23 of the world’s most incredible train journeys

Cutting through the countryside and connecting great cities, the world’s best railway journeys offer entirely new perspectives on a destination. Train travel always delivers plenty of magic. Sometimes it’s in the cars, as you meet fellow travelers or eat and sleep to the sound of wheels rolling on the rails beneath you. Sometimes it’s outside, in the landscape the train crosses, bringing either adventure or insight into the heart of a nation.

Lonely Planet's Amazing Train Journeys highlights the world’s greatest routes. Here are 23 of our absolute favorite rail trips.

1. Tangier to Marrakesh, Morocco

Start: Tangier
End: Marrakesh
Departs: daily
Distance: 360 miles (580km)
Duration: 5 hours and 15 minutes

Nothing can fully prepare you for the magnificence of Morocco’s most evocative city, from the clamor and spectacle of the central square of Djemaa El Fna to the primary colors of the Jardin Majorelle, the peaceful Medersa Ben Youssef to the mad profusion of alleyways. There’s no doubting that a railway journey down the spine of this North African nation is a profoundly uplifting experience.

2. Bergensbanen, Norway

Start: Oslo
End: Bergen
Departs: four to six times per day
Distance: 308 miles (496km)
Duration: 6 hours and 30 minutes

This astonishing route is one of Europe’s best rail journeys – and one of the least well-known outside of Norway. It covers the spectrum of the Nordic country’s natural splendor by climbing canyons, crossing rivers, burrowing through mountainsides and traversing barren icescapes.

3. Reunification Express, Vietnam

Start: Ho Chi Minh City
End: Hanoi
Departs: daily
Distance: 1072 miles (1726km)
Duration: 2 days

This is one of Southeast Asia’s best-loved railways – and one of the most epic overnight train journeys in the world – with a route that rattles through historic cities and swooshes beside spectacular coastlines. There is no more atmospheric way to haul between Vietnam’s twin metropolises.

4. California Zephyr, USA

Start: Chicago
End: San Francisco
Departs: daily
Distance: 2438 miles (3924km)
Duration: 52 hours and 40 minutes

For soaking up the scenic grandeur of the North American continent, nothing compares with Amtrak’s California Zephyr, one of the best train journeys in the USA. The 3-day ride travels across prairies, deserts, the Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada on its way from the Midwest to the West Coast.

5. Lake Titicaca Train, Peru

Start: Puno
End: Cuzco
Departs: three times per week
Distance: 241 miles (388km)
Duration: 10 hours

Traversing the altiplano, from the shores of Lake Titicaca to the bustling heart of the ancient Incan empire, this railway from Puno to Cuzco cuts a ponderous but picturesque path through the snow-dusted peaks and voluptuous valleys of the Andes and across Peru's epic plains, passing by hardy bowler-hatted llama farmers and through remote towns and villages.

6. Beijing-to-Lhasa Express, China

Start: Beijing
End: Lhasa
Departs: daily
Distance: 2330 miles (3750km)
Duration: 40 hours

From the futuristic architecture and imperial wonders of Beijing, the Z21 train transports its passengers from the neon lights of urban China across the Tibetan plateau, where it glides past grazing yaks, fluttering prayer flags, snow-capped mountains and boundless blue skies. At your destination, magenta-robed monks await.

7. TranzAlpine, New Zealand

Start: Christchurch
End: Greymouth
Departs: daily
Distance: 139 miles (223km)
Duration: 4 hours and 30 minutes

At less than 5 hours, this journey is surely one of the world’s finest and most scenic short train rides. Board the TranzAlpine in Christchurch to speed along the Canterbury Plains and climb quickly through the snow-capped mountains of New Zealand's Southern Alps. Before it is over, you'll descend through a thrilling tunnel to emerge among the lakes, streams and rainforests of the South Island’s West Coast.

8. Tazara Railway, Tanzania and Zambia

Start: Dar es Salaam
End: Kapiri Mposhi
Departs: twice a week
Distance: 1160 miles (1860km)
Duration: 46 hours

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Few trains in the world offer the chance – and it is a chance rather than a guarantee – of spotting big game from your seat. Tazara (the Tanzania and Zambia Railway Authority) does just that. The highlight, though, is spending 2 days watching everyday life unfold outside the window and witnessing the clamor and chaos when the train pulls to a halt – scheduled or unscheduled.

