The world’s most interesting train trips

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Nowadays, train rides are merely a way to travel from one place to another, and gone are the days of glamorous trains like the Orient Express, where ladies in fur coats and wealthy gentlemen drank tea and ate caviar. But that doesn’t mean that train rides can’t be just as scenic as in the past.

Even if you aren’t in the mood to spend two weeks on a train (no matter how luxurious it is), you can still take advantage of some picturesque train trips when journeying from one city to another.

Glacier Express, St. Moritz to Zermatt

If you want to see the Swiss Alps in all their glory without having to  pay attention to the road, take a train instead of driving. The Glacier Express will transport you from the the mountain resort of St. Moritz to the picturesque ski resort town of Zermatt.

While the train is not an express train in the traditional sense of the word (it’s actually the slowest express train in the world), it has the perfect speed for sightseeing. You will pass over the impressive Landwasser Viaduct, the Rhine Gorge and the Oberalp Pass, the highest point of the journey.

Trans-Mongolian Railway, Ulan-Ude to Jining

Mongolia is a wild and beautiful country that deserves to be visited properly and thoroughly, but if you want a quick introduction to the Mongolian landscape, the Trans-Mongolian line if the way to do it.

The trans-Mongolian railway is actually a section of the famous Trans-Siberian line. This line takes you from the Buryatian city of Ulan-Ude (the largest city in Eastern Siberia), to Jining in China, with a stop in the Mongolian capital of Ulan Bator.

Rovos Rail, Capetown to Cairo

Rovos Rail is a privately owned South African railway company which runs cruise trains on various routes in Africa. Since these are cruise trains, the trip will be more expensive than your regular train ride, but once you see the beautiful refurbished classic trains, you’ll understand why. These trips capture perfectly the charm of the train journeys of the past.

Capetown to Cairo is the longest route, and one of the most scenic as well. Observing the wildlife from the comfort of a luxury train might sound a bit snobbish, but it’s definitely worth a try, if you’ve got money to spare.

Amtrak train from Chicago to San Francisco

Amtrak does not necessarily conjure up images of fun train rides, but it all depends on where you’re going. The trip from Chicago to San Francisco is certainly long,  seeing as the distance between the two cities is almost 2000 miles, but you’ll be crossing the Rocky Mountains and Sierra Nevada, and that alone is worth the effort.

This is the railway version of a cross-American roadtrip, with the added advantage that sleeping in an empty carriage can be more comfortable than the back seat of a car.

Indian Pacific, Perth to Sydney

The name of this railway line says it all: you will cross an entire continent, from one ocean to another. The trip takes three nights and covers 2700 miles, and offers the opportunity to see the Blue Mountains and the arid plains of the Nullarbor.

There’s also the option of off-train sightseeing tours during scheduled stops at Adelaide, Broken Hill and Kalgoorlie. The train even offers economy class seats, if think you can brave three days sitting up.

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Comments on The world’s most interesting train trips

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Orient Express Trips wrote on September 20, 2010:

You are absolutely right that the above train trips are the world’s most interesting train trips but the experience of Orient Express Trip is unforgettable and
the most interesting for me.

TrainLover wrote on November 19, 2010:

The trains above there are really wonderful! especially the glacier express! about the Orient Express, I saw it passing through my town’s station, serdang yesterday, on 18th of November. That was a really nice and luxury train… realy love them!

 

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