Bonjours à toutes et à tous , j'ai la soixantaine ( célibataire ) ayant beaucoup voyagé à travers le monde , et rêve d'enfance, j'aimerai faire ce fameux périple , Paris/ Moscou et traversé toutes la Russie et la Mongolie avec le transsibèrien et terminé ce voyage par Pékin .
En feuilletant les brochures , je vois qu'il y a plusieurs itinéraires .
Je recherche des personnes ayant déja fait ce voyage, afin de me donner des conseils et leurs impressions. En plus c'est un circuit trés onéreux et je cherche des bons plans budgétaires, car aussi la il y a plusieurs formules , tout compris ou les repas votre charge ect....
En vous remerciant par avance à toutes et à tous de tous vos conseils et tuyaux Amitiés 😮 FJ
Je te conseille de faire une recherche sur le forum. A peu près toutes les questions possibles et imaginables ont déjà été posées et il existe des posts très complets sur la question.
Bonsoir aligataur,
Nous sommes rentrés il y a 4 jours d'un voyage comme tu souhaites le faire. Je vais essayer de te le raconter "brièvement" (ça va être dur!!) et si tu veux des compléments d'information, je suis à ta disposition 🙂
Partis de Madrid en avion jusqu'à Moscou. Nous n'avons eu que la journée pour aller en métro (toute une aventure...) à la Place Rouge et St Basile + le Goum, une bière (russe bien sûr) sur une terrasse et le soir un repas dans un petit bistrot tout ce qu'il y a de russe. C'est court, c'est vrai, mais ce n'était pas l'objectif principal.
En fin de journée, taxi jusqu'à la gare et attente un peu anxieuse DU train!
Nous avions décidé de faire le voyage sans arrêt et nous ne l'avons pas regretté. Ces 6 jours ont passé beaucoup trop vite. Les paysages sont tellement changeants que j'avais des remords quand je prenais un livre!
Compartiment à deux place, c'est le top! Si tu peux trouver quelqu'un pour partager le compartiment à mon avis c'est une bonne option. La différence de prix entre la 2ème classe et la 1ère est minime. Par contre la 1ère classe coûte le double de la 3ème. Mais personnellement, je ne me voyais pas dormir dans un wagon avec plein de gens... (je suis dans la même tranche d'âge que toi ;-)
Il y avait une bonne ambiance dans le wagon, tous les voyageurs avaient presque tout le temps la porte ouverte et nous avons fait des connaissances.
Le prix des repas n'est pas compris dans le billet, mais à tous les arrêts il y a de quoi acheter de la nourriture en suffisance, assez variée, toute chaude et fraîchement préparée par les paysannes du coin, pour pas cher du tout. Il y a aussi dans quelques gares des kiosques qui vendent des pots de repas deshydratés qui ne sont pas mauvais du tout.
Les wagons restaurants (je les mets au pluriel parce qu'ils changent à chaque frontière) valent une petite visite, ne serait-ce que pour les admirer! Le russe et le mongole sont superbement décorés. La nourriture y est correcte sans plus, mais ça dépanne!
Les compartiments sont unis deux par deux par une petite salle de bain avec eau froide et chaude (...disons tiède) et les toilettes sont à un bout du wagon pour les huit compartiments.
Dans l'ensemble, on peut dire que c'était plutôt propre. Nos deux "anges gardiens" nettoyaient les toilettes matin et soir, il y avait presque toujours du papier hygiénique et ils ont même passé l'aspirateur dans le couloir et dans les cabines!
Nous avons voyagé dans un transmongolien (parti un mardi, je ne sais pas si ça influence) géré par tout un staff de chinois qui ont vraiment été aux petits soins pour nous.
A Pékin, nous sommes restés 5 jours et ça nous a paru beaucoup trop court, il y a tant de merveilles à voir.
A cette saison, il fait chaud et humide, mais c'était supportable: Il faut juste penser à toujours sortir avec sa bouteille d'eau.
En ce moment ça doit être pire, c'est vraiment la saison des pluies.
L'hôtel était de taille moyenne, 3 *** et n'avait pas de salle à manger, et il était situé au centre ville.
Le fait de ne pas pouvoir manger sur place nous a obligé à goûter à tous les petits restaurants des alentours, et je peux dire qu'ils sont tous excellents, même les plus simples.
