Belgrade to Bar is an international line run jointly by a Serbian operator and a Montenegrin one, and it has been written up in travel press for years with schedules and fares that no longer hold. This page does not repeat any of that. It sticks to what the two operators currently publish themselves: how long the journey takes, what a return ticket costs, the seat reservation you cannot skip, and what neither operator states clearly enough to print here.
Two services run the route each day in each direction, a day train and a night train with berths. Both take close to the same time, around eleven and a half hours, which tells you more about the mountains this line crosses than about either operator’s efficiency. Srbijavoz, the Serbian operator, and ZPCG, its Montenegrin counterpart, each publish their own information, and the two do not always agree with each other, or even with themselves from one page to the next.
That disagreement matters most on the one-way fare, which this page cannot state with confidence, and on exactly how many trains run on a given day, which neither operator’s site confirms cleanly. What follows is what can actually be confirmed: the return fare, the reservation fee, the two journey durations, and how to bring a car if you are driving into Montenegro rather than out of it.
The short version. The day train takes about 685 minutes (11 hours 25 minutes) and the night train about 660 minutes (11 hours), per the Montenegrin operator’s own timetable. A return ticket costs 45 EUR per person in second class or 66.60 EUR in first class; a mandatory seat reservation adds 3 EUR per person each way. Both trains offer sleeping accommodation, but the operator’s own pages give conflicting figures for the exact berth surcharge, so this page does not quote one. A single one-way fare cannot be stated with confidence: Srbijavoz’s own pages disagree with each other on it. Carrying an accompanying car from Zemun to Bar costs 40 EUR, for vehicles up to 1.55 metres high. All international fares on this line are quoted in euros, not dinars.
On this page
What a ticket actually costs
The return fare is the one figure Srbijavoz states consistently across its own pages: 45 EUR per person in second class, 66.60 EUR in first class, each already including a single 3 EUR seat reservation charge rather than one per direction.
| Ticket | Second class | First class |
|---|---|---|
| Return, per person | 45 EUR | 66.60 EUR |
| Seat reservation | 3 EUR per person, one way | 3 EUR per person, one way |
| One-way | Not established with confidence | Not established with confidence |
Srbijavoz’s own site gives two different one-way totals for this same route. One page’s fare table states a second-class ticket at 21 EUR plus a 3 EUR reservation, 24 EUR total, and a first-class ticket at 31.80 EUR plus the same reservation, 34.80 EUR total. A separate FAQ entry on the same operator’s site, answering a question about the Zemun to Bar relation specifically, states 23.80 EUR second class and 35.60 EUR first class, plus a 3 EUR reservation. Zemun is a different boarding point from Beograd centar, used for cars travelling with their owners, so the two figures might describe two different starting stations rather than a plain contradiction. Neither page says so explicitly, though, and this page cannot resolve it from what either one publishes. Confirm the one-way fare for your specific departure station at booking, through the operator’s own channels below, rather than budgeting from either number here.
Every fare on this line, one-way, return or reservation, is quoted and charged in euros rather than Serbian dinars, unlike the domestic fares covered elsewhere on this site. Srbijavoz’s own page states this explicitly for its international routes, Beograd to Bar included. Carry euros, or a card that can pay in them, rather than assuming dinars will do for an international ticket the way they would for a domestic one.
Reserving your seat
Seat reservation on this train is not optional: Srbijavoz states a 3 EUR reservation fee per person, one way, and the return fare above already folds a single instance of that charge into its total. Book the reservation at the same time as the ticket rather than assuming a quiet-looking train means you can skip it.
Choosing the day train or the night train
Both services cover essentially the same distance in essentially the same time. The difference is what time of day you spend on board, and whether you want to lie down for it.
The day train
ZPCG’s own timetable lists the day service departing Beograd centar at 09:45 and arriving in Bar at 21:10, a journey of 685 minutes, or 11 hours 25 minutes. The reverse direction, Bar to Beograd centar, is listed at 677 minutes.
The night train
The night service leaves Beograd centar at 19:54 and reaches Bar at 06:54 the next morning, 660 minutes, or 11 hours flat. Bar to Beograd centar overnight runs 658 minutes. The journey time barely differs from the day train; what changes is that Srbijavoz sells both couchette tickets and sleeping-car berths in former “Plavi voz” (Blue Train) salon carriages for this service, in addition to ordinary seating.
Berth prices are published, but not consistently. Srbijavoz’s fare pages carry three separate berth tables for this line, a couchette table (Turist, Dubl and Singl compartments), a salon-car table for the former Blue Train berths (Dubl and Singl only), and a third table of figures under a heading that does not explain how it relates to the other two. A separate FAQ entry gives yet another set of numbers for berth reservations in four-bed and six-bed compartments and in sleeping cars. None of these figures line up cleanly with each other, and nothing on the page explains whether they stack on top of the base ticket or replace it. Rather than guess at a structure the operator has not spelled out, this page tells you that berths exist on the night train and that couchette and sleeper options are sold, and leaves the exact surcharge to be confirmed when you book.
