(upbeat music)
- Welcome to Aberdeen!
- Aberdeen!
(laughing)
Welcome to sunny Aberdeen!
- Except it's not that sunny.
- It's not that sunny at all.
We're not in an airport like usual.
We're in a train station.
And today, we're gonna take the Caledonian Sleeper train
from Aberdeen to?
- [Liam] London, Euston.
- Now, there are two ways you can do the Caledonian Sleeper,
in a bed and in a seat.
One of us is gonna be in the seat,
one's gonna be in a bed.
Liam, which do you think you're doing?
- Oh, what's it gonna be?
- You're in a bed.
- Yes, get it!
Which means, Nicky, you are in a seat today, my friend.
- Almost 12 hours in a seat, Liam in a bed,
there's gonna be all sorts of other stuff to check out,
so let's see what both our experiences are like.
- Let's do it.
- [Nicky] The Caledonian Sleeper
is the overnight rail service
operating between Scotland and London.
The trains travel from Edinburgh in Glasgow
on their lowland route,
and Fort William, Inverness and Aberdeen
on their highland route into London's Euston Station.
The Caledonian Sleeper completed the rollout
of its new trains in October 2019,
which includes the Club Car Lounge & Restaurant,
which unfortunately was closed on our journey
due to the pandemic.
But more importantly for us,
there were different classes of travel to try out.
Traveling from Aberdeen to London,
we paid 395 pounds for Liam's Caledonian double,
and just 73 quid for my seat.
- I am very, very excited.
I've never been on a overnight train before,
and I've certainly never had my own bed on a train.
So I feel like this is gonna be
a totally different experience
to even flying in first class cabin.
I can't wait to see what it's like.
- [Nicky] So here she is, the Caledonian Sleeper.
So this is carriage A, which just has the seats in,
which is where I'm gonna be.
Then we've got coach B, which I believe is where Liam is.
This is where his double bed's gonna be.
If I get very tired and I can't cope with the seats,
maybe I'm gonna sneak into one of the other carriages
and see if I can find myself a bed.
Don't tell anyone though.
Are you open for business now?
- Yeah. - We can board?
So, boarding formalities are complete.
They weren't very formal though.
And this is gonna be my home for the night, carriage A.
To be honest, it feels quite cozy and nice.
As soon as I got on here, it's a nice atmosphere,
there's no other passengers.
I'm not sure if anyone's gonna come.
And I'm gonna find my seat, which is seven C.
Here it is.
This is gonna be me from now,
it's quarter past nine.
The train leaves at 9:55 I think,
and we get into London, Euston at 7:45.
So it's a solid 10-plus hours right here.
I think I'm gonna be all right.
- [Liam] So I'm juts boarding coach B,
which is where I believe my cabin room is located.
I'm looking out for number five
down this very narrow hallway.
And there we go, that looks like it to me.
Let's see if this works.
And here is my room
for the next 11 hours or so.
(upbeat music)
- So, welcome to seat seven C,
my window seat from Aberdeen to London.
I feel like it's gonna be a bit of a long night here.
But first impressions are, the cabin is very cozy and nice,
and the seat actually is kind of comfortable,
although maybe a little bit on the hard side.
So let's have a look at what we've got here.
We have a tray table which folds down
and then opens out a little bit more.
Good for a laptop, good for having a bit of food on.
Right ahead of you, you have a plug socket
and a USB charger handy for every person.
Because of COVID, there'll be no one sat next to me,
so actually I've got two plugs and two USB ports.
I have a foot rest down below,
which actually is quite high,
and not sure how comfortable that's gonna be.
There's an armrest
both on the right-hand and left-hand side of me,
and there's a seat recline.
Now, this is big.
Let's see how much the seat reclines.
Not a lot.
Did you see that?
Yeah, that's it I'm afraid.
But what else have we got here?
You have a light.
Ooh.
And there's a little peg to put your things on,
to put your coat on.
Every guest has their own secure locker.
Lovely and secure.
Nobody's breaking into these babies.
(upbeat music)
- So I've just checked in to my double room cabin
onboard the Caledonian Sleeper, and my first impression
is that it's really, really spacious,
especially for one person.
You can have two people staying here if you want,
but I'm very lucky 'cause I have it all to myself tonight.
As you can see, I've got a massive bed behind me
with four nice, big, fluffy pillows.
It looks really, really comfy.
Up here, we've got a little control panel
where I can turn on and off a reading light.
I can actually dim the lights exactly to my liking
with this little knob.
And then I also have a thermostat
so I can control the heating,
whether I'm too hot or too cold.
Over on this side, you've got more of the same.
You have light controls.
There are tons of charging ports all over.
Over on this side of the room, we have another power outlet,
if you wanna charge up whatever.
Some storage up here.
