je pars le mois prochain pour 2 mois en inde et je compte faire le tour du pays (Delhi-Agra-Varanasi-Kolkatta-ChennaI-pondy-Madurai-Cochin-Goa-Mumbai-Jaipur-Delhi) en train. C'est la première fois que je vais en inde et pour me rassurer, je souhaiterais vraiment avoir réservé mes trains avant de partir.
J'ai donc essayé de le faire la semaine passée avec le site officiel. Je suis allée sur plan my travel, je connais bien toutes les abréviations des gares et je sais déjà quels trains je souhaite réserver. Au moment du paiement, j'ai choisi la première banque à gauche et j'ai coché mastercard, j'ai introduit toutes mes coordonnées bancaires mais cela n'a pas fonctionné. depuis, j'ai lu que j'aurais du choisir la banque CITI PG. est ce que quelqu'un sait si le choix de la banque a une telle importance et si oui, est-ce que c'est bien citi pg qu'il faut cocher?
Un autre problème pourrait être que je réserve avec une carte de crédit à mon nom alors que les coordonnées de passeport que j'introduis correspondent à celles de mon compagnon (mon passeport est actuellement à l'ambassade et je ne connais pas mon numéro). Est-ce que cela peut poser problème?
Enfin, j'ai coché que je voulais que mes deux choix de couchettes (upper) soient respectés pour que la réservation se fasse, est-ce que vous pensez que c'est risqué ou y a-t-il suffisament de place libre à 3 semaines du départ pour se permettre d'être aussi exigeant?
Namaste,
Puis-je me permettre de te dire que ton itinéraire parait trop ambitieux pour 2 mois. Tu vas passer d'un état à l'autre, en faisant que survoler l'ensemble... contente toi plutôt du Nord ou du Sud ou au moins quelques état, mais là tu risques de ne pas trop profiter... c'est mon avis ! et je pense que je ne suis pas le seul isi à le penser.. déjà tant de messages similaires sur les itinéraires...
Bon voyage à toi,
D'une façon générale, je te conseille d'acheter tes premiers billets de train mais pas forcément les derniers car en Inde il y a toujours de l'imprévu --> en fonction de ce que tu découvriras tu auras envie de changer ton programme initial, par exemple il est fort possible qu'en novembre/décembre tu trouves le climat de l'Inde du nord plutôt froid la nuit (soir/matin), et que tu aies envie de passer plus de temps dans le sud (Hyderabad, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, voire Mumbaï, il y a de quoi faire...).
De mémoire j'utilise bien le bouton "Citi bank" pour payer mais j'utilise une carte Visa et pas une Mastercard --> cela fonctionne très bien y compris les remboursements si je "cancel" un billet.
La différence de nom entre propriétaire de carte de crédit et nom du passeport identifié sur le billet de train n'a absolument aucune importance.
Bien sûr on peut choisir sa préférence LB (Low berth) UB (Upper berth) SLB (Side Low Birth), SUB, mais on n'est informé des numéros de places et de leur nature qu'après avoir payé. Si tu voyages en 2AC les places les moins convoitées sont les SLB et SLU. Or en 2AC il y a 46 berthes (couchettes) et 16 (SLB+SLU), donc si avant de payer, le serveur de irctc.com te signales 18 places encore AVAILABLE il y aura forcément deux (UB / LB) encore disponibles; s'il te signale 16 places AVAILABLE, il y a de grandes chances que ce ne soit que des (SLB / SUB) De toute façon, après avoir payé ta avec carte de crédit, au moment où tu fais apparaître ton billet pour l'imprimer, si les places ne te conviennent pas, tu as toujours la possibilité d'annuler - cela ne te coûtera que 100 roupies (de mémoire) - et d'essayer autre train ou autre date.
Nota : je pense qu'en cherchant bien sur le site des indian railways tu dois pouvoir trouver la nature des places en fonction de leur numéro et de la nature de la voiture (1st class, Chair Car, 2AC, 3rd tier, sleeper); je ne l'ai plus mais je l'avais trouvé une fois.
