Category Train Journeys
Making Tracks in North America – Part One, New York to Montreal
With hundreds of overseas train journeys under my belt, it was time to experience Amtrak & Via Rail for the first time. My route was to be New York Penn Station to Montreal, Montreal to Quebec City, back to Montreal for a connection to Toronto, Toronto to Niagara Falls Ontario, and finally back to New […]
European Train Tour #1 – Spain
Europe is a wonderful continent. Culturally & geographically diverse and incredibly easy to navigate from the Arctic to the Mediterranean or even the Atlantic to the Pacific. The best way to explore the region is by train with a vast network of train tracks criss-crossing the continent, connecting amazing cities and countries. Arm yourself with […]
East Africa Tour Part 5 – Nairobi to Mombasa
Our final port of call on our African adventure would be by the Indian Ocean. We chose the train as our way of getting there. Nairobi to Mombasa Train As part of their belt & road policy, the Chinese have built a wonderful railway line from capital to coast. It features three passenger trains a […]
Tuesday Train – Aleppo to Latakia, Syria
On my visit to Syria in 2009 I took a couple of trains. This rather worn train took us from Aleppo to the coastal city of Latakia, which became an important military port for Russia during the Syrian civil conflict. Here it is at Aleppo Station after we returned (on the left).
Travelling By Train Across The Balkans
My train travel book is available from Amazon. Travelling By Train Across The Balkans chronicles my trips over the past twenty years or so in the intoxicating region. It features train travel in Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Northern Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia and European Turkey. The Balkan Peninsula conjures up images […]
Tuesday Train – Tbilisi to Baku Overnight
In October 2019 my mate Hamish and I took the overnight train from the Georgian capital to the Azerbaijani primary city on the Caspian Sea. We left at 20.35 from the rather boring train station set around a shopping mall. Trains are few and far between in Tbilisi with all the daily trains fitting on […]
Tuesday Train – Tirana to Durres in Albania
In 2007 there were a few functioning train journeys in Albania. I did a couple including the one from the capital to the coastal city of Durres. Sadly nowadays trains in Albania are either not running or extremely limited. On my last visit in 2017 there were none. The going was extremely slow – an […]
Tuesday Train – Ashgabat in Turkmenistan
Back in 2018 I undertook a single train journey in Turkmenistan, from the capital to Mary in the east of the country. We were informed that we were not allowed to take photos. I however got permission to take just one, though as you might expect I sneaked a few more in! Ashgabat has many […]
Severely Delayed Tuesday Train – Ankara, Turkey
In 2009 I experienced one of my favourite ever journeys. Istanbul to Ankara by the Dogu Express, on to Adana on the Toros Express, bus to Antakya, and finally taxi over the border to Aleppo in Syria. The journey started with a frog march from our hotel to the port to catch a ferry across […]
Tuesday Train – The Maglev, Shanghai
It has been a long held ambition of mine to take the world’s first commercial Maglev train from Shanghai Airport to Longyang Road Station in the centre of the city. A chance recently presented itself when we flew via the vibrant Chinese metropolis to and from Tokyo. A top speed of 430k/mh, though slightly disappointing […]
