Mark Smith
Rail travel expert and founder of website seat61.com
Of all the journeys I've made, my favourite is close to home, London to Fort William on the Caledonian Sleeper. You leave London in the evening and wake up in the middle of the wild, remote West Highlands next morning, without the hassle of airports and flights. The train has private sleepers and a lounge (complete with leather sofas) and you are served haggis, tatties and neeps, plus that wee dram of Glenfiddich to send you to sleep. From £78 one-way, it's pretty affordable, too.
Ed Gillespie
'Slow travel' enthusiast
The Circum-Baikal railway in Siberia winds around the edge of Lake Baikal, the biggest body of fresh water in the world. It passes through 38 tunnels and over 15 bridges on the rugged shoreline. The one-carriage train breaks no speed limits, taking six hours to cover 90km, affording breathtaking views over the expanse of white lake ice in winter or deep, dark blue water in summer to the snow-capped mountains beyond. Stock up on local smoked fish in Sludyanka so your stomach gets as much of a feast as your eyes.
Vincent Dedecker
Managing director of Rail Europe
My favourite rail journey is from Paris to Lyon on the high-speed TGV. I used to travel between the two cities by car with my parents when I was a boy and the four-hour drive seemed to take forever. So when the first high-speed train line opened in France in the early 1980s, I was really excited by the prospect of making the journey in just two hours. I've made this trip many times and never tire of it. I always try to sit upstairs on the double-decker trains to make the most of the views of typical French countryside - vineyards, rivers and villages. I love the speed of the TGV and still find it amazing that a journey of more than 400km takes only two hours.
Steve Kimber
Managing director of Great Rail Journeys
From the moment you board the beautifully restored carriages you are aware that you are about to embark on the ultimate Canadian railroad journey. The Canadian meanders through the most magnificent landscapes, all the way from Vancouver, on the Pacific coast, to Toronto. From the comfort of the domed observation car, you see the towering Rockies, the central plains of the prairies and the lakelands of Ontario. Continue on the Corridor and Ocean trains to Halifax on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.
Pete Waterman
Record producer and rail enthusiast
You might be expecting me to name some exotic journey but you'd be wrong because the trip that is a truly special one for me is the one I make every week from my home in Warrington to my workplace in London. I pass through areas which I have known and loved for many, many years. I feel a sense of pride as I pass Crewe, where my LNWR Company and Heritage Trust are based. I pass through some wonderful counties and get to see England in all its glory with each passing season when there is always something different to look at.
