whole trip is in darkness!

Unfortunately it can be a bit tricky getting the tickets for the sleeper, especially the Fort William one. You might be misadvised on cost - don't necessarily trust what they tell you on Scotrail telesales. And the online booking system will put you on the Glasgow sleeper (continuing by day train) if you try to book to a station beyond Fort William.

Check on here that you've been offered the right tickets before committing.

If i was to book them on the sleeper back from fort william leaving around 7-8 do I request a meal? Just wondering if they have like a dining carriage? Sorry to be so clueless..

 

[rail-britain]

If i was to book them on the sleeper back from fort william leaving around 7-8 do I request a meal? Just wondering if they have like a dining carriage? Sorry to be so clueless..

You could ask ScotRail to reserve a meal, but there is no guarantee
All food and drink is chargeable
I would recommend the Haggis :
http://www.rail-britain.co.uk/gallery/displayimage.php?album=27&pid=210
ScotRail reserved me this table and meal for me, on the southbound Inverness sleeper

All sleepers have a lounge car, for the exclusive use of sleeper passengers
At busy times it can be restricted to First Class ticket holders, more common northbound from London, or from Glasgow or Edinburgh at peak periods
Although when I travelled northbound to Fort William the lounge car was full and was advised the attendant would come to my cabin and advise me when a table was available, but that never happened
As the train passed Nuneaton I made my way back to the lounge car and there were two tables available, and my attendant sitting having a chat with the Chief Steward

 

[BRX]

There's a dining car-cum lounge car, you just turn up and can wait for a seat if none available. I guess you could try reserving. The food is pretty good compared to most on offer on UK trains and it's pretty reasonably priced too. As are drinks!
--- old post above --- --- new post below ---
PS note that the Fort William portion only has 2 sleeping cars on it, so the chances of the lounge/dining car being completely full all evening are fairly low, I reckon!

 

[BigVince76]

Sorry to hijack this thread but how do you go about reserving a table and a meal? I will be going from London to Inverness and then returning from Fort William in the last week of July. I have tickets from Bargain Berths, not sure if that makes a difference.

 

[Collins85]

Sounds like a nice plan then, I didn't realise there was a dining / lounge car aswell so would defo like to sort that for them too! Thanks for all your help, and no worries about hijacking the thread

 

[[email protected].]

Depends on how the return journey is being made

First Class on the sleepers is pretty much wasted, only guarantees you a single berth and a slightly better breakfast
Upgrading to a Solo Berth is a more cost effective (leisure) option

Return by ScotRail service, then day train southbound
From Glasgow southbound this is where First Class is of benefit, so it may be beneficial to split the tickets (not for the purposes of saving money, but for the benefits)
Thus :
London - Fort William Standard Single Solo x 2
Fort William - Glasgow Standard Single x 2
Glasgow - London (or Warrington, see below) First Advance Single x 2
Compare prices and see what you get

I travelled the sleeper, Fort William to London in June.

My first sleeper journey, I have to agree with most posts that the service, food & general atmosphere is brilliant, and an experience not to be missed.
If I had a negative it would be that the sleepers could do with a little TLC.

I would love to do the return trip later in the year, on my trip to London I booked 1st class.

I have read the post on ‘Solo’ berths, but using the date Wed 7th Sept, I have been unable to obtain them, any tips/help.

Are they available to Fort William?

 

[BRX]

I have read the post on ‘Solo’ berths, but using the date Wed 7th Sept, I have been unable to obtain them, any tips/help.

Are they available to Fort William?

Go to the Scotrail booking site, try choosing a ticket type eg off peak return/ anytime return etc (these will have "supp" written in red under them), then continue to the next stage of booking and it'll ask you what kind of supplement you want - either free for a reclining seat, £38 for a standard (ie sharing) sleeper suppplement or £54 for a solo supplement (ie you get the cabin to yourself).

If it's not showing the £54 option it might be because solo cabins are restricted in the summer when the Fort W train is quite popular and with limited space (not sure about this though).


Edited:

Have just checked the 7th Sept for you.

You can get an Off-Peak single + solo supplement but this actually works out more expensive than just buying a "sleeper 1st single".

It might still be worth doing if you want to travel up by day train though. You can then get an Off-peak return + solo supplement which might be cheaper than paying for a one-way "sleeper 1st single" + a daytime single ticket for the other direction.

Hope that makes sense.

 

[Hullboy]

I think its a great idea - had nothing but pleasant trips on the Sleeper. Agree its in need of a bit of TLC though!!

 

[4SRKT]

I must say the FGW ticketing arrangements are much simpler and the whole thing a lot more civilised. A shame the simplicity can't be extended to FSR, who are after all a sister company. I've never been quoted the same fare twice by FSR, who appear to be operating some sort of bizarre Ryanair-style fares lottery, making it impossible to plan. I wanted to take my lad on the sleeper for his birthday, and phoned up for a price a few months ago. When I came to book I couldn't get anything like this price on any ScotRail sleeper on any day. In the end I gave up and just booked to Penzance instead, on which we will enjoy a far higher standard of comfort and service for a much lower price.

Incidentally, the Night Riviera is booked into Penzance at 08:59 on Mondays, but the through train to St Ives leaves at 08:57. I presume that as it's single track for the first couple of miles in practice the sleeper must arrive a few minutes early to allow it to get in first. Can anyone confirm this as ideally I'd just like to leap across to the unit (it's a cross-platform connection) and head straight out to St Ives?

