My wife and I took a night train from Vienna to Venice in 1988 (when I was in my early forties and wife was in her late thirties) to maximize our daylight time in each of those cities (4 days in Vienna and 3 days in Venice). It was a 6-berth couchette. We were the first in our "room" and grabbed the two lower bunks, slipped into "night" clothes, and scampered into bed. Shortly thereafter, two young (maybe in their 30s) and not so tiny women came into the couchette, disrobed to their pantyhose and climbed up the ladders to their beds and started sawing logs - although we tried to be courteous, I have to admit we were stifling our guffaws (shows how parochial we are).

The next morning we met our couchette-mates and tried carrying on a conversation. They were teachers from Vienna on holiday to Venice. They were charming, funny, and delightful.

Although it's sometimes nice to live large (and elegant), sometimes it's even better to live with the rest of the world - in retrospect we wouldn't change our experience on the night train from Vienna to Venice for all the tea in China!

We took a day-train from Venice to Salzburg after our Venice sojourn, and the sights from the train were incredible. Maybe the answer is to do a little bit of everything.

Have fun on your honeymoon! All kinds of fun :)

We took a night train last year from Vienna to Florence and it was perfectly fine. We actually really enjoyed ourselves. Sure, the cabin was small (we had a double sleeper cabin) but for one night it was doable and helped make the most out of our vacation days. The cabin was clean and cozy and the person manning our train car was very friendly. The ride was actually quite beautiful. We were there in early March and the ride through the mountains about an hour outside of Vienna were magical. We turned out our cabin lights and just watched the scenery go by.

The only bad thing about the night train was waking up in Florence at 6:00 a.m. disoriented and totally groggy (we didn't get woken up until like 10 minutes before we had to be off the train).

Overall it wasn't bad at all and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

Tracy

I guess I am more provincial than I realized. What is "sawing logs"? OR is it unmentionable?

Intrepid,

regarding the comment on traveling 2nd class like "dormitory rats":

1. Even in first class the rooms are small, and it was 1st class we took, by the way!

2. the time when I've most felt like a "dormitory rat" was flying a cheap dog-and-pony charter airline
(not that there's anything wrong with that.)

We did the Artesia night train from Venice to Paris last year - a 4 person couchette.

It was perfectly fine - the cabin was clean and neat.

I slept relatively well, and I'm a pretty light sleeper. Storage space for the suitcases is tight, but we were able to make it work.

I wouldn't hesitate to take a night train again.

I am in my early 50's - maybe I am crazy but I like to take a nite train. The first two times was when I travelled with my daughters and their school groups - on those trips we were in the six person couchettes but all people sleeping there were part of our group. Yes, its tight but I managed to sleep all right. Then a couple years ago my daughter and I traveling independently took the train from Rome to Paris - we had a T-3 for the two of us. Now I don't think I would book us into a six person sleeper but this summer we are planning to go from Rome to Monteux on a nite train. It is my understanding that at least the T-3's are same sex - I don't think that applies to the the six person compartments. But I enjoy the experience, sleep fairly well (I usually take on a bag of snacks and some wine)and am ready to explore a new city when we get there in the morning. They do seem expensive tho - I just keep reminding myself its for the trip AND a hotel room for a nite.

When I was (much) younger I used to take the Madrid/Paris night train aaall the time. I had a ball, but then again, I was in college! Would I do it again? I guess if I had to, but considering the price of inter-European air travel, I would rather fly.

Depends on the type of sleeping accommodation you pay for - some night trains have deluxe doubles and these could be romantic. A friend of mine says his first child was conceived on the Nice-Venice night train!

Some people get a silk sleepsheet or sleeping bag liner that is very compact. They use this when traveling on night trains or anywhere that has suspect linens.

I like night trains very much, but only if you spring for the best private compartment available on the route. And I wouldn't do it more than once per week.

I don't believe there is such a thing as a 2 person couchette? The couchette is a cabin where 4-6 people share bunk bed style.

A private cabin for 2 people traveling together is known as 'wagon-lit' (or at least that is the term used in Switzerland).

Two VERY different things!

