Singapore to Istanbul by train
Travel from Singapore (Singapore) to Istanbul (Turkey) by train (8648km): schedule and information to the train connection. Compare fares and buy your ticket.
To travel by train from Singapore to Istanbul in Turkey, the main route leads via Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Russia and Romania. Please read the following information and blog posts.
Your travel route could be like that.
8648 km
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 Singapore to Istanbul, 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
Istanbul - Singapore / Singapore - Ankara / Singapore - Izmir1 Singapore (Singapore) - Johor Bahru (Malaysia) - Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) - Padang Besar (Malaysia) - Bangkok (Thailand) - Siem Reap (Cambodia) - Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) - Hanoi (Vietnam) - Beijing (China) - Moscow (Russia) - Chisinau (Moldova) - Bucharest (Romania) - Istanbul (Turkey)
The route consist of more than one step. You have to buy several train tickets.
1a Travelling from Singapore (Singapore) to Johor Bahru (Malaysia)
To travel from Singapore in direction of Malaysia by train, you have to use first the Singapore Metro and then a bus to cross the border.
Start from a "MRT Singapore Metro" station in the city center to "Woodlands MRT" station. Journey time about 45 minutes.
Exit at "Woodlands MRT" station and change to the bus 950 from "Woodlands MRT" station to "JB Sentral" (the station of "Johor Bahru", Malaysia). This bus cross the border (border control) and its journey time is about 45 minutes.
At "JB Sentral" you enter the trains to travel on in Malaysia (Gemas, Kuala Lumpur, Butterworth, Padang Besar, Thailand ...).
Metro and bus run in frequent, short intervals. Total costs are less than EUR 10.
Where to buy a ticket from Singapore to Johor Bahru?
Check times&prices 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
Johor Bahru - Singapore
1b Travelling from Johor Bahru (Malaysia) to Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia)
To travel in Malaysia by train, please buy your train tickets via the following booking links or at a railway station.
Beside the main lines served by trains there are frequent bus connections to every part in Malaysia. Find schedules and ticket prices via the given links.
Where to buy a ticket from Johor Bahru to Kuala Lumpur?
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
Kuala Lumpur - Johor Bahru / Kuala Lumpur - Butterworth, Penang / Kuala Lumpur - Johor Bahru / Kuala Lumpur - Padang Besar
1c Travelling from Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) to Padang Besar (Malaysia)
To travel in Malaysia by train, please buy your train tickets via the following booking links or at a railway station.
Beside the main lines served by trains there are frequent bus connections to every part in Malaysia. Find schedules and ticket prices via the given links.
Where to buy a ticket from Kuala Lumpur to Padang Besar?
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
Padang Besar - Kuala Lumpur / Kuala Lumpur - Butterworth, Penang / Kuala Lumpur - Johor Bahru
1d Travelling from Padang Besar (Malaysia) to Bangkok (Thailand)
Travel from Malaysia to Thailand by train. The main travel route goes from Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) via Padang Besar (Malaysia) to Bangkok (Thailand).
First travel by Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) to Padang Besar. The journey time is 6 hours and train tickets are available from 17 EUR. Padang Besar is the border station between Malaysia and Thailand.
In Padang Besar you change to the overnight train to Bangkok (Thailand). The journey time is 17 hours and train tickets are available from 900 THB (25 EUR).
Find the exact train schedules and buy your tickets via the given booking-links. You have to buy two tickets in total.
Where to buy a ticket from Padang Besar to Bangkok?
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
Bangkok - Padang Besar / Padang Besar - Hat Yai / Kuala Lumpur - Bangkok / Butterworth, Penang - Hat Yai / Kuala Lumpur - Chiang Mai / Kuala Lumpur - Chiang Rai City / Kuala Lumpur - Nakhon Sawan / Kuala Lumpur - Pattaya / Kuala Lumpur - Phuket / Kuala Lumpur - Trang / Kuala Lumpur - Rayong
1e Travelling from Bangkok (Thailand) to Siem Reap (Cambodia)
To travel from Thailand to Cambodia, you have to take a bus. There is no passenger train connection between these two countries.
There are daily direct bus connections from Bangkok (Thailand) to Siem Reap (Cambodia) with a journey time of about 9 hours. Buy your bus ticket from 700 THB (20 EUR).
Find the exact bus schedules and buy your ticket via the given booking websites.
Where to buy a ticket from Bangkok to Siem Reap?
Buy your ticket at the bus station or at the website of the bus company.
The following links could be interesting for you.
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Siem Reap - Bangkok / Bangkok - Phnom Penh
1f Travelling from Siem Reap (Cambodia) to Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam)
To travel from Cambodia to Vietnam, you have to take a bus. There is no passenger train connection between these two countries.
There are daily direct bus connections from Siem Reap (Cambodia) to Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) with a journey time of 9 hours and a ticket fare from 25 EUR. And from Phnom Penh to Ho Chi Minh City with a journey time of 5 hours and a ticket fare from 15 EUR.
Find the exact bus schedules and buy your ticket via the given booking websites.
