Long Distance Rail Travel

[erkpod]

Doesn't the XPT hit almost 180km/h on the stretch between Wagga and Albury?

I know they did an ultra high speed test run in that area to see how fast it would go which got around the 180 mark.

Due to level crossing accidents, max speed was reduced to 120kph for a few years. But max service speed is 160kph.

 

[erkpod]

Here's an interesting question. What constitutes a long-distance train journey? the distance traveled (eg high-speed rail) or the time taken (eg the slow train into Phnom Penh)?

It's an interesting question. The airport trains to HKG & ARN are quick but they aren't really long distance. The Dubbo XPT is long distance but isn't quick by world standards.

 

[Happy Dude]

The Ghan from Alice to Adelaide and the Indian Pacific from Perth to advise. Both trips were in the mid 1990s.

It's a great way to travel.

I'd love to do these trips too however the cost is prohibitive. The journeys seem to be aimed at "luxury and all inclusive" travel too, which is a turn-off for the more adventurous traveller.

 

[Mattg]

Like quite a few others, have done Frankfurt - Munich and various other trips in Germany in the ICE.

Will be travelling from Bangkok to Singapore by train in December, that should be interesting!

 

[medhead]

On my wish list is to travel from Singapore to Europe by train. Supposed to be possible via china and the trans Siberian.

 

[kimjongun]

does anyone know of a picture with the G Trains only in China network? On the google, all the D trains and slow trains showed up as well and made for headache working out what route the G train is for!

 

[Happy Dude]

On my wish list is to travel from Singapore to Europe by train. Supposed to be possible via china and the trans Siberian.

That would be a ripper and very do-able. The problem we had across Russia was that our visa was for only 30 days. So we had to "rush" in order to spend quality time in Moscow and St Petersburg. Note that the Trans-sib starts/ends in Vladisvostok, it's the Trans-Manchurian that starts/ends in Beijing. The Trans-Mongolian passes through, er... Mongolia! Eventually, it essentially becomes one line somewhere near Irkutsk/Lake Baikal IIRC. Planning your journey will be like an addictive drug.

 

[LadyC]

Reading this has made me realize I have caught more trains than I though including:
- London to Oxford, Bath, York, Edinburgh and back;
- Cuzco to Aguas Calientes and back;
- Cuzco to Lake Titicaca;
- Toronto to Halifax, Nova Scotia and back;
- Barcelona to Seville, via Madrid, Toledo, Granada and Cordoba (including some AVE action);
- Delhi to Jaisalmer;
- Shinkansen from Tokyo to Kyoto and back.

I would love to do some old school style Orient Express travelling in Europe. it's on the bucket list!

 

[markis10]

I know they did an ultra high speed test run in that area to see how fast it would go which got around the 180 mark.

Due to level crossing accidents, max speed was reduced to 120kph for a few years. But max service speed is 160kph.

The Tilt train has the Australian record at 210kmh.

 

[footy99]

does anyone know of a picture with the G Trains only in China network? On the google, all the D trains and slow trains showed up as well and made for headache working out what route the G train is for!

From memory, G, C and D trains are pretty much identical and ridiculously fast (350kmph). Very similar to Japan.

Then you have the Z trains, which tend to be your overnight options on the most popular routes. Probably the best overnight trains I have had the pleasure of travelling on anywhere.

Most longer-distance 24-hour+ trains are K or T, which I loved but are not quite as luxurious and English-accommodating as the G, C, D, Z.

My site of choice for all travel in China was China Travel Agency with 24/7 Tour Service - TravelChinaGuide. Plug your departing and arrival ports in there to find out which trains serve your routes.

 

[medhead]

That would be a ripper and very do-able. The problem we had across Russia was that our visa was for only 30 days. So we had to "rush" in order to spend quality time in Moscow and St Petersburg. Note that the Trans-sib starts/ends in Vladisvostok, it's the Trans-Manchurian that starts/ends in Beijing. The Trans-Mongolian passes through, er... Mongolia! Eventually, it essentially becomes one line somewhere near Irkutsk/Lake Baikal IIRC. Planning your journey will be like an addictive drug.

I think the place I got this idea mentioned going to vladisvostok. The visa thing would be a major hassle.

 

[markis10]

I think the place I got this idea mentioned going to vladisvostok. The visa thing would be a major hassle.

Some goof info here

How to plan & book a journey on the Trans-Siberian Railway

 

[PMHI]

Needed to get from Barcelona to Paris in April this year with my family of four.

