The 25 Best Railway Journeys in Europe

Wanderlust, an online British travel magazine, has gathered together a list of the 25 best railway journeys in Europe. See trips of varying scenery from alpine to seaside. See trips in Austria, Bulgaria, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Scotland, Serbia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey. 

See full article here.

 

West Highland Line, Scotland

Voted by Wanderlust Magazine as the number one scenic railway in the world is the West Highland Line in Scotland that runs from Glasgow to Fort William. A very scenic trip of valleys and mountains, rivers and lochs, and some spectacular viaducts.

The Man in Seat 61 has a good description and details on the rail trip. 

The Glenfinnan Viaduct (Image courtesy of The Man in Seat 61)

Semmering Pass - Vienna to Trieste

The Semmering Pass is a key part of the Vienna to Trieste route. It was a triumph of 19th century engineering  to construct a 300 mile (480 kilometers) long railway through the Alps to join Vienna, the seat of power of the Austro-Hungarian Empire at that time, to the port city of Trieste.
Traversing the Alps required the construction, with mostly hand tools, of 22 bridges, 16 viaducts, and 14 tunnels. Completed in 1854, it is now a UNESCO protected heritage site.

Catch the train from Vienna (or Trieste). In German, it is the Semmeringbahn.

Arlberg Railway, Austria

The Arlberg Railway (German: Arlbergbahn), which connects the Austrian cities Innsbruck and Bludenz, is Austria's only east-west mountain railway. It is one of the highest standard gauge railways in Europe.

Ligne de Cerdagne, France

Considered to be one of the top railway journeys in Europe is the Ligne de Cerdagne (or Train Jaune or Yellow Train) from Villefranche-de-Conflent-Vernet-les-Bains-Fuilla to Latour-de-Carol-Enveitg, a 63 kilometer trip in the Pyrenees.

Rovos Rail, Southern Africa

On the African continent the premier railway is Rovos Rail. Based out of Pretoria, they have a varied selection of tours throughout South Africa, Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Namibia, Swaziland, Tanzania, and Zimbabwe.

Balcony Car

Dining Car

Lounge Car

Pullman Deluxe

Click to view the various Rovos Rail tours.

---

Another well known luxury train travel in southern Africa is The Blue Train.

Club Car

Restaurant Car

Luxury Suite

Route Map

The Royal Scotsman

The Belmond Royal Scotsman is a Scottish overnight luxury train. They have 2, 3, 4, 5 or 7 night journeys around the Scottish Highlands. You will visit castles, distilleries and historic sites. Once each year, it makes a 7 night journey around the whole of Great Britain. (Source: Wikipedia)

Dining Car

Lounge Car

Single

Suite

Switzerland

Switzerland has an abundant rail system, both standard cross-country and alpine.

Certainly the most famous railway in Switzerland is the Jungfrau Railway that wends it way, eventually, through a mountain tunnel to the peak of the Jungfraujoch. The terminus is carved out of solid rock and opens out to a snow covered peak (even in summer) with a spectacular view of the glacier.

Jungfraujoch Weather Station

Two of the most scenic rail journeys in Switzerland, according to Travelscope host Joseph Rosendo are:
Bernina Express - Chur, Switzerland to Tirano, Italy
Glacier Express - St. Moritz to Zermatt

Bernina Express

Glacier Express

Bernina Express

Glacier Express

Glacier Express

Another scenic railway is the Golden Pass Line that runs from Montreux to Luzern (Lucerne). Towns along the way are Interlaken, Zweisimmen and Gstaad.

Golden Pass Line

A popular steam railway runs from Brienz to the summit of Brienz Rothorn. Brienz is located on the eastern end of Lake Brienz, Interlaken in on the west end.

The Gornergrat Railway goes from the resort ton of Zermatt to the Gornergrat Station, the second highest railway station in Switzerland, at 3,089m (10,135ft) with a view of 29 peaks above 4,000m (13,123ft) including the Matterhorn (4,478m or 14,692ft). It is also called the Matterhorn Railway because of the prominent view of that peak from the railway.

Gornergrat Railway with a view of the Matterhorn

The Orient Express

Beginning in 1883, nothing epitomizes the grandeur and romance of train travel quite like the Orient Express, now the Venice Simplon Orient-Express.
Very expensive, but a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

1888 Poster

Dining Car

Dining Car

Lounge Car

Single Suite - Daytime

Single Suite - Nightime

Grand Suite 1

Grand Suite 2

Washroom

Current Routes

An interesting survey of the various historic routes of the Orient Express: