Kharkiv to Istanbul by train
Travel from Kharkiv (Ukraine) to Istanbul (Turkey) by train (1147km): schedule and information to the train connection. Compare fares and buy your ticket.
To travel by train from Kharkiv in Ukraine to Istanbul in Turkey, the main route leads via Moldova, Romania and Bulgaria. An nice option is the ferry via the Black Sea. Please read the following information and blog posts.
There are two main routes. Compare them and decide which one feeds your needs best.
- 1Kharkiv (Ukraine) - Chisinau (Moldova) - Bucharest (Romania) - Istanbul (Turkey)
- 2Kharkiv (Ukraine) - Odesa (Ukraine) - Chornomorsk (Ukraine) - Istanbul (Turkey)
1147 km
How to use the following information: we show you the best routes and where to buy tickets. On longer routes you may need more than one ticket. Book your tickets step by step as explained. If you have questions about the route from Kharkiv to Istanbul, please ask in our forum. Of course, sometimes there are as well other travel routes possible.
The following links could be interesting for you.
train connections : popular connections travelled by other users
Istanbul - Kharkiv / Kyiv - Ankara / Kyiv - Izmir / Dnipro - Istanbul / Dnipro - Ankara / Kharkiv - Ankara / Lviv - Istanbul / Lviv - Ankara / Lviv - Izmir1 Kharkiv (Ukraine) - Chisinau (Moldova) - Bucharest (Romania) - Istanbul (Turkey)
The route consist of more than one step. You have to buy several train tickets.
1a Travelling from Kharkiv (Ukraine) to Chisinau (Moldova)
Travel from Ukraine to Moldova by direct train. There exist train connections from Kiev and Odessa to Chisinau.
From Kiev to Chisinau the journey time is 13 hours. The ticket price starts from 30 EUR in a couchette and from 50 EUR in a sleeper-wagon. There are three train connections daily.
From Odessa to Chisinau the journey time is four hours. The ticket price starts from 8 EUR. This train connection usually runs on weekends.
Find the exact train schedules and buy your tickets via the given booking links.
Where to buy a ticket from Kharkiv to Chisinau?
Check times&prices 
Buy the train ticket at a railway station. Note: in some countries you have to pay a service fee at the ticket counter. The ticket can be purchased at a station in the country of departure, also sometimes in other countries.
The following links could be interesting for you.
train company:
UZ Укрзалізниця / CFM Calea Ferată din Moldova
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Chisinau - Kharkiv / Kyiv - Chisinau / Dnipro - Chisinau / Lviv - Chisinau / Odesa - Chisinau / Donetsk - Chisinau
search for train schedules here: Online timetable information, on which you can find relevant, up-to-date connections.
rail.cc Deutsche Bahn / Ukraine Railways
1b Travelling from Chisinau (Moldova) to Bucharest (Romania)
Travel from Moldova to Romania by overnight train on the route from Chisinau to Bucharest. The journey time is 13 hours. The train ticket price starts from 25 EUR. The train route runs via Ungheni (Moldova) and Iași (Romania).
The overnight train Chisinau to Bucharest offers the following service categories:
- 2nd class: 4-berth compartments. The ticket price 135 RON (28 EUR).
- 1st class: 2-berth compartments. The ticket price 290 RON (60 EUR).
The departure time in Chisinau is 17:00. The arrival time in Bucharest is 06:00.
Additionally there are local trains from Ungheni (Moldova) across the border to Iași (Romania). Regular train connections are available from Chisinau to to Ungheni.
Find the exact train schedules and buy your ticket via the given booking links.
Where to buy a ticket from Chisinau to Bucharest?
The following links could be interesting for you.
night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
105/401 Chisinau - Bucharest
train company:
CFR Căile Ferate Române / CFM Calea Ferată din Moldova
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Bucharest - Chisinau
search for train schedules here: Online timetable information, on which you can find relevant, up-to-date connections.
rail.cc Deutsche Bahn
1c Travelling from Bucharest (Romania) to Istanbul (Turkey)
Travel from Bucharest to Istanbul by direct overnight train Bosphorus Express. This daily overnight train has a journey time of 18:30 hours. Train tickets start from 52 EUR.
At off-season (October to May) you have to use connection trains to get to Dimitrovgrad (Bulgaria) where you can enter the overnight train. Travel from Bucharest via Ruse and Gorna Oryahovitsa to Dimitrovgrad (Bulgaria) where the night train departs at 22:40. You have enough time to change trains at each of these railway station.
