Mainland Europe train
The VSOE continental leg contains 18 carriages – 12 sleeping cars, three dining cars, a bar car and two former Ytb class sleepers, which provide accommodation for the staff and storage rooms for luggage and supplies as well. The ten Lx class sleepers have nine double compartments, while the two S1 class sleepers used to accommodate 17 passengers in four double and nine single compartments. As a higher service class Cabin Suites were offered until 2020, featuring two inter-connected compartments, one for sleeping, other for sitting. In March 2018[3] the Grand Suite class was introduced with the refitting of the S1 sleeping car No. 3425. The Grand Suites (bearing the names Paris, Istanbul and Venice) include double or twin bed layouts and a drawing saloon with a sofa (which is convertible to a third bed) and en-suite bathroom.[4] Three further Grand Suites (Prague, Budapest and Vienna) in the second S1 sleeping car No. 3309 were meant to be introduced to the service in March 2020,[5] but postponed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In June 2023 the Suite class was introduced featuring a similar layout, however with convertible beds (double and twin either) due to the lack of the drawing saloon.[6] The design is related to the Grand Suites, with compartment names referring to famous landmarks around the train's route: La Forêt (The Forest, inspired by Black Forest), La Campagne (The Countryside, with an emphasis on the vineyards of France and Northern Italy), Les Montagnes (The Mountains, particularly Arlberg), and Les Lacs (The Lakes, among them Lake Zug and Lake Como).[7] Four such compartments - one of each design per carriage - were installed in the Lx carriages 3552, 3555 and two years later also in 3539 and 3543.[8] The remaining conventional compartments are currently sold as Historic Cabins. In 2024 Lx 3553 was rebuilt as private carriage L'Observatoire, containing a bedroom for two with bathtub, a lounge, a library, and a bathroom.[9] The interior design was done by French artist JR.[10] The carriage was exhibited in April 2024 at the Venice Biennale to provide first impressions[11] and inaugurated in October 2024, however the first public rides with passengers are provided only since 2025.
The Lx sleeping cars were refurbished in Ostend by the CIWL workshops, while the rest at the Hansa carriage works in Bremen. The renovation was made with some technical modifications, to match today's safety and comfort requests, for example the dining cars were fitted with modern kitchens. They have also become air-conditioned, which was introduced in 2017 even in the sleeping cars. In the mid-2000s the original bogies were changed to brand new ones to achieve higher speeds (160 km/h instead of 140 km/h).
In 2022 and 2023, due to the delayed inspection of the staff sleepers, a Trenitalia couchette car was added as a substitute, but only on the classic Calais–Venice route and to Amsterdam.[12][13]
Locomotives
Through 40 years the train had no dedicated motive power, haulage was provided in every country by the respective state railways with conventional electric and diesel locomotives designated for express and InterCity trains. The only known steam traction took place 2017 in Hungary - however, only within Budapest - by a MÁV Class 424. Since 2023 the new FS subsidiary Treni Turistici Italiani has become the train operator, which means a particular (but not exclusive) usage of their own E402 class engines featuring a historic-looking livery. One year later SNCF has also introduced two BB 26000 class locomotives No. 26005 and 26009 in a dark blue "Trains spéciaux" livery, however, they also appear with other trains, while VSOE kept on being hauled by other vehicles of this class as well.
Since Amsterdam has become a destinaton, the company Train Charter has become the first private carrier of the VSOE. First in Belgium and Netherlands, using the locomotives of the private freight operator Lineas, since 2026 also in Germany and Austria. As of March 2026 within Austria Vectrons were rented by Graz-Köflacher Bahn, which have leased them from Beacon Rail.
