Passenger train services • Main line services / Ticketing • Intercity • Private mainline operators • Netherlands • European Sleeper
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Key points
- A cooperative based on crowdfunding ;
- A niche market using second‑hand rolling stock
On this page
Summary
European Sleeper is a cooperative night‑train operator based in the Netherlands and Belgium, launched in 2021 with the aim of reviving long‑distance overnight rail travel across the continent. The company focuses only on night train, with couchettes, classic sleeping compartments and seated coaches. Founded by Elmer van Buuren and Chris Engelsman, European Sleeper is financed by over 6,000 individual subscriptors and night train enthusiasts rather than large corporate backers. This is one of the few examples of railway companies that have succeeded through crowdfunding.
Its first route, introduced in 2023, runs from Brussels and Amsterdam to Berlin. In 2024, this route was extended to Dresden and Prague, creating a direct overnight link between Western and Central Europe. In 2026, two new routes were launched: from Paris to Berlin via Brussels, and from Brussels to Milan via Cologne.
For its technical operations, European Sleeper has a contract with Train Charter BV, a Dutch company that provides turn-key solutions integrating service design, train operations, on-board service and fleet lease. The company has therefore taken steps to provide both the timetables from each infrastructure manager and the rolling stock, including traction and drivers.
| COMPANY TYPE | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name: | European Sleeper | |
| Subsdiary/Branding from: | Cooperative | |
| Country of registration: | Netherlands | |
| Year founded (under this name): | 2021 | |
| Sector: | Passengers long distance | |
| Investor(s) / Owner: | Crowfunding – ca 6000 subscriptors | |
| Headquartered at: | Utrecht | |
| Management of infrastructure: | no | |
| Management of stations: | no | |
| ACTIVITIES | ||
| Regional & local traffic: | no | |
| Long distance traffic: | yes | |
| Freight traffic: | no | |
| Traction: | Train Charter BV | |
| Urban transport: | no | |
| Leasing: | no | |
| Infrastructure works: | no | |
| Rolling stock maintenance: | Train Charter BV |
Regular routes
➤ Brussels – Amsterdam – Berlin – Prague
➤ Paris – Brussels – Liège – Berlin
➤ Brussels – Liège – Lugano – Milan
Rolling stock (past and present)
EURO (Euro-Express Sonderzüge)
2023 – …
EURO (Euro-Express Sonderzüge)
2023 – …
GfF (Gesellschaft für Fahrzeugtechnik)
2023 – …
BTEX (Bahn Touristik Express)
2026 – …
RDC, RAG (RDC Gruppe)
2026 – …
Birth of the company
Elmer van Buuren and Kris Engelsman created European Sleeper because they were driven by a stubborn fascination for night trains and by the sheer challenge of bringing them back to life in a fragmented European rail system. Their idea did not emerge from sustainability goals or airline competition, but from years of personal projects, frustrations and ambitions.
Elmer had been dreaming of running his own train company for more than twenty years, long before the current renaissance of night trains. He had worked in dutch public operator NS as a train guard, in traffic control and in rail project management, and knew from experience how difficult it was to launch an international service: incompatible timetables, uncoordinated night works, lack of rolling stock, and the near‑impossibility of securing paths across several countries. These obstacles were precisely what motivated him — proving that a small, independent operator could succeed where large incumbents no longer tried.
Kris, for his part, had previously developed the Noord West Express and even imagined a jazz train project — a cultural, experiential night train that never materialised but planted the seed of a more ambitious venture. When both men realised they shared the same obsession and complementary skills, the idea crystallised: create a cooperative, crowdfunded night‑train company built by enthusiasts rather than institutions.
Unlike other operators, the ambition here is not to chase volume but to occupy a niche neglected by the historical operators, who argue that this type of service is too costly — with staff paid at night — for little impact in terms of modal shift. European Sleeper therefore occupies a small, unexplored market and even reminds visitors on its website that the night train is far more than just a means of transport: it is a true adventure.
European Sleeper is a cooperative with around 6,000 subscribers who have contributed a total of 7 million euros. This amount was apparently sufficient to set up a night train service. Four actors make up this night train operation: on the technical side, the Dutch company Train Charter Services B.V., which provides drivers and the necessary licences. For rolling assets, two other players are involved: Railpool for traction and RDC Deutschland, a German rolling‑stock lessor. Finally, there is European Sleeper, responsible for sales and marketing.
Why crowdfunding?
In an interview with Euronews, Elmer van Buuren explained that traditional financiers considered the project too risky. European Sleeper is, after all, a start-up with no track record of operations. Yet investors, with the exception of venture capitalists, do not like uncertainty. Furthermore, “setting up an international rail service is a very difficult and complex task,” explains Elmer van Buuren. Trains must apply for train paths on a year-by-year basis, so it is impossible to guarantee long-term revenue, which poses security concerns for potential investors.
When the crowdfunding campaign launched in June 2021, nearly €500,000 was raised in 15 minutes. Elmer thought his website was malfunctioning, as he explained in another interview with Euronews. By the end of 2023, the total raised had reached nearly €4.5 million, bringing the situation into sharp focus. This approach enables the company to raise capital quickly whilst building a community of customer-investors. In 2026, the start-up’s website reported nearly 6,000 subscribers who had contributed nearly €7 million.
2023 : first service to Berlin, and then Prague
The inaugural European Sleeper night train connecting Brussels to Berlin successfully launched on May 25, 2023. The service started with three round trips per week, departing from Brussels-Midi and stopping in Antwerp, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and on to Berlin.
In Belgium, the train was parked at Denderleeuw, 20 kilometres west of Brussels, rather than at the Forest depot. The train was hauled by a Lineas BR186 locomotive, which operated the entire journey. From 25 March 2024, the route was extended to Prague, the Czech capital, after a train path between Dresden and the Czech border had finally been secured. This was virtually the first time that Brussels had been connected directly to Prague. The Lineas BR186 locomotive operated also the entire journey.
2026 : second train to Berlin
2026 was a successful year for European Sleeper, with the launch of two new routes. A first new train was launched from 26 March 2026 between Paris, Mons, Brussels, Liège and Berlin. It runs alternately when the Brussels-Berlin-Prague service does not, and vice versa, thus offering Belgians an almost daily train to the German capital, which is clearly in high demand. This second train was made possible by hiring a set of carriages from RDC, a German leasing company that still has sleeper carriages in its fleet, notably modified Austrian T2S carriages. This train has enabled medium-sized towns such as St Quentin, Aulnoye and Mons to see night trains return – trains that had disappeared from the landscape 25 years ago… 🟧
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