 

[BRX]

In what ways is the FGW sleeper better than the FSR one? Never been on it.

 

[4SRKT]

It's simpler to start with. There's no 'first' or 'second' class, just solo or sharing. If you book on your own it's always solo, and you only share if you choose to share with someone else that you know. In effect, you pay a supplement to share, with the solo fare being the basic tariff. As well as this, you get complimentary tea and biscuits in the lounge car when you board, and proper breakfast (bacon roll, tea in a proper pot) brought on a tray to your cabin at a time of yoir choosing, rather than the tea and shortbread in a bag on FSR. Also there's a television in the room in solo compartments.

Basically it's simpler to understand, it's usually a lot cheaper, the deal includes more stuff, and you never, ever have to risk sharing with a hairy arsed stranger. Oh, and the complimentary toilet bag's better as well!

 

[BRX]

It's simpler to start with. There's no 'first' or 'second' class, just solo or sharing. If you book on your own it's always solo, and you only share if you choose to share with someone else that you know. In effect, you pay a supplement to share, with the solo fare being the basic tariff. As well as this, you get complimentary tea and biscuits in the lounge car when you board, and proper breakfast (bacon roll, tea in a proper pot) brought on a tray to your cabin at a time of yoir choosing, rather than the tea and shortbread in a bag on FSR. Also there's a television in the room in solo compartments.

Basically it's simpler to understand, it's usually a lot cheaper, the deal includes more stuff, and you never, ever have to risk sharing with a hairy arsed stranger. Oh, and the complimentary toilet bag's better as well!

Ah well, at least with the West Highland one you end up somewhere a bit more exciting than Cornwall.

 

[4SRKT]

Ah well, at least with the West Highland one you end up somewhere a bit more exciting than Cornwall.

True maybe, but try booking on it in summer. 2 sleeping cars is woefully inadequate for the demand that is there at that time of year. The journey itself may be exciting on the West Highland, but Fort William is a bit of a dump TBH, and Mallaig as a place is not exciting at all. Whatever delights there are last as long as it takes to get served in the [very expensive] fish and chip shop. Also, I quite like Cornwall as you can work back doing a selection of branches. The lad and I are doing the whole lot from Saltaire to London to Penzance, St Ives and back to Saltaire for about £145, including two solo cabins with interconnecting doors.

 

[BRX]

I agree that 2 sleeping cars is inadequate... would be much better if it could somehow run as its own train from London for the peak summer period.

Fort William itself hasn't got much to offer but it's a staging point for everything that the West Highlands do have to offer. As for Mallaig, to have some fish and chips and go home again somehow misses the point... get on the ferry to Skye and beyond, or direct to any of the small isles, all pretty special places and you don't have to share them with hordes of tourists and ice cream vans like Cornwall. Additionally there are lots of places along the Mallaig line you can get off, great beaches at Morar, Arisaig, etc etc......

 

[4SRKT]

Anyway, the point wasn't whether Penzance is more interesting than Mallaig, or whether there's more to do in Scotland than Cornwall (both are pretty distant and exotic when you live in West Yorkshire TBH), but to bemoan the fact that the Caledonian Sleeper is more complicated and expensive for a less good product in and of itself than the Night Riviera. If someone (like my son) simply wants to experience a sleeper, then the NR is the way to go in terms of price and service. If the Caley fare structure was similar to FGW's, it'd be a no-brainer. Also, I like 57s more than 67s

 

[First ScotRail]

The seated sleeper is now getting its seat covers replaced with new spotty blue ones, and the moveable chairs in the lounge car are also now in the spotty blue colour. looks fresher...

 

[4SRKT]

However, when it comes to the seated sleeper, the Caley knocks the Night Riviera into a cocked hat.

 

[sprinterguy]

2 sleeping cars is woefully inadequate for the demand that is there at that time of year.

Isn't the Fort William sleeper strengthened to three sleeper carriages during the summer (with the resultant loss of one sleeper carriage from the Aberdeen portion) as required, or has that practice been discontinued recently?

It's a shame that the Caley Sleeper is so much more complicated to book and offers a poorer service than the Night Riviera, as given that they are both worked by the same parent company you would think there'd be standardisation amongst the sum total of Britains' sleeper network. Plus I'd rather travel on one of the Caley sleepers based on the attraction of the destinations they serve, although despite waking up in Penzance being quite underwhelming there is plenty of interest around the southern Cornish peninsula and up along the north coast in the same way that there is much, much more to the Deerstalker than just access to Fort William and Mallaig.

 

[rail-britain]

Isn't the Fort William sleeper strengthened to three sleeper carriages during the summer (with the resultant loss of one sleeper carriage from the Aberdeen portion) as required, or has that practice been discontinued recently?

Yes, northbound on a Friday and southbound on a Sunday

When I travelled on it northbound (a Tuesday) there were just three of us on it

 

[EltonRoad]

I'm on this tonight going north - we'll see how busy it is!

 

[rail-britain]

I'm on this tonight going north - we'll see how busy it is!

Travelling to which destination; Fort William, Aberdeen, or Inverness?

Depends on the attendant
Ask how many other passengers there are or take a sneeky look at the clipboard

The attendant I had was more than happy to let me look and it was quite shocking how empty it was (one passenger to Crianlarich and two to Fort William)
Equally, he had eight passengers for the Aberdeen sleeper
This is quite common and these passengers are advised the sleeper is full and may change at Edinburgh but if a berth becomes available they will be swapped
This was indeed the case and they stood next to the Lounge Car until 5 minutes before the train departed