For the distances where night trains are feasible "a fraction of time" is not really true if you take into account the time costs associated with air travel:
* airports are usually far at the outskirts of a capital (45m travel there)
* you need to get to the airport 2h before to checking-in/passport control, etc.
* you need to wait to pick up your baggage (30m)
* travel into the city again (45m)
Not to mention the stress and high friction of every step of this journey, opposite to going to the main train station, which usually is pretty central, getting in the train, and sleeping the full night in a decent cot.
The main point is the ideal night train scenario as per grandparent comment could be rare. Checked a number of possible 1000km routes [0], most were over 10h. Found just one that took 8h, Paris - Berlin. And these are not night trains. The night train for Paris Berlin seems to take 12 hours.
I traveled a relatively short distance by plane recently and the airport time+location overhead was just about 1 hour (got from one house to my other house in 2 hours with a 1h flight). And the train would have about 20 mins of overhead. So the effective overhead was more like 40 mins in this specific case. Of course it could be much worse for many routes. But probably mostly under 2h even under very unfavorable conditions. So you're looking at 3-4h by plane.
[0] and was being pretty generous by only checking western europe too. In many parts of Europe buses can be faster than trains.
Fun fact - night trains are the only real way to travel by train to/from where I live. Closest city is ~4 hours by train from here, and the _closest_ major city is ~15 hours by train from here.
The flight is ~90 minutes, and usually cheaper as well. We try to take the train when possible anyways.
I love night trains. For distances of around 1000km, they are effectively the fastest way.
Imagine two transports:
- "fast", which can be a plane or high speed train. Travel time is around 3h. The plane is faster but with getting in and out of the airport, boarding, etc... it takes almost the same amount of time in the end.
- The night train, travel time 9h, let's say from 10pm to 7am
You want to get to your destination at some time in the morning.
With the "fast" transport, you have to get up really early and take the first train/flight. Expect a short night, and it may not even be possible without arriving late. The other option is to travel the day before in the evening and book a hotel, not ideal either. In any case, you will spend 3 active hours of your day for travel, or sleep 3 hours less.
With the night train, you have a good night sleep (generally, sleeper trains are comfortable) and didn't waste the best part of your day. And you may even save a hotel night.
The benefit of a night train is that you get an actual nights' sleep. On shorter distances going from city center to city center by plane is only a few hours faster, but you can't sleep much during this time as you have to get to the airport, go through check-in, wait for your plane, etc. With a good night train you can travel without losing a day.
Getting actual good sleep can be difficult at times, but it's not like you'll leave the cabin battered and bruised. Modern sleep carriages are excellent at compensating for track irregularities
For the same price I actually prefer night train to airlines, by far.
Sure, airlines are faster, but the time to go in and out of the airport, security checks, boarding, etc... Your one hour flight easily translates into 3-4 uncomfortable hours.
With the train, it is usually downtown to downtown, just hop into the train and you are done. The journey may last 10 hours, but it is relaxing. Trains are much more comfortable than planes and sleeping is less of a problem, even with a standard seat.
With sleeping cars, you have what is essentially a moving hotel room, making your travel time effectively zero.
Makes a lot of sense to me. E.g. in India, travelling by air between two major cities that is less than 300Kms apart takes roughly 4 to 5 hours - 1 hour to travel to the airport (if you are lucky) that is often on the outskirts of the city, 1 hour for security frisk, check-in and boarding the flight, half an hour to 45 minutes of actual flying, half an hour to get out of the airport, and another hour (or two) travelling back into the city. A train journey between the same cities may take 5-7 hours (or 7-9 hours at night) but is often more comfortable, relaxing and cheaper because the railway stations are inside the cities and getting in and out of the railway stations and trains are much, much faster and less stressful.
Especially night trains - if you are able to sleep in that somewhat noisy and shaky environment. You travel overnight, where you can't do anything anyways and come up in the other place in the morning and have the full day available. When flying you typically need a hotel night more and have to get to city center first.
