INSIDE Romania’s secret luxury train!
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 31 ต.ค. 2023
- Romania's railways don't have a great repuatation, but now I'll be taking a look at the one train that's looking to change that. Welcome aboard Astra Trans Carpatic, the secret luxury train of Romania!
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Journey Details:
Origin: Arad
Destination: București Nord
Company: Astra Trans Carpatic (ATC)
Train: CFR 43 + ATC Sleeper
Accommodation: Double Sleeper Compartment (T2)
Distance: 589 kilometres / 366 miles
Price: 420.00 RON (£73.00 / €85.20 / $100.20)
Time: 10 hours 53 minutes, arrived 17 minutes late
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As a romanian I can tell you that many people avoid train travel. I personally enjoy it. It reminds me of my childhood when I used to ride the train to my grandparents. Back then there was only SNCFR/CFR, but now there are some private companies that are trying to change the train travel experience. The main issue though, is that the infrastructure is old in many parts of the country. I still prefer taking a train over a car just for the wonderful scenery that we have in Romania. I live in Cluj-Napoca and I can tell you that many things have changed to its train station. The architecture remained the same though, and I really appreciate that.
Have you tried Transilvania EC all the way to Vienna? I think it's wonderful
@@CalinFR unfortunately not, although I have lived in Vienna for about 3 years. I was traveling using the Orange Ways transport company back then. There was a time when I did have to take a train but it was from Oradea... and it was awful. Didn't have a seat for the majority of the time spent on that train (Sageata Albastra - Blue Arrow).
Și eu sunt de părere că ar trebui să fie promovate mai mult călătoriile cu trenul, dar din nefericire nu prea sunt
what? Ok? The VAST majority of Romanians use trains and other forms of transportation as their main means of travel, most Romanians don't even own a car because they don't have to. The train quality in Romania is no different than in Switzerland or any other central European nation and is in fact better in terms of coverage, it's literally one of the largest transportation networks on earth. The difference is money, ergo track quality, and train luxury. Even so, the difference in higher-speed tracks is quite minimal when you look at times and compare them. over 80% of Romanians say they use public transit at least a few times a month, and around 60% to 70% say they only use transit. Can the transit be better, of course, it can, its garbage compared to what it could be just like everywhere else in Europe, but don't just pretend like it is not one of the best transit systems in existence, because it is, and it's clear the people it serves think so too. It is people like you who ruin the country with your cars and then wonder what happened. Just look at Mamaia, its one big parking lot beside a strip of beach now.
@@tortellinifettuccine you have some valid points in there. But I believe you are very wrong about the "Romanians use trains and other forms of transportation as their main means of travel". Lets be real, almost everyone has a car.
Mamaia (and all seaside cities) weren't ruined by the people, but rather their government body (mayor). They had no foresight into the future, and this is the result.
People still take the train to Costinesti, because there is a train station. But the AC durring summer in the sleeper cars is almost non-existent. People on the highest "floor" of beds feel like they are in a sauna, and are not able to sleep. This is unnacceptable. Traveling by train in the summer (when btw CFR has its most rides throughout the year) is a russian roullete with more probability to be in a hot drenching train car.
Let's be real - poor train infrastructure, delays, poor service, poor hygiene of anything inside the train car (though they made some progress with their bathrooms in some train cars), ripped bedsheets, and to top it all off non-functional AC. Their reputation is well deserved.
I was in Romania a few weeks ago and found the trains decent enough.
Not great compared to modern Western European trains, but they were good. Affordable and did the job.
I took an IR train from Bucharest to Sinaia (80 mins roughly) and an R train back to Bucharest (150 mins). Both with CFR.
I also took the train from Bucharest to Veliko Tarnovo in Bulgaria. Turkish coach TBF.
I've not done long distance/overnight travel in Romania, but looks good enough if you have realistic expectations.
Huge fan of the channel BTW 👍
I agree. I travelled a lot in Romania by train last year and the CFR at least is decent enough indeed. Some of the regional trains can be really below standard.
on daytime long distance trains, the conditions are appalling to say so. you only have open coaches (very very few trains that run on long distances still have compartment wagons), which tend to be overcrowded due to insufficient wagons, are poorly kept or cleaned, and lack any bar/bistro facilities. in summer, the A/C often breaks down. especially the "refurbished" wagons are terrible, as they were made to be as cheap as possible, with complete disregard to passenger comfort - open, 80-84 seat areas, no separation whatsoever, brakes with brake shoes instead of discs that are ridiculously loud, lighting that blinds you during the night / dusk as it has NO dimmer and instead of being through-ceiling like on airplanes, it's just a huge light bulb straight in your face... as much as I love train travels (I am a rolling stock engineer), i just hate 85% of Romania's trains. Poland has some superb services for IC/long distance, as does MAV Start and Slovenian Railways. the "quality" of CFR (which still uses regional/suburban rolling stock for 4 hrs + services) made me buy a car :)))
Who gives a f?
