European Sleeper plans a direct night train linking Copenhagen to Amsterdam and Brussels by 2028

Dutch-Belgian rail operator European Sleeper wants to make it possible to travel by night train directly from Copenhagen to both Amsterdam and Brussels. The company announced the plan on its own website, with the new connection targeted to be ready for travellers from spring 2028, according to Dutch newspaper Het Parool.

Coolcations tourism trend fuels demand for the route

Copenhagen has long been a popular destination for city breaks, and Chris Engelsman, co-founder of European Sleeper, pointed to that appeal directly in comments to Het Parool. At the same time, the company is seeing growing interest in what’s become known as “coolcations”, holidays to destinations with cooler temperatures, a trend that fits neatly with a Scandinavian route. European Sleeper is developing the connection together with German rail company RDC.

European Sleeper route stops through Europe’s major cities

As planned, the night train would run directly from Malmö and Copenhagen through to Amsterdam and Brussels, with additional stops along the way in Antwerp, Rotterdam and The Hague.

The route hasn’t been formally approved yet, according to European Sleeper’s own website. A formal application for permission is expected to be submitted in April 2027. Once running, the train would operate three times a week in each direction between Brussels and Malmö. Under the preliminary schedule, departures from Brussels and Malmö would leave around 7pm local time, arriving at the other end of the route the following morning at roughly 10am.

Not the first new long distance rail link for Copenhagen

Tickets are expected to cost between 60 and 80 euros, Engelsman told Het Parool, roughly 450 to 600 DKK. He noted that pricing would vary depending on when travellers choose to book, with some tickets cheaper and others somewhat more expensive depending on timing.

This wouldn’t be Copenhagen’s first new long distance rail addition recently. Just a few months ago, a new direct connection opened running from Copenhagen straight through to Berlin and Prague without needing to change trains.

Planned European Sleeper night train schedule