9. Sunset Limited, USA

Start: New Orleans
End: Los Angeles
Departs: three times per week
Distance: 1995 miles (3211km)
Duration: 2 days

The ultimate American railroad route: east to west, clear through from the bars of New Orleans to the breakers of the Pacific Ocean. If you’ve always dreamed of crossing the USA but don’t relish the prospect of 2 weeks cooped up in a car, then a trip on the Sunset Limited is the answer. Sit back and let the landscapes buzz by: from Louisiana’s bayous, past the high-rises of Houston, across the deserts of Texas and Arizona, over the mountains all the way to LA’s golden beaches. Saddle up, partner: it’s gonna be quite a ride.

10. Caledonian Sleeper, UK

Start: London (Euston)
End: Fort William
Departs: daily
Distance: 509 miles (819km)
Duration: 13 hours and 30 minutes

Segueing from crowded central London to the crisp air and soaring vistas of the Scottish Highlands via one overnight train journey epitomizes the romance of rail travel. Enjoy the buffet-car banter, fall asleep to the lull of the rails' rhythm, then wake up to bedside views of towering granite peaks.

11. Mombasa to Nairobi, Kenya

Start: Mombasa
Ends: Nairobi
Departs: daily
Distance: 360 miles (579km)
Duration: 5 hours and 10 minutes

The Nairobi–Mombasa railway route is among Africa’s most legendary train rides: it even helped foster the modern concept of safari. The rickety old railway has undergone a rebuild in recent years, with smart new stations and a new track laid across the Kenyan savannah. What hasn’t changed is the spellbinding journey, with trains departing from Mombasa and passing in the shadow of Kilimanjaro to the cusp of the Great Rift Valley.

12. Rocky Mountaineer, Canada

Start: Vancouver
End: Banff
Departs: twice a week
Distance: 594 miles (957km)
Duration: 37 hours

Clattering over the wild Canadian Rockies along a pioneering 19th-century track, this train journey is all at once a geological field trip, sightseeing adventure and wildlife safari. It promises cinematic views of Canada’s quintessential mountain landscapes, plus a bevy of engineering marvels, from dizzying bridges to logic-defying tunnels. And with luck, you might even spy a bald eagle, moose or grizzly bear.

13. Alexandria to Aswan, Egypt

Start: Alexandria
End: Aswan
Departs: daily
Distance: 670 miles (1100km)
Duration: 16 hours

A ride from Alexandria to Aswan means you will travel the length of Egypt's rail network – and also undertake an odyssey in the company of the great Nile River, with chances to disembark and explore the relics of empires along its banks. Keep in mind that, for all their pluses, Egyptian trains are not always known for punctuality.

14. Serra Verde Express, Brazil

Start: Curitiba
End: Morretes
Departs: daily
Distance: 42 miles (68km)
Duration: 3 hours and 30 minutes

One of Brazil’s most spectacular train journeys, the Serra Verde Express starts in the architecturally bold city of Curitiba and winds its way through dramatic mountain passes covered with tropical rainforest before it drops you in Morretes, in the lush state of Paraná. The half-day trip takes in canyons, jagged mountain peaks and verdant lowlands, and the slow-going locomotive allows plenty of opportunities to photograph the cinematic backdrop while traversing some 30 bridges and chugging through 14 tunnels. Aside from the captivating scenery, the journey provides a fascinating glimpse into the past as it trundles through tiny stations dating back to the late 1800s.

15. Darjeeling Toy Train, India

Start: New Jalpaiguri
End: Darjeeling
Departs: daily
Distance: 55 miles (88.5km)
Duration: 7–8 hours

India’s narrow-gauge steam railways are the stuff of legend, and the bright blue Darjeeling Toy Train is the nation’s lead engine. The ride from the Bengal plains to Darjeeling travels past emerald green tea estates and precariously balanced, tin-roofed townships, while clouds tumble down the looming massif of Mt Khangchendzonga. Steam engines are now used for only a small section of the route, yet this iconic mountain journey still serves up a sizable slice of history.

16. Hokkaidō shinkansen, Japan

Start: Tokyo
End: Hakodate
Departs: daily
Distance: 512 miles (824km)
Duration: 4 hours

The Hokkaidō shinkansen, one of Japan’s famed bullet trains, takes you from Tokyo to Hakodate, in the southern port of Hokkaidō. Along the way, it zooms past picturesque scenes of rural Japan, through mountains and under the sea. The route is only part of it, though: riding the shinkansen – with its food trolleys and staff who bow upon entering and exiting the train car – is a classic Japanese experience.

