It's the world's oldest surviving railway line and one of the North East's best-loved historic attractions.
Hundreds of families and steam train enthusiasts visit the Tanfield Railway each year, with the original waggonway set to celebrate its 300th anniversary in 2025. Originally built as a cheaper and more efficient way to transport coal from Durham's collieries to the River Tyne, it has now been named one of the best steam train journeys in the UK by the Times.
The Tanfield Railway sees steam trains chug along just a six-mile round trip through the County Durham countryside, but what a stunning six miles it is! From Victorian carriages, riders are taken back in time from Gateshead's Marley Hill engine shed through rolling countryside and valleys, following the route of a former horse-drawn colliery waggonway.
