Slovenia is a beautiful vacation destination. Nestled between mountains and crisscrossed by stunning rivers, a trip to Slovenia is an unforgettable experience. Many people wonder whether it makes sense to forego driving or flying from Germany to Slovenia and instead take the climate-friendly alternative of the train. The option of a night train also promises a time advantage, as you can spend most of the journey sleeping and arrive fresh at your destination.
Based on a travel report of a journey from Osnabrück to Ljubljana/Tolmin, we would like to provide information on what to consider when traveling by train from Germany to Slovenia (during the main summer vacation period). Depending on the route, you should definitely plan for a good amount of preparation time, generous transfer times, and anticipation for surprises.
Travelers from Germany might appreciate one aspect of Deutsche Bahn: the connection search feature, which not only allows you to specify a desired destination station but even individual streets, including those in smaller villages. Typically, the connection overview also shows buses and regional trains as well as walking routes. Unfortunately, this feature is missed when searching across borders.
When trying to obtain connections based on the start and end points, it is essential to select a destination with a train station; otherwise, a connection might not be displayed. Before planning potential train routes, it is best to research several options for your destination station and possibly also local travel options, which can be cumbersome depending on your language skills.
For international travel, the railway offers an international website where you can book a journey with the train. The advantage: if you miss a connecting train, there may be options to use other means of transport or hotels. However, it is still important to plan for generous transfer times: who wants to take a night train only to have to find a hotel due to delays? In our case, it was not possible to book a trip including the Nightjet through the international railway website, so all journeys were ultimately booked with individual providers.
For the journey to Slovenia by night train, the ÖBB Nightjet was an option, operating several night trains that travel through Germany to Italy and Croatia, thus suitable for a destination in Slovenia. Due to relatively limited research, the decision was made to take the night train from Stuttgart to Zagreb, specifically from Munich to Ljubljana, as there was also a direct shuttle bus option to the destination Tolmin. A more detailed research would have revealed options for a night train to Austria (e.g., Amsterdam - Innsbruck) with a day trip through Austria and Slovenia. In that case, we would have seen more of Austria and Slovenia's beautiful landscapes, but would have needed to delve deeper into the Austrian and Slovenian rail and bus networks. For the optimal route, it may be worthwhile to spend more time researching possible (alternative) connections.
Additionally, it was necessary to book the train from Germany to Munich and the shuttle bus from Tolmin to Slovenia.
When selecting the night train, the next decision had to be made: seat, couch, or sleeping car. The sleeping car offers maximum comfort with up to 3 beds, a private sink (or even a private bathroom if booked), and a comprehensive breakfast at the highest price (in our case, over €200 per trip per person from Munich to Ljubljana). The couchette car offers 4-6 places in a small compartment. At the time of booking, only couchette car places in 4-person compartments were available at a price of €100 per person per journey. The couchette car was a 6-person car, with the upper places remaining free and thus providing space for luggage. Those carrying larger backpacks or suitcases should consider that with 6 booked places, there is barely space left for luggage. The cheapest category was the seat, available for under €35 per person per journey, but offers minimal comfort. Those who want to save as much as possible and are willing to accept significant comfort reductions can opt for the seat car.
However, during booking, the first setback occurred: For the return trip, it was indicated that the night trains would be diverted due to construction work at the border over Spielfeld (on the other side of Austria) and the expected delay would affect the choice of connecting train. Unfortunately, no information about possible delays was available on the website. A friendly ÖBB staff member provided experience estimates of 60-90 minutes, in rare cases up to 120 minutes, but no more than 180 minutes.
After careful consideration of reasonable buffer times (due to the possibility of visiting a festival, a large buffer of 5 hours was included for the outbound trip), 4 hours were planned for the return trip due to the expected delay. Booking from Osnabrück to Munich via Hannover proved to be straightforward and was directly displayed in the railway app. The cost for a saver ticket (train-bound, cancellation excluded) including seat reservation was €60 per person per journey.