And then you also have a little light for the window,
along with a host call button.
So if you wanna order room service, order a wake up call,
you can do that by pressing that bell right there.
Over here we have a sink.
So if I wanna brush my teeth before bedtime
or have a quick wash, then I can do that too.
Obviously complete with lovely views
of the Scottish scenery.
Under here, there's a little hand towel.
We also have a bin.
There's plenty of storage space located right under the bed.
So if you wanna put your suitcases or shoes under there,
that's very easy to do so.
The final part of my cabin that I wanna show you
is behind this door here.
Now, this takes you through to my very own toilet,
which you access by opening like so.
And then also, on the side of the wall,
I have something that I've never seen on a train before,
and that is my very own shower.
It's pretty spacious in here,
and definitely another really nice feature
just to have all of this to myself.
My cabin has also come with a few goodie bags
and an amenity kit.
So let's have a look at what's inside.
We've got this Firth of Forth little bag here,
and we have a Caledonian Sleeper hand and body wash.
We have a conditioning shampoo,
hand and body lotion, and some pillow spray.
In the Caledonian Sleeper little goodie bags, let's see,
we have a bottle of water,
an exclusive collection of toiletries
proudly made in Scotland.
And finally, we also have a little sleep kit,
which contains earplugs, eye mask and soap.
Let's check things out.
Eye mask.
Pretty blackout, pretty effective, that's good.
Little bar of soap
so I can wash my hands and face before bed.
And some earplugs just in case the sound
of the train going down the rails that wakes me up.
But I think it's quite a relaxing noise,
so I don't mind that at all.
- There were a few bits and pieces on the seat,
so let's see what they've given me.
Here there is a little amenity kit.
Enjoy the most civilized way to travel
between London and Scotland.
Sleep peacefully as the moonlit world slides by
and wake up refreshed, relaxed, and ready to go.
Let's hope that's true.
Earplugs.
Looks solid.
I like it when you can squeeze an earplug
and it stays squeezed.
And eye mask.
It works.
Now, I can't resist but to find out
if my seat is the best seat.
Walking through the cabin,
two C and B look actually very good.
I think they might be a sort of accessible seats.
But they have unlimited leg room there.
And on the other side, one A,
you know that we loved 1A at The Point Guy.
This also is a nice single seat with a fixed table there.
The rest of the seats all seem pretty similar.
So for people in the seats,
there's a public bathroom to use,
which I'm gonna check out right now.
And it's just at the end of the carriage.
Kind of traditional-train-looking sliding electric door.
It's very spacious actually.
I'm gonna shut the door now.
It's very spacious, but not much going on in here.
Nothing fancy in here, unfortunately.
Okay, so what we need to do to order food
is press the call bell.
Now I just need to find the call bell.
It's here,
and I guess this means this is the call bell challenge.
(upbeat music)
- [Hostess] Good evening, Veeca Speaking,
how can I help you?
- Hey, could I order room service please?
- [Veeca] Yeah sure, what can I get for you?
- Please can I get an Edinburgh gin and tonic,
along with the Ham Hock snack box?
- [Veeca] Anything else with that?
- [Nicky] No, that's perfect, thanks.
- [Veeca] All right.
- [Nicky] Thank you.
- [Veeca] Thank you.
- Hi.
- Hi, wow, that was quick. - How are you?
This is Highlander Classic Seated Coach Menu.
There's snacks like olives, nuts,
there's sandwiches and wraps, a cheese selection,
and in the supper menu there's a snack box.
So I think I should check out the snack box,
'cause it looks the most substantial thing.
There's no hot food,
at least not tonight there isn't,
and I think I need something to drink.
It's gotta be Iron Brew,
sugar-free though, or I'll never sleep.
I'll go for the Ham Hock snack box option,
and I'll do a sugar-free Iron Brew.
- No worries.
Would you like some ice with that?
- Yeah, please.
- Okay, anything else with that?
- That's it.
- Cool. - Thanks so much.
That was easy.
Let's see how quick it is.
I mean, I pressed the call bell
and they were here in like seconds.
I don't think there's many people to serve,
but this is super easy.
Shame there's no hot food though.
- So I've just ordered room service,
which is something that I've definitely never done
on a train before.
It's about 10:30 right now.
I wanna have a little snack and a drink before bed.
But for now I'm just gonna kick back, relax
and wait for my food to arrive.
(rousing music)
Hey.
Hey there. - Hello.
16.30 please.
- Perfect.
- Thank you. - Thanks you very much.
- Hey.
- Wow, again.
Well, that took about three seconds.
So my supper box and my Iron Brew sugar-free
is 10 pound 25.
Do you do contactless?
- [Hostess] Yes we do.
- Easy peasy.
- Thank you very much.
- You're welcome. - That's all then for you?
