The STUNNING but odd experience of traveling by train between Serbia and Bulgaria
Vložit
- čas přidán 5. 03. 2020
- EUROPEAN TRAIN TRIP #9
Hi everyone, welcome to this trip report bound to Bulgaria with this tiny and old train. A scenic route through Serbia plains and Balkans Mountains
Don't hesitate to leave a comment
- TRIP INFORMATION -
Railway company: Železnice Srbije / BDŽ
Train type : Class 441 until Nis then Class 666 / Coaches : By and unknown From : Topčider (Belgrade) to Sofia
N° of train: Unknown
Duration : 10h22
Price : 15 €
LINK TO THE NEW PATREON PAGE : / simply_railway
- INSTAGRAM - / simply_railway
- TWITTER - simply_railway?la...
- SIMPLY RAILWAY PRODUCTS : teespring.com/stores/simply-r...
- EQUIPEMENT - iPhone XS + Dji Osmo 2 - Krátké a kreslené filmy
Pity you didn't show the Bulgarian border station. I got turfed off a train there one evening in the late 1980's locked in a waiting room overnight and deported the next morning. The guidebook said Bulgarian transit visas could be purchased at the border - they couldn't. Fond memories!
I live in Serbia and thanks to you I travel the world the way I like the most, by train! Thank you from the heart.
7:05 - it's a former german coach, built by DR and refurbished by DB in the mid 90s for regional trains.
Not just regional ones. The inside as well as the outside livery remindes me quite a lot of the 90s InterCity trains by DB.
Yes. It is "Halberstadt" type.
@@PhilippJanke As far as I know this trains were never in Inter City Service and never had the InterCity Color Sceme. I gues they got the new color in Bulgaria or they went to private German company like Integro Rail first and they painted them new.
@@michasreisefieber thats true they never operated in InterCity trains, but I think in the German democratic republic they also operated on "faster" Express trains.
@@widget787 Yes, if i remember correctly some Bmh coaches were used for Städteexpress services in the GDR.
You mention the mighty Orient Express, well in 1971 I took it from Paris to Sofia and it was far from the Wagons Lits extravaganza we all imagine it to be. It was comprised of 2nd class French carriages although there was one of the famous Wagons Lit carriages... off limits to those not booked on it! I stood for 14 hours in a packed corridor from Milan to Belgrade as the train crept along flooded Yougoslavian tracks, chain smoking a packet of 20 Senior Service untipped, eventially arriving at Sofia 14 hours late. The long train was packed solid, all the corridors included and I was lucky to get a seat, but I had been feeding a little girl with chocolate biscuits which had kept her from crying and when her family alighted at Belgrade I made a dassh for a seat.. and got it, too! There was quite a scramble! The cost of a 2nd class ticket from London to Sofia was £41 return. It was the best railway trip I ever made; quite an adventure.
The stops at every level crossing on the first part of the journey is because the level crossing gates are not working so it should be considered as "unprotected" and unsafe to pass at track speed. The train must watch a full stop and then when it's safe (i.e. no cars/people coming towards the train tracks), continue at track speed.
Really nice train trip but everything looks outdated. I hope and expect that soon it will change to 2020 safety and speed standards.
@ilirian berisha ??
When the automatic gates and crossing signals aren't working in America they do the same thing, stop the train and the conductor stops traffic by hand to let the train cross through safely... Otherwise the railway would be liable in court if there were a accident... The road my belong to the state, the signals belong to the railway, even if state owned...
If it is the same problem as in my city, the gates wear not broken, but there was no one to operate them. As in they did not hire someone to do so, it is deemed to expansive. And there probably wont be any change to 2020 anything, as that just dose not happen here.. (would love to be corrected on that but i doubt it..)
I think everything being outdated actually adds a lot to this trip. Its like going back in time to a certain extent
@@FelixO As a tourist, maybe. As a local resident it sucks, trust me.
we used to have trains like this in germany way back in the 90s and i miss them! High speed is nice but there is something so nostalgic and assuring about these type of trains!
damn the balkan mountains look gorgeous. i really enjoyed this trip report
I also love old trains with windows to open and old tracks with tac-tac... And as for the toilet, apparently it was an oldschool one where you empty the remains direktly on the track. Normal thing in former days of rail travelling.
