UEX Düsseldorf to Verona Motorail - has anyone used it?

We are seriously considering using this service so us almost OAP’s can get further easier & not be knackered before tackling the mountains.
I would appreciate any knowledge of this train service good & bad
TIA

I have used the equivalent German Railway and Austrian Railway services a dozen times in the past and found them very useful. There is no restaurant on the Dusseldorf Service, so dine well before boarding the train and carry plenty of fluid.

Your fellow travellers are generally charming so sharing a compartment is no bother (I've never had a problem). Beds are a fold-down bunk arrangement and the mattresses are thinner, but I've always slept well enough to ride safely to the hotel.

Washing arrangements are usually basic i.e. washbasin, but I have not used a UEX train.

It is perfectly possible to do Essex to Dusseldorf in a single hop, but if taking a pillion, consider stopping in a small town in Belgium for the night and having a really chilled start to the holiday. I usually return in a single day. This summer I am flying my son to Baden-Baden to save him 2 days of pillioning - and it's less expensive than feeding him for 2 days!

It seems that some clever soul in UEX has noticed that there is a H-D European meeting in Eastern Austria every summer and are running a few trains to Villach around that time. Villach is a brilliant springboard for getting to Slovenia and Slovakia.

Austrian Railways (OBB) run a Dusseldorf - Innsbruck service which is cheaper than going all the way to Verona.

Hope this helps....

John

You may find this link helpful ............ https://www.seat61.com/Motorail.htm

Or you could look at shipping your bike/gear & flying out - easily done via Geneva, amongst others.

This is booked now. Overnight ferry from Harwich to Hook then an easy ride to Düsseldorf. Train to Verona, should be in Cortina by lunchtime.
The idea is skipping the frantic & tiring haul to the twisties.
We’ll be there a day quicker & ready to tackle the passes.
The 007 exhibition in Solden that featured in Harry’s recent video is on our short list.
It’s an experiment & I’ll report back in October.

If you have a high touring screen you might want to take it for the train, it’s a fairly tight squeeze.

Lock your cabin, we stopped a light fingered operator looking in our bags last year.

Take plenty of snacks and drinks, available from the main station concourse a 5 minute walk from the loading ramp/bay.

Make sure you have hard copies of the tickets.

July 2018

Side view

Get near the front if you want a quick getaway, which means arrive early

N111BJG said:

This is booked now. Overnight ferry from Harwich to Hook then an easy ride to Düsseldorf. Train to Verona, should be in Cortina by lunchtime.
The idea is skipping the frantic & tiring haul to the twisties.
We’ll be there a day quicker & ready to tackle the passes.
The 007 exhibition in Solden that featured in Harry’s recent video is on our short list.
It’s an experiment & I’ll report back in October.

Click to expand...

If you don't mind me asking, what is the cost of using the train?

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johnnyboy said:

If you don't mind me asking, what is the cost of using the train?

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Click to expand...

It has worked out at 1373 euros for five blokes with bikes sharing two 3 berth compartments
I think just having the couchettes in a shared with strangers in bigger carriage is about £180 each
Ferry was £126 incl single inside cabin each.

ymfb said:

If you have a high touring screen you might want to take it for the train, it’s a fairly tight squeeze.

Lock your cabin, we stopped a light fingered operator looking in our bags last year.

Take plenty of snacks and drinks, available from the main station concourse a 5 minute walk from the loading ramp/bay.

Make sure you have hard copies of the tickets.

Click to expand...

Thanks, I saw a video of loading, looks like chin needs to be on your tank bag