🇳🇱 NETHERLANDS
Amsterdam
Canal boats, bike rides and pancakes, with a direct train from London.
City break✈️ 1h3 to 4 nights£££
BEST TIMEAPR–AUG
🚆 HOLIDAY TYPE
Train holidays
Big windows, mountain passes and nobody stuck at the wheel. Here's where to go for a holiday by train, how long you'll need and when to go.
Train holidays: 18 guides
🇷🇸 SERBIA
Belgrade to Bar railway
A spectacular and very cheap train ride from Serbia's capital to Montenegro's Adriatic coast, through more than 250 tunnels and over the soaring Mala Rijeka viaduct.
By train✈️ 3h7 to 10 nights£
BEST TIMEMAY–JUN, SEP–OCT
🇳🇴 NORWAY
Bergen Railway
Norway's great mountain railway runs between Oslo and Bergen in about seven hours, climbing over the snowy Hardangervidda plateau to the highest station on the line at Finse.
By train✈️ 2h4 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJAN–MAR, JUN–AUG
🇨🇭 SWITZERLAND
Bernina Express
A red panoramic train that climbs over the Bernina Pass and drops past glaciers to Tirano in Italy, on a UNESCO-listed line through the Swiss Alps.
By train✈️ 2h2 to 4 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇺🇸 UNITED STATES
California Zephyr
Amtrak's long-distance train from Chicago to San Francisco Bay crosses the prairies, the Rocky Mountains, Utah's desert canyons and the Sierra Nevada in two nights.
By train✈️ 11h2 to 7 nights££
BEST TIMEMAY–SEP
🇮🇹 ITALY
Cinque Terre
Five colourful fishing villages clinging to cliffs on the Italian Riviera, linked by a little coastal train, hiking paths and boats.
By train✈️ 2h3 to 5 nights££
BEST TIMEMAY–JUN, SEP
🇮🇳 INDIA
Darjeeling
A hill town of tea gardens and Himalayan views in north-east India, reached by a tiny steam-hauled toy train that zigzags up from the plains.
By train✈️ 11h3 to 5 nights£
BEST TIMEMAR–APR, OCT–NOV
🇵🇹 PORTUGAL
Douro Valley
Terraced vineyards and port wine estates line a winding river in northern Portugal, and the Douro railway follows the water almost all the way from Porto.
By train✈️ 3h3 to 5 nights££
BEST TIMEMAY–JUN, SEP–OCT
🇳🇴 NORWAY
Flåm Railway
One of the world's steepest standard-gauge railways, dropping from the mountains at Myrdal past waterfalls to the fjord village of Flåm, on the classic Norway in a Nutshell route.
By train✈️ 2h2 to 4 nights£££
BEST TIMEMAY–AUG
🇨🇭 SWITZERLAND
Glacier Express
A slow, panoramic train across the Swiss Alps from Zermatt to St Moritz, over the Oberalp Pass, through the Rhine Gorge and across hundreds of bridges.
By train✈️ 2h4 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇨🇭 SWITZERLAND
GoldenPass Express
A scenic train from Montreux on Lake Geneva through the chalet country of Gstaad to Interlaken, then over the Brünig Pass to Lucerne.
By train✈️ 2h4 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEMAY–SEP
🇩🇪 GERMANY
Harz steam railway
Narrow-gauge steam trains puff up through the forests of Germany's Harz mountains to the summit of the Brocken, from half-timbered towns full of fairy-tale castles and witches' legends.
By train✈️ 2h3 to 5 nights£
BEST TIMEMAY–JUN, SEP–OCT, DEC–FEB
🇨🇭 SWITZERLAND
Interlaken
Mountain trains, glacier views and turquoise lakes in the heart of the Swiss Alps.
Nature & hiking✈️ 2h5 to 7 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇯🇵 JAPAN
Japan by bullet train
A rail journey along Japan's classic route from Tokyo past Mount Fuji to Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima, on shinkansen trains that run at up to 300 km/h and leave to the minute.
By train✈️ 13h10 to 14 nights£££
BEST TIMEMAR–MAY, OCT–NOV
🇱🇰 SRI LANKA
Kandy to Ella train
One of the world's most beautiful train rides climbs through Sri Lanka's misty hill country, past tea estates, waterfalls and the famous Nine Arch Bridge.