Pour un couple (mari et femme) voyageant en 2AC en train de nuit, quelle sont les meilleures places afin d'être ensemble ? UB et LB ou SLB et SUB ou une autre combinaison ?
Je pose la question avant de faire mes réservations sur le train de nuit entre Varanasi et Agra. Ce sera notre premier séjour là-bas.
Merci de votre réponse 🙂
Nab
"Les relations, c'est comme l'argent, on n'en a jamais assez"
Eviter si possible les SLB et SUB : S signifie Side c'est à dire les couchettes (berths) le long du couloir dans le sens de la marche, elles sont plus étroites que les UB et LB. De plus le système de la SLB = Side Low Berth fait que la banquette présente parfois un creux qui peut faire mal au dos - je parle d'expérience - rapport aux deux dossiers qui se rabattent pour former couchette.
Prendre une combinaison de UB (Upper Berth) et LB (Low Berth) est un bon compromis (on est libre pour piquer un roupillon dans la UB = Upper Berth en journée et de mettre la LB est position de sièges en journée) . Si on n'est pas très agile prendre deux LB --> il y a bien des "marches" pour monter sur la banquette supérieure UB mais les personnes âgées ou handicapées ne peuvent pas les utiliser --> cependant mon père de 75 ans qui est en pleine forme les a utilisées sans problème le mois dernier, donc quelqu'un de normalement constitué n'a pas de problème pour se hisser sur la Upper Berth.
Attention, avec irctc.com, tu as beau sélectionner UB et LB, s'il n'y en a plus de disponibles, le serveur te réserve une SLB ou une ULB sans t'avertir avant d'avoir payé. Ce n'est pas dramatique, simplement ces places sont moins confortables. Si cela ne te convient pas, une seule solution, annuler (cancel) ton billet, il t'est remboursé illico moyennant quelques dizaines de roupies de frais.
Besoin SVP de vos conseils pour réservation de trains. Nous arrivons le 28 septembre à 6h.20 à l’aéroport de Delhi en provenance de Londres. 1° question:…
Si vous lisez ces quelques lignes, vous faites certainement partie de ces personnes qui essaient de réserver en ligne un billet de train pour l'Inde via les…
On m'a signalé que le site de l'IRCTC n'est plus accessible aux personnes n'ayant pas de carte bancaire indienne et ce, depuis l'été 2010. Pour réserver, il…
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Hi! I’d like to make stops across France, starting from Reims, and travel by train using the Intercités. I want to discover the landscapes and picturesque villages, and make some stops along the way. Could you give me some tips? Thanks!
I’m planning our very first trip to mainland France in January 2027. There’ll be 2 adults and 2 kids, and we’ll mostly be traveling by train.
Here’s our itinerary:
Paris
Rouen (Normandy)
Lyon
Aix-les-Bains (with day trips to Annecy and Geneva)
Saint-Gervais-les-Bains (with Chamonix and a day in Aosta)
Back to Paris
Do you think this itinerary is well-balanced? Any tips, must-see spots, or mistakes to avoid for a first-time visit?
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
I’m planning a family trip in a year. Our goal: traveling to China (and maybe Hong Kong) by train.
I’m all set with the route up to eastern Turkey.
However, I’m just starting my research for the rest of the journey—namely the Caucasus (no trains as far as I know, so buses and/or ferries), then Central Asia and China.
So, I’d love to hear any info or tips (general and forward-looking at this stage) about the train route through Central Asia and China to reach the east coast.
I’m particularly interested in details on:
- How far in advance to book / any potential difficulties with reservations
- Whether there are PASS systems (or equivalent) between countries and/or if some tickets allow stopovers, meaning you can hop on and off as you please
- Day trains vs. night trains (the latter option lets you explore cities between two legs of the journey)
- A rough idea of ticket costs
...
A huge thank you to anyone who can share some info or experiences. It’s also a great opportunity to chat about adventure after (way too) many years away from this forum.
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
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!)