- Thanks so much, cheers. - Thank you.
- Well, the food came super quick, which is amazing.
Iron Brew sugar-free.
A glass with ice.
Compostable wooden cutlery.
And actually, quite a substantial snack box.
Let's dig in.
- So my dinner has arrived.
I'm just gonna pull out this tray table underneath my sink
and put it all on top of there.
I've got my Ham Hock selection box
along with my gin and tonic.
Cheers.
- As the dark Scottish hills roll by outside,
I crack open the Iron Brew.
Oh, look at that.
Look at that.
The smell is intoxicating.
I actually really like Iron Brew.
Cheers.
To Scotland, to the Caledonian Sleeper.
- This really is the life.
I've got my gin and tonic,
I've got my dinner in front of me,
sitting in my lovely double cabin on a train,
heading back to London.
It cannot get any better.
- I wasn't even that hungry when I got on board,
but this little snack box
was so delicious that I demolished the whole thing.
Oops.
Dinner is done and my time has come
for my feet to be sealed.
It's time to try and sleep.
Now, what I think I'm gonna do is
I'm gonna recline this seat, and because I'm lucky enough
to have another seat next to me,
I'm gonna recline this seat
and I'm gonna make what they call
a poor man's business class.
So I'm gonna lay out on here.
So, shoes off I think.
Earplugs in.
I can't really hear anything.
My lovely Caledonian Sleeper eye mask will be going on.
That's me for the night.
Good night, guys.
It's 10:30.
Wish me luck.
- So we're coming towards the end of the day
and I have been super impressed with my experience so far.
The food came really quickly
and was the perfect snack before bed,
along this little gin and tonic.
It's been a very, very comfortable experience
and now there's only one thing left to do,
and that is to get into some pajamas.
As you can see, I'm now tucked up in bed
and there is something about the train
rocking back and forth as we moved back down to London
that just feels very relaxing.
The pillows are really soft.
The bedding's really soft.
I've got a huge amount of space for one person.
So I feel like I'm gonna have a very good sleep tonight.
With that being said, there's a new one thing you say,
and that is good night.
Shh.
Good morning.
As you can see there,
the sunrise has started to peak through my window.
The time is around 6:15 a.m. here.
I had a really restful sort of five, six hours of sleep.
The cabin was a little bit Rocky at times,
but I got used to it.
The bed was really, really comfortable.
So all in all, a really good sleep,
I got breakfast on the way,
so I feel like it's about time
that I should test out my shower behind me.
So, let me take this off
and I'll see you in a bit.
So as you can see, fresh out the shower.
Not the warmest or most powerful shower I've ever had,
but it's still a very unique feature to have
on a train cabin, and a very nice way to start the day.
I wonder how Nicky's morning's going.
- Good morning.
It's 25 to eight.
We're somewhere near Wembley, nearly in London.
My glasses are fogging up.
My eyes are very tired.
It hasn't been too awful.
It's not been the worst night of my life.
It's definitely not been the best.
Do I wish I was in a bed?
Definitely.
Did I survive?
Absolutely.
- Good morning. - Good morning.
- How are you this morning?
- Yeah, I'm good, thank you.
How are you? - Your bacon rolls.
- Thank you.
- You have tea and coffee there.
- Amazing. - Okay.
- I've just been delivered this bacon roll for breakfast,
along with a nice hot coffee to start my day.
Probably got about half an hour left
on the journey back towards London.
I'm just gonna sit back, relax, finish this,
enjoy the view out the window.
What a great way to start the day.
I think the thing that's really stood out to me
about this whole experience
is just how much privacy I've had.
Unlike an airline where you've got passengers
coming up and down, even in premium cabins,
this has been my entire space to myself the whole time.
It's felt like my own personal bedroom.
People have only really come by
when I've ordered food or room service,
so the whole thing has felt incredibly private
and really relaxing.
- [Conductor] Thank you for coming to Aberdeen.
- Thank you for having me.
That's it.
Goodbye carriage, I'll miss you.
- See you later.
Thank you very much.
So there you have it,
now departing the Caledonian Sleeper,
back in London, Euston after an amazing experience.
- I just pointed somebody
who looks a lot better rested than me.
There he is, Mr. Spencer.
- Hello, how you doing?
- I'm all right. How was that?
- Yeah, very good.
A very spacious, comfortable, unique travel experience.
Loved every second of it.
- I don't know how comfortable or unique mine was.
But I slept a bit, I feel all right,
and we came a very long way
and it wasn't that uncomfortable.
It sounded like you had the better option.
- Having a double bed that's bigger
than anything I've seen on the airline before,
total privacy, very relaxing.
I had great food as well.
The whole thing was a joy from start to finish.
- Well, on that note,
that is the Caledonian Sleeper train, in two classes, done.
(upbeat music)