British daily includes SGR in most remarkable rail tours in the world for 2019

Image result for pectacular rail journeysThere are some spectacular rail journeys out there, you know. From the Flying Scotsman to a ‘Flavours of Tuscany’.

The British dailies ‘ The Daily Telegraph, commonly referred to simply as The Telegraph  has highlighted some of the most magnificent rail tours for 2019 and the SGR has not been left out.

Here are some of the most magnificent rail tours for 2019.

1. Inlandsbanan, SwedenRelated image
Sweden’s Inlandsbanan traverses what is described as the continent’s last wilderness of untouched forests and lakes. The 663-mile (1,067km) railway from Mora to Gallivare links isolated Lapland settlements with a variety of attractions. Most are either within walking distance of stations or linked to the railway by bus and include open-air museums, 19th-century lake steamers and Sami villages.

Discover Inlandsbanan (0046 771 53 53 53; inlandsbanan.se) offers a nine-night return tour from Mora from £777 per person.

2. Flying Scotsman, BritainImage result for Flying Scotsman, Britain
It may be three years since the nation’s favourite locomotive re-emerged from a £4.2 million refurb, but the Flying Scotsman has lost none of its allure. Climb on board for the original London-Edinburgh routing as part of a special Highlands & Islands Explorer tour in May offered by Steam Dreams. Shorter trips around the Surrey Hills and between London and Salisbury are also confirmed. The locomotive will be on display at selected dates at the National Railway Museum in York.

3. Bordeaux, Cognac and the Loire Related image
Three nights in Bordeaux, reached by Eurostar and TGV, allows time to visit the World Heritage Site Old Town, the new wine museum and, with included car hire, the nearby vineyards of Médoc and St-Émilion. Three nights in Cognac for the city’s medieval quarter and English Garden are followed by another three nights in the village of Chenonceaux in the heart of the Loire Valley, home to excellent wines and Leonardo da Vinci – 2019 marks the 500th anniversary of his death, and of the construction of the beautiful Château de Chambord.

From £1,595pp with Planet Rail (01347 825292; planetrail.co.uk)

 

4. Habsburg Trail, Central EuropeImage result for Habsburg Trail
This eight-night self-guided tour through Austria, Slovenia and Italy follows a coffee trade route developed to meet the demands of the early 18th-century coffee craze in the Habsburg Empire. Travelling by train between four cities with a common imperial past – Vienna, Graz, Ljubljana and Trieste – provides an introduction to the empire’s magnificent architecture and art, ranging from Vienna’s Hofburg Palace to the wonderfully preserved Old Town in Graz. Notes for walking tours and recommendations for coffee provided.

From £995pp with Inntravel (01653 617000; inntravel.co.uk). Includes rail travel between Vienna and Trieste, but excludes flights.

5. Flavours of TuscanyImage result for flavours of tuscany
Ease the pace by taking the train to Italy as it celebrates a year of Slow Tourism. The tour takes the Eurostar to Paris and then a TGV for an overnight in Turin, before skirting the Tuscan coast to reach the base for six nights at the Relais dei Molini. Car hire is included so travellers can explore and taste local wines, visit thermal springs, have a cookery lesson in the charming walled city of Lucca and try cheese making outside the town of Volterra. Return is by plane from Pisa.

From £1,495 per person sharing with Planet Rail (01347 825292; planetrail.co.uk).

6. Colombo to Jaffna, Sri LankaImage result for Colombo to Jaffna, Sri Lanka
The railway link between Sri Lanka’s two largest cities sliced through thick jungle in 1894, before being snipped by Civil War in the Eighties. For nearly three decades flora recolonised the tracks, along with the occasional elephant and crocodile. Now 10-hour day trains, plus a night mail sleeper, rumble past the Indian Ocean from Colombo to Jaffna across two thirds of the Asian island nation. Once-off-limits, Jaffna is a base for birdwatching, kitesurfing and Tamil cuisine. Passengers on Lanka’s lesser-travelled northern rail lines may hop off to visit elephant sanctuaries (at Habarana) and whalewatching hotspots (at Trincomalee).

 

Yonder (0203 880 8585; yonder.co.uk) offers an eight-day trip around Sri Lanka, including the Colombo to Jaffna train, with a stay at Ulagalla Resort, from £1,895pp.

7. Madaraka Express, KenyaImage result for Amboseli and Tsavo West national
The new standard-gauge railway between Mombasa and Nairobi provides the link between the coast and Amboseli and Tsavo West national parks for 3½ days of game drives. The Maasai-inspired Amboseli Serena Safari Lodge has majestic views of Kilimanjaro, and the Kilaguni Serena Safari lodge has been designed to blend into the rugged savannah and overlooks a waterhole visited daily by herds of elephant and buffalo. The four nights in the lodges are flanked by a night in Mombasa.

The Madaraka Express costs from £2,476pp through Kuoni (0800 144 8181; kuoni.co.uk).

8. Grand Tour, Scotland Image result for Royal Yacht Britannia train
This nine-night tour by train begins in Edinburgh and takes in some of Scotland’s most celebrated castles and scenic journeys. Among the places visited are the Royal Yacht Britannia, the castles of Stirling, Dunvegan, Armadale, Eilean Donan and Glamis and the Glen Ord Distillery. The most dramatic part of the West Highland line between Crianlarich and Fort William is followed by the Jacobite steam train on to Mallaig, crossing the famous Glenfinnan Viaduct, featured in four of the Harry Potter films.

9. Highlights of PolandMarrakech is at one of end of a new rail line
Polish rolling stock is some of Europe’s most modern. The fleet of Pendolinos offer top-notch dining cars, plus free drinks in both first and second class. Rail Discoveries’ newest tour offers high-speed transport between every top sight including the Unesco city of Krakow and baroque gem Wroclaw. Another highlight is the Wieliczka Salt Mine, where miners sculpted crystalline chapels deep underground during the socialist era. The tour also leaves the rails for a river cruise on the Oder past Habsburg castles.

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