November 29, 2025 — 5:00am
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The historic Caledonian Sleeper, a multi-line train service linking England and Scotland that dates to 1873, has made its most significant route change in 30 years. It now offers a stop at Birmingham on the way from London (Euston station) to various Scottish locations, and vice versa.
The Caledonian Sleeper at Glasgow station.
For Australian travellers, that makes it possible to go from the geographic centre of England where attractions such as the Cotswolds lie, to the Scottish Highlands where Loch Ness is, just for starters, among the litany of highlights. Sleeper rail is the very definition of slow travel, and this option almost guarantees the journey being as fabulous as the destinations at either end.
The Midlands stop starts in January and is on three Highlands routes. One is the London-Fort William train, which leaves Euston Station at 9.15pm, stopping in Birmingham about 90 minutes later before pushing north and into Scotland. Coming the other way, it departs Fort William just before 8pm, arriving in Birmingham at 6.20am and London at 8am.
The London to Aberdeen train also now includes Birmingham, as does London to Inverness, both return.
The Caledonian Sleeper and Forth Bridge in Scotland.Peter Devlin
The Lowlands services, London to Glasgow and London to Edinburgh (return), do not include Birmingham.
While nothing says “romance of the rails” like a British sleeper train, the Caledonian Sleeper is one of only two overnight trains in the UK, the other being the Night Riviera linking London and Penzance, Cornwall.
Around the world, these kinds of services are increasingly becoming attractions for their own sake rather than commuter options.
Luxury trains such as Belmond’s Venice Simplon-Orient-Express or Journey Beyond’s The Ghan preserve the tradition, wrapping it up with plush cabins, elevated dining and exclusive off-train experiences.
But you can still find more utilitarian sleepers in Europe, Asia, and even Australia, where inter-capital XPTs offer the option.
The Caledonian Sleeper continues to be an accessible overnight experience, with cabins for two from $500. And unlike air travel, you arrive right in the centre of town.
An en suite room on the Caledonian Sleeper.
In addition to the schedule change that adds Birmingham, Scottish Rail Holdings, which now runs the Caledonian Sleeper on behalf of Scotland’s government (Transport Scotland), introduced upgrades in 2019, adding cabins with ensuites – some of them with double beds – as well as more comfortable seating, Wi-Fi and charging capabilities.
And if you’re wondering about missing all that scenery in the dark (hopefully you’ll be sleeping, part of the way, anyway), consider the fact that daylight hours are long in the warmer months at these latitudes.
The Byron Bay train is now available for a drive.
Change to British rail of the more zippy kind is also afoot, with Virgin Trains receiving approval on its application to share the Temple Mills International depot in Leyton, East London with Eurostar, as it eyes a Channel Tunnel service between London and Paris that it hopes to be running by 2030.
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Meanwhile, train buffs in Australia looking for a hands-on experience should book themselves a holiday in Byron Bay.
The Byron Bay Railroad Company is offering the chance to drive their solar-powered train that runs along a small section of restored track between North Beach near Elements of Byron and Byron township.
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Julietta Jameson is a freelance travel writer who would rather be in Rome, but her hometown Melbourne is a happy compromise.Connect via email.Traveller GuidesFrom our partners