The direct overnight train Bucharest to Istanbul departs at "Bucharest Gara de Nord" railway station at 11:00. The arrival time in Istanbul Halkali railway station is at 05:20 in the morning. After midnight you have to leave the train at the Turkish border with all your luggage and put your luggage through an X-ray machine.
The ticket price is 38 EUR plus a supplement of 14 EUR for a berth in a 4 person compartment. Buy the ticket at the railway station in Bucharest or on the website of Romania railways CFR. Select "Halkali" as destination.
The arrival station Istanbul Halkali is located 25 kilometres outside of the historic city centre. Get by Marmaray suburban train directly to Istanbul Sirkeci railway station (the former historic railway station) and on to "Söğütlüçeşme", the departure station for the high-speed-trains in direction of Ankara. These suburban trains run every 15 minutes with a ticket fare of less than 2 EUR. The journey time from the Istanbul Halkali station to the historic city centre is 35 minutes.
Where to buy a ticket from Bucharest to Istanbul?
The following links could be interesting for you.
night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
Bosfor Bucharest - Istanbul / Bosfor Istanbul - Bucharest
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Istanbul - Bucharest
2 Kharkiv (Ukraine) - Odesa (Ukraine) - Chornomorsk (Ukraine) - Istanbul (Turkey)
The route consist of more than one step. You have to buy several train tickets.
2a Travelling from Kharkiv (Ukraine) to Odesa (Ukraine)
To travel in Ukraine, you can easily buy train tickets for most long-distance trains online. Many tickets are available as e-tickets however some tickets have to be collected from a ticket office at a railway station. You can of course also buy all tickets locally at a station.
Most long-distance trains are overnight trains with different types of accommodation. On some routes between major cities there are also long-distance train which run during the day with seats only.
Where to buy a ticket from Kharkiv to Odesa?
The following links could be interesting for you.
train types: Train types you are likely to travel with.
поїзд (UZ)
night train: Night trains that might be suitable for this trip.
D 67 Kyiv - Warsaw / D 771/800 Kyiv - Bratislava / D 771/442 Kyiv - Prague / IC 81/33 Kyiv - Budapest / 117/381 Kyiv - Bucharest
train company:
UZ Укрзалізниця
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Odesa - Kharkiv / Kyiv - Lviv / Kyiv - Dnipro / Kyiv - Odesa / Kyiv - Kharkiv / Kyiv - Donetsk / Lviv - Odesa / Lviv - Kharkiv
search for train schedules here: Online timetable information, on which you can find relevant, up-to-date connections.
rail.cc Deutsche Bahn / Ukraine Railways
2b Travelling from Odesa (Ukraine) to Chornomorsk (Ukraine)
To get from the railway station of Odessa to the port of Chornomorsk, take a taxi, mini-bus or bus. It is a journey of about 20 kilometres.
Where to buy a ticket from Odesa to Chornomorsk?
Buy your ticket at the bus station or at the website of the bus company.
The following links could be interesting for you.
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Chornomorsk - Odesa
2c Travelling from Chornomorsk (Ukraine) to Istanbul (Turkey)
To travel from Ukraine to Turkey, first go by train to Odessa (Ukraine). Take a taxi, mini-bus or bus to the Port of Chornomorsk, 20 kilometres in the south of Odessa. From Chornomorsk continue by ferry to Istanbul. The journey time is about 30 hours. Ticket price starts from USD 80. Arrival in Istanbul is at Haydarpaşa ferry and rail terminal.
Where to buy a ticket from Chornomorsk to Istanbul?
The following links could be interesting for you.
ferry: Ferry connections that might be helpful.
Chornomorsk - Istanbul / Istanbul - Chornomorsk
train company:
TCDD Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Devlet Demiryolları / UZ Укрзалізниця / UKRF СК Укрферрі
train connections: popular connections travelled by other users
Istanbul - Chornomorsk / Kyiv - Istanbul / Kyiv - Ankara / Kyiv - Izmir / Kyiv - Antakya / Kyiv - Trabzon / Odesa - Istanbul / Odesa - Ankara / Lviv - Istanbul / Lviv - Ankara
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Do you have questions about the connection between Kharkiv and Istanbul? Does something not work as it should? Just ask in our forum and get competent answers from our rail travel experts.
