Short answer: in Romania and Bulgaria, trains are the cheapest in Europe — a Bucharest–Brașov InterRegio costs around 70 lei (€14) for 2 hr 30 to 3 hr, and a Sofia–Varna BDŽ service about 27 leva (€14) — but they are also the slowest, and booking online is an obstacle course. On the Romanian side, buy at bilete.cfrcalatori.ro or through the CFR Călători app (the site does accept foreign cards, contrary to what you still read online); on the Bulgarian side, bdz.bg sells most long-distance trains online, but some regional services can only be paid for at the ticket window. Between the two capitals, the coach wins almost every time: Bucharest–Sofia in 7 to 8 hours for €20–35 with FlixBus, Union Ivkoni or Biomet, versus 9 to 10 hours by train with a change at Ruse. Golden rule: book Romanian night trains (vagon de dormit) at least a week ahead — there are few sleeper compartments and they sell out fast.
Romania and Bulgaria are the last big blind spot of European rail travel. And yet you'll find two extensive networks there (more than 10,500 km of lines in Romania, around 4,000 km in Bulgaria), fares with no equivalent anywhere on the continent, night trains that are still numerous and cheap, and a handful of international links opening the way to Istanbul, Belgrade or Chișinău.
The problem is neither the price nor the density of the network: it's information. Timetables that shift at the December service change, train numbers that can't be found on international search engines, resellers adding 300% mark-ups, stations whose names differ from one language to the next. This guide takes stock operator by operator of what is actually bookable in November 2026.
1. Romania: CFR Călători and its private competitors
CFR Călători is the long-established state operator. There are three categories to know, and they determine everything:
- Regio (R): stopping services, calling at every halt, the slowest and the cheapest. No seat reservation.
- InterRegio (IR): the backbone of the network, semi-fast trains on the main corridors (Bucharest–Brașov–Cluj, Bucharest–Constanța, Bucharest–Timișoara). Seat reservation compulsory and included in the ticket.
- Overnight InterRegio: the same trains, with couchette cars (vagon de dormit) and sleeping cars.
Fares are distance-based and regulated: they don't climb as departure approaches, which completely changes the usual logic. Buying three months ahead or on the morning of departure gives virtually the same price. Sleeper berths, on the other hand, come in fixed numbers: that's where booking early matters.
Some ballpark figures in second class, November 2026:
| Route | Train | Duration | Indicative price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bucharest Nord–Brașov | InterRegio | 2 hr 30–3 hr | ~70 lei (€14) |
| Bucharest Nord–Cluj-Napoca | InterRegio | 9 hr–10 hr 30 | ~130–160 lei (€26–32) |
| Bucharest Nord–Constanța | InterRegio | 2 hr 15–2 hr 45 | ~70–80 lei (€14–16) |
| Bucharest Nord–Timișoara | Overnight IR | 12 hr–13 hr | ~150 lei + 60–90 lei for a berth |
| Bucharest Nord–Iași | InterRegio | 6 hr 30–7 hr | ~110 lei (€22) |
Two private competitors are worth a look, as they are often faster and better maintained:
- Astra Trans Carpatic: day and night trains between Bucharest, Brașov, Cluj and Timișoara, with refurbished carriages and onboard catering. Tickets on their own website and at stations.
- Transferoviar Călători (TFC) and Regio Călători: mainly regional and secondary lines, useful in Transylvania and towards Romanian Moldavia.
A detail that saves trips: in Bucharest, Gara de Nord handles almost all long-distance traffic. But some regional trains leave from Basarab or Obor. Check the exact station printed on your ticket, not the one shown by the search engine.
Romanian trains run blisteringly hot in winter and stifling in summer: a sleep mask and earplugs solve a good part of the problem on nights in a six-berth couchette.
2. Bulgaria: BDŽ, a slow network but unbeatable on price
BDŽ (Български държавни железници, Bulgarian State Railways) runs most of the Bulgarian network. The hierarchy is simpler than in Romania:
- Pътнически (regional): stopping services, very slow.
- Бърз / Fast train: semi-fast, the standard category over long distances.
- Express: a small number of services, notably Sofia–Varna and Sofia–Burgas.