With the booking of the shuttle bus from Ljubljana to Tolmin for €27 per person per journey, the trip was fully booked nearly half a year before departure and was also cheaper than a flight (at least €300 due to the lack of a direct flight) and, according to fuel planners, cheaper than driving by car for up to 2 people, especially when vignettes are included. In terms of cost, train travel can indeed compete with driving under certain conditions (early booking, no cancellation options), and those who accept comfort reductions can spend even less.
The trip was booked, and the transfer times were so generous that even with significant delays, no stress was expected. What could happen besides the night train being canceled?
Not a complete cancellation, but 3 months before departure, an email arrived stating that the booked couchette car would be replaced with a seat car due to maintenance work. There was the option to cancel the trip or receive a 50% compensation (the cost of a seat car was still below the cost of the couchette car minus compensation at that time, and fortunately, the decision was made to proceed with the trip and apply for compensation later, primarily for convenience). At that time, it seemed that ÖBB was not necessarily ahead of Deutsche Bahn (despite its poor reputation): For the return trip, delays were expected, and on both trips, the booked couchette car would be replaced with an uncomfortable seat car. Apart from an email about the diversion over Spielfeld, communication from ÖBB was very sparse.
But Deutsche Bahn did not cover itself in glory either. The trip was planned for early August, precisely during the peak travel season, including a transfer in Hannover. To our surprise, the IC was punctual to within a few minutes, and the connecting train should have been reached. However, previous cancellations and delays meant it took about 20 minutes to occupy the reserved seats, and then there was a notification in the railway app that the booked train from Hannover would be canceled. As an alternative, the booked ICE was displayed. Upon arrival in Hannover, information was sparse, and the train display only advised not to board the train: the booked train consisted of 2 ICEs combined, with seat reservations applying to the ICE that was running. At the information stand, it was confirmed that despite other statements and displays, we should board the train if seats were booked, even though the platform was already very crowded due to previous train cancellations (for a train with only half the actual capacity).
After an adventurous boarding, we were able to occupy the reserved seats (which fortunately were for the running train part) much earlier this time and could relax. Once seated, traveling in the ICE is indeed very pleasant (the air conditioning worked), and with the delay of just over 1 hour in Munich, the buffer was large enough to store our luggage at the Ost station's locker (also fortunate: unlike the main station, the number of available lockers, especially larger ones, was very limited) and visit the festival for nearly 2 hours. Thanks to the frequent S-Bahn schedule, we were well on time, although finding the right platform for the night trains proved to be cumbersome. The next surprise followed: The booked night train to Zagreb via Ljubljana was not found on the display; instead, another train number with the destination Venice was displayed for the appropriate platform and departure time. A railway employee then informed waiting passengers that the train compartments to Venice would be attached in Austria, while the compartments heading to Croatia would continue, meaning the train would be split during the night to continue towards Croatia and Italy.
When the night train arrived, there was a positive surprise: the booked compartment was indeed a couchette car. One should not expect much space, but due to the two free upper places, there was some room to store luggage. Light sleepers should not expect to sleep through the night. The noise, especially at the train stations, can quickly wake you up, and with the air conditioning turned off, the small compartment became very warm, leading to a trip where we could lie down and rest but were not able to sleep deeply. In the morning, we finally arrived in Ljubljana, where we were greeted by the transfer bus that was scheduled to continue to Tolmin. The train journey was therefore very pleasant, and with a good buffer for possible delays, a trip worth repeating.
Conclusion:
Traveling by train is definitely a climate-friendly option for traveling to Slovenia, even if you travel in a less comfortable couchette car. In retrospect, a less comfortable night train trip could have saved time and money. There are various options to get from Germany to Slovenia by train, with the main hurdle being the booking and preparation time. It is advisable to thoroughly research potential connections and plan ample buffer times, especially for the return journey. Fortunately, if you plan with adequate time and flexibility, you can enjoy a pleasant train journey. In any case, in peak seasons, the train journey remains an alternative to flying or driving, especially when considering travel costs.
