Rail Turkey En

How is it that tickets are immediately sold out as soon as they are released for sale? Do travel agencies buy all the places? What is TCDD doing to make it possible for ordinary passengers to reserve sleeping-car places?

Why are there so few passengers on the Sofia/Bucarest-Halkali Istanbul route ? Well, I took the Bucarest Halkali sleeper last month, but only very few people know it exists. The DB or SBB online timetable show all the relations with train changes (3 train changes for the Bucarest Halkali train) but they don’t mention anything about direct carriages (…) – If they would update their website info, or if TCDD would tell them to do, then they would stand a chance to attract more travellers (apart from the rail enthusiasts, the Interrail travellers …)

Another good article. I agree with everything you’ve said. The route from West to East has been so fragmented for so long that it will take a lot of work to bring the numbers back up. I hope the investment isn’t wasted and is supported by positive marketing and increased information for all. As someone who’s twice travelled through Turkey by train I know it’s a great network – but it needs to be easier for passengers.