Surprisingly a lot of trains still do that in the UK.
That Serbian station(topcider) looks stunning! Like some peaceful woodland hideaway!
This station was used for rail travel of King of Yugoslavia before 2.WW
Station used to be bigger but was destroyed in 2.WW
Only kings part of station remained...
Top cider is a high class Belgrade suburb actually.
I really wanted to see you come to Bulgaria! Looking forward to your future videos! Greetings from Bulgaria!
There is one upcoming video in Bulgaria, Sofia-Bucarest
@@SimplyRailway in Romania you should go to Cluj-Napoca too
I really liked Sofia!
Dude I love your channel. I live in Venezuela and we don't have trains here, I've never been in one besides the dirty metro of my city. When I go to Europe I will only use trains.
tampoco comida ;D
Wow, what I call a 'real' train. Just an upgrade to the toliet is needed and removal of the graffiti (graffiti is something I'll never understand) would make it perfect. I love these train journeys; the landscape is stunning and the sound of the train riding along the track is wonderful. This must have been a memorable journey. Excellent!
Grafitti is something i can't wrap my mind around too:( the Bulgarian railways bought these brand new Siemens intercity trains in the early 2000s they looked so shiny and new, but couple of weeks later one of them was painted from end to end with scribbles:( One of the most famous graffiti artists(now probably in his late 40s) painted for free two locomotives but tis time on order from the BDZ they look quite well having in mind what rusted outlook they had before. So graffiti in this case was a nice thing :)
@@sanches2 I think we should differentiate between murals (art) and graffiti/tags (vandalism). A nice mural can be beautiful and improve a place's visual quality, be it a locomotive or a building. But those vandal tags are absolute crap with no artistic or visual value whatsoever, they only degrade everything around them.
And unfortunately the latter is becoming way, way more common than the former. I live in Barcelona and vandalism is EVEREWHERE now. It's an appalling sight :(
@@osasunaitor Even if it's a mural the artists should still get permission first, otherwise I think it's still not right. But there are walls or buildings where the city or building owners want the urban look, then having some murals painted can make it fit the look of the area.
Graffiti are good. They improved the appearance of the new Siemens engines in Bulgaria. One day after the delivery of the locomotives. Hahaha
And safety upgrade lol
Love these old coaches, where you can open the window and so on Thanks for the video!
You should take into account the fact it's old, seats in old trains are usually better and more comfortable, toilets are extremely rusty. Not even door locking, openable windows, that's how trains worked in the last century. Glad to see someone actually still enjoys them. (I personally don't, mainly because it's dirty and loud.)
1:00 I suggest the Beograd-->Bar trip for everyone. This is a real oldschool rail adwenture with the most amazing railway panorama of the world. Take this trip so fast as you can, because the serbian railways likes to cut the international routes.
Also there are plans for big upgrade of that line (probably by the end of this year, or next) so it will be soon probably closed for 2-3 years until the work is over, only first 70km from Belgrade to Valjevo was upgraded recently, rest of the section to Montenegro is in a really bad shape and speed is limited to under 60 km/h.
Topčider is not the second main Belgrade, it was never planned to have that capacity since it's just a tiny station in the suburbs, it is basically temporary option for some international trains since Zemun and New Belgrade stations are under construction on the Belgrade-Novi Sad HSR upgrade, it should be back to normal by september 2021.
In general since the fall of Yugoslavia in 1991 there was basically almost zero investment in the railway up until 2010s, things are improving last few years, some major sections were upgraded and several local regional sections refubrished for normal speeds (before it was under 30-40 km/h), new trains bought, also currently is under construction high speed railway Belgrade-Novi Sad (up to 200 km/h, construction planned to be finished by september 2021) and will be upgraded all the way to Hungarian border.
You know 'planned by 2021' is Vučić talk for 2025 right?
@@prostakuk No i'm not at all Vučić sympathizer (actually totally opposite) but it will be finished by september 2021, i'm following construction over net forums and it's going as planned so far, but take into account that it was originally planned to be partially closed and built, but they closed whole section for traffic which allowed them to work faster.
New high speed will be max 160kmh by new informations...
@@carick235 Izgleda si promašio.
Great video and what an epic atmosphere along the route! The tac tac from the train is the sound that makes feel better a real train lover.