Where to buy a ticket from Siem Reap to Ho Chi Minh City?
Buy your ticket at the bus station or at the website of the bus company.
The following links could be interesting for you.
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Ho Chi Minh City - Siem Reap / Phnom Penh - Ho Chi Minh City / Phnom Penh - Ho Chi Minh City / Siem Reap - Hanoi / Siem Reap - Hanoi
1g Travelling from Ho Chi Minh City (Vietnam) to Hanoi (Vietnam)
Travel from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi by overnight train. The journey time is 32 to 37 hours. Train ticket fares start from 25 EUR. There are up to 6 train connections daily.
The trains of Vietnamese railways offer the following service classes:
- 3rd class: hard wooden seats
- 2nd class: soft seats with air-condition
- 2nd class: sleeper with 6 berths per compartment, with air-condition
- 1st class: sleeper with 4 berths per compartment, with air-condition
On some trains luxury train wagons are attached. For example "Violette Express" and others which offer 4-berth and 2-berth compartments.
The train numbers are as follows with departure time in Ho Chi Minh City, arrival time in Hanoi and the total journey time:
- SE2 / 21:55 / 08:35 / 34:40
- SE4 / 19:25 / 05:58 / 34:25
- SE6 / 15:20 / 04:35 / 37:15
- SE8 / 06:00 / 19:13 / 37:13
We recommend to travel one of the most scenic parts of this rail journey between the cities of Đà Nẵng and Huế on day light (SE2, SE4). You get to this section of the travel route 17 hours after departure in Ho Chi Minh City. Sit on the right in direction of travel to have the best view.
If you travel as tourist, we recommend you to include some stops for example in Hội An, Đà Nẵng and Huế.
Find the exact train schedules and buy your ticket via the given booking links.
Where to buy a ticket from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi?
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
Hanoi - Ho Chi Minh City
1h Travelling from Hanoi (Vietnam) to Beijing (China)
If you want to travel by train from Vietnam to China, there are daily train connections on two main travel routes.
The first travel route is from Hanoi (Vietnam) to Nanning, Guilin, Beijing (China).
There are two direct trains per week from Hanoi (Vietnam) to Beijing (China).
There are every day connections from Hanoi (Vietnam) to Nanning (China). If you travel on a date were no direct train runs from Hanoi to Beijing, first travel by the daily overnight train from Hanoi to Nanning, then by the daily overnight train from Nanning to Beijing.
The second travel route is from Hanoi (Vietnam) to Kunming (China) with change and border crossing at Lào Cai (Vietnam) and Hekou (China).
Travel first from Hanoi to Lào Cai (Vietnam) by direct train. There you change to a bus or taxi to the border (10 minutes). Cross the border on foot. Take again a bus or taxi (10 minutes) to Hekou North (China) train station. From there continue by train to Kunming (journey time 5 hours).
How to buy tickets:
- buy train tickets from Vietnam to China at 12goasia or Baolau.
Direct train: Hanoi - Beijing.
Connection with change: Hanoi - Nanning and Nanning - Beijing.
It is also possible to buy these routes via Chinahighlights, but then you have to pick them up somewhere before in China.
- buy train tickets inside of Vietnam via 12goasia. For example: Hanoi - Lào Cai.
Note: if you use Chinahighlights, fill in for Hanoi: Gia Lam, Hanoi.
Where to buy a ticket from Hanoi to Beijing?
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 company:
CNR 中国铁路总公司 / VIET Đường Sắt Việt Nam
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Beijing - Hanoi / Hanoi - Guilin / Hanoi - Nanning / Hanoi - Shanghai / Hanoi - Guangzhou / Hanoi - Wuhan / Hanoi - Kunming / Hanoi - Harbin / Hanoi - Chengdu / Ho Chi Minh City - Beijing
1i Travelling from Beijing (China) to Moscow (Russia)
Travel from Beijing to Moscow by direct overnight train. The journey time is about 140 hours with six nights on board of the train. The train ticket prices start at 650 EUR. There are two direct trains per week with different routes. The arrival station is Moscow Yaroslavsky.
1) Moscow to Beijing via Mongolia:
The Trans-Mongolian route (train number 3) leaves Beijing for Moscow on Wednesday morning at 07:30. The train arrives in Moscow on Monday at 14:00. The route leads via the Gobi desert and Ulaanbaatar. The route length is 7620 kilometres. This train is provided by Chinese national railways.
2) Moscow to Beijing via Manchuria:
The Trans-Manchurian route (train number 19) leaves Beijing for Moscow on Saturday night at 23:00. The train arrives in Moscow on Friday at 14:00. The route leads via Harbin and does not cross Mongolia. The route length is 8980 kilometres. This train is provided by Russian national railways.
The ticket prices are nearly the same for both trains. The following service classes can be booked:
- 2nd class: compartment with four beds, two on each side. The train ticket price starts at 650 EUR.
- 1st class: compartment with two beds. The train ticket price starts at 900 EUR.
