It’s hard to believe but there are no trains between Belgrade and Thessaloniki. Trains will not be reinstate soon due to poor state of the railway line. In 2002 Serbia obtains a tranched loan from European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to finance the rehabilitation and upgrade of the rail infrastructure of Rail Corridor X from Belgrade to Niš.
Last updated: 02.05.2024
There are plans to build new railway line Niš – Brestovac (23 km) and railway bypass of Niš.
The Niš – Preševo line modernisation is also planned.
Back in 2010, there were two trains a day between Belgrade and Thessaloniki. The route was very popular among locals and tourists. Daytime train was comprised of second class old Greek carriages. The overnight train has old Serbian seating carriages, couchette cars and sleeping cars and Macedonian couchette. Train left Belgrade in the evening. Early in the morning the train arrived in Skopje. There was a long stop – about 40 minutes. After another five hours, the train arrived at the end station in Thessaloniki where passengers can transfer to a train to Athenes or explore the city and continue their journey by an overnight train to Athenes or Istanbul.
In 2011 Greek government cancelled all international trains from Greece. The train from Belgrade to Thessaloniki, known as Hellas Express, was also suspended due to cost-cutting by the then Greek state-owned railway company TrainOSE. For some time, the train ran from Belgrade to Skopje as an overnight train.
Train from Belgrade to Thessaloniki was resumed in 2014. Shortly after was reduced to summer only and ceased in 2019.
The Hellas Express was a very good means of transport for tourists who wanted to visit the most important places in the western Balkans. They can transfer in Skopje to the trains to Bitola or Prishtina or to bus to Ohrid.
Tickets vere inexpensive, surcharges for beds in sleeping cars and berths in couchette cars relatively cheap.
Train had disadvantages:
– old rolling stocks.
– the carriages were shrouded in cigarette smoke.
– very long stops in Niš and Skopje.
– border control in the middle of the night.
– border control on the North Macedonian-Greek border. Passengers had to get off the train, line up at the custom desk and wait for control of their passports.
The completion of the modernisation Belgrade – Niš railway is expected in 2026. It reduce the travel time between Belgrade and Nis to one hour and 15 minutes. Trains will run with speed up to 200 km/h. Maybe the train from Belgrade to Thessaloniki will be reinstated. Currently, there are no trains between Serbia and Greece.
See also:
Train travel in Greece
Train travel in North Macedonia
Train travel in Serbia