Top 10 Most Beautiful Train Journeys

Nine thousand two hundred and eighty-nine kilometers from Moscow to Vladivostok across seven time zones — placing it second will infuriate purists who insist nothing else comes close.

Glass-domed coaches through the Canadian Rockies, past Kicking Horse Pass and through spiral tunnels, with bear and elk sightings common enough that the train slows for photos.

Seven hours from Oslo to Bergen over the Hardangervidda plateau, Europe's largest mountain plateau, where snowfields in June make you question your calendar and your latitude.

Two thousand nine hundred and seventy-nine kilometers from Adelaide to Darwin through the red center, where the desert emptiness outside your window becomes meditative rather than monotonous.

The real-life Hogwarts Express crosses the Glenfinnan Viaduct with Ben Nevis and Loch Shiel as backdrops, proving that J.K. Rowling didn't need to invent the magic — Scotland already had it.

A UNESCO World Heritage route climbing to 2,253 meters over the Bernina Pass, crossing the Landwasser Viaduct in a curve so dramatic it appears on Swiss tourism posters worldwide.

Seven hours through emerald tea plantations, over the Nine Arches Bridge, and past waterfalls that cascade close enough to spray through open windows — all for under three dollars.

Crossing the Southern Alps from Christchurch to Greymouth through Arthur's Pass, over gorges and through beech forests so dense they block out the sun for miles.

A luxury heritage train through Rajasthan visiting Jaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, and the Thar Desert in restored maharaja carriages that turn rail travel into a rolling palace experience.