EVER since my dad took me to a bridge in Princes Street Gardens to watch the action in and out of Waverley, I have had a thing about trains. Back then I’d no idea I’d get to ride many of the great railway journeys of the world, epic experiences that are far more than a holiday; experiences guaranteed to ensure you never look at a commuter train in the same way again.
We don’t need to travel far to find my favourite railway journey – the full West Highland Line, all the way north from Glasgow to Fort William, and on the extension to Mallaig. Scotland’s rail scenery is up there with anywhere and we’ve got my favourite train here too.
The skirl of the bagpipes greeted me at Waverley as I boarded the ultra-luxury “rail safari” that is the Royal Scotsman (belmond.com). I waved goodbye to my dad’s spirit, crossing the Forth Bridge with a dram in hand and the wind in my hair on the outside terrace at the back of the observation car.
The food is sublime, the rooms sumptuous; an experience that is hard to fault. Since I’ve been on they’ve even added a spa car!
If you don’t want to blow your bank balance, Scottish Government-owned Scotrail (scotrail.co.uk) run trains on the West Highland Line, plus also the Skye Railway, from Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh.
When a book editor asked me to write about the West Highland Line, I only agreed on condition he let me include the Skye route too. Both offer an epic sweep of mountain, island and loch. A handy way of enjoying them is Edinburgh-Inverness (itself a scenic ride), then connect to the Skye Railway with a night on Skye, then a ferry to Mallaig to hook up with the West Highland back to Glasgow.
On continental Europe, the “King of Trains”, the Orient Express (belmond.com), reigns supreme.
Draped in romance, the one-night trip spirits you from London to Venice in a swirl of fine dining and champagne. I boarded looking out for millionaires and moustached Belgian detectives, but found most of the passengers were just people enjoying a very special treat. The highlight was snaking through the Alps with snow-capped peaks looming all around while I enjoyed breakfast in bed.
Some rail aficionados insist that there is only one real great train ride, though.
The Trans-Siberian is a monster that I first took back in 1995 when Russia was emerging from Cold War hibernation. The colourful week-long odyssey covers a swathe of scenery with almost three days spent cloaked in the impenetrable taiga forest.
This is the kind of rail experience where you really feel like a local.
There is no time for boredom on the Trans-Siberian – the copy of the “War and Peace” I took never even got opened. It ended up as a gift to a Chinese teacher who was just one of the characters I met.
It is, though, definitely worth booking the higher class to avoid any brushes with the unsavoury sorts that you can bump into in standard. It’s one to put on the bucket list for now with the Ukraine war.
The Trans-Siberian stretches all the way across from Moscow to the other side of Asia, where yet another great rail journey awaits.
Run by the same people behind the Orient Express, the Eastern and Oriental Express (belmond.com) slips south from the Thai capital of Bangkok to the city-state of Singapore. En route there are exotic jungles, tree-shrouded hills and spicy local cuisine.
Even further south into Australia is the legendary Indian Pacific (journeybeyondrail.com.au), which I’ve been lucky to ride four times.
This epic trip takes you from Sydney all the way across the country to Perth, crossing the Nullarbor Desert with its record 478km straight stretch of track. This is a mesmerising sensation as the train spends an age hurtling down an arrow-straight track with virtually unchanging scenery. It takes four days and three nights in all, so you really appreciate the size of this unique country.
Changing continent again, South Africa is home to not one but two great railway journeys.
The Blue Train (bluetrain.co.za) is a slick modern effort that rushes between the nation’s big cities in a whirl of air-conditioned luxury. On board the food is top notch with the likes of wonderful Karoo lamb. A neat touch in every cabin are the TV screens showing the view from the driver’s cab.
If I had to choose one South African train it would be Rovos Rail (rovos.com). More old fashioned and romantic, the decadent bar car has the ambience of a private house party. You rumble out of their private Pretoria station in a swirl of steam and then push on to a safari drive in Kruger. The steam reminds me of the memories my dad used to share on that bridge overlooking Waverley all those years ago.
HOTEL OF THE WEEK
Intercontinental Edinburgh The George IT’S almost a quarter of a century since I first stayed at this George Street landmark (since 1891) and it’s great to see it back in the Intercon fold. They’ve switched the reception round to turn the lobby into a more welcoming space, the rooms have been spruced up and they’ve added neat wee touches like a “cocktail trolley”. They’re currently revamping their excellent Printing Press restaurant. In the meantime, the Ivy on the Square nearby steps in with classic brasserie fare, with some fun Scottish takes (like whisky steak tartare) and the sort of slick service you’d expect from the London original.
Website: www.edinburgh.intercontinental.com
