Travel + Leisure Readers' 5 Favorite Trains of 2024

From an iconic trans-Europe route to a California wine trip, readers voted these trains the best in our annual "World’s Best Awards" survey for 2024.

By

Stefanie Waldek

Published on July 9, 2024

A luxury train staff member blows a whistle as a train departs — Photo:
Courtesy of Belmond

There's magic in train travel — something about the rhythmic motion, the scenery going past, and, in many cases, an utterly luxurious onboard experience. Slow travel has been growing in popularity for years, and train operators are crafting extraordinary experiences that go far beyond providing transportation from A to B. For the 2024 World's Best Awards — the second year that trains have been included in the survey — our readers voted for trains with various highlights, from opulent accommodations to breathtaking scenery to delicious wine.

How Voting Works

Every year for our World's Best Awards survey, T+L asks readers to weigh in on travel experiences around the globe — to share their opinions on the top hotels, resorts, cities, islands, cruise ships, spas, airlines, and more. Over 300,000 T+L readers completed the 2024 survey. A total of more than 700,000 votes were cast across over 8,700 properties (hotels, cities, cruise lines, etc.).

Trains were specifically rated on the criteria below:

Accommodations
Food
Service
Itineraries
Destinations
Value

For each characteristic, respondents could choose a rating of excellent, above average, average, below average, or poor. The final scores are averages of these responses.

What Readers Loved

Our readers loved five North American and European trains that range from multinight journeys to single-afternoon rides. Returning to our list this year are Rocky Mountaineer (at No. 3), a train with multiday routes in the Canadian and American Rockies, and British Pullman, A Belmond Train (at No. 2), which offers tours across the U.K., from sightseeing day trips to afternoon tea trains to murder mystery events. "It is all about the scenery," wrote one reader about the former. But there are three newcomers to the list, including the Napa Valley Wine Train, at No. 4, and the Royal Canadian Pacific, at No. 5. As for our readers' No. 1 train, read on to find out which European icon topped the list.

This Is Part Of

The World's Best Awards

See All Winners

The Winner

Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, A Belmond Train

Interior of a luxury train cabin on the Venice Simplon Orient Express — Courtesy of Belmond

Perhaps one of the most famous — and luxurious — trains in the world, the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, A Belmond Train, captured the hearts of our readers, one of whom described it as "[t]he epitome of elegance and glamour!" This leisure train operates a variety of routes across Europe, most of which are one-night journeys. Guests are accommodated in sumptuous suites or historic cabins that recall the art deco heyday of train travel, with gourmet dinners and extravagant breakfasts served in restored 1920s cars. "A truly once-in-a-lifetime experience...unless you can do it again," wrote one reader.