As a romanian i can definitely say that the back and forth sway is the best thing about Romanian train rides, as it will lul you to sleep or at least put you in a slight trance. Then there's that repeating track sound, ta ta ta taaa... ta ta ta taaa... zzZzZzzZZzzzZzzzzz
Sad, that Astra does not have more trains like this and they are trying to use former DSB IC 2 trains.
This one is a nice one.
The IC 2 are only suited for rails that are mostly on flat terrain, Astra however use them on a step incline between Brasov and Predeal, a lot of IC 2 broken down on that strep of rail especially in the summer.
Thought about riding this train many times, and this makes me want to ride it even more. I love how posh but fair priced it is.
Agreed! I'd recommend a trip!
Do it, I rode it on three two-way trips and it was relaxing a.f.
Fair Price,u`re joking,a Romanian here!
I legitimatly was hyped when I saw your thumbnail, that's my train of choice when I go to mamaia beach in the summer!
Oh awesome, hope you enjoyed it! 😁
Heh, I wil also take that train from Bucharest to Arad on friday. Also in a single dormitory. Good preview for what to expect. Thanks!
And thank you for visiting and making good quality content aroumd here, even if we don't have the best trains.
Cheers!
The Iron Gates Dam looks cool at night
Hope you have/had a great trip. And thanks! :)
A Romanian friend living in Germany showed me pictures of average Romanian trains in order to demonstrate how bad trains are in Romania. I looked at the pictures and said that those trains remind me of average German trains 30 years ago. And those were the trains of my childhood. And everybody loves the trains of his childhood - at least I do! :)
So now I cannot get rid of this idea to travel to Romania in order to experience the trains of my childhood again...
And this ladies and gentlemen is how a grown up man is watching (and commenting) a video about a Romanian trains at 4 o'clock in the morning.
Love it! 😂😂😂😂
i love your videos, by far the best train trip reports!
Thank you, that's so kind!! 😍😍😍
Cool Train, good for Romania, they might be improving their services. 👍🚂
They have a good network already, so newer trains is a nice addition.
@@SuperalbsTravelswith all the 80km/h restrictions on flat track in a field, I wouldn't call it so good 😉
@@maple7093 It's good for night trains, nice and slow... 😅
The seating carriage is the same as the Czech RegioJet Astra coaches from the same manufacturer, albeit without the seatback entertainment system.
Yep, that's right! Lovely carriages!
Amazing ! As a romanian, is first time when I see such a nice, clean and kind of modern train, haha ! Thank you for the video ! I was few times on the same path as you and during the day is something else, I can assure you of that :D
I'll have to try it in day one time. Thanks!
seeing this a month late but as a Romanian i must say your pronunciation for the Citys Are quite on point! and i hope you had fun in Romania if you stuck around for some time!
Thanks, I was there a week. :)
Not many people can get away with stating that they "quite like" a particular escalator! Luckily we know the way Superalbs thinks 😂
I took that train and it was great, when it passes the mountains look out at the sky, theres no light around and you can see how the sky really looks. If you only live in the city, you'll be shook
Fantastic review thanks for the upload!
Glad you enjoyed it!
always love your reviews, keep it up
Thank you so much 😍
I commented on this video last night when i saw it. Today when i verified for a reply from you i was surprised that my comment was nowhere to be found. I was very happy to see this video because i am from Arad and i am a train engineer. I asked you in the comment if you want to meet for a beer and talk trains… and if you’re interested in a tour of the town.
Of course if you haven’t left the country… hopefully this comment reaches you.
Thanks for the kind offer, I'm now in Malaysia! :)
Sooo.... can I also rent a Croatian locomotive?
You can rent whatever you like, as long as you pay for it!
ocomotive rentals are actually quite common these days. I'm surprised that he was surprised 😮
@@tombombadil9123Yeah, Hungarian State Railways (MÁV) also rent I think 15 Siemens Eurosprinter locomotives from Akiem
@@tombombadil9123The surprise was not a reference to locos being leased, but rather a joke around the company name containing 'STI'.