Bringing a car across the border
Srbijavoz carries accompanied cars, motorcycles and scooters on this line from Zemun, a separate boarding point from the Beograd centar passenger station used for the rest of this page, to Bar. The fee is 40 EUR per vehicle, one way, and the vehicle must not exceed 1.55 metres in height. If you are planning to load a car, check the boarding arrangements at Zemun specifically rather than at Beograd centar, since the two are different stations serving the same city, and Zemun is also where the operator’s Zemun-Bar fare figures, mentioned above, actually apply.
Nothing checked for this page sets out how far in advance a car needs to be booked, or whether space is guaranteed rather than allocated on a first-come basis. Confirm both directly with Srbijavoz if you are planning to drive the car itself onto the train rather than simply riding as a passenger.
Checking how many trains run each day
This page cannot confirm the exact number of daily departures. ZPCG’s own timetable search lists one day-train pair and one night-train pair each day between Beograd centar and Bar, and no other train numbers appear against this relation anywhere in it. That may be the complete picture, but the page carrying those figures has no visible content date, and a schedule error is exactly the kind of mistake that could leave you on a platform for a train that does not exist on your travel date. Treat the day-train-plus-night-train pattern as a starting assumption to verify, not as a confirmed timetable, and check the current service directly with either operator before you travel.
Finding out where it actually stops
Neither operator publishes a stop-by-stop list for this specific service. ZPCG names Podgorica and Bijelo Polje as points with their own departure sections on the Montenegrin side, but nothing on either operator’s own site sets out the full list of stations between Beograd centar and Bar. Travel writing about this line names several towns on the Serbian side, but none of that comes from either exploitant, so none of it is repeated here. If a specific intermediate stop matters to your trip, confirm it directly with Srbijavoz or ZPCG rather than from a third-party list.
Two operators, one line
Srbijavoz operates the Serbian side of the journey and ZPCG (Zeljeznicki prevoz Crne Gore) the Montenegrin side, and the line’s information is split between them accordingly. Srbijavoz itself already publishes under two domains, srbijavoz.rs for its main site and srbvoz.rs for timetables and ticketing, which is a naming quirk rather than a sign that either domain is unofficial. Expect the same kind of split on the Montenegrin side: ZPCG’s timetable is the more complete source for exact departure times on this route, while Srbijavoz’s own pages carry the fare tables that matter for a ticket bought from the Serbian side.
That split is also why this page reads more cautiously than the domestic guides on this site. A traveller buying a domestic ticket deals with one operator’s timetable and one operator’s fares. Here, the day and the euro figure both depend on which of two operators’ pages you happen to land on, and the two do not always cross-reference each other. Checking both before you commit to a specific train is not excessive caution on this particular line, it is the ordinary way to book it.
Booking your ticket
On the Serbian side, Srbijavoz’s call centre answers on 011 360 28 99 (also reachable as +381 11 360 28 99), by email at [email protected], through the live timetable search at w3.srbvoz.rs/redvoznje, through the e-ticket service at webapi1.srbvoz.rs/ekarta, or at any station ticket counter. On the Montenegrin side, ZPCG sells tickets for international and domestic traffic online at tickets-zpcg.me, or by phone on +382 20 441 197, with the Bar station reachable directly on +382 30 301 619.
Given the gaps above, a booking made through one of these channels directly is worth more than any figure printed on this page or anywhere else: it is the only way to get a one-way fare, a berth surcharge and a confirmed departure time for the specific date you are travelling, rather than a range of numbers pulled from pages that do not agree with each other.
Common questions
How long does the Belgrade to Bar train actually take?
About 685 minutes (11 hours 25 minutes) on the day train and about 660 minutes (11 hours) on the night train, per the Montenegrin operator’s own timetable. The two directions differ by a few minutes but not meaningfully.
How much does a one-way ticket cost?
This page cannot state a single figure with confidence: Srbijavoz’s own pages give two different one-way totals for what may or may not be the same boarding station. The return fare, by contrast, is stated consistently at 45 EUR second class or 66.60 EUR first class per person. Confirm the one-way price for your specific departure point when you book.
Do I have to reserve a seat?
Yes. Srbijavoz states a mandatory 3 EUR seat reservation fee per person, one way, on this line. It is not an optional extra the way it can be on some domestic services.
Can I book a sleeper berth on the night train?
Yes, couchette and sleeping-car berths are both sold for the night service. The exact surcharge is not established here, because Srbijavoz’s own fare pages give several different, inconsistent figures for it. Confirm the berth price directly when you book.
Can I bring my car on this train?
Yes, from Zemun rather than from Beograd centar, for 40 EUR per vehicle one way, provided it is no taller than 1.55 metres. Check the boarding arrangements at Zemun specifically if you are driving a car onto the train.
Nearby
For the two domestic rail journeys covered elsewhere on this site, see Belgrade to Novi Sad and Belgrade to Nis. Serbia travel essentials covers formalities for a trip that continues into Montenegro, and Serbia travel budget covers dinars, cards and cash more broadly. If Belgrade is where the journey starts, getting around Belgrade covers reaching Beograd centar or Zemun from wherever you are staying.