Suze, if you are referring to my post (not sure?), I was referring to the private 1st class sleeper cabin that we had. It had a door that locked, 2 beds, bunk-style, a small sink and luggage storage.

There were several people (HCart and kswl among them) who are using the term 2 person couchette.

Please correct me if I am wrong fellow posters, but I don't think this is an accurate term and could be confusing to people trying to make train reservations.

train:advantages:quite cheap , funny , quite an experience , typical , charming, arrives in city center , less hotel rooms to pay for.
what's not so great about it:verrryyy small , noisy , too hot or cold , could be dirty or clean , definitely not recommended for a honeymoon special night....if you don' t try the Orient-Express(2500$ , very preppy dressing mandatory)!
But nevertheless , there's this old charming delightful thing about trains , and you wake up in the morning , and wherever you're heading to , it's just there...Do it once or twice , then spend the extra money on a honeymoon bedroom ! You'll have memories , you'll have survived the European way of travelling , and you'll probably have met the weirdest , oddest and most exciting people you'll ever be given to meet! that's what train is all about.

I'm no expert on the various train sleeping arrangements, but I also think that couchette is a term reserved for multiple beds (four or more) and the cheapest accommodation.

A room with one-two beds is not a couchette on a train, but a sleeper or whatever that country calls it, and it costs more than the mass group thing, of course.

I haven't done this in a double, only a private single, but was assuming there would only be two single beds (bunk or not) on these trains, not a double bed as I've never seen any other kind of sleeping car. I imagine the Orient Express has double beds for that price, though. Well, maybe it's fun for one night (maybe not), but more than once, it might not start the marriage off well to be riding the rails in bunk beds at night.

I will admit there is the mystique of it as Sophie says and I found it pleasant to do when I woke up at dawn and could look out the window at the rural landscape, water buffalo, etc, and feel in another world. Now that was when I did it in Egypt and we were traveling south from Cairo and going through scenic rural areas, and it was also very different from places I'd seen before. That was a private single first-class sleeper and was okay for that one night, but not as comfortable as a hotel, of course.

If you're lucky (NOT!) some part of the rail personnel will be on strike (which is always likely in Italy/France)and you can spend one of your honeymoon nights travelling in a filthy, hot, no air conditioned first class sleeper cabin - as we had the most unfortunate opportunity to do! It was like a cattle car -with the reak of urine in our car and yes, oh yes, let's not forget the chamber pot they provided for us (that hadn't been cleaned out by the previous passenger).
We thought it would be fun and something to remember - it was something to remember all right but not in a good way. I would NEVER recommend it to anyone at anytime.
We went Florence to Paris...when we arrived in Paris they refunded all of the passengers money on the spot..it was really gross!
Fly. Fly. Fly.

kswl - Picture a log being sawed - can you hear it? "sawing logs" refers to snoring. ((s))

Thanks, Jed--I had no idea what that meant.

Suze, We tried to reserve a 2-person sleeper, and it was exactly as tcreath describes, with luggage storage and a small sink. However, the first class accomodations were gone by the time we booked the tickets, so Phil at Rail Europe suggested we purchase the third bed in a 3-pp couchette so we would have the privacy we wanted. That worked out fine, and the upper berth that we didn't use stayed in the wall. It gave my son lots of room in what for him was the upper bunk but should have been the middle.

I stand corrected. I did mean a 2 person sleeper.
I'm a big fan of night trains. I think they are an easy way to get from place to place without losing lots of time.
I have slept in 6 and 4 person bunks when I was younger and backpacking. I met some great, intersting, and helpful people but I also spent the night with some people I wish I hadn't. Not exactly the experience I would want on my honeymoon.
My husband and I have always found the 2 person sleepers to be clean and comfortable and worth the additional expense.
As far as filth, I've never encountered anything too disgusting or I wouldn't recommend this. However, I'm sure it exists. Luckily, I've only slept in clean rooms.

ewt,
Where did you get the Mini C for 60E ?
The best I can find is 70E. Also, is how is Mini C different from "DECOUVERTE A 4" ? From sncf site, I see both "Mini C" and "DECOUVERTE A 4". Both of them list as "First Class couchette".