On the 12th December 2011 the Paris-Moscow night train (also called the Trans European Express) resumed service for the first time since 1994. The service is run by Russian Railways RZD and offers 8 modern sleeper carriages with two carriages equipped with Deluxe sleeper compartments. The train stops among other cities in Frankfurt, Berlin, Warsaw and Minsk. The journey time from Paris to Moscow is 38 hours.

Departure is from Paris’ Gare de l’Est with the arrival one and half days later at Moscow’s Belaruskaya Station right in the centre of the city. It is a unique way of reaching the Russian capital allowing you to take in the varied landscape along the way.

There will be three services weekly during the winter (Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays) and five during the summer (+Tuesday and Thursday). The train leaves Paris at 08:28 which means you will need to travel by Eurostar and spend the night in Paris the day before. The next day, at almost midnight, the train arrives in central Moscow. This effectively gives you two whole days of daylight to watch Eastern Europe go by your window.

Taking this route is enjoyable but not altogether cheap. A Eurostar ticket to Paris will cost you from £69 per person return, plus the hotel night. You would need to stay reasonably close to Gare de l’Est, so any of the hotels off Rue Lafayette near Gare du Nord would do. The actual Paris to Moscow ticket is from 330 Euro one way if you take a shared sleeper cabin (same sex) and 460 Euro per person in a shared two-berth sleeper. There are concessions for over 60’s and under 12’s.

The best way to book is with Deutsche Bahn’s UK call centre on 08718 80 80 66 (lines open 09:00-20:00 Monday-Friday, 09:00-13:00 Saturday & Sunday with no booking fee.  This journey is not currently available to book via the Rail Europe website but you could call their call centre to book on 08448 484 064

Russian and Belarusian visa’s are needed for this journey, so allow plenty of time ahead of your journey to get this part organised.