Okay, so this might not be the most wild of adventures, however travelling the world by rail allows not only vast distances to be traveled with relative ease and comfort, but many of the world’s classic rail journeys also traverse some pretty remarkable and spectacular landscapes.
Below we sample just a taste of what four of these classic journeys can offer up to the intrepid traveler.
The Trans-Siberian
At 9,288 kilometres, the Trans-Siberian railway consists of a network of railways connecting Moscow with the Russian Far East city of Vladivostok. The longest railway in the world, the Trans-Siberian crosses seven time zones, passes through 87 cities and crosses 16 rivers.
Travelling at an average speed of 60 km/h the train is not for anyone in a hurry. Instead, for those with the time (the fastest route is about a week), you’ll experience the geographic and cultural diversity as you pass through Russia, Mongolia and China.
Photo: rbth.com
The Flam
Just over 20 kilometres in length, the Flåm Line in southern Norway is likely one of the shortest classic railway journeys around. However, what it lacks in distance it certainly makes up scenery. This route connecting the coastal town of Flåm with the mountain town of Myrdal is often considered one of the most scenic railway journeys in the world (named Lonely Planet’s 2014 most beautiful train journey). The elevation difference between the two railway stations is just over 860 metres, with a maximum gradient of 5.5% (1:18). This might not sound like a lot, but as far as railway lines go, this is steep.
The journey delivers a panoramic vista of some of Norway’s wildest and most scenic mountain landscapes and it’s not surprise that this short journey is now the third most visited tourist destination in Norway.
Photo: visitnorway.com
The Orient Express
Perhaps the most famous of all railway journeys, The Orient Express has been through a number of incarnations, with the current journey travelling from London to Vienna. Originally envisaged as the gateway for wealthy Europeans to explore the Orient, the train service never went further than Istanbul (or Constantinople).
For much of the last century, the Orient Express became synonymous with luxury travel, as the train traversed continental Europe. However, the introduction of fast rail and airlines resulted in the demise of the Orient Express with the last official services terminating in 2009. Since then, the Venice-Simplon Orient Express continue to operate railway services using many of the original and now restored 1920s and 1930s carriages, although now offer individual services between cities throughout Europe.
Photo: railwaygazette.com
The Ghan
We couldn’t cover a list of classic railway journeys without exploring at least one of Australia’s great train journeys, and we have a few to pick from (Indian Pacific, Tilt Train, Spirit of the Outback and The Ghan).
With the first service in 1929, The Ghan was not finally completed until 2004, when an extension from Alice Springs to Darwin completed the full 2,979-kilometre journey connecting Adelaide with Australia’s Top End. Originally dubbed the Afghan Express, the service is named after the Afghan cameleers (although many coming from is today Pakistan) who opened up the Australian interior during the 1800s.
Travelling over three days and two nights (54 hours) The Ghan is now a tourist experience, with numerous stopovers and excursions exploring surrounding outback destinations.
You can check out a few other classic railway journeys you may not have thought of here.