With the summer travel season fast approaching, once again we would like to sing the praises of riding the rails.
Enjoying the scenery passing by our window, without the hassles of airports or worries of the road, makes train travel our favorite way of getting from here to there.
As a bonus, sometimes we find views that can only be seen from the railroad as the tracks pass through countryside far from the nearest roads.
Our globetrotting Gypsynester wanderings have afforded us the opportunity to explore by rail all over the world.
In Asia, we discovered that sometimes the train doesn’t really ride on rails at all, as is the case with the fastest train in the world.
The Maglev, in Shanghai, travels suspended on a magnetic field at speeds up to 300 miles per hour.
Read more about the fastest train in the world.
In Peru, we rode through the incredible Sacred Valley of the Incas aboard the famed Expedition Train.
The narrow gauge route along the Urubamba River travels on the second highest railroad in the world.
After passing through spectacular Andes mountain scenery, we arrived at Aguas Calientes, the town that serves as the basecamp for Machu Picchu.
For those of us past our backpacking prime, it sure beat four days of hiking on the Inca Trail.
Read more about the Expedition Train to Machu Picchu.
Across Europe trains are our first choice for getting from here to there at ground level.
We have seen sunny Spain, all the way to above the Arctic Circle, pass by as we relaxed aboard some of the finest trains anywhere in the world.
Read all about our journey from Amsterdam to the Arctic with Eurail.
Many times the routes have taken us to amazing destinations that are only reachable by rail.
Norway may have been best for this as we were delivered to the top of a ski jump by cog railway, and a mountain top with the assistance of a cable funicular.
These specially designed trains can climb incredibly steep grades that no other mode of transportation could possibly handle.
In the good ole U.S. of A. we have been from coast to coast in spacious style aboard some of Amtrak‘s iconic long distance routes.
The Southwest Chief, Coast Starlight, and California Zephyr were all part of a fifteen day excursion we made from Chicago to the west coast and back several years ago.
That wild adventure had a huge impact on us, helping to give us the wanderlust, and the guts, to take on our life as Gypsynester vagabonds.
Read about our crazy two-week adventure across America.
One of our favorite things about train travel is the ability to enjoy real food.
Meals are prepared made to order, and served on real china with real silverware.
It’s like having a rolling restaurant at our beck and call.
When we want to feel particularly spoiled, meals can even be delivered to our room.
Amtrak has taken us to some of America’s most historic cities as we hopped from Washington DC, to Philadelphia, to New York, to Boston on a patriotic adventure exploring the origins of our country.
See our journey to America’s founding cities.
Or when we were feeling like getting away from it all, we took the Empire Builder through Glacier National Park.
For us, it is the only way to roll.
David & Veronica, GypsyNester.com
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John (63) & Daniele (60)
…not ready to quit working yet…boohoo
I bet you have many great stories to share, perhaps you would like to tell us more about your travels at Lifetime Daily?