@@SuperalbsTravels oh sorry. I get it now. the subtle British humour
Great trip. Overall great room and great facility.
Agreed, thanks for watching! :)
Geez, I wish Amtrak was this nice!
hey! thanks for posting another romanian train video!
No problem, hopefully I can make more soon. :)
Thank you for the nice video
Excellent, objective video!
Have taken this route many times and everytime i am greatful that i went with Astra. The ride quality is impeccable, everything is how you'd like it to be. Many levels above the same route operated by the state CFR, yet at the same price.
I am from 😊 Romania .
And yea i live in Arad , i love me city Arad.
BIG LIKE BRO. 10X TO TIS VIDEO. SALUTI DI LA ROMANIA ;)
Nice video 👍🏻
Thank you! :)
Can’t tell you how many times I took CFR train along the same route especially in autumn and winter, I always loved it but can be a little unusual to most Western Europeans.
Thank you for this video, I didn't know this train existed. I appreciate your Romanian pronunciation 🫡
This looks like a nice train ride to get on.
It was my friend! 😍
I find your videos very enjoyable and I'm even not into trains.😊
New trains made by Alstom (Re-IR1) in Poland, 33 to be precise, will begin to arrive in December and will be put in circulation on the main routes in Romania.
I'm from India and thanks for the 24/7 live adoration chapel. It's a great idea because I pray everyday at my convenient time and get blessed.
I've actually been on thus train. Had an ensuite shower. Water pressure not great but still its a shower on a train! We were a little late too but as it was due before 7.30 that wasn't a problem.
It's almost too early to arrive! 😂
If you like the swaying it's even stronger on a top bed in a 6 bed compartment, you find those with CFR, however in the summer it is really hot on the top bed.
True, the aircon was a good feature for me here! 😂
great
17 mins late is actually an early arrival by our Indian railways standard 😂
There are plenty of trains arriving on time actually
I tried their website. It turns out that single ocupancy for this sleeper should cost 310RON - one way from Arad to Bucuresti
Yep, annoyingly this option was unavailable at the time I travelled. Not sure why.
@@SuperalbsTravelsusually, operators reserve one room per car as "Single travel". If that room had already been booked, then it no longer appears to you as an option. Thus leaving you with no other option than to buy two tickets.
Source: I travel by train inside of Romania with all of the operators, primarily in sleeper trains, for at least 20,000km every year.
I didn't even know there was a market for that. Made my night.
Glad you appreciated the joke! 😂
Excellent video and here's the thing about the Croatian locomotive its the cousin of it's US version the Amtrak MARC SEPTA NJ Transit ALP-44M AEM-7. Because both the United States and Croatia which used to be part of Yugoslavia got the licence to make the Swedish Railways Rc series of locomotives. For Astra Carriage Works they need to use their carriage designs and shrink them for the UK loading gauge if GWR needs to replace their ageing 1980s Mk3 sleepers.
I'd love to see Astra carriages in the UK. We actually already have Astra wagons for freight, believe it or not!
@@SuperalbsTravels which types are they? Since I play Train Sim World the following might be made by Astra Romania Containers FKA Hopper HKA MGR Power Station HEA PCA Cement Transport Steel Coil BBA Petrol jet fuel TEA Tanker and lastly Limestone transport PGA Goods Wagon In the UK network.
Not sure. The one I noticed was a FL branded container flat.
I'm romanian and didn't knew we had luxury trains. We don't have that many train enthusiasts, and usually if a person can afford this, they will chose a different transportation method....in most case ersonal car...🙂
i am glad some of you enjoied the travels with the trains. peronaly i haven't whent with this specific train, even tough i am a Romanian. i will travel with the train this month for the holidays to Herculane, for recovery, and relax. i am also passionate about trains, since it is a childhood thing as well.
That's so cool! :)
I travelled twice with Astra and they are the best operator by far in romania. I really appreciated the free WiFi as CFR doesn't has Internet.
It's a great feature imo!
