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The Trans Asya Treni (Trans-Asia
Train, not an express) departs Istanbul (Haydarpasa) at
22:55 (10:55 pm) on Wednesday (only),
and arrives at Tatvan Iskelesi (Tatvan
Dock) at 11:32 am on Friday.
In principle, you cross Lake
Van on a ferry, arriving
in the city of Van at
18:25 (6:25 pm) on Friday, and
at Kapiköy on
the Iranian border at 20:55 (8:55
pm). But you may find yourself
taking a bus or minibus around
the lake instead, as the ferry
is not reliable.
In principle, you have about 7 hours
to make this 150-km (93-mile) trip,
which should only take between 2 and
3 hours by minibus, but the
train may be late arriving
in Tatvan. Still, you should have enough
time to get to Van for the departure
of the onward train.
The train leaves the Turkish border
station for Iran at 22:30 (10:30 pm),
and arrives in Teheran at
18:45 (6:45 pm) the next day (Saturday).
The entire journey (if the train is
on time) takes 66 hours and 20 minutes,
or nearly three days.
The Trans Asya hauls couchette
cars. The one-way
fare from Istanbul to
Teheran is CHF61.60 (Swiss
francs), plus CHF 15.50 for the
couchette, if you want it.
Please read this
safety notice about overnight
travel.
The round-trip/return fare is
twice the one-way fare.
The train begins its return
journey from Teheran on Thursday at
20:15 (8:15 pm), arriving in Istanbul
on Sunday at 15:45 (3:45 pm).
On other days of the week, the Trans
Asya's place is taken (more or less)
by the Vangölü/Güney
Ekspresi, but that train
does not go to Iran.
Turkish
State Railways Route Map
Types
of Turkish Trains
How & Where
to Buy Train Tickets
Train
Fare Discounts
Money-Saving
Monthly Passes
Pullman
Car
Couchette
Car
Sleeping
Car
How
to Decipher the TCDD Website
Train
Travel
Transportation
Turkey
Travel Planner Homepage
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