Operator: Caledonian Sleeper
Headcode: 1S25/1Y11
Route: EUS-FTW
Class: Classic Room
SeatRoom: D10
Date: Thursday 13th April 2023
The middle of April saw us heading to London ready to begin my fifth trip to Scotland of the year. This one would be starting with an overnight journey onboard on one of the UK’s three sleeper services, Caledonian Sleeper’s ‘Highlander’ to Fort William.
We were booked to travel in a ‘classic’ room and therefore were unfortunately not able to access the Avanti West Coast lounge at Euston. As such we headed upstairs to Euston’s Mezzanine and waited in The Signal Box pub which occupies one corner. Boarding generally begins between 45 and 60 minutes prior to departure and so we made our way to Platform 1 just before the 45-minute mark.
Caledonian Sleeper’s ‘Highlander’ actually serves three destinations in Scotland, with the train splitting at Edinburgh to form portions to Aberdeen, Fort William and Inverness. The train departs Euston made up of 12 sleeper carriages, two seated carriages and two club cars, with the sleeper carriages containing a mix of ‘Classic’, ‘Club’ and ‘Double’ rooms.
The ‘classic’ rooms can be set up for one or two passengers, with the top bunk folding up to provide more space if travelling alone. Our room was obviously set up with two beds and along with these the rooms include a sink but no ensuite (unlike the ‘club’ rooms – read about my journey in one of those here). Also in the room are plenty of both standard and USB power sockets and each bunk has a reading light.
In each room there’s also a call bell for the Sleeper Attendant and a temperature control for the cabin. Throughout the train there is free Wi-Fi, although I unfortunately couldn’t connect to this and so relied on my data for the evening. For the ‘classic’ rooms, there is a toilet at one end of each carriage, so only a short distance from the rooms.
Departing Euston at 2115, we were due to head straight down the West Coast Mainline for the entirety of the journey, something that is becoming more and more unusual for the Sleepers at present. Engineering works at Carstairs and further south have resulted in plenty of East Coast Mainline diversions, whilst a route via the West Midlands is often also used to allow for works to take place between Rugby and Stafford.
There are two club cars within the train upon departure from Euston, one for the Inverness portion and one shared by the Aberdeen and Fort William portions until Edinburgh. Priority access to the club cars for dinner is given to passengers in ‘club’ or ‘double’ rooms and so we waited until around 2200 to head down to get a late dinner. Unfortunately for us the club car was very popular and so the staff took our room number and advised they would call us when there was a table available.
We eventually got the call just before 2300 and so headed back for a very late dinner as we started to pass the Midland towns we were familiar with from growing up. Dinner was excellent, with plenty of choice and we decided to splurge and enjoy a full three course offering whilst catching glimpses of towns and villages through the darkness.
The first of two stops in England for the ‘Highlander’ is Crewe, where a few people joined for the seated coach and had to pass through the club car owing to the platform at Crewe not being quite long enough for our full train. The other advertised stop is at Preston, with an unadvertised crew stop at Carlisle to allow the drivers to change over. Thankfully we were back in our room and asleep for both of these.
The interesting part of the sleeper operations occurs in the middle of the night at Edinburgh as one train becomes three (or vice versa for the southbound). At Edinburgh six of the sleeper carriages along with a club car and seated carriage form the Inverness portion, whilst two sleeper carriages and the remaining club and seated carriages form the Aberdeen portion. The final four sleeper carriages are joined by an extra club and seated carriage to form the Fort William portion, with the club and seated carriage having been detached from the southbound Fort William service earlier in the night.
Sometimes the shunting at Edinburgh can be a little ‘vigorous’ and can wake you up, however I managed to sleep through on this occasion and woke up as we pulled into the first stop on the Fort William leg, Glasgow Queen Street. The Caledonian Sleeper is the first northbound service of the day along the West Highland line and so the seated coach can get quite busy with people wanting to enjoy a day out along the line, although the 0548 call at Queen Street would be a bit early for my tastes.
Stops at Dalmuir and Dumbarton Central quickly passed and we soon joined the West Highland line itself just before Helensburgh Upper. At this point I was dozing between stops and not long after Garelochhead I decided to wander back to the club car and see if I could get a cup of coffee to take back to our room. Having made my way through the narrow corridors of four sleeper carriages, I arrived at the club car to be told to go back to my room and ring the call bell. Doing so, my call was unfortunately not answered and so my caffeine fix went unanswered until Breakfast was delivered just after Corrour.
What we were surprised with on this journey in mid-April was entering the Highlands and being met by snow covered moors and more snow falling. Despite numerous trips to the Highlands, this was the first was snow and the scenery just took on a completely different look. It was just stunning beautiful and I felt extremely lucky to be seeing it in the morning light whilst travelling onboard one of my favourite trains.
Other than a hot drink and a juice, breakfast is not included in the price for ‘classic’ rooms, however options such as bacon rolls or porridge can be ordered the night before and paid for prior to going to sleep. We had opted for the bacon rolls, however despite the quality of the food the night before, these were a bit of a disappointment being quite dry and chewy. However the coffee at this point was very welcome and we enjoyed the stunning scenery until we pulled into Fort William just before 1000.
The journey from Euston to Fort William onboard the Caledonian Sleeper at around 12 hours and 45 minutes is the second longest continuous journey you can take onboard a train in Great Britain, just behind the 13 hours and 15 minutes on CrossCountry’s Aberdeen to Penzance service. As with my previous journeys onboard the Sleepers, this one was great and apart from the lacklustre breakfast and unanswered call, was an excellent way to reach the Highlands.
Lounge 0*
Seat/Facilities 4*
Food 4*
Service 4*
Punctuality 5*
Overall Rating 17/25 (read about my rating system here!)
Flights & Times 