La vie à Pékin est bon marché, par exemple ça ne vaut pas la peine de se priver de taxi, la prise en charge coûte 11 yuen (env 1.1€).
La circulation est absolument chaotique, tout le monde ayant ou s'arrogeant la priorité!! du coup, traverser une route, même sur un passage piéton est parfois suicidaire!!
Ensuite nous avons repris un train à Pékin pour aller à Hong-Kong (24h de voyage, toujours en 1ère) et après 11 jours, un avion jusqu'à Madrid, via Londres.
Pour une première expérience de long voyage, nous sommes revenus enthousiasmés et prêts à repartir demain! Le seul petit problème c'est la langue: à Moscou personne ou presque ne parle anglais et à Pékin c'est pareil mais on a toujours fini par arriver où on voulait. Un bon truc, c'est de demander à LA réceptionniste de l'hôtel d'écrire en chinois là où on veut aller, pour montrer au chauffeur de taxi, et avoir sur soi une carte de l'hôtel pour le retour.
Voilà, j'espère que je t'ai donné un début de réponse...? et envie de partir!
Le retour est un peu plus dur, et le tri des 2780 photos un peu fastidieux!
A bientôt pour d'autres renseignements.
salut sur ce voyage il y a eu beaucoup de discutions et en resume celui qui est vraiment aventurier ce debrouille pour obtenir l invitation pour arriver a obtenir le visa russe , apres avec 1 dictionnaire en russe c est possible de partir de moscou vers la chine ou comme vs avez lu par la mongolie et la aussi de oulanbator vs pouvez reprendre 1 train qui vs fais entrer en chine a erlian et autre belle experience c est d arriver a pekin en autocar couchettes . sans pub a ouland bator vs pouvez loger chez nassan tour elle vient vs chercher a la gare et cette dame est chinoise vraiment ce voyage est a la portee de personnes motivees et vs n etes pas oblige d etre ds le train rosita qui est plus cher que 1 autre train qui circule sur la ligne transsiberienne bon voyage maicob
Adep, on dit transmongol, pas transmongolien (les habitants de la mongolie sont les mongols) 😉
J'ai fait ce voyage il y a quelque mois (et j'en suis également revenue ravie), mais par contre, j'ai fait tout le contraire : troisième classe pour la moitié du trajet et arrêts. Tout dépend de la manière d'envisager le voyage. Pour moi, c'était surtout un moyen de me rendre en Mongolie, mais tant qu'à être en Russie, autant voir un petit peu ! La moitié "troisième classe" m'a vraiment laissé un bon souvenir. Certes, les échanges étaient laborieux, mais c'était très agréable. Et au niveau du confort, c'était très propre, silencieux, et j'ai très bien dormi ! A l'opposé, les voyages en deuxième classe ne m'ont pas plus marquée que ça. Certes, il était intéressant de discuter avec les autres, mais c'était surtout frustrant de n'être pratiquement qu'avec des touristes (et en plus, beaucoup plus bruyants).
Pour le budget, beaucoup conseillent de se débrouiller seul. Il est sur qu'une agence prendra sa commission. Personnellement, j'ai fait le choix de l'agence parce que je ne pouvais pas me permettre de ne pas être sur d'être rentrée au bout de trois semaines... (et en plus, trois semaines, c'est très court pour un voyage comme celui-ci, j'aurais voulu descendre du train plus souvent...) De plus, l'agence nous a fait du sur mesure en nous trouvant les logements chez l'habitant à Moscou, Irkoutsk et Ulan Bator, ainsi qu'un guide pour une excursion dans les steppes, parfait. (mais ce n'était pas cher)
J'ai fait un carnet de voyage en rentrant, si ça vous intéresse : ici.
En espérant que le voyage vous plaira (il n'y a pas de raison)
Madame Oreille se balade, Carnets de voyages à feuilleter
Blog voyage : photos, voyages, et conseils aux photographes voyageurs
I’m planning a trip around Italy using only trains or public transport in October (hoping the weather stays nice!).
I’d obviously like to see some tourist destinations, but I also want to get off the beaten path a bit, and I’m hoping to find some help here? I don’t plan to linger too long in the cities.
Starting in the north, I’d like to visit Lake Como or Lake Orta, pass through the Cinque Terre for some hiking, spend a few days in Naples and Rome, then head down to Sicily.