Children from 0-3 travel for free in the bed of their parents. Children from 4 to 11 pay 75% of an adult ticket.
Food:
Both trains offer restaurant cars which are not expensive and of good quality. You get main meals bellow 10 EUR. You can always buy food and drink from the vendors and kiosks on the train platforms when the train stops. Each wagon has a samovar with free boiling water, which you can use for coffee or tea and to prepare food snacks you bring with you.
Toilet and shower:
Each train wagon has at least two western-style toilets and small bathrooms with sinks. The train staff will keep the toilet clean during the whole journey. There are shared showers available for the 1st class compartments on the Chinese train via Mongolia. Otherwise just use the small bathrooms and a wash-cloth. If you don’t travel the whole journey with one train, you have of course showers in hotels you book along your travel route. But it is to expect that showers in the trains will be provided in the future.
Security:
The trains are very safe. You will meet families travelling with kids and as well women travelling alone. You can lock the compartments at night and your luggage is save. The train staff is always present. The compartments are mixed with female and male, but you can ask the train staff for women-only compartments.
Internet and electricity:
There is no WiFi available in the train itself. You have to use your mobile phone to access via a phone network provider. Some compartments have power sockets, you might also find some in the corridor. Or just ask the train staff if they charge your mobile device for a small tip.
Other train connections are available change of trains.
Find the exact train schedules, plan your trip and buy your ticket via the given booking links.
Where to buy a ticket from Beijing to Moscow?
The following links could be interesting for you.
night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
020 Moscow - Beijing / 019 Beijing - Moscow
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Moscow - Beijing
1j Travelling from Moscow (Russia) to Chisinau (Moldova)
Travel from Russia to Moldova by a direct overnight train. This daily train connection runs on the train route from Moscow via Kiev (Ukraine) to Chisinau (Moldova). Or from Saint Petersburg via Belarus and Ukraine to Chisinau.
Find exact train schedules and buy your ticket via the given booking websites.
Where to buy a ticket from Moscow to Chisinau?
The following links could be interesting for you.
train company:
RZD Российские железные дороги
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Chisinau - Moscow / Saint Petersburg - Chisinau
1k Travelling from Chisinau (Moldova) to Bucharest (Romania)
Travel from Moldova to Romania by overnight train on the route from Chisinau to Bucharest. The journey time is 13 hours. The train ticket price starts from 25 EUR. The train route runs via Ungheni (Moldova) and Iași (Romania).
The overnight train Chisinau to Bucharest offers the following service categories:
- 2nd class: 4-berth compartments. The ticket price 135 RON (28 EUR).
- 1st class: 2-berth compartments. The ticket price 290 RON (60 EUR).
The departure time in Chisinau is 17:00. The arrival time in Bucharest is 06:00.
Additionally there are local trains from Ungheni (Moldova) across the border to Iași (Romania). Regular train connections are available from Chisinau to to Ungheni.
Find the exact train schedules and buy your ticket via the given booking links.
Where to buy a ticket from Chisinau to Bucharest?
The following links could be interesting for you.
night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
105/401 Chisinau - Bucharest
train company:
CFR Căile Ferate Române / CFM Calea Ferată din Moldova
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Bucharest - Chisinau
search for train schedules here: Online timetable information, on which you can find relevant, up-to-date connections.
rail.cc Deutsche Bahn
1l Travelling from Bucharest (Romania) to Istanbul (Turkey)
Travel from Bucharest to Istanbul by direct overnight train Bosphorus Express. This daily overnight train has a journey time of 18:30 hours. Train tickets start from 52 EUR.
At off-season (October to May) you have to use connection trains to get to Dimitrovgrad (Bulgaria) where you can enter the overnight train. Travel from Bucharest via Ruse and Gorna Oryahovitsa to Dimitrovgrad (Bulgaria) where the night train departs at 22:40. You have enough time to change trains at each of these railway station.
The direct overnight train Bucharest to Istanbul departs at "Bucharest Gara de Nord" railway station at 11:00. The arrival time in Istanbul Halkali railway station is at 05:20 in the morning. After midnight you have to leave the train at the Turkish border with all your luggage and put your luggage through an X-ray machine.
The ticket price is 38 EUR plus a supplement of 14 EUR for a berth in a 4 person compartment. Buy the ticket at the railway station in Bucharest or on the website of Romania railways CFR. Select "Halkali" as destination.
The arrival station Istanbul Halkali is located 25 kilometres outside of the historic city centre. Get by Marmaray suburban train directly to Istanbul Sirkeci railway station (the former historic railway station) and on to "Söğütlüçeşme", the departure station for the high-speed-trains in direction of Ankara. These suburban trains run every 15 minutes with a ticket fare of less than 2 EUR. The journey time from the Istanbul Halkali station to the historic city centre is 35 minutes.
Where to buy a ticket from Bucharest to Istanbul?
The following links could be interesting for you.
night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
Bosfor Bucharest - Istanbul / Bosfor Istanbul - Bucharest
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Istanbul - Bucharest
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