17. Colombo to Badulla, Sri Lanka

Start: Colombo
End: Badulla
Departs: daily
Distance: 181 miles (292km)
Duration: 9–10 hours

One of many unforgettable things in Sri Lanka is the variety and intensity of the color green throughout the year. And for train aficionados, there is no better way to appreciate the country’s full, verdant spectrum than an all-day rail journey from Colombo’s urban gardens at sea level to tea estates in the Hill Country, via brain-spinning sensory doses of jungle and forest, paddy fields and palm trees, mountains and valleys, national parks and residential areas. Expect to move slowly – and enjoy one of the most scenic train trips in the world.

18. Glacier Express, Switzerland

Start: St Moritz
End: Zermatt
Departs: daily (in season)
Distance: 180 miles (290km)
Duration: 8 hours

Switzerland is a nation of rail fanatics. And if the Swiss could pick one definitive ride, the honor would surely go to the Glacier Express. This 8-hour journey from ritzy St Moritz to Matterhorn-topped Zermatt unzips the lovely Alpine terrain in the country’s south, corkscrewing up to wind-battered mountain passes, teetering across 291 bridges and rumbling through 91 tunnels. It intentionally moves at a snail’s pace so you can take in those out-of-this-world views of meadows, forests, falls and mountains – all through panoramic windows.

19. Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, France, Switzerland and Italy

Start: Paris
End: Venice
Departs: one to six times per month
Distance: 1300 miles (2090km)
Duration: 2 days

The prospect of traveling from Paris to Venice cocooned in the luxury of twinkly dining cars with fine china and silver cutlery is surely one that endures in the hearts of all rail enthusiasts. While the Orient Express’ various other 20th-century routes are long gone, the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express offers a tantalizing sample of the original on a trip that is surely the best-ever journey back in time. 

20. Nova Gorica to Jesenice, Slovenia

Start: Nova Gorica
End: Jesenice
Departs: daily
Distance: 55 miles (89km)
Duration: 2 hours

Here is a near-perfect railway adventure that many travelers have never heard of. The Bohinj Railway connects two places whose significance might be lost to modern folks. An unassuming regional train rattling out of the Italy–Slovenia border doesn’t even hint at what’s to come. The journey is a spectacular tour of Slovenia’s upland highlights. From Nova Gorica, climb through mountain towns and villages in the Soča Valley and pass superb Alpine scenery close to Lake Bohinj on your way to world-famous Lake Bled and then Jesenice.

21. The Ghan, Australia

Start: Adelaide
End: Darwin
Departs: twice per week
Distance: 1851 miles (2979km)
Duration: 54 hours

Cutting vertically across the outback heart of Australia, straight through the desolate deserts of the Red Centre, the Ghan is one of the southern hemisphere’s most unforgettable train journeys. This cross-country train service provides a vital link between Australia’s north and south coasts, traveling north across the country from well-to-do, orderly Adelaide to the tropical, croc-filled creeks of Darwin. Luxurious and legendary, it’s Australia’s elegant version of the Orient Express.

22. Bernina Express, Switzerland and Italy

Start: Chur
End: Tirano
Departs: daily
Distance: 96 miles (156km)
Duration: 4 hours and 30 minutes

We can wax lyrical about the glacier-capped mountains, waterfall-draped ravines, jewel-colored lakes and endless spruce forests glimpsed through panoramic windows on Switzerland’s Bernina Express – but seeing is believing. Rolling from Chur in Graubünden to Tirano in northern Italy, this narrow-gauge train often tops polls of the world’s most beautiful rail journeys. The line has even been named a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and with good reason.

23. Cannes to Menton, France

Start: Cannes
End: Menton
Departs: daily
Distance: 34 miles (55km)
Duration: 1 hour and 20 minutes

It’s the stuff that travel dreams are made of – a slow train skirting the French Mediterranean coast, through towns whose very names resonate with glamour: Cannes, Antibes, Monaco. On one side of the tracks lies that sparkling sea; on the other, dramatic cliffs interspersed with the gorgeous coastal towns of the Côte d'Azur. You can make a long day of this short trip, hopping on and off to explore a street market, linger at an outdoor terrace, take a breath of history and get a taste of luxury.