
CityNightLine
Overview
- For the successor company, see City Night Line
CityNightLine AG (timetable and platform sign abbreviation: CNL) was a Swiss night train
Sleeping car
The sleeping car or sleeper is a railway/railroad passenger car that can accommodate all its passengers in beds of one kind or another, primarily for the purpose of making nighttime travel more restful. The first such cars saw sporadic use on American railroads in the 1830s and could be configured...
service. CNL had right of passage grants in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the Netherlands, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. It served stations in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
. CityNightLine was acquired by Deutsche Bahn AG in 2007 and merged with DB NachtZug
DB NachtZug
City Night Line is a category of night trains in Europe. They were originally operated by the former railway company CityNightLine AG...
to form the "City Night Line" which presently offers night services in former CityNightLine and NachtZug territories, of which includes the majority of CityNightLine's operations at the time of the merger.
CityNightLine AG was a joint project/creation undertaken by the Deutsche Bahn (DB)
Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn AG is the German national railway company, a private joint stock company . Headquartered in Berlin, it came into existence in 1994 as the successor to the former state railways of Germany, the Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany and the Deutsche Reichsbahn of East Germany...
(German Federal Railways), the Austrian Federal Railways
ÖBB
The Austrian Federal Railways is the national railway system of Austria, and the administrators of Liechtenstein's railways...
(ÖBB) and the Swiss Federal Railways
SBB-CFF-FFS
Swiss Federal Railways and SFR are not in official use) is the national railway company of Switzerland headquartered in Bern. Formerly a government institution, it is since 1999 a special stock corporation with all shares held by the Swiss Confederation or the Swiss cantons...
(SBB-CFF-FFS).
Unanswered Questions
Encyclopedia
- For the successor company, see City Night Line
CityNightLine AG (timetable and platform sign abbreviation: CNL) was a Swiss night train
Sleeping car
The sleeping car or sleeper is a railway/railroad passenger car that can accommodate all its passengers in beds of one kind or another, primarily for the purpose of making nighttime travel more restful. The first such cars saw sporadic use on American railroads in the 1830s and could be configured...
service. CNL had right of passage grants in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, the Netherlands, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
. It served stations in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
. CityNightLine was acquired by Deutsche Bahn AG in 2007 and merged with DB NachtZug
DB NachtZug
City Night Line is a category of night trains in Europe. They were originally operated by the former railway company CityNightLine AG...
to form the "City Night Line" which presently offers night services in former CityNightLine and NachtZug territories, of which includes the majority of CityNightLine's operations at the time of the merger.
The foundation of a company

Deutsche Bahn
Deutsche Bahn AG is the German national railway company, a private joint stock company . Headquartered in Berlin, it came into existence in 1994 as the successor to the former state railways of Germany, the Deutsche Bundesbahn of West Germany and the Deutsche Reichsbahn of East Germany...
(German Federal Railways), the Austrian Federal Railways
ÖBB
The Austrian Federal Railways is the national railway system of Austria, and the administrators of Liechtenstein's railways...
(ÖBB) and the Swiss Federal Railways
SBB-CFF-FFS
Swiss Federal Railways and SFR are not in official use) is the national railway company of Switzerland headquartered in Bern. Formerly a government institution, it is since 1999 a special stock corporation with all shares held by the Swiss Confederation or the Swiss cantons...
(SBB-CFF-FFS). CityNightLine's first train departed on 28 May 1995. SBB-CFF-FFS and ÖBB have since ended their collaboration with CNL. As the predecessor joint CityNightLine companyhttp://www.moneyhouse.ch/u/city_night_line_cnl_ag_CH-035.3.000.286-8.htm the new daughter company of DB is incorporated under Swiss law, based in Zurich.
Passengers and comfort
CityNightLine Trains offer (depending on their route) the following passenger accommodation:- Deluxe Sleeper (for 3, 2 or 1 berths)
- Economy Sleeper (with 4, 3, 2 or 1 berths)
- CouchettesCouchette carThe couchette car is a railroad car conveying basic non-private sleeping accommodation.The car is divided into a number of compartments accessed from the side corridor of the car, which in daytime are configured with a bench seat along each long side of the compartment...
(with 6, 4 or 2 berths). - Seated accommodation in either open plan or compartmentalised coaches
On some routes CityNightLine makes use of double decker sleeping cars, built especially for the company.
Some trains also offer a restaurant car
Dining car
A dining car or restaurant carriage , also diner, is a railroad passenger car that serves meals in the manner of a full-service, sit-down restaurant....
for some or all of their journey.