How I wish this was a thing in the U.S. In '04 I traveled by night train from Odessa to Vienna and I have to say the experience is far more pleasant than air travel (even with the somewhat outdated fleet of Ukrainian trains at the time). The perceived passage of time is far shorter and yet you have the opportunity to watch the scenery go by if you wish, or get off for a few minutes on the occasional stop before the train enters the night regime. To say nothing of being able to sleep in a horizontal position...
I took night trains many times during my trips (India, China, Norway, etc.). They are comfortable and cheap.
In the '90s, when there was no low cost flights, my dad usually took the night train Florence-Paris or Florence-Munchen for business trips. He was very happy about that: they started around 9PM and he can be at the business appointments in the morning relaxed and fresh.
Add an hour commute to the airport, another hour at check-in and security and 10x the emissions: it's actually a fun experience going by night train, especially when traveling with kids.
I love night trains. It's really convenient to be able to go to sleep in one place and wake up at my destination in the morning. Train stations tend to be in much more central locations compared to airports, and it's nice to not have to go through security.
The energy required for trains will always be far lower than for planes. There’s no practical way to drastically drop emissions while still flying so much.
And overnight trains from and to a city are overall much more comfortable than travelling for 2h to an airport to be there 2h early, often in the middle of the night, going through security, etc.
I'm not sure why this would be considered a controversial statement. A lot of short to medium distance in Europe is very good/convenient by rail, e.g. Eurostar from London to Brussels or Paris--even if not necessarily cheaper than flying. But while I've taken night trains between countries, it was more for the experience and not to save either time or money.
Sleeper trains change the calculus a little, because you can sleep as you travel. While they're a foreign concept to many people, they are reasonably popular in Europe — not just among railfans — and in many parts of Asia are a very typical mode of transport. Going to sleep in one city centre and waking up in another is often far more convenient than the air travel alternative, especially for the many cities where there is no fast+convenient public transport to the airport.
Furthermore, to make a fair comparison you need to:
- Include all the costs of the air ticket in the price comparison, in particular transport to and from the airports. Public transport is sometimes not available, or may not be convenient (e.g. with luggage or small children), and due to the large distance to many airports taxis can be very expensive
- Include all of the time involved in the flight — depending on the cities involved, your two and half hour flight could easily be 5+ hours city-centre-to-city-centre once local transport, check-in deadline, time padding for uncertainties etc is considered.
- Compare to a rail ticket for a specific train at a specific time, which is usually cheaper. The more expensive rail tickets often give you the option of multiple trains on a given day, which is a level of flexibility no air ticket gives you.
If we want to really make it a fair comparison you should also probably compare the price to the business class flight ticket, considering that even the lowest class of train ticket gives you a comparable level of comfort to a typical intra-Europe business class airplane seat.
If you need to get there as quickly as possible, the airplane is going to win on most (but not all) routes. But for many people, having fewer steps in the journey and being able to comfortably work during the journey can actually make the longer train option more convenient.
You must be having noisy nights at home to enjoy 2 hours door to door travel by plane.
The state of the train network is terrible so it should be used as a bad example. Trains are longer but for most people they are more comfortable physically and mentally : more space for your legs, your luggage and less hassle going to the station and passing controls.
Night trains are not perfect, but with earplugs they can be pleasant.
Comparing a 1 hour flight to a 3-4 hour train journey by those times alone is somewhat dishonest: it doesn't take into account the rest of the journey to/from the airport at either end (usually further out of the city than the main train station), nor the 1-2 hour early arrival at the airport for bag drop/security/killing time at the gate.
Not to mention inconveniences like lack of liquids in hand luggage, expensive airport amenities (should you choose to use them), passing through the security theatre, and of course the actual cost of getting to the airport (in the UK, this can be more than the flight!).
* airports are usually far at the outskirts of a capital (45m travel there)
* you need to get to the airport 2h before to checking-in/passport control, etc.
* you need to wait to pick up your baggage (30m)
* travel into the city again (45m)
Not to mention the stress and high friction of every step of this journey, opposite to going to the main train station, which usually is pretty central, getting in the train, and sleeping the full night in a decent cot.
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