Gotta love this old school train trips 😍 It gives, I don't know, a sense of romance to the whole thing. As much as I adore WiFi connectivity, high speed and modern "comfort" it's undeniable that these old rusty trains have that something unique. Like a power to take you back in time! Plus.. those opening windows are just wonderful! 😍
The Bulgarian Carriage was an Old By Carriage from Germany. It was build bei the "Deutsche Reichsbahn" in Eastern Germany. This carige were operraiting by DB Regio in Germany and were sold to Bulgaria Hungary Poland and Albania. Also greading from Germany
🇷🇸 🇷🇸 ♥ ♥. Topcider is an unlikely setting for international trains but its only supposed to be temporary while Beograd centar (prokop) is finished off. The line to Bar is truly spectacular especially the really high section between Kolasin and Podgorica. Easily my favourite route.
Belgrade Centar is open. It is underground, quite modern and sterile. There is small cafe and vending machines. One elevator I could find. I think there're trackage issues for some trains.
Prokop will never be done
I went from Bar to Topcider, in a night train, July 2019
0:12 That station looks beautiful even in that unmaintained state. If refurbished to a high standard, it would look like a jewel. Hopefully it will happen one day, before it falls apart.
Merci Thibault !! Enfin tu nous fait découvrir quelque chose de neuf, d'inédit, d'original !!! J'ai beaucoup aimé et ton humour ici !!! Merci encore de nous avoir fait voir les paysages, ça nous dépayse, c'est sûr qu'on est loin de l'industrialisation. C'est une de tes plus belles vidéos parce que tu me fais découvrir des choses que je connais pas. Magnifique bruit de train tac tac tac tac comme tu aimes toi aussi et tu le dis. J'ai été très positivement surpris par ta vidéo. J'aime beaucoup.
I travelled in 1989 and 1990 3 times between Germany and Istanbul, with the direct train "Istanbul Express", that is before Yugoslav war. But the infrastructure south of Belgrade was already in a bad situation, trains were running very slow and were always late. One time a travel fellow got off the train in Belgrade to buy something but missed it. He came by taxi until next stop Svetozarevo and reached the train. Anyway, on this route still were running many international trains, but I think that Yugoslav war and post war problems only worsened a bad situation.
Bar - Belgrade is the most f*cking beautiful routes i have ever made, in an old SNCF train 1st class couchette, for just 9€. Good times to remember.
3:22 i like the sound of the door opening, also i like how the train looks
Hello Thibault, your videos are great, I appreciate your passion for trains and appetite for traveling.
Some general aspects of traveling by train in eastern Europe (valid for most ex-communist countries):
+ cheap tickets (in comparison to western Europe)
+ more space for passengers (especially the wagons with compartments)
- no / few facilities
- tidiness at its worse
- old trains (for. example in Romania you can travel with the class 78 - Malaxa electric automotor which is 80 years old)
- very low speeds, locomotives top is around 120-140, but due to old infrastructure they are limited to 45-60-80
> low speeds > long travel times
> low speeds > better view of landscapes :D
- lack of security ( in this video was there even a ticket controller ? )
I wish I would try this route someday. Thanks for the wonderful clip
After the disintegration of Yugoslavia, the railways were almost completely abandoned. Serbia has now started to renew them, a high-speed railway is being built from Belgrade to Budapest, which will be completed on the Serbian side by next year (Belgrade - Novi Sad - Subotica). A high-speed railway to Nis is also planned, which will probably be connected with Greece and North Macedonia. Now, the reconstruction of the Belgrade (Serbia) - Bar (Montenegro) railway should start soon, with the most beautiful view in Europe in terms of train travel. It is planned to renew the railways to Bosnia, Croatia and Bulgaria as well. A new modern railway station in Belgrade has also been built and France is making a project for the Belgrade metro, which should start construction at the end of this or the beginning of next year.
I see Serbia is investing heavily in the railways which will boost her Economy. Good news in South Central Europe.
I am very pleased to say, that our capital Sofia (Bulgaria) 🇧🇬 has one of the most modern, cleanest, and best looking metro systems in the world.
Not true...JŽ was still good till 1999 it had good services to direct internional coaches to Skopje Thessaloniki, Sofia, Plovdiv, Edirne Istanbul and Bucuresti, Timisoara, Jimbolia and Budapest, Szeged and Wien durring the 90s...