Prices are extremely low: Sofia–Plovdiv around 10–11 leva (€5–6) in 2 hours on a fast train, Sofia–Varna around 27 leva (€14) for 7 hr 30 to 8 hr, Sofia–Burgas much the same. Second class is perfectly decent; first costs about 25% more and is worth the supplement on journeys over five hours.
Two practical points:
- Online booking at bdz.bg works for fast and express trains, with an e-ticket. For regional services and some secondary routes, you'll need to go to the ticket window (cash preferably).
- The Sofia–Varna and Sofia–Burgas night trains still exist with couchettes (спален вагон), at laughably low fares (reckon on 30 to 50 leva including the berth). It's the best value in the country, provided you accept basic comfort.
Since 1 January 2026, Bulgaria has adopted the euro. In practice, November 2026 marks the end of the dual-display period: BDŽ ticket windows and machines take euros, and fares have been converted at the fixed rate of 1.95583 leva to €1, with no rounding up on regulated tickets. Still, keep some coins on you: ticket windows at small stations can be slow to give change on large notes.
3. Crossing the Danube: Bucharest–Ruse–Sofia, the real issue
This is the most frequently asked question, and the answer is surprising: the Romanian–Bulgarian border is one of the worst-served in Europe by rail, for a simple geographical reason — the Danube has only two road-and-rail bridges along 470 km of shared border.
By train
The Friendship Bridge between Giurgiu (Romania) and Ruse (Bulgaria) carries the only regular rail link. The international train connects Bucharest Nord to Ruse in about 2 hr 45 to 3 hr 15, for 40 to 60 lei. From Ruse, a BDŽ connection runs down to Gorna Oryahovitsa and then Sofia: real total 9 hr to 10 hr 30 depending on the day, including the wait at Ruse. Checks on board or at the border stop easily add 30 to 45 minutes.
Since Romania and Bulgaria joined the land Schengen area (1 January 2025), systematic identity checks have been eased, but targeted checks remain on this corridor: keep your passport or ID card handy, not at the bottom of your bag.
By coach: the rational choice
For Bucharest–Sofia, the coach beats the train on every count:
| Operator | Duration | Indicative price | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|
| FlixBus | 7 hr–8 hr | €20–35 | several departures/day |
| Union Ivkoni | 7 hr 30 | ~€30 | daily |
| Biomet | 7 hr 30–8 hr | ~€30 | daily |
Bucharest departures are generally from Autogara Filaret or the Bucharest Nord terminal depending on the operator; in Sofia, arrival is at the Централна автогара (central bus station), right next to the railway station. FlixBus sells online with no surprises; Union Ivkoni and Biomet have their own sites, in Bulgarian, but accept foreign cards. A universal travel plug adapter with USB ports comes in handy: newer coaches have sockets, older ones don't, and Romanian trains are wildly inconsistent.
What about the other crossings?
- Calafat–Vidin, the second bridge (road only, opened in 2013), is used by minibuses and coaches linking Craiova to Vidin and Sofia. Handy for heading down from Timișoara towards western Bulgaria.
- The ferries between Bechet and Oryahovo, or Turnu Măgurele and Nikopol, still operate but are reserved for vehicles: unusable if you're travelling without a car.
4. Useful international links
Three bookable services are worth knowing in 2026:
- Sofia–Istanbul: the historic night train is regularly replaced by a TCDD/BDŽ replacement bus on the Turkish section because of engineering works. Check bdz.bg before planning; the direct coach (Metro Turizm, Union Ivkoni) does Sofia–Istanbul in 9 to 10 hours for €30–45.
- Bucharest–Chișinău: a daily night train of about 13 hours via Iași and Ungheni, with a gauge change. Alternative: coach in 8 to 9 hours.
- Bucharest–Vienna via Budapest: the overnight Dacia / Ister provides the link to Hungary and Austria. To compare what's on offer on the Austrian and Hungarian side, our Austria–Hungary guide covers Sparschiene and MÁV-START fares.
For travellers stringing together several Central European countries, the Polish, Czech and Slovak networks follow a rather different booking logic — we've covered it in detail in our Poland, Czechia and Slovakia guide.
5. Cards, passes and discounts
- Romania: CFR offers discounts for Romanian students and resident pensioners, which are hard for foreigners to access. There's no equivalent to the BahnCard. Return tickets, however, give around 10% off.