Lines
CityNightLine services the following lines:Line | Route | |
---|---|---|
Berliner | Zürich HB - Berlin Ostbahnhof Berlin Ostbahnhof Berlin Ostbahnhof is a mainline railway station in Berlin, Germany. It is in Friedrichshain, now part of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg district, and has undergone several name changes in its history. It was known as Berlin Hauptbahnhof from 1987 to 1998, a name now applied to Berlin's new central station... |
|
Donau-Kurier Donau-Kurier (CityNightLine) The Donau-Kurier is the name given to the CityNightLine line which services the Dortmund-Vienna Westbahnhof line:Here are the stations the Donau-Kurier services:... |
Wien Westbf – Dortmund Hbf | |
Komet | Hamburg-Altona – Zürich HB | |
Pegasus | Zürich HB – Amsterdam Centraal Amsterdam Centraal ' is the central station of Amsterdam. It is one of the main railway hubs of the Netherlands and is used by 250,000 passengers a day, excluding transferring passengers. It is also the starting point of Amsterdam Metro lines 51, 53, and 54. The station building of Amsterdam Centraal was designed by... – Zürich HB |
|
Pollux | Amsterdam Centraal Amsterdam Centraal ' is the central station of Amsterdam. It is one of the main railway hubs of the Netherlands and is used by 250,000 passengers a day, excluding transferring passengers. It is also the starting point of Amsterdam Metro lines 51, 53, and 54. The station building of Amsterdam Centraal was designed by... – Munich Hbf München Hauptbahnhof Munich Central Station is the main railway station of the city of Munich in Germany. It is one of the three long distance train stations in Munich, the others being München-Pasing and München Ost. The station sees about 350,000 passengers a day, which puts it on par with other large stations in... (– Garmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region, and the district is on the border with Austria... ) – Amsterdam Centraal Amsterdam Centraal ' is the central station of Amsterdam. It is one of the main railway hubs of the Netherlands and is used by 250,000 passengers a day, excluding transferring passengers. It is also the starting point of Amsterdam Metro lines 51, 53, and 54. The station building of Amsterdam Centraal was designed by... |
|
Orion | Basel - Prague | |
Semper | Dresden Hbf Dresden Hauptbahnhof is one of two main inter-city transit hubs in the German city of Dresden. Designed by Ernst Giese and Paul Weidner, it was built between 1892 and 1897 at the southern border of the inner city and was important in the growth and development of the city.... – Zürich HB |
|
Andromeda | Hamburg - Paris | |
Aurora | Basel SBB – København H København H Copenhagen Central Station is the largest train station in Denmark, located in Copenhagen, with entrances to Bernstorffsgade , Banegårdspladsen, Reventlowsgade and access to platforms from Tietgensgade... |
|
Borealis | Amsterdam Amsterdam Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population... - København H København H Copenhagen Central Station is the largest train station in Denmark, located in Copenhagen, with entrances to Bernstorffsgade , Banegårdspladsen, Reventlowsgade and access to platforms from Tietgensgade... |
|
Kopernikus | Praha hlavní nádraží Prague Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million... - Amsterdam Centraal Amsterdam Centraal ' is the central station of Amsterdam. It is one of the main railway hubs of the Netherlands and is used by 250,000 passengers a day, excluding transferring passengers. It is also the starting point of Amsterdam Metro lines 51, 53, and 54. The station building of Amsterdam Centraal was designed by... |
|
Apus | Amsterdam - Milan | |
Borealis | Amsterdam - Copenhagen | |
Venus | Berlin - Bolzano | |
Perseus | Berlin - Paris | |
Uranus | Dortmund - Bolzano / Selzthal / Wörgl Wörgl Wörgl is a town in Tyrol, Austria, in the Kufstein district. It is 20 km from the state border with Bavaria.-Transport:Wörgl is an important railway junction between the line from Innsbruck to Munich, and the inner-Austrian line to Salzburg... |
|
Jupiter | Dortmund - Villach | |
Capella | Hamburg - Bludenz | |
Neptun | Hamburg - Bolzano / Selzthal / Wörgl Wörgl Wörgl is a town in Tyrol, Austria, in the Kufstein district. It is 20 km from the state border with Bavaria.-Transport:Wörgl is an important railway junction between the line from Innsbruck to Munich, and the inner-Austrian line to Salzburg... |
|
Merkur | Hamburg - Villach | |
Pluto | Munich - Berlin | |
Meteor | Munich - Hamburg | |
Hans Christian Andersen | Munich - Copenhagen | |
Cassiopeia | Munich - Paris | |
Lupus | Munich - Rome | |
Canopus | Zurich HB - Prague | |
Pictor | Munich - Venice |
See also
- Nederlandse SpoorwegenNederlandse SpoorwegenNederlandse Spoorwegen , or NS, is the principal passenger railway operator in the Netherlands.Its trains operate over the tracks of the Dutch national railinfrastructure, operated by ProRail, which was split off from NS in 2003...
- List of Swiss companies
- Train categories in EuropeTrain categories in EuropeRailway companies in Europe assign their trains to different categories or train types depending on their role. Passenger trains may be broadly split into long-distance and local trains; the latter having average journey times of under an hour and a range of less than 50 kilometres. Goods trains...