@@antejl7925 That's what I said, that after 1999 the railway was almost completely neglected.
@@redflower2827 ok I misundertood Yugoslav wars as being 1991...Amazingly during the Milošević period they still ran a good service.
My home country is Bulgaria and I hope you had a great time there! It's really nice
Serbia is rebuilding its network. The travel between novi sad and belgrade is a 200kmh line with gorgeous new Stadler KISS. Now the distance of around 90-100km is travelled in 30 minutes
Appreciate your work, Thanks for making this video.
The Balkans offer some mind blowing routes, so scenic and picturesque.
J'aime énormément ce format de vidéo qui mélange à la fois voyage et découverte de trains d'autres comptés ! En tombant sur cette chaîne, j'ai trouvé une pépite 🤩
When I saw there was no food service on the train for a 10 hour trip I thought that was unacceptable, but after seeing the toilet I think that was just as well! Looks like some economically distressed tourist railroads I've seen in the U. S. over the past 50 years. Interesting scenery though.
Quite a few deadly accidents have happened in past years because of the bad signalised crossings and non careful drivers so trains now have to stop/slow down to prevent any further accidents.
Welcome to Serbia :)
5:37 I think the train has to stop and sound the horn before he can cross the railroad-crossing which is not working. This procedure is for example used in switzerland and germany
In Italy too
Looks like a little gem of a trip...
7:56 That inst just any old diesel loco! its a ZS class 666, built for use on Tito's personal "Blue Train!"
Wanted to write the same thing.
It's a shame how they allowed it to rotten.
It's funny how half of the passengers are western european tourists.
That's something that I realized during traveling in Eastern Europe as well: many people there are trains as something you just use, if you don't have money for a car - which is one reason more that there railway-lines are degrading...
What a very beautiful train journey! Next on my list..
The bulgarian coach was built in the GDR in the 70s and 80s. They were used in Germany til december 2015 for local trains.
Great video !!
Love this video. Thanks.
Great video....good work...Thumbs up
Wow c'est magnifique, merci pour la vidéo ! Maintenant j'ai envie de visiter les pays de l'Est ! :)
Deine Clips gefallen mir ...weiter so...vielen Dank
Nice work. I caught the train from Topcider to Podgorica (on the line to Bar) last year. It was really scenic but similar to your journey the stock was ancient and in need of some love. I made the mistake of not taking much food ... and there was no cafe car. The train ran really late so the trip took over 11 hours.
Useful thanks mate
4:47 That train runs from Thessaloniki to Topcider, last coach was a North Macedonian Couchette
I would really love to travel with you. You journeys are very interesting. I love trains very much. Love from India🇮🇳
The train is pretty similar to the one that does the Budapest- Ljubljana route. Beautiful route, old stock and some locomotive changes. And hanging out of the window of course...
5:30 - No, cars don't have priority, but all these crossings have barriers and light and sound signals that don't work. So, drivers would interpret raised barriers and no light signals as "free to cross" - that's why trains have to stop. This is this way since dissolution of Yugoslavia.
Great video! I travelled a lot between Beograd and Sofia. Love the "tac-tac". does anybody know other videos with longer "tac-tac" moments?
Interesting trip!!! Colorful scenery!!
The toilet could use a total refurbishment
Great movie again! But the walk from Belgrade's (new) central train station to Topčider is more like 40 minutes ;)
Very interesting !!!
Hahaha! Coach numbers are written on, that's amazing.
3:08 "Small Lego" loko from czech :)
1:54 - 88 of the MUs were originally bought by CIWL (operators of the Orient Express) and later transferred to the TENPOOL sleeper carriage pool shared among Western European nations.
Rail infrastructure is expensive, and if a country is unable or unwilling to allocate sufficient funds, upgrades and even basic maintenance will be cut. Beautiful countryside, and this trip has good tourist potential, but they'd need to make big improvements to make the train tourist-friendly.
That bathroom made me shudder! Beautiful journey though!
I recently discover your channel and it is amazing.
Hopefully soonish the Thesloniki - Ljuljana will be available again it can be a journy.
Also if you are ever in Balkan again try the Skopje - Bitola train ride it is amazing.
