I compared a shared bunk-style cabin and a regular seat on overnight trains in Europe. I wouldn't book either again.

In October 2022, I traveled through Germany, Austria, and Italy on overnight trains in hopes of maximizing my time in each country during the day.

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2023-03-10

First, I spent 12 hours in a regular seat on an overnight train from Berlin, Germany, to Vienna, Austria, which covers 326 miles, according to Trainline.

Source: Trainline

A few days later, I rode in a shared bunk-style sleeper cabin on an 11-hour train from Vienna to Venice, which is about 270 miles, according to The Trainline.

Source: Trainline

I booked both rides with OBB Nightjet, a train that operates overnight routes between Austria, Italy, France, and the Netherlands, and can go as fast as 143 miles per hour, according to the company's website.

Source: Nightjet

To travel on both trains, I bought a Eurail pass for $477, which gives access to most European trains for a set number of days.

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Some trains only require a Eurail pass to ride, while others, including overnight trains, incur an additional discounted price.

For the ride from Berlin to Vienna, I paid an additional $14 to sit in a standard seating carriage with six seats facing each other in an enclosed space.

Read more: I booked the cheapest sleeper accommodation on an overnight train in Europe. I got zero rest and wouldn't do it again.

For my next ride from Vienna to Venice, I paid an additional $44 to upgrade to a bunk in a shared sleeper cabin with six bunks.

Read more: I bunked with 3 strangers in a shared cabin on an overnight train in Europe. It was bumpy, cramped, and I wouldn't do it again.

After comparing every aspect of each trip, I was surprised that I wouldn't book either again. I had trouble sleeping on both rides, though I did get more rest on the latter thanks to the bunk.

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On both trains, accommodation types were separated by car, and I walked through narrow, dimly lit corridors to my assigned room.

I shared my seating carriage with five other people. And although my shared bunk cabin came with six bunks, only three other travelers shared the space during my leg of the trip.

In the seating carriage, my seat had two cushions that reclined deeply but not fully flat. It appeared slightly wider than a typical train coach seat, but I still felt cramped next to five other people.

At 74 square feet, I thought the shared bunk cabin felt like a tight space, too. I couldn't image six people squeezing in there. But having a bed and additional amenities, like sheets and pillows, made me feel more comfortable.

The shared bunk cabin also included a privacy curtain over the door, individual lighting controls at each bed, and enough outlets for everyone, whereas the seating carriage only had two outlets in our room.

An OBB Nightjet rep told Insider that its new cars coming this summer will have more outlets.

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Both rooms had a small fold-out table. In the seating carriage, tables slid out from the armrests. In the bunk cabin, each bed came with a nightstand, which I thought was slightly larger than in the seating carriage.

Before bed on both rides, I used one of the two bathrooms in each car. I thought both were typical train bathrooms with a toilet and a sink, but the one in the bunk car looked cleaner to me.

"Toilets are always cleaned when the trip starts," OBB Nightjet said in a statement to Insider. "In addition, our staff is doing regular checks during the night."

When it was time to sleep, I didn't find either accommodation to be comfortable. In the seating carriage, I thought the gap between the seat back and the bottom of the seat made it tough to lie down. In the shared bunk cabin, I thought the bed felt stiff.

Read more: I spent 11 hours with 3 strangers in a shared cabin on a sleeper train in Europe. 6 surprises made me regret my choice.

In the seating carriage, I also found it impossible to sleep with the constant bumps on the ride and so many people around me.

"The quality of travel depends not only on the carriages, but also on the route," OBB Nightjet wrote in a statement to Insider."

"We recommend the sleeper or couchette car for night travel. There is enough space to stretch out. Seated carriages are recommended for shorter journeys."

I was able to get some sleep in the shared cabin, but I woke several times during the night to other travelers entering and exiting the room, or due to the bumpiness of the train.

"Offering our passengers a high level of travel comfort is an important concern for us," a representative for OBB Nightjet told Insider. "We are constantly working on improvements to our product and also take into account the requirements of our customers."

While the shared cabin ticket included breakfast, the seating carriage ticket did not. Instead, they had a menu with snacks, pasta, and wraps, though I didn't purchase any.

Read more: I ate my way through 3 European countries. Here are the 8 best things I tasted, from kebab in Vienna to cannoli in Rome.

In the shared cabin, an attendant woke me up with breakfast about 20 minutes before my stop in Venice. I got two rolls of bread with butter, jam, and coffee.

When I got to Vienna at 7 a.m. after a sleepless night in the seating carriage, I was so exhausted that I looked for any hotel that would take me in so early in the morning. I thought this made the ride ultimately not worth it.

And when I got off the train in Venice after the shared bunk cabin, I was tired from the lack of sleep. But unlike Vienna, I had enough energy to explore, although my exhaustion made my first day less enjoyable.

Read more: I spent 6 days in Italy after dreaming of visiting my whole life. 8 moments felt downright magical, from stumbling upon a castle to sleeping in an art sculpture.

Feeling awake enough to spend my first day exploring Venice made me think the added comforts of the shared cabin were worth the upgrade from a seating carriage.

But next time, I'd prefer to just avoid shared overnight train accommodation. Some Nightjet routes offer private sleeper cabins, which I think would have helped me sleep better and enjoy my days in Europe.