Finally somone doing something about my home
cool
I actually live in Arad and I often take the train to Timisoara with my friends, I even took the train to Bucharest, but i never knew trains have SHOWERS! Anyway, this train looks amazing compared to what trains I've been on, but the price is mindblowing for me, although it's understandable because that train looks like a house😭
Fair to point out the lack of towels in the shower. I shall follow D.Adams in always carrying a towel whilst engaging in intergalactic travel.
it's because they don't expect anyone using the showers
You forgot to check "pizza 5 colțuri" across the street in Arad ! 😁😁😁
i was at the trainstasion in arad with my grandma thats a fun fact :)
Very very fun indeed!!!
you can try IR406 Corona IC from Budapest to Brasov a very nice train with restaurant
one of the most luxuary train in Romania
6:49 windows that open. if i had my way that would be mandatory on all trains 😂 instead its becoming a rarity on new built carriages
It's an absolute must imo! :)
"Welcome, welcome to City 17"
it´s good but for now, it has a VERY LIMITED course. CFR goes all over the country, even to the most remoted places.
Great video. The train looks a bit dated and a bit tacky, but somehow comfortable.
It was really comfy. Thanks for watching!
as i live in Arad,right near the train station there is the Atrium Mall,it's not great,but u shall do a video sbt it
Good review. Still perplexed how they can offer showers but no towels though. 😳
I know right 😂😂😂
My recommendation to you since you like presenting trains would be to give it a try and...message the Romanian Royal Family as they have their own unique train! it's worth a shot why not? their are very friendly and enjoy any type of media presentations as they often do musem openings and such at their palaces. All the best.
3:19 you can take that train in Timisoara and ride all the way to the Black Sean in comfort? nice
Yep! It's cool!
Yes in the summer
@darauovidiualexandru1855 great. thank you
the gp on the locomotive means grampetcargo
was there an interconnecting door between rooms?
❤
Kapan anda pergi ke Indonesia? Kita punya kereta peluru 350km/h dan kereta suite compartement class yang paling mewah di dunia.
Yes yes, soon.
There is the single option on their site for both standard and deluxe cabins, no need to purchase two.
It's 62 euro for what you used in the video.
That wasn't an option when I booked! :)
@@SuperalbsTravels I stand corrected
the international sleeper trains on the state provider (CFR) are almost the same.
Trains are quite old but soon there will be 97 new trains in Romania (2024-2026), 37 Alstom trains for long trips and 60 Pesa trains for short trips. Anyway not only the trains is the problem but the railways too, infrastucture is very old.
Great video. Does ASTRA have a dining car? Thanks ❤
Unfortunately not!
A little correction: The locomotive was built in Craiova (a city in Romania), and not Croatia (I can see the confusion here). These locomotives like the one that hauled the train you took are, in fact Romanian made by Electroputere - Craiova back in the communist era. Thank you for the wonderful content!
LE: I might be wrong on this one, as I see that there are some locomotives that are the same model as this one made indeed in Croatia. The thing is that communist Romania copied a lot of western stuff...
The four axle locos were built in Croatia, and the six axle locos were built in Romania (Craiova, as you correctly identified).
@@SuperalbsTravels thank you for the clarification ❤️
Locomotives made by Electroputere were not copied, but licensed from Western manufacturers from Switzerland for Diesels and Sweden for Electric. A small batch of Diesels were also produced in cooperation with a UK company. In fact, as one who lived those days, I wished the communist regime had copied a lot of stuff from the West. Unfortunately the raw model for the '80 was rather North Correa.
Same design with Corail coaches? Do you mean the same Y32 bogies? Also Turkish coaches were produced under the licence with this bogie.
I enjoyed this, but some live commentary wouldn't go amiss, rather than the voice over.
It's a pity you didn't continue on the same train to Constanţa, took pictures out of the window, then flew back on a cheap Wizz Air flight.
I don't trust Wizzair, they always cancel on me and my friends! 😂
Was the journey worth a trip or was it not as good. I have to say that Romania does have very nice trains and it’s quite a nice country.
What do you mean?
The experience of the train journey in Romania.
Is worth it. I.m a romanian and near a range of 100 km we have to see arhitectures and castle and the great mountains to Transfagarașean
Do you have any plans on going to Bulgaria and trying BDZ (BSR)?
I already have one video of BDŽ, it's on the Sofia-Bucharest route.
How do you deal with cash on your trips? Do you always have some cash at hand or do you mostly use a credit card?
Is there a room for wheelchairs on this train, because the room would be big enough to park my segway wheelchair inside, but the hallway seems very small... the stairs can be overcome by a special wheelchair lift as they offer in austria and Zagreb... I like to travel on sleeper trains with my wheelchair. I can walk a few steps by the way.