By train✈️ 12h7 to 14 nights£
BEST TIMEJAN–MAR
🇫🇷 FRANCE
Paris
Eiffel Tower picnics, carousels and Disneyland down the line, all a train ride from London.
City break✈️ 1h3 to 5 nights£££
BEST TIMEAPR–JUN, SEP
🇨🇦 CANADA
Rocky Mountaineer
A luxury daylight train from Vancouver through canyons and over the Rocky Mountains to Banff or Jasper, with a night in a hotel on the way.
By train✈️ 10h7 to 12 nights£££
BEST TIMEJUN–SEP
🇨🇦 CANADA
The Canadian
VIA Rail's long-distance train from Toronto to Vancouver crosses forests, lakes, prairies and the Rockies in four nights, with glass-domed cars for watching the scenery roll by.
By train✈️ 10h4 to 10 nights£££
BEST TIMEMAY–SEP
When to go
Where's at its best in each month of the year.
- May
- Amsterdam, Belgrade to Bar railway, California Zephyr, Cinque Terre, Douro Valley, Flåm Railway, GoldenPass Express, Harz steam railway and 3 more
- June
- Amsterdam, Belgrade to Bar railway, Bergen Railway, Bernina Express, California Zephyr, Cinque Terre, Douro Valley, Flåm Railway and 7 more
- July
- Amsterdam, Bergen Railway, Bernina Express, California Zephyr, Flåm Railway, Glacier Express, GoldenPass Express, Interlaken and 2 more
- August
- Amsterdam, Bergen Railway, Bernina Express, California Zephyr, Flåm Railway, Glacier Express, GoldenPass Express, Interlaken and 2 more
- September
- Belgrade to Bar railway, Bernina Express, California Zephyr, Cinque Terre, Douro Valley, Glacier Express, GoldenPass Express, Harz steam railway and 4 more
- November
- Darjeeling, Japan by bullet train
- December
- Harz steam railway
The short list
- Swiss mountain trains: the Glacier Express, the Bernina Express and the GoldenPass Express, with Interlaken as a base.
- Short and spectacular: the Flåm Railway in Norway.
- Coast and vineyards: the Cinque Terre and the Douro Valley.
- Snow and steam: the Bergen Railway across Norway's mountains and the Harz steam railway in Germany.
- Cheap and spectacular: the Kandy to Ella train in Sri Lanka and the Belgrade to Bar railway to the Adriatic.
- Far away, worth it: Japan by bullet train, the Rocky Mountaineer in Canada and the toy train in Darjeeling.
- Nights on board: The Canadian from Toronto to Vancouver and the California Zephyr from Chicago to San Francisco.
For more, see all the train guides above, with the best months for each.
Why go by train
On a train the journey is part of the holiday. Everyone gets the view, children can move about, and you arrive in the middle of town. Many of the best routes climb through mountains or run along coasts that roads can't reach, so you see things you wouldn't from a car.
Booking tips
- Reserve seats on the famous trains. The Glacier Express, Bernina Express and Rocky Mountaineer sell out in summer.
- Look at rail passes. In Switzerland, a travel pass can cover the train fare, with just a seat reservation on top.
- Sit on the right side. Each guide says which side has the best views where it matters.
- Break the journey. Stopping a night or two along the way is more relaxing than doing it all in one day.
Train holidays: common questions
What are the most scenic train journeys?
The Glacier Express and Bernina Express in Switzerland, the Flåm Railway in Norway and the Rocky Mountaineer in Canada are among the most famous.
Are train holidays good for children?
Yes. There's room to move about and lots to look at. Short, dramatic rides like the Flåm Railway or the Cinque Terre trains suit younger children best.
How long do you need for a train holiday?
A long weekend is enough for the Cinque Terre or the Flåm Railway. Allow a week for the Swiss trains with stops, and ten days or more for the Rocky Mountaineer.
When is the best time for a train holiday?
Summer has the longest days and the most trains, but the Swiss mountain trains run all year and are lovely in the snow, as are the Bergen Railway and the Harz steam trains.
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