Hi there,
I’ll be traveling to Japan this coming August. We’ve finalized our itinerary and booked our flight tickets. Now I’m at the stage of buying train tickets for the few segments we’ll need to cover:
Tokyo - Hakone
Hakone - Kyoto
Kyoto - Osaka
Osaka - Tokyo
Here are my questions:
a) Is it possible to buy train tickets for these segments from Canada?
b) If so, which website should I use to do this?
c) And if it is possible, will we be able to print our tickets from Canada?
d) If it’s not possible, where in Tokyo should I go to buy these tickets when I arrive?
Hi everyone, I wanted to take the Paris-Berlin overnight train with a sleeper berth, the new service operated by European Sleepers.
24/05/2026 17:45 Paris-Nord (actually 16:00 from Paris Bercy Seine) -> 25/05/2026 9:59 (actually 7:30 in Berlin)
05/06/2026 18:31 Berlin (actually 20:00) -> 06/06/2026 10:00 Paris Nord (actually 12:30)
Part of the journey was operated by bus instead of the promised overnight train.
For 2 people: 340 € round trip
A total disaster. Never again. I was really looking forward to taking the overnight train, but we faced last-minute changes and truly unpleasant travel conditions. Here are the details:
1) 2 days before departure: email announcing a change of departure station for the outbound trip—Bercy Seine bus station instead of Gare du Nord.
2) Change of schedule: 4:00 PM from Bercy instead of 5:45 PM from Gare du Nord.
3) Change of transport mode!! A bus from Paris to Brussels, then an overnight train from Brussels to Berlin. No functional toilets on the bus. No children under 4 allowed on the bus.
4) On the sleeper train at 9:30 PM: no functional toilets in our carriage, so we had to go to other carriages, even in the middle of the night, to find working ones.
5) The onboard staff, though very friendly, were as lost as we were. In particular, they didn’t know how to handle the lower berths, so people using them had less space (armrests and backrests). Berth numbers weren’t respected, so some passengers had to move. The staff also didn’t know who was supposed to join the compartment during the journey.
6) Arrival at 7:30 AM in Berlin instead of 10:00 AM. No arrival announcement. Passengers had to search for staff to get breakfast and ended up with just a coffee (breakfast = 15 €, not bad for just a coffee).
7) Return trip: drastic schedule change announced by email on 26/05/2026—departure at 7:30 PM instead of 6:30 PM, with arrival between 12:00 PM and 1:00 PM in Paris instead of 10:00 AM. No change in transport mode announced.
8) Change in transport mode announced by email on the same day (05/06/2026)!! Overnight train from Brussels to Berlin, then a bus from Paris to Brussels. No functional toilets on the bus. Children under 4 banned from the bus, and families in this situation were asked to find another way—after being notified the same day.
9) The overnight train arrived at Berlin station with a 30-minute delay on top of its initial delay (scheduled for 6:31 PM, then 7:30 PM, finally arriving at 8:00 PM). The heating was blasting in the compartment with no way to turn it off. No functional toilets in the carriage. From that point on, customer service stopped responding to my messages.
10) Woken up at 5:00 AM with an announcement in all carriages about arrival in Liège.
11) Woken up again at 6:00 AM to be told we’d arrive in Brussels at 7:00 AM.
12) Arrival in Brussels at 7:00 AM and a one-hour wait for the bus to Paris. No functional toilets on the bus.
13) Arrival at Paris Nord at 12:30 PM, so 2.5 hours late compared to the originally scheduled time.
14) The overnight trains used are very old—I recognized the carriages from 20 years ago!! No functional power outlets, no Wi-Fi, no air conditioning. Five people per compartment is a bit cramped, but I consider these conditions expected (especially the air conditioning), so I’m not complaining about that. There’s already plenty to gripe about with the travel conditions.
I have little hope of getting even a partial refund. Customer service emails acknowledge the discomfort but only offer to reimburse the cost of a coffee on board if we send them the receipt... a bit weak.
I’m sharing this experience in the hope it might help others.
Hi there,
I’d like to take the Train of the Clouds from Lima to Huancayo.
I’ve heard it only runs during certain periods.
Does anyone have info on this?
Thanks!
HuancayoHuancayo
As part of my professional thesis, I’m conducting a study on the evolution of long-distance rail transport in France, particularly since it opened up to competition.