If Romania will modernise the railways (hopefully) I hope that this service will no longer be needed (as the distance between Arad and Bucharest could be made by a day train in approx. 6 hours after the modernisation) and someday CFR Călători will overtake these trains to international night train routes from Cluj via Budapest, Vienna, Prague, Dresden, Berlin and Hamburg. I would prefer to go with this train from Cluj to Hamburg instead of flying. Hope that the modernization works in Romania, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Germany (Austria has really good railways btw) will permit this train to go from Romania to Germany.
Homie, i'm hoooooome!
Hi 👋
If there don't offer towels one can use the bedding 😈
Can you please go to belguim and review some trains there like te intercity train between Ostend and Eupen (longest train route in belguim)
How about the catering? Any foods and drinks available?
From my experience, there is no catering on this train or almost any other Romanian train.
@@DanCojocaru2000Yeah, this is generally the case in the region. However, it wasn't always that way, back in the day every longer line had a dining car. Well, I say dining car but it was really more of a drinking car, not much in the way of food but the booze was cheap and plentiful.
@@raics101 wrong. Back until exactly last year full dining cars were running with international CFR trains. Only from 2023 all trains have (the ones that do have) a bistro car (alcohol, snacks and whatnot).
Astra specifies clearly on their site that for sleeping compartments water and sandwiches are offered for free. Couchettes just water.
On Astra there was never a dining car, nor it will be. They function similar to NightJet
@@DanCojocaru2000 from my experience, I received water, coffee and a sandwich included in the price of the ticket. Maybe they discontinued that. Towels were available too. Seems like no more.
None available at the time of recording.
I declare the following: the most comfortable and price friendly train on Romania's territory is the MAV's Corona, from Brașov to Budapest.
Ooh, with the old non-aircon coaches? I'd really like to try that. :)
@@SuperalbsTravelsI think we all know what happens next... or not?
@@memespert Not sure what you mean?
You're joking, right? Corona IC from MÁV is a nightmare in and of itself. Especially during the summertime.
And, to make it perfectly balanced, if the aircon doesn't work on the territory of Hungary, it's turned on at the border. If, however, it works in Hungary, definitely it wil be accidentally turned off at the border. The other way around too. :)))
2:40 că la to ri😂😂
i am from romania :D
are these carriages refurbished or brand new?
👏❤✊
1:42 actually almost all the trains I went on had sockets to charge your phone
that carriage looks like what people in the 60s would have imagined 2023 will look like.
Vandhe bharat next, maybe?
Actually, yes!
@@SuperalbsTravels 😱
🎉
I WILL SAY SOMETING IN ROMANIAN,(Salut,Craciun fericit)
They should try Talgo carriages on Romanian tracks like they try in Kazakstan
Oh, please no! 😂😂😂
@@SuperalbsTravels Should've marked the sarcasm 😅
Boa tarde boa viagem ai trem amerelo e verde
8:04 Thats not soap😂😂 Thats disinfectant
Thanks! :)
It is a well known fact that the electric locomotives employed by Romanian Railways-CFR and built by Electroputere Craiova are known as EA-type and were originally based on the license of the Swedish company ASEA.
As Dacia car is a copy of Renault, Olcit car is a copy of Citroen .....and so forth.
I plan to go to Arad someday, my ancestors thrived there for several generations before they lost everything to the Nazis and communists and fled. Maybe I’ll take this train!
I'd recommend it!
The VAST majority of Romanians use trains and other forms of transportation as their main means of travel, most Romanians don't even own a car because they don't have to. The train quality in Romania is no different than in Switzerland or any other central European nation and it can be better in terms of coverage, it's literally one of the largest transportation networks in Europe. The difference is money, ergo track quality, and train luxury. Even so, the difference in higher-speed tracks is quite minimal when you look at times and compare them depending on where you are going, and either way, it's almost always faster than by car, and sometimes faster than by plane. I find that the train quality while lacking when compared to ultra-rich nations like Switzerland, is pretty much the same in terms of coverage, speed, frequency, and accessibility, all for much cheaper, and all on a much smaller budget. You are more likely to run into less likable trains in Romania, but you are even more likely to get a good or just fine train, as most are quite standardized too. With this in mind, even from some of the more grimy train videos, I see why Romanians use their trains so much, despite not liking them either, because it would be inconvenient not to for most.
I speak romanian as my second language!!
That's cool! :)
i am from romania=sunt din romania
They should run the overnight trains to Budapest and Vienna as both MÁV - CFR providing quite questionable service...
I'd love to see that!
astra has it's own locomotives in the standard ugly livery but they were probably broken so the leased one to keep the service running