Waiting for a video in Greece. I'd like a review of the OSE first class product
I really enjoyed this video. But when you opened the door at 11:17 I was bracing myself for it to smack into a pole 😅
International trains leaving from Topcider is supposed to be a temporary arrangement. The Serbian railways are under a major redevelopment program
Hahaha, the toilets!!! Sensational! Love it.
Did this exact journey in summer 2019 :)
Love to see open window.
Merci. Encore une vidéo.. surprenante. Mon tour d’Europe, en plusieurs voyages, a commencé, Dresde et Leipzig, puis retour Paris. La suite Innsbruck, Brenner, Vérone avec un jeune accompagnateur pour fêter ses dix ans début avril est reportée.. En gare de Dresden Neustadt j’ai vu se croiser deux trains, un Budapest -Hamburg EC172 et un Hamburg -Praha, EC177. Ça fait rêver et ça donne des idées de voyages futurs. J’ai lu qu’il y a un projet de train à grande vitesse pour traverser l’Europe du Nord au Sud qui passerait par Dresde et Prague, nécessitant un réaménagement de la vallée de l’Elbe. Je ne sais pas quel sera l’itinéraire de Budapest à la Mer Noire. Continuez, tout est très bien.
Le départ a été donné pour les travaux sur Dresde-Prague, et oui, la ligne passera largement en tunnel, malheureusement... Je suis sur que la ligne actuelle ne fermera pas, par contre, mais sera limité aux services régionaux, donc plus de restauration pendant qu'on poursuit son voyage le long de l'Elbe, , ce sera soit une heure plus rapide via le tunnel, ou plus lentement le long de la rivière...
Great video, you should defenetly do Bucharest to Istanbul or Vienna to Bucharest, or other routes in the Balkans or eastern europe, we have the best scenery!
you make fine videos
You could try a TAF or a Coradia on Trenord Line from Milan to Como or Malpensa Airport
Top trip Loved your video, I've travelled lots on trains Viet Nam Thailand Malaysia, VN the trip Hue to Danang gorgeous scenery! Hard sleeper Ha Noi to Hue 3 aluminum benches each side of compartment I'd top on one side! 4 VN war widows the bottom 4 lovely ladies memories! Stay safe keep well. Peter A.
The train route's number is Fast Train line no. 1491, the Balkan, to Sofia.
Nice 👍🏻
I took this exact trip, July 2019
9:52 I used to think cleanliness was bad in Indian trains... But think beats even that. Absolute shambles.
Nevertheless, the route is scenic and there is something very old-school about this trip.
Cheers 👍
8:00 This diesel locos (I think this ones) were produced in Romania and they're also used in in Bulgaria as class 06 but far less because our track is mainly with catenary.
Class 666 were build by GM (EMD JT22CW) and were purchased to haul Tito's Blue Train (4 units). after the dissolution, they remained in service in Serbia. as far as I know, 2 are operational, and are used for passenger services. well, were used, since all non-electrified passenger trains are DMUs ŽS 710/711/712, depends on which part of Serbia you're in
I’d really recommend for you to travel on the Belgrade-Bar route. The scenery in Montenegro is astounding and you get to see so much in the 3h 30min you travel through Montenegro. Well that’s if the train is on time, which it rarely is. So expect about 4h 30min-6h through Montenegro. Don’t forget water and food. There is no WiFi and basically no cellular coverage
I am a dinosaur without a smart phone. I prefer watching the countryside anyway...
The train station was used as a station for Serbian and then for Yugoslav kings. Later on it was used by president Tito. The first train in Serbia in 1884 started from this station to the town of Nis 200 km south. But there is something also interesting. The GM diesel lokomotiv from Nis to the bulgarian border was howling the presidential train of the state president Tito for some years always as pair. The funeral train from Ljubljana to Belgrade was howled by two of these loks. One dark blue coach on the train from Bar - Montenegro was a part of Titos presidential train called the blue train. Nowdays you can travell on the blue train doe Bar in the sommer, very nice experience. In the 50s Tito bought two german diesel loks V300 made by Kraus-Maffei in Munich. This loks were in use for 20 years and then vere replaced by the GM loks which were used on this train to Sofia. The colour of the loks dark blue mached the colour of the blue trian. The two V300 loks stood in Subotica for years.
