The return of a direct night train between Brussels and Milan has been welcomed by Back On Track Belgium as an important step in rebuilding Europe‘s international night-train network, although the rail campaign group says the difficulties involved show why a broader European strategy is needed.
The new European Sleeper service will make its first journey from Milano Porta Garibaldi to Brussels on Wednesday 9 September, departing at 16:45. The train is scheduled to arrive at Brussels-South at 11:42 the following morning, making the journey around 17 hours. It will initially run three times a week in each direction.
Alexander Gomme, spokesperson for Back On Track Belgium, sees the launch as particularly significant because it restores a direct rail connection that disappeared almost 24 years ago.
“The mere fact that a direct train exists is already a remarkable achievement,” he said.
The previous Brussels–Milan night train operated daily as train 298/299. It was a joint international service involving Italy‘s Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS), Switzerland‘s SBB-CFF-FFS, France‘s SNCF and Belgian railway operator NMBS / SNCB.
“A genuine example of European cooperation!”, Gomme said.
From 12 hours to almost 18
The new service is considerably slower than its predecessor, reflecting both the changed route and the realities of today’s European railway network.
The former train travelled south via Luxembourg and Alsace. European Sleeper’s new service instead runs through Switzerland, using the Gotthard route, with calls including Zurich, Arth-Goldau, Göschenen, Bellinzona, and Lugano before reaching Italy and Milan.
The result is a journey of around 17 hours and 40 minutes on the northbound service, compared with roughly 12 hours for the former connection.
For passengers, the new service therefore involves a relatively early afternoon departure from Milan. Milano Porta Garibaldi is also somewhat less central than Milano Centrale, although the station is well connected to Milan’s public transport network.
Gomme points out that the differences should not obscure the achievement involved in creating a new international night train.
“Setting up a night train is difficult: railway paths have to be found and coordinated across several countries; rolling stock needs to be authorised to operate in all of them; suitably qualified staff have to be available; and the number of passengers per coach is significantly lower than on a daytime train, because passengers must also be able to sleep on board.”
A piece of railway history returns
There is also a tangible link between the old and new services. Some of the coaches being used by European Sleeper are the same type of historic rolling stock associated with earlier European night trains.
“Some of the coaches are the same as those used back then: the famous stainless-steel AB30 sleeping cars, built in 1955 and refurbished at the workshops of the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits in Ostend in 1993,” Gomme said.
European Sleeper’s Milan service is operated with rolling stock from Railroad Development Corporation (RDC) and Gesellschaft für Fahrzeugtechnik (GfF). The service offers seats, couchettes and sleeping compartments.
The launch also broadens European Sleeper’s network beyond its established connections between Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, France, and Central Europe. The company describes the new service as a direct overnight connection from Brussels to Zurich, Lugano, Lake Como and Milan.
Antwerp connection coming in December
The service will already change again with the December timetable.
From 13 December, European Sleeper will add stops at Antwerp, Breda, and Eindhoven, bringing the Milan night train directly into the Netherlands and making it considerably more useful for passengers in northern Belgium. The route will also be adjusted, with the train running via the Netherlands rather than the current routing through Aachen.
This means Antwerp will gain a direct overnight connection with Milan, as well as intermediate destinations such as Zurich, Lugano and Lake Como.
The December timetable will also alter the operating pattern. The current Milan departures are on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday, while the Brussels–Milan service runs southbound on Monday, Thursday and Saturday.
Financing a wider night-train network
The Milan service comes as European Sleeper continues to expand its network and look for additional financing.
The company has launched a new bond issue to help fund a planned night train to Malmö, as well as future projects involving connections to and from Barcelona.
For Back On Track Belgium, however, the return of individual services is not enough. Gomme argues that Europe’s night-train revival remains dependent on a railway system that was largely designed around national networks and daytime services.
“Under the current framework, this is proving difficult,” he said.
“That is why we are calling on politicians, particularly at European level, to develop a European plan to restore a continental network of night trains.”
Europe needs more than individual revival projects
The argument reflects a broader problem with international night trains. Unlike a conventional domestic train, a cross-border sleeper needs compatible infrastructure, international train paths, approved rolling stock, crews with the necessary qualifications and sufficient demand across several countries.
The economics are also challenging. A sleeper or couchette occupies considerably more space per passenger than a standard daytime seat, while the service has to provide facilities that allow people to sleep.
Yet Gomme argues that the current European framework has not created the conditions necessary to rebuild the network that once existed.
“New rolling stock has been built only for existing routes, while the number of international night trains fell by two-thirds between 2001 and 2019, according to a study commissioned by the European Commission.”
“And many more services have disappeared since 2019,” he added.
Back On Track Belgium therefore sees the Brussels–Milan service as both an achievement and a warning: individual operators can bring back connections, but rebuilding a genuinely continental network requires political and regulatory changes.
“After 20 years, it is time to draw the lessons and adjust the plans,” Gomme said.
The Milan service nevertheless represents a significant expansion of the practical possibilities for overnight travel from Belgium. And with Antwerp, Breda, and Eindhoven being added in December, its importance will extend beyond Brussels to a much wider catchment area.
More on cross-border trains
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Channel Tunnel updates
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