- Bulgaria: BDŽ offers an annual discount card and group fares from two people up. With fares already so low, the saving stays marginal on a short trip.
- Interrail / Eurail: both countries are covered. But do the maths: with €14 tickets, a pass only pays off if you cover very long distances every single day. Our analysis of the Interrail break-even point sets out how to calculate it.
- Reservation supplement: with a pass, reservations remain compulsory on Romanian InterRegio trains and in couchettes (a few euros). Sort it out at the station the day before.
6. Luggage, comfort and practicalities
Neither CFR nor BDŽ enforces restrictive baggage limits: you travel with whatever you can carry, and compartments have proper luggage racks above the seats. It's one of the few concrete advantages these networks have over coaches, where FlixBus limits you to one hold item plus one piece of hand luggage.
Three recommendations proven on these lines:
- Air conditioning is hit and miss on older carriages. In summer, pick InterRegio services with refurbished stock (visible in the CFR app) or Astra Trans Carpatic.
- Restaurant cars have all but vanished. A filter water bottle and supplies bought at the station will spare you seven dry hours on Sofia–Varna.
- Mobile coverage is excellent in both Romania and Bulgaria (among the fastest speeds in Europe), but onboard Wi-Fi is rare. A 20,000 mAh power bank covers a full night of browsing and GPS.
- For overnight journeys in a shared compartment, a TSA luggage padlock and the habit of keeping your passport and money on you are enough. We've spelled out the method in our guide to travelling alone by train in Europe.
7. What changes on 13 December 2026
The annual service change affects both countries. The trends announced by CFR Călători and BDŽ for the 2026-2027 timetable:
- Romania: further journey-time savings on the Bucharest–Brașov–Sibiu corridor thanks to upgraded sections of Line 300, and on Bucharest–Constanța. Several Regio services on secondary lines remain suspended and replaced by buses.
- Bulgaria: doubling works between Sofia and Plovdiv and on the corridor towards Burgas, with occasional bus replacements to watch out for.
The full rundown of changes across Europe is in our article on the 13 December 2026 service change.
A good travel guide to Romania and Bulgaria remains useful for spotting secondary stations and local coach connections, which few apps list correctly.
Frequently asked questions
Can you buy a CFR Călători ticket with a foreign bank card?
Yes. The bilete.cfrcalatori.ro website and the CFR Călători app accept Visa and Mastercard issued abroad and deliver an e-ticket to show on your phone. Avoid third-party resellers, which charge service fees of €5 to €15.
Is there a direct Bucharest–Sofia train?
No, there's no reliable daily direct service in 2026. The journey involves a change at Ruse, for a total of 9 hr to 10 hr 30. The direct coach (FlixBus, Union Ivkoni, Biomet) takes 7 to 8 hours for €20–35: it's the rational choice unless you're set on the train.
Do you need to book Romanian night trains in advance?
Yes — it's the one case where planning ahead makes a difference. The fare doesn't move, but berths in the vagon de dormit are few: aim for one week to ten days ahead, more in summer and around public holidays.
Does Bulgaria's switch to the euro change ticket prices?
Not for regulated rail fares, which were converted at the fixed rate of 1.95583 leva to €1. Since November 2026, BDŽ ticket windows take euros and dual pricing has come to an end.
Is an Interrail pass worth it in Romania and Bulgaria?
Rarely, unless you're travelling intensively. With tickets at €14 for a three-hour journey, you'd have to cover very long distances every day to break even. Point-to-point tickets win on most itineraries.
In short
- Fares are the lowest in Europe: €14 for Bucharest–Brașov or Sofia–Varna, with no yield management — buying early won't bring the price down.
- Book online at bilete.cfrcalatori.ro (Romania) and bdz.bg (Bulgaria), never through an international reseller.
- Bucharest–Sofia: take the coach, 7 to 8 hours for €20–35, versus 9 hr to 10 hr 30 by train with a change at Ruse.
- Book ahead only for berths: stock is limited, the price isn't.
- Keep an eye on 13 December 2026: faster times on Bucharest–Brașov, works between Sofia and Plovdiv and bus replacements.
- Before deciding, compare trains, coaches and ridesharing on Gopaxo and browse our travel guides for connections.
