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London to Bulgaria by train, a 48 hour Balkan adventure
It's not difficult to travel to Bulgaria by train, in fact it's a safe, comfortable and interesting journey. The train ride from London to Bulgaria takes as little as 48 hours, by Eurostar to Paris, 200mph double-decker TGV to Munich, the excellent air-conditioned sleeper train to Budapest, leisurely daytime train to Belgrade (with an evening to see something of the city) then another overnight train with a couchette to Sofia. The train times, fares, and how best to buy tickets are all explained on this page.
Train times, fares, tickets & information
- London to Sofia by train via Budapest in just 48 hours! Train times, fares & how to buy tickets.
Route map: London to Bulgaria by train
Useful country information
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Train operator in Bulgaria: |
BDZ (Bâlgarski Dârzhavni Zheleznitsi), www.bdz.bg. Sofia-Istanbul by train |
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Railpasses: |
Beginner's guide to European railpasses Buy a rail pass online |
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Time zone: |
GMT+2 (GMT+3 from last Sunday in March to last Saturday in October). |
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Dialling code: |
+359 |
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Currency: |
£1 = approx 2.3 Lev. Currency converter |
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Tourist information: |
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Visas: |
UK citizens don't need a visa to visit Bulgaria, Serbia, Hungary or Romania. |
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Page last updated: |
11 November 2015. Train times valid 13 Dec 2015 to 11 June 2016. |
London to Sofia by train
This is is the fastest and cheapest option, if you use the option B version show below. Alternatively, the option A version is the most direct and comfortable way, with a whole day free in Budapest as this uses a new direct Budapest-Sofia train which started running in December 2014.
London → Sofia
- Day 1: Travel from London to Paris by Eurostar, leaving London St Pancras at 10:24 (11:01 on Saturdays) arriving Paris Gare du Nord at 13:47 (14:17 on Saturdays). It's a 10 minute walk from the Gare du Nord to the Gare de l'Est.
Cosy & inviting, a hotel on rails, this is the modern air-conditioned Hungarian sleeping-car of the Kalman Imre at Munich Hauptbahnhof... The sleeping-car has 10 compartments with washbasin, each of which can be used as a 1, 2 or 3 berth room, with toilets at the end of the corridor. The fare includes a light breakfast of coffee, juice & croissant. Watch the Hungarian sleeping-car video. There's time for dinner in Munich before boarding, try www.augustinerkeller.de at Arnulfstrasse 52, to the north side of Munich Hbf.
