Editor’s Note: Sign up for Unlocking the World , CNN Travel’s weekly newsletter. Get the latest news in aviation, food and drink, where to stay and other travel developments. “It is with great sadness that we must announce the death of a dream.
Midnight Trains died today, surrounded by family and friends.” That was the epitaph from Midnight Trains founder Adrien Aumont on May 31, signaling that its vision of creating a new network of luxury night trains linking major European cities had hit the buffers. Prior to the company’s demise, it had looked like Europe was poised for something of a night train revolution.
Overnight rail journeys have been making a resurgence across the continent as travelers sought out more sustainable links between cities. The concept of going to bed in one city center and waking in another, hundreds of miles away, presents an increasingly attractive alternative to short-haul flights in an era of heightened environmental concerns and fraught air travel experiences. Despite this demand, the hurdles for startups like Midnight Train trying to enter the market to meet it remain virtually insurmountable.
At first, it looked like new “open access” rules that permitted new operators to share Europe’s rail network with existing state-owned railway companies would open the doors for a flood of exciting new ideas and routes. And indeed it prompted several new operators to come forward, promising a web of new routes, cheaper fares or more luxurio.