Snalltaget

[SephenWorceste]

Please could I ask what you think of Snalltaget sleepers. I have done other sleepers. I do not mind being late. I do not mind a basic and old sleeper. I can sleep through an earthquake. What I do not like is being put in a seat if I booked a cabin, or put on a replacement bus for eighteen hours. I have done the Paris Barcelona Train Hotel, Amtrak and Paris Venice in the past. I enjoyed them all. This trip I would be going from Malmo to Berlin.

I was due to take the train to Malmo for a cruise on MS Nordstjernen. Malmo to Bergen on a seventy year old ship what could go wrong. Back to the UK by the Bergen Line, Color Magic, and various other trains. MS Nordstjernen is rumoured to have had an accident so the trip may need some replanning. I want to make use of as many already paid for elements as possible but might not go to Norway. I have been a few times before. Berlin seemed like idea. Any other suggestions would be helpful. I do not fly. I have about a week between Malmo and Kiel to fill.


Thank you in advance, Stephen.

 

[jamesontheroad]

Sorry to hear that your sailing trip has been cancelled. That would have been wonderful.

Snälltåget are generally reliable, and this summer are premiering daytime trains Oslo-Malmö and Stockholm-Berlin. Personally I would avoid the seat or couchette-only experience of the night train and take a combination of daytime trains, maybe sampling the new DSB Talgo and ČD ComfortJet for the Copenhagen-Hamburg and Copenhagen-Berlin segments. Snälltåget daytime trains are particularly enjoyable thanks to the (reservation-required) Krogen dining cars.

Longer stops in Malmö and Copenhagen are always enjoyable, two very civilised and easy to explore cities.

 

[Gloster]

It appears that Nordstjernen’s stern hit the quayside while manoeuvring to leave Gdansk last Friday. The damage is supposedly not serious but she is stopped while the damage is inspected.

 

[SephenWorceste]

Sorry to hear that your sailing trip has been cancelled. That would have been wonderful.

Snälltåget are generally reliable, and this summer are premiering daytime trains Oslo-Malmö and Stockholm-Berlin. Personally I would avoid the seat or couchette-only experience of the night train and take a combination of daytime trains, maybe sampling the new DSB Talgo and ČD ComfortJet for the Copenhagen-Hamburg and Copenhagen-Berlin segments. Snälltåget daytime trains are particularly enjoyable thanks to the (reservation-required) Krogen dining cars.

Longer stops in Malmö and Copenhagen are always enjoyable, two very civilised and easy to explore cities.

Thank you for the information about Snallaget. I had not realised they did not have real cabins. I am perhaps not up to climbing to an upper birth. Perhaps forty years back. The day train might be a better option as you say. Malmo, Copenhagen or Bergen feels like a good choice with European weather being like an oven.

Thank you again, Stephen.

== Doublepost prevention - post automatically merged: 23 Jun 2026 ==

It appears that Nordstjernen’s stern hit the quayside while manoeuvring to leave Gdansk last Friday. The damage is supposedly not serious but she is stopped while the damage is inspected.

Thank you. I knew something had happened but was not sure. Hopefully a quick knock out, patch and inspection. Ironically she was being repaired after a previous accident. She does seem to make a habit of this type of incident. Perhaps because she does not have bow thrusters.

I really want to do this ship. My grandmother loved her trips on her in the 1970s. She would talk often about her trips in Norway and never about the four stackers in the 1930s. Sadly at the time I was more interested in her Cunard trips.

Best wishes, Stephen.

 

[jamesontheroad]

Thank you for the information about Snallaget. I had not realised they did not have real cabins. I am perhaps not up to climbing to an upper birth. Perhaps forty years back. The day train might be a better option as you say. Malmo, Copenhagen or Bergen feels like a good choice with European weather being like an oven.

Yes, Snälltåget’s sleeping accommodations are only 6-bed couchettes with 3 bunks on each side. You can pay (a lot) for a private compartment but it’s still a couchette.

In COVID times I did this, as someone in medium-risk group, and two charming Interrailers of the opposite sex tried to sweet talk me into some kind of private arrangement to share my couchette compartment. I declined and closed the door on them…

 

[StephenHunter]

Yes, Snälltåget’s sleeping accommodations are only 6-bed couchettes with 3 bunks on each side. You can pay (a lot) for a private compartment but it’s still a couchette.

In COVID times I did this, as someone in medium-risk group, and two charming Interrailers of the opposite sex tried to sweet talk me into some kind of private arrangement to share my couchette compartment. I declined and closed the door on them…

You could say they basically asked you "voulez-vous couchette avec moi, ce soir".

They're one of the few "D" trains left in Germany, I believe.

 

[Gloster]

You could say they basically asked you "voulez-vous couchette avec moi, ce soir".

They're one of the few "D" trains left in Germany, I believe.

A chap at the folkhögskola in Sweden that I spent a year at reckoned that you could chat up French girls with, ’Voulez-vous couser avec moi?’ It means, ’Do you want to come sewing with me’; couser is an obscure spelling of coudre. It was rather typical of his unattractive character.

 

[peteb]

Malmo is an excellent place to base oneself for a few days. Day excursions to Lund and Ystad are possible, with plenty to see (historic centres) at each. Copenhagen, Roskilde(Viking ship museum) and Helsingoer (hamlet castle) in Denmark all very easy from Malmo.

When travelling on to Kiel, Odense is a worthwhile stopover with historic centre, Hans Christian Andersen House and National Rail Museum.

There's also now an old fashioned Snalltorget loco hauled daytime train once a day from Stockholm to Hamburg calls at Malmö and this looks like a fun way to get to Germany.

 

[SephenWorceste]

Malmo is an excellent place to base oneself for a few days. Day excursions to Lund and Ystad are possible, with plenty to see (historic centres) at each. Copenhagen, Roskilde(Viking ship museum) and Helsingoer (hamlet castle) in Denmark all very easy from Malmo.

When travelling on to Kiel, Odense is a worthwhile stopover with historic centre, Hans Christian Andersen House and National Rail Museum.

There's also now an old fashioned Snalltorget loco hauled daytime train once a day from Stockholm to Hamburg calls at Malmö and this looks like a fun way to get to Germany.

Thank you for the suggestions. Extra time in the Malmo and Copenhagen areas will be a good idea.

Currently my cruise is the first back in service. I might not know my fate until that day.

Best wishes, Stephen.