Belgrade to Athens by train

Travel from Belgrade (Serbia) to Athens (Greece) by train (806km): schedule and information to the train connection. Compare fares and buy your ticket.

To travel by train from Belgrade in Serbia to Athens in Greece, the main route leads via Macedonia or Bulgaria. Please read the following information and blog posts.

There are two main routes. Compare them and decide which one feeds your needs best.

806 km

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Your train tickets and reservations at the best price/fares. Scroll down, read the details and make use of the booking links.

How to use the following information: we show you the best routes and where to buy tickets. On longer routes you may need more than one ticket. Book your tickets step by step as explained. If you have questions about the route from Belgrade to Athens, please ask in our forum. Of course, sometimes there are as well other travel routes possible.

The following links could be interesting for you.

train connections : popular connections travelled by other users

Athens - Belgrade / Belgrade - Alexandroupoli / Belgrade - Larissa / Singapore - Patras / Belgrade - Piraeus / Belgrade - Thessaloniki / Niš - Athens / Niš - Thessaloniki / Novi Sad - Athens / Novi Sad - Thessaloniki

1 Belgrade (Serbia) - Thessaloniki (Greece) - Athens (Greece)

The route consist of more than one step. You have to buy several train tickets.

1a Travelling from Belgrade (Serbia) to Thessaloniki (Greece)

Travel from Belgrade to Thessaloniki by direct overnight train. The journey time is 16 hours.

Important note: this direct overnight train only runs in the summer months June to September. If the this train is not available you have to travel from Belgrade to Sofia. And from Sofia to Thessaloniki. Please search for these train connections to find details.

The departure time in Belgrade (Topcider) is 18:30. The arrival time in Thessaloniki is 10:30.

The overnight train offers one wagon with seats and one couchette-car with 6 beds per compartment. The couchette-car is recommended. Buy train tickets for 35 EUR. The supplement for the couchette-car is 8 EUR per person. Usually there is enough free seats and berths available even on the day of departure. Ask the train conductor to optimize the occupancy of the couchette compartments if you want to have more space. Just be friendly.

The following links could be interesting for you.

night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
B 334 Thessaloniki - Belgrade / B335 Belgrade - Thessaloniki

train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Thessaloniki - Belgrade

1b Travelling from Thessaloniki (Greece) to Athens (Greece)

To travel by train from Thessaloniki to Athens, use one of the direct IC connections for day travel. There are usually five connections per day with a journey time of four hours.
The ticket price for a one-way journey starts from EUR 35 in second class.

There is one overnight train available with a journey time of about seven hours. Ticket prices start from EUR 20.

Find the train-schedules and ticket fares via our booking links.

The following links could be interesting for you.

train types: Train types you are likely to travel with.
Inter City (IC)

night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
T 600 Athens - Alexandroupoli / T 601 Alexandroupoli - Athens

train company:
OSE TRAINOSE

train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Athens - Thessaloniki

2 Belgrade (Serbia) - Sofia (Bulgaria) - Thessaloniki (Greece) - Athens (Greece)

The route consist of more than one step. You have to buy several train tickets.

2a Travelling from Belgrade (Serbia) to Sofia (Bulgaria)

Travel from Belgrade to Sofia by direct day train connection. In off-season (October to May) you have to change trains in Nis and Dimitrovgrad. Sometimes an overnight train is offered as well.

The journey time from Belgrade to Sofia by direct day train is 11:30 hours. Train tickets are available from 21 EUR in 2nd class. Buy your ticket locally at the railway station. The departure time in Belgrade (Topcider) is 09:15. The arrival time in Sofia is 20:45.

If no direct train is available, you have to travel in several steps:
1. Belgrade to Nis. It might be the case that you have to stay overnight in Nis.
2. Nis to Dimitrovgrad.
3. Dimitrovgrad to Sofia.

Find the exact schedules via the booking links.

The following links could be interesting for you.

train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Sofia - Belgrade

2b Travelling from Sofia (Bulgaria) to Thessaloniki (Greece)

Travel from Sofia to Thessaloniki by direct day train. The journey time is 8:30 hours. Buy your train ticket for 35 BGN (18 EUR) at the train station in Sofia.

The departure time in Sofia is 15:00. The arrival time in Thessaloniki is 23:30. There are always seats available therefore it is no problem to buy the ticket at the day of departure.

Note (2022/2023): currently the train traffic is interrupted and you have to travel by bus. The bus ticket price is 15-20 EUR. Buy it via the given links or on union-ivkoni.com
No discount with Interrail/Eurail.

Where to buy a ticket from Sofia to Thessaloniki?

Buy the train ticket at a railway station. Note: in some countries you have to pay a service fee at the ticket counter. The ticket can be purchased at a station in the country of departure, also sometimes in other countries.

The following links could be interesting for you.

train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Thessaloniki - Sofia

2c Travelling from Thessaloniki (Greece) to Athens (Greece)

To travel by train from Thessaloniki to Athens, use one of the direct IC connections for day travel. There are usually five connections per day with a journey time of four hours.
The ticket price for a one-way journey starts from EUR 35 in second class.

There is one overnight train available with a journey time of about seven hours. Ticket prices start from EUR 20.

Find the train-schedules and ticket fares via our booking links.

The following links could be interesting for you.

train types: Train types you are likely to travel with.
Inter City (IC)

night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
T 600 Athens - Alexandroupoli / T 601 Alexandroupoli - Athens

train company:
OSE TRAINOSE

train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Athens - Thessaloniki

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HELP

Do you have questions about the connection between Belgrade and Athens? Does something not work as it should? Just ask in our forum and get competent answers from our rail travel experts.

HELP

Eurail: if you want to travel this route by Eurail instead of train tickets, have a look here for reservation fees and further information.

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