27-07-2025
Scotland's five best train journeys in 2025 named including 'jolly summer jaunt'
The Caledonian Sleeper and The Royal Scotsman were among those singled out.
The "best train journeys" in Scotland for 2025 have been named. Luxury services and scenic routes are among the train journeys that were singled out.
Travel experts at Condé Nast Traveller recently rounded up the best train journeys throughout the UK. Out of the 17 routes featured on the roundup, five are located in Scotland.
The Daily Record has compiled the Scottish train journeys that appear on the experts' list. Among these are The Caledonian Sleeper, The Royal Scotsman, and the Glasgow to Mallaig route.
The Caledonian Sleeper
The first Scottish railway journey named on Condé Nast Traveller's list is The Caledonian Sleeper. The overnight train travels between London and Scotland.
According to the experts, the service is comprised of two trains. The Lowlander connects London to Edinburgh and Glasgow, while the Highlander carries on up to Aberdeen, Fort William, and Inverness.
Condé Nast Traveller praised The Caledonian Sleeper for resembling "a mobile hotel", singling out its cosy bunk beds and soft duvets. Also mentioned was the service's dining car, where passengers can enjoy "a classic meal of steaming haggis, neeps and tatties in whisky cream sauce".
The Royal Scotsman, a Belmond train
Also featuring on Condé Nast Traveller's list is The Royal Scotsman, which is a luxury sleeper train that departs from Edinburgh Waverley and explores the Scottish Highlands. The experts likened the carriages on the service to a "long and narrow Edwardian country house", applauding features such as its luxury sodas and curtains.
The Royal Scotsman offers journeys up to seven days in length, visiting castles, distilleries, and numerous historic sites. However, the experts singled out its two-night Taste of the Highlands journey that travels into the heart of the Scottish Highlands and visits multiple sites of natural beauty.
Condé Nast Traveller wrote: "There are excursions to Culloden Battlefield in Inverness, clay pigeon shooting at the Rothiemurchus Estate, and whisky-tasting at the Strathisla Distillery in the town of Keith, where the air smells of warm malt."
Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh
The third Scottish train journey mentioned as being among the best in the UK is the Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh route. The journey, which takes approximately three hours, departs from Inverness past the southern bank of the Beauly Firth.
Among the top sights of the service according to the experts are lochs and picturesque moors that are home to deer. Also singled out as being "worth a stopover" was the village of Plockton, which was noted for its charming houses and scenic islets.
Newcastle to Edinburgh
Another journey that begins in England, the Newcastle to Edinburgh service begins in the northeast city and ends in the Scottish capital. The high-speed train travels along England's northeast coast before reaching the south of Scotland, offering "patchworked countryside and misty-blue ocean scenes" according to Condé Nast Traveller.
The experts recommend that passengers on the Newcastle to Edinburgh route sit on the right-hand side of the train to make the most of the views. Meanwhile, the route was applauded for its affordability—with Condé Nast Traveller praising the £14.90 one-way service offered by Lumo.
Glasgow to Mallaig
Finally, the Glasgow to Mallaig route leaves from Scotland's largest city and heads into the heart of the dramatic Highlands. One of the beauty spots the train passes by is the legendary Loch Lomond.
According to Condé Nast Traveller, passengers should move to the front of the train after it journeys past Tyndrum to get the best views. The train passes by the foot of Beinn Doran, before then travelling on to Fort William.
Condé Nast Traveller wrote: "It's a jolly summer jaunt—but brave the bite of wind and sleet and a winter journey brings beauty in the form of frozen rivers and daggers of ice dangling from trees.
"Towards the end of the line, the train runs along the 21 arches of the Glenfinnan Viaduct at the top of Loch Shiel—a sight commonly known to Harry Potter fans as the route of the Hogwarts Express."
