World's Most Thrilling Train Trips You don't want to miss
By: Christy

The Rocky Mountaineer

Trips are day travel only so that none of the scenery is missed. On the Calgary/Banff-Vancouver and on the Jasper-Vancouver routes an overnight stop is made in Kamloops, whilst on the Jasper to Whistler route, an overnight stop in Quesnel is provided.

The First Passage to the West and Journey through the Clouds route trains depart from Rocky Mountaineer's purpose-built station at 1755 Cottrell Street just off Terminal Avenue in Vancouver. The Rainforest to Goldrush and Whistler Sea to Sky Climb route trains depart from a platform at the corner of Philip Avenue and West 1st Street in North Vancouver.

Blue Train

The Blue Train travels an approximately 1,600 kilometer (1,000 mile) journey in South Africa between Pretoria and Cape Town. It is one of the most luxurious train journeys in the world. It boasts butler service, two lounge cars (smoking and non-smoking), an observation car, and carriages with gold-tinted picture windows, in soundproofed, fully carpeted compartments, each featuring its own en-suite (many of which are equipped with a full-sized bathtub). The service is promoted as a "magnificent moving five-star hotel" by its operators, who note that kings and presidents have travelled on it.

West Highland Line

The West Highland Line (Scottish Gaelic: Rathad Iarainn nan Eilean - "Iron Road to the Isles") is one of the most scenic railway lines in Britain, linking the ports of Mallaig and Oban on the west coast of Scotland to Glasgow. The line was voted the top rail journey in the world by readers of independent travel magazine Wanderlust in 2009, ahead of the iconic Trans-Siberian and the Cuzco to Machu Picchu line in Peru. The ScotRail website has since reported that the line has been voted the most scenic railway line in the world for the second year running.

The Glacier Express

The Glacier Express is an express train connecting the two major mountain resorts of St. Moritz and Zermatt in the Swiss Alps. The train is operated jointly by the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn (MGB) and Rhaetian Railway (RhB). For much of its journey, it also passes along and through the World Heritage Site known as the Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina Landscapes.

The train is not an "express" in the sense of being a high-speed train, but rather, in the sense that it provides a one-seat ride for a long duration travel. In fact it has the reputation of being the slowest express train in the world. As St. Moritz and Zermatt are home to two well-known mountains, the Glacier Express is also said to travel from Piz Bernina to Matterhorn.

Eastern & Oriental Express

The Eastern & Oriental Express carries passengers in luxury between Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. The train travels through dense rainforests and towering mountains past golden temples, rubber plantations and remote towns and villages.

It runs between Singapore's Tanjong Pagar Railway Station and Hua Lamphong, Bangkok, stopping at Kuala Lumpur Sentral, Butterworth and Kanchanaburi, taking three days (two nights). Since 2007, the train has also travelled between Bangkok and Vientiane, the capital city of Laos.

Venice Simplon-Orient Express

The Venice-Simplon Orient Express is a private luxury train service that travels from London to Venice that is popularly referred to as the Orient Express.

These VSOE services are not to be confused with a regular scheduled train called the Orient Express, which currently runs nightly between Strasbourg and Vienna. VSOE train is rather aimed at tourists looking to take a luxury train ride.

Coast Starlight

The Coast Starlight is a passenger train route operated by Amtrak on the West Coast of the United States. It runs 1,377 miles (2,216 km) from King Street Station in Seattle, Washington, to Union Station in Los Angeles, California.

The train's name was inspired by the trains of the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP) that operated in California, mainly along the same route as the current Coast Starlight. SP's passenger trains in this region carried the name Daylight in some form (e.g. Morning Daylight and Noon Daylight).

The Bernina Express

The Bernina Express is an express train connecting Chur (or Davos) in Switzerland with Poschiavo and Tirano in Italy, by crossing the Swiss Alps from north to south. For most of its journey, the train also passes along and through the World Heritage Site known as the Rhaetian Railway in the Albula / Bernina Landscapes.

El Chepe

Also known as El Chepe from its reporting mark CHP, or Ferrocarril Chihuahua-Pacífico is a major rail line in northwest Mexico, linking the city of Chihuahua, Chihuahua, to the city of Los Mochis, Sinaloa and its port Topolobampo. It runs 673 km (418 mi), traversing the Copper Canyon, a beautiful and rugged series of canyons that have led some to call this the most scenic railroad trip on the continent.

Palace on Wheels

The Palace on Wheels was India's first luxury train. It was launched by the Indian Railways to promote tourism in Rajasthan, and has been highly popular since its launch.

There are 14 coaches in the train. Each of them is named after former Rajput states and matches the aesthetics and interiors of the royal past. Facilities include a bar with the choicest Indian and international spirits, a lounge with a good collection of books, and a television and DVD player.

Cabins are air-conditioned with twin beds, TV, channel music, intercom, and attached toilets running hot and cold water.

The train has two restaurants, "The Maharaja" and "The Maharani", with a Rajasthani ambience and serving continental, Chinese, Indian and Rajasthani cuisines.

PeruRail

The main line between the port of Matarani, Arequipa (Peru's second city), Cuzco and Puno on Lake Titicaca was formerly known as the Ferrocarril del Sur (Peru Southern Railway), and was for a time owned and operated by the ENAFER state company. It is the second highest railway in the world after the Qingzang railway to Tibet.

From Cuzco, PeruRail provides passenger services on the 3 ft (0.91 m) gauge Ferrocarril Santa Ana to Aguas Calientes, delivering tourists for Machu Picchu.

Flåm Railway

A branch line of the Bergen Line which runs between Myrdal and Flåm in Aurland, Norway. Because of the line's steep incline and scenery, it is a major tourist attraction.

The single track line is 20.2 km long. The top station Myrdal is 865 metres above sea level, while Flåm is by the fjord at sea level. In order to manage the climb up the mountainside, the line twists and turns and has twenty tunnels to gain altitude; even so, the steepest incline of the railway is 1:18, the third steepest adhesion railway in the world.

Durango and Silverton Narrow-Gauge Railroad

A narrow gauge heritage railroad that operates 45 miles (72 km) of 36-inch (914 mm) track between Durango and Silverton, Colorado. The railway is a federally designated National Historic Landmark and is also designated by the American Society of Civil Engineers as a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark.

The Southwest Chief

A taste of the old west! It runs from Chicago, Illinois, to Los Angeles, California, passing through Illinois, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and California. The feeling is like going through the route of all the old west movies.

Trans-Siberian railway

An awesome network of railways connecting Moscow and European Russia with the Russian Far East provinces, Mongolia, China and the Sea of Japan. It is the longest railway in the world. Today, the railway is part of the Eurasian Land Bridge.

The Trans-Siberian line remains the most important transportation link within Russia; around 30% of Russian exports travel on the line. While it attracts many foreign tourists, it gets most of its use from domestic passengers.

Source and edited