I’ve put together a very quick (about 5-minute) and completely anonymous questionnaire. Your answers will help me better understand users' expectations regarding pricing, frequency, and environmental impact.
We’re planning a 15-day trip to Uzbekistan in March—classic independent itinerary: Tashkent, Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva. We’d like to take the train between each city, but I don’t want to lock down the whole trip before we leave.
So, my question is: is it absolutely necessary to book train tickets before departure, whether for the high-speed trains or the regional ones? Is booking really essential for the regional trains?
Hello,
We’re traveling as a family with two boys aged 10 and 12 to Cairo in February. During our trip, we’re planning to take an overnight train (with or without a sleeper) for the Cairo-Aswan route.
Do you know how I can book this remotely?
Also, I’m looking for:
- A local contact to sail the Nile by felucca for 3 days from Aswan
- A contact to guide us in Cairo
Looking forward to your tips, and thanks in advance!
Marie
Hi everyone,
I first traveled solo to Japan in 2019, exploring the Kyushu region (28 days), and I’m planning to return with my daughter (she’s an adult and it’ll be her first time in Asia) from April 25 to May 9.
I’m reaching out on this forum to ask for route ideas—this time north of Tokyo, but without heading to the Sapporo island (I’m saving that for a future trip).
I’d love to take advantage of the cherry blossom season and its festivities.
I’m looking to create a route that’s a little off the beaten path while staying within 5-6 hours by train from Tokyo to avoid spending too much time on transfers.
Thanks in advance for sharing your suggestions and experiences!
Michael
I'm heading to MEXICO IN NOVEMBER 2025. Since private guides and drivers are really expensive—over 300 € per day—I'm thinking of exploring the Yucatán by train. CAN YOU SHARE ANY INFO ON THIS? Thanks
Hi there!
We’re planning to visit Serbia (1 week) and then Montenegro (2nd week) with our kids from April 18 to May 4. We’d prefer to travel by train (overnight if possible), but we’re not sure which platform to book on or when to do it (is it too early?). If anyone has any tips, I’m all ears!!
I wanted to know if it’s possible to go from Tashkent to Almaty by train without passing through Kyrgyzstan. I’ve heard the border is often closed 😕 between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.
Thanks in advance!
Olivier
Hi there!
We’re planning to head back to Istanbul next year—obviously by plane—and then take the train from Istanbul to Antalya. Has anyone here already made this trip by train with TCDD?
I’d love any tips or info that could be useful for us!
I'd like to go to Montserrat on my own from Barcelona. Share your suggestions with me.
Which train should I take, where to get off, what to see once I arrive, etc.
I need to take a sleeper train from Bangkok to Vientiane in January.
I found some ticket options on 12Go Asia, but booking doesn’t seem possible at the moment. I’ve tried simulations for several dates, but no luck.
I’m wondering if it’s already fully booked, if they’ve stopped selling tickets… yet 12Go still features it every day 😕
Has anyone else run into this issue?
Can I find tickets on another site? (I tried Baolau, but no sleepers left for January 8th.)
Hi there,
I’m a bit late to be worrying about this, but hopefully someone can help me before I leave.
Tomorrow afternoon, I arrive at Lyon Part-Dieu on the TGV at 5:50 PM and take the TER to Mâcon at 6:16 PM. Is a 26-minute transfer doable? Are the TGV and TER on the same departure board? And are they on the same platforms too?
I’ve been to Lyon before but never had to make a connection after arriving.
Thanks
I can’t seem to complete the payment for my trip on the IRCTC (Indian Railways) site. No matter which payment method I choose, my Visa card isn’t accepted.
Has anyone here managed to do it, and if so, could you share the method you used?
Thanks in advance!
Charlie
Starting November 15th, I’ll be arriving in Thailand, and during my stay, I plan to visit the north, around the Chiang Mai area, then head south to the Krabi region.
After Krabi, I’m planning to take an overnight train to Bangkok. I was wondering if there’s a train that leaves from Krabi or Trang, or if I absolutely have to go to Surat Thani?
Also, which official website can I use to book my ticket?
Next, since I’ll be arriving at dawn in Bangkok, I’ve planned to spend 2 days in Kanchanaburi. What’s the most convenient way to get there—bus or train? And if you know any companies or websites, that’d be great.
Hi there,
Does anyone know if there’s a bus from Luang Namtha to Boten to catch the train coming from China to Vientiane? If so, what’s the name of the company? Also, how long does the bus take to cover that distance? What’s the condition of the road like?
Thanks for your help!
Tom
I just realized there’s only one payment method accepted for booking the Mombasa-Nairobi express train ticket online: M-Pesa, a mobile money transfer service used in Africa. Would it be impossible to book as a European?
I’d love to know if any of you have recently eaten on the overnight train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai.
We’ve always ordered food on the train, and it was really good (and super convenient).
But in 2022, we ended up feeling like total idiots (with our 4-year-old daughter...) when we boarded the train only to find out that this service was no longer available... (It was the first time we’d traveled right after COVID.)
That’s also when we saw once again how kind Thai people are—they all offered to share their food with us, even though we were mortified. In the end, we managed to buy some instant noodles, which was better than nothing. Anyway, that’s the little story behind it.
In the following years, we’ve always brought our own meals.
I’ve read online that meal trays are back in service (could you confirm this, please?), but that the quality is really poor. I’ve also seen multiple reports that, even though you can eat well everywhere in Thailand, the train meal was the worst food travelers had during their trip...
Could you give me a recent opinion on this?
We’ll be departing from Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Station—do you know if there’s anywhere to buy a meal there before boarding the train?
Thanks so much for your help,
and have a great Sunday!
We’re heading to Thailand in February 2026 and we’d like to take the overnight train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. Can we book two first-class tickets? I’m only seeing second-class options.
Hi everyone,
For traveling in Rajasthan by train and bus, could you give me some info: where to buy tickets, cost, purchase locations, websites, etc.?
Any tips you have would be super helpful.
Thanks
We’re traveling to Java on October 23, just the two of us.
I’ve read that it’s best to book train tickets in advance on tiket.com.
Is that true, and how far ahead do you recommend?
Are the tickets changeable?
Hi everyone,
I’m planning to travel from Ulaanbaatar to Irkutsk by train this summer but I’m a bit worried about crossing the borders. How does it work? Could anyone share their experience? (I’ve found quite a few accounts of people going *from* Russia *to* Mongolia, but entering a country is never the same as leaving it—especially in this context!)
Can anyone tell me how to book train tickets online? We're planning to travel from HANOI to HO CHI MINH CITY by train, making several stops along the way. I'd also like to find the schedules and the stations where the trains stop.
There are four of us, and we've already planned stops in HANOI / DONG HOI / HUE.
I’m heading to Japan for the second time with my 20-year-old son. During our first trip, we spent two weeks in Tokyo and Kyoto (plus the surrounding areas).
This time, we’re planning to stay in Tokyo for at least 4-5 days and then head to the island of Naoshima.
I’m looking for suggestions and advice:
Is getting to Naoshima from Tokyo complicated? If so, do you have any recommendations for a stopover somewhere? Given that we’d prefer not to move every day, we’d rather settle in one place and then explore on day trips...
Do you think it’s possible to do something like this:
5 nights in Tokyo (Shinjuku)
3 nights in Kyoto
2 nights in Naoshima (or is one night enough??) and if one night is enough, where could I spend a second night on the way back to Tokyo?
2 nights in Tokyo (I’d love your advice on staying in a different neighborhood—last time we stayed near Ueno Park)—keeping in mind we’re flying out of Narita.
I’m considering maybe skipping Kyoto, which I love but has apparently become *very* touristy...
Not really keen on Osaka... since we’ll already have done Tokyo as our "big city." I’d prefer towns where nature is present... (a bit like Kyoto, which offers all that...)
For info, we’ll be traveling by train.
Thanks in advance for all your suggestions and help!
I have one last little question:
Is cash still widely used in Japan, or not at all anymore?
We’re planning this *very* last-minute—I know! But we’d love to spend 4 days soon (within the next 10–12 days) on a city getaway with our young adult kids. Ideally by train, and for this short trip, we’d prefer not to spend more than 4–6 hours in transit, leaving from Lausanne (Switzerland). We’ve been considering Milan, Strasbourg, or Freiburg im Breisgau, but I’ll admit I’m feeling a bit lost...
Venice was our original plan, but the connection changes in Domodossola or Milan are making the travel time longer this year.
It’s peak summer, so there’ll be tourists and it’ll likely be hot, but oh well...
Any suggestions? We love wandering around, taking photos, exploring cities on foot, trying out restaurants, and keeping things low-key.