Photo via Unsplash by 𝕡𝕒𝕨𝕤 𝕒𝕟𝕕 𝕡𝕣𝕚𝕟𝕥𝕤
Romance on the Rails: Watching frozen lakes, towering pine forests, and jagged glaciers glide past your panoramic glass window while sipping hot coffee in a heated train car is the most relaxing way to explore winter landscapes.
There is a timeless luxury to winter train travel. No white-knuckle driving on icy highways, no tire chain checkpoints—just pure, uninterrupted cinematic landscapes. Here are 10 of the most breathtaking winter train journeys on the planet.
1. The Bernina Express (Switzerland to Italy)
Connecting Chur or St. Moritz in Switzerland to Tirano in Italy, the Bernina Express crosses the highest railway pass in the Alps (2,253m at Ospizio Bernina) without gears or cogs. Watch glaciers drift past frozen Lago Bianco before the train spirals down the famous circular Brusio Viaduct into palm-fringed Italian valleys.
2. The Aurora Winter Train (Alaska Railroad, USA)
Operating between Anchorage and Fairbanks, this iconic 12-hour journey travels through the heart of Alaska’s untouched interior. Gaze out at Mount Denali towering above frozen rivers, spot wild moose in the snowdrifts, and arrive in Fairbanks just in time for midnight Northern Lights chasing.
3. The Glacier Express (Zermatt to St. Moritz, Switzerland)
Known as the “Slowest Express Train in the World,” this 8-hour journey crosses 291 stone bridges and passes through 91 tunnels across the spine of the Swiss Alps. Oversized panoramic dome windows provide front-row views of the Rhine Gorge and the 2,033-meter Oberalp Pass.
4. The FlĂĄm Railway (FlĂĄmsbana, Norway)
One of the steepest standard-gauge rail lines on Earth. In just 20 kilometers, the train drops from high-altitude snowfields at Myrdal (866m) down to the edge of the Aurlandsfjord, passing roaring frozen cascades and sheer snowbound ravines.
5. The Canadian (VIA Rail, Vancouver to Toronto)
Spanning 4,466 kilometers across the Canadian Rockies and the vast snow-covered prairie plains. The Art Deco Skyline dome cars offer a front-row seat to the snowcapped peaks of Jasper National Park and frozen boreal forests.
6. The Semmering Railway (Austria)
The world’s first standard-gauge mountain railway and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Built in 1854, the line winds through 16 viaducts and 15 tunnels across the snowy Austrian Alps between Gloggnitz and Mürzzuschlag.
7. The Harz Mountain Steam Railway (Germany)
A true fairy tale journey. Vintage steam locomotives puff through deep pine snowdrifts in the Harz National Park, climbing to the windswept summit of Mount Brocken. The black steam engines chugging through pristine white snow create an unmatched vintage aesthetic.
8. The West Highland Line (Scotland)
Voted repeatedly as one of the most scenic rail journeys in the world. Cross the snow-covered moors of Rannoch Moor and the famous 21-arch Glenfinnan Viaduct against dramatic Highland peaks and frozen sea lochs.
9. The GoldenPass Express (Montreux to Interlaken, Switzerland)
This brand-new technological marvel features revolutionary variable-gauge trains that seamlessly adjust their wheel width and coach height between narrow and standard tracks, connecting Lake Geneva’s vineyards with the snow-covered Bernese Oberland.
10. The Tadami Line (Fukushima, Japan)
Famed among rail photographers worldwide, this rural Japanese line crosses delicate arched bridges over the Tadami River surrounded by the heavily snow-covered forests of Tohoku. The reflection of the train crossing the Daiichi Tadami River Bridge in morning snow mist is pure poetry.
📸 How to Take Great Photos from a Train Window
- Hold your lens directly against the glass pane to eliminate interior reflections from ceiling lights.
- Use a circular polarizing filter (CPL) to cut glare from panoramic dome windows.
- Keep your shutter speed at 1/500s or faster to prevent motion blur as the scenery rushes past.