We looked at flying but found the overnight "Hotel Train" was cheaper per person including sleeper cabins (plus save on one nights accommodation). These cabins were each for two persons and included dinner (food and wine) and breakfast. Cabin even had an ensuite toilet and shower.

Further, the amenities kit included razor, comb, etc that was miles better than the business class amenities kit we got on QF1 380 from Sydney to London en route to Barcelona! (My collection of airline business class amenities kits shows them getting more and more basic over time but that is another story.)

Sometimes better to see the world from below the cloud than above it.

 

[medhead]

Night trains can be good or can be a real trap. The key is to get the right route, namely a long route, that requires them to keep the train moving to get to the destination by the morning.

For example I did the night train from Munich to Budapest. This is about a 7/8 hour train journey. We departed at about 9pm and arrived in Vienna at about 5 am. 8 hours to travel what takes 4 hours during the day. This included a long time just sitting somewhere not moving. It was rather horrible.

 

[footy99]

Night trains can be good or can be a real trap. The key is to get the right route, namely a long route, that requires them to keep the train moving to get to the destination by the morning.

For example I did the night train from Munich to Budapest. This is about a 7/8 hour train journey. We departed at about 9pm and arrived in Vienna at about 5 am. 8 hours to travel what takes 4 hours during the day. This included a long time just sitting somewhere not moving. It was rather horrible.

If you've got a sleeper and plan on sleeping, it is probably all the same. I know I tend to deliberately choose the slower, cheaper options in China to ensure a good night sleep. Better a 12-hour overnight trip than a 6-hour one to me. But that is pretty clearly not the majority view. Each to their own.

 

[kimjongun]

When booked in the past I have used the man The Man in Seat Sixty-One - the train travel guide... for help he is very knowledgable in all rail things mostly

 

[SeatBackForward]

If you've got a sleeper and plan on sleeping, it is probably all the same. I know I tend to deliberately choose the slower, cheaper options in China to ensure a good night sleep. Better a 12-hour overnight trip than a 6-hour one to me. But that is pretty clearly not the majority view. Each to their own.

Love overnight sleepers, generally sleep really well on them, perhaps its the rhythmic rocking and the clickety-clack of the rails? I also enjoy the waking up realising the train is stationery at some tin-pot station, or at a siding waiting for a freight train to rock past.

Most of my over-night travels have been on Indian railways, where a train service is often just a collection of carriages that get bolted onto different engines etc.. so sometimes the middle of the nights halts are at junctions where carriages and engines are exchanged, and that sudden JOLT as they connect them all up.

Is it just me, or is there significantly more nostalgia around trains than planes?

 

[medhead]

If you've got a sleeper and plan on sleeping, it is probably all the same. I know I tend to deliberately choose the slower, cheaper options in China to ensure a good night sleep. Better a 12-hour overnight trip than a 6-hour one to me. But that is pretty clearly not the majority view. Each to their own.

Not in a couchette with 6 people when your stationary for a number of hours without power. You don't sleep in that situation. Instead you are trapped in a half sleep, slowly cooking as the cabin turns into a sauna.

Then when traveling in a first class german sleeper I had to contend with the shower being closed for "hygiene reasons". So you end up at your destination in the early am having not had a shower for maybe 20 hours. In those 20 hours you've probably wandered the streets sightseeing after checking out of the hotel killing time until you're train departs in the evening. You might also have to wait until mid-afternoon before getting into your next hotel.

Overall, night trains are great but they have disadvantages and require careful thought.

 

[amaroo]

When booked in the past I have used the man The Man in Seat Sixty-One - the train travel guide... for help he is very knowledgable in all rail things mostly

That is a one cool site - thanks

 

[jukebox333]

Love overnight sleepers, generally sleep really well on them, perhaps its the rhythmic rocking and the clickety-clack of the rails? I also enjoy the waking up realising the train is stationery at some tin-pot station, or at a siding waiting for a freight train to rock past.

Most of my over-night travels have been on Indian railways, where a train service is often just a collection of carriages that get bolted onto different engines etc.. so sometimes the middle of the nights halts are at junctions where carriages and engines are exchanged, and that sudden JOLT as they connect them all up.

Is it just me, or is there significantly more nostalgia around trains than planes?

Probably because of the transition from steam to diesel to electric haulage, there's a sense of evolution.

I've seen (but never flown in) a DC-3 and had a sense of nostaligia for long-lost legroom...