The new direct daytime route, via Strasbourg, sweeps through enchanting landscapes from vineyards to forests. But some say it needs to be quicker still if the train is to be more attractive than flying

Until last week, my most recent trip from Paris to Berlin on a direct daytime train was way back in early 2015 with RZD Russian Railways. The train had a Polish restaurant car with a quirky menu featuring caviar, kangaroo steak and South African wines. The journey between the two capital cities was scheduled to take 13 hours, and despite dawdling along the way, we arrived in Berlin bang on time. It was a day with breakfast by the Seine, lunch (without caviar) on the train as we crossed the Rhine and nightcaps by the Spree in Berlin.

More recently, the only direct service between Paris and Berlin has been a thrice-weekly overnight train. Branded as a Nightjet, there is nothing jet-like about it. It takes even longer than the Russian daytime train did 10 years ago. But as of last week, there is now a faster direct option. Germany’s national rail operator Deutsche Bahn and its French counterpart SNCF have just launched a much faster direct daytime Paris to Berlin train.