But which one was this? "Sutjeska", "Neretva" or "Kozara"?
The next time you go back to the UK you should try Scot rail in there rural areas and see the landscape of Scotland
Serbia is beautiful in an understated sort of way. Like Arkansas or Kentucky.
Can you make a video on BDZ Siemens Desiro trains? They usually run on the Sofia - Pernik line.
Nice
I always see your video!!!
That’s so awesome video!!!
I’m Japanese,Nice to meet you!!
Next time, please come to travel in Japan!!
Shinkansen is awesome and beautiful Train!!!
I'd love to
Hopeのぞみ but there are old school lovely trains in Japan. I remenber a trip on Shikoku Island through the mountains and arriving by the Pacific Ocean at Kôchi. Clean, on time, wonderful scenery. On CZcams also.
There used to be a direct train from Munich to Athens via Belgrade. I rode it in the 1980s. Most passengers were Greek or Yugoslavian "Gastarbeiter " going home. Went through Serbia during the night so didn't see much of it. Amazing journey.
wow. what a time and place in history right Ian?
that train ride has been sung about from the greek folk you know.about the bitterness of the expatriation and the life of the gastarbeiter.
the line was called ''Acropolis Express''.
Nice story. Thanks!
Could you make a video about bulgarian trains? If you do, take the train from Sofia to Varna. It isn't very fast tho, but it runs through many photogenic places
the train looks from the inside like the IC wagons from SBB. but with other seats haha
Topčider was never intended for public transport until 2015. when they started to build Belgrade Waterfront and shut down main station that was there since late 1800's. Topčider was royal and presidental station due to close proximity of Beli Dvor (White Palace), who was residence for royal family and later for president Tito. Due to both royal family and Tito were using private trains for trips, there was need for station that was away from public eyes, but close to Palace. House next to station was built after WW2 for honor guard of Yugoslav National Army to stay and be ready for president's visit. Belgrade now has no main tran station and how much they tried, Prokop is not suited for it. The projet Prokop started in late 70's and still it's not finished
Vraiment un excellent reportage, sur un train qui sort de l'ordinaire. Pour les arrêts aux passages à niveau, ce n'est pas une situation normale. Il y a un youtubeur Serbe, Dulevoz, qui a expliqué qu'il y a beaucoup de passages à niveau défectueux (les signalisations / barrières ne fonctionnent plus) et par mesure de sécurité, cela oblige les trains à arrêter. Et malheureusement, ŽS n'a pas les moyens de tous les réparer. C'est dire que le chemin de fer dans ce pays est sous financé, sauf peut-être entre Belgrad et Novisad, et encore.
Merci pour ton commentaire :)
Hey! Cool video again... but did I miss one or did you skip from the part from "Vienna Austria to Zagreb Croatia" directly to "Belgrade to Sofia"? I was hoping to see your review of the Croatia to Serbia train set :)
There is an upcoming video on Zagrab to Belgrade. Stay tuned :)
Très bonne Video!
Est ce qu'il ya un conducteur de train pendant la Voyage?
Oui, un pour la Serbie et un autre pour la Bulgarie
I live in Romania and this is how every regional train trips looks like. Old cars, slow speed, no AC, bad services, dirty toilets and many underdeveloped regions. It is an experience but if you do this for many times you gonna hate it.
EU funding will hopefully help improve things there.
waiting for your trip reports from my homeland Ukraine, where trains are even more oldschool and extremal ( yeah, this serbian toilet remind me about it :D ), and also there are wide variety of landscapes, from endless steppes south and east to Carpathian mountains on west. There are a lot of old soviet stocks with untouched interiors, which is not ok for daily use but highly interesting for railroad fans. So i highly recomend our railroads for you, check it out
What is the departure and arrival times at both ends?
What are the classes available?
Excellent and Great video! ( sub goal ) :)
I think the Bulgarian Wagoon is a ex German Interregio or InterCity from 1980‘s
Your videos are awesome!
But could you consider doing voice overs? It would make the videos like ten times better ;)
His written English is good. But I am sure many would KNOCK his French accented spoken English...
The Bulgarian coach is a former modernized eastern german Regio-Coach. I cant believe it rides on a international train 😅