Being a native of the American South, there are a few arguments with my British in-laws I’m unprepared for, quite frankly. In Mississippi, the vast majority of the population motors around individually, and I mean that quite literally. Going to work, planning a holiday, or taking a night out on the town involves the use of an automobile, and without one, you’re rather limited in your travel plans.
In the UK, however, where your options are more plentiful, it’s not unusual to engage with mass transit on a daily basis. All medium-to-large cities are connected by light rail, which will deliver you handily into the center of town, and once you’re there the more suburban or rural areas are easily reachable by one of the many regularly-scheduled bus lines. Without this infrastructure in place, it’s safe to say my mobility across the British Isles has been unlimited.
It certainly turns the conversations of “How are you going to get there?” and “Why don’t you just get the train?” on their heads, because it puts me in the difficult position of explaining why mass transit wasn’t my first thought, why I lazily prefer to take a cab or Uber from time to time, and why I’ve yet to acquire a UK driver’s license. I’ve come to believe the answer to each has required me to be honest with myself, which as a result either piques their curiosity more or ends the discourse out of disgust.
Simply put, my first thought has become the train or bus where it wasn’t before. I’m from the dismally small town of Batesville, Mississippi, population 4,500. As a teenager or adult, if I ever wanted to visit the nearest populated university town or big city, I needed to drive myself or bum a ride off of a friend to Oxford, Mississippi (population 26,000), or Memphis, Tennessee (population 650,000) – there were no trains or buses connecting the two. Sure, eventually MegaBus connected the two towards the end of my university days, but grabbing that midnight ride often turned out not to be worth the hassle, factoring in I needed a car to get to the pick-up and drop-off zones.
The answer to the other two questions are a bit easier. I choose to get the occasional cab or Uber out of laziness and convenience This excuse doesn’t fly with my wife, either. , and I haven’t acquired a UK driver’s license because I haven’t needed one. I’ve been sufficiently mobile taking great advantage of the local train and bus stops when needed.
Truth be told, I’m actually quite the convert at this point. And now I’ve joined the ranks of the British and Europeans who scoff at American preferences for getting around. Perhaps the following evangelizing in this post will go some way to converting others, as well. I wanted to share a bit of what it’s like for friends or family who may not know what the experience of an overnight train is like, and I hope to tacitly entice them to trying it for themselves with this short description of the journey.
The Journey of Night-Time
Last week, a former colleague asked if I would be in London any time soon so we could get coffee and brunch. Since I had the following week off due to annual leave and I had other errands to run in London anyway, I thought it best to schedule in a quick day trip. I had only been back to London since lockdown once, and that was to move out of my university flat. Plus, I knew well beforehand that would give me another opportunity to make one of my favorite commutes in style and comfort: travelling on the Caledonian Sleeper. To the unintiated “Caledonia” was the Latin word for Scotland.
As the name implies, the Caledonian Sleeper is a sleeper train. It’s selling point includes being unconscious during an otherwise long and treacherous journey – ideally in a bed, and ideally with snacks, an easily accessible toilet, and charge ports all to yourself. You can think about it like the train equivalent to a red-eye flight, but with more amenities, space, and a real chance to sleep, not just a forlorn hope.
The Caledonian Sleeper (or just “the Sleeper”), travels the length of the UK, and really only hits the major hot-spots. So, one common track leaves from Glasgow at 11:40 p.m. and arrives in London around 6:30 a.m. and vice-versa; however, for the adventurous the Sleeper will take you as far north as Inverness, if you’re interested, or on an alternate track to Edinburgh, if you’re not married to a Glaswegian. Because “Why would you want to go there?"
My father-in-law dropped me off at Glasgow Central, Glasgow’s main railway station, located right in the middle of town as described above. I should point out that at this time of night, my father-in-law’s last advice before speeding away was “don’t linger, you might attract attention of the gangs or women of the night." There’s barely anyone waiting around, even though several of the lines technically don’t send off their last train until around 10:00 p.m. - 11:00 p.m. Since it wasn’t quite time to board, yet, I waited a few minutes, picked up snacks for the journey outside the station and snapped a quick shot of the famous “Glasgow Central Clock”, where my wife, then girlfriend, would meet to pick me up in the early days of our relationship. We have a lovely painting of this clock hanging in our home, which I bought her for Christmas one year
When 11:00 p.m. or so rolled around, the Sleeper’s platform still hadn’t been posted. Fortunately, one of the helpful station workers knew the platform and let me through the barriers. I told her it was just a quick trip, and she very kindly said “See you soon, and get back safe!”
Down the platform, two Sleeper attendants waited with reservation cards and pointed me to the right carriage after confirming my ticket. This time, I was in carriage “M”, berth 7. “Berth” is train-speak for “bed” or “cabin”.
After a slightly cramped walk down the inner-hallway, I made it to my room, and settled in for the night after unpacking my bag. To facilitate the beds, there really isn’t much room to get down to your cabin, which I hope the photo does justice. But if not, my experience moving full luggage down a similar corridor on an unrelated trip should serve as a cautionary tale not to over-pack.
At the end of the corridor, you’ll see a small tv-station, where occasionally the attendant will hang-out. The following morning, I caught him punching a few buttons on a machine he was carrying while peeking around the corner. He was on his way to dispatch a few courtesy “wake-up” knocks, but gestured to me with a thumbs up, instead.
Inside the cabin, I had two single-beds stacked vertically, bunk-style. On the bed, the staff placed a couple of cards. The card on the left is for you to fill out and leave on the door. Among other things, it asks for your morning beverage choice, Coffee, Tea, Water and offers a selection of breakfast items. The beverage is complimentary, but the breakfast will cost extra. Remember my buying snacks beforehand? Play this like you’re sneaking candy into the movies, as the price difference is about the same. They leave a bit more room at the bottom for any additional notes you may want to tell the host, or to request a wake-up knock.
The card on the right is actually a menu, where you can order food and drinks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic, from the galley. The range is quite impressive, considering it is trainfare, and I’m always chuffed the drinks section is stocked with Scotch.
To answer your question, yes the bed is quite comfortable, and the cabin I’d describe as “cozy.” I’ve never had trouble sleeping, but the bed is designed for the average occupant, so if you’re on the taller side, it may be a tighter squeeze and a long night. This brings me joy, thinking about my much-taller Scottish brother-in-law… If you’re wondering, the metallic object on the left side of the photo is the ladder to the second bunk.
One thing to bear in mind is that the cabin light doesn’t turn off (that I can find), but there is a handy outlet and power panel at the end of the bed you can use for charging or calling the host. It will probably be your best friend if you travel with gadgets.
All said, I had quite the restful night and I was ready to take on a hearty brunch the next day. I can’t say I’ve ever had a bad experience on the Sleeper and would recommend it to anyone who has the time to travel through the night and isn’t in a rush. While this short post only featured their single room, I would also point out that this is their medium-expense option. If you can live without the bed and just need transit from A to B over night, you can investigate the price range for their seat availability. If, however, your tastes are more luxurious, they have pricier options available, too, with bigger beds, etc. You can find more information here.