Cover photo: “Glenfinnan Viaduct - Jacobite Express” by Eric Kilby, CC BY-SA 4.0
The book
RAIL JOURNEYSOf a Lifetime
Journeys Worth Slowing Down For
The stories the app tells outside your window, now in a book: 11 great trains, 236 pages of photography, maps, and the history rolling past.
By Saral Gupta. Sold on Amazon, which shows the current price.
Inside the book
Eleven journeys, one map
Eleven of the world's great train journeys, ridden from end to end in full color: the California Zephyr, Empire Builder, Coast Starlight, Rocky Mountaineer, West Highland Line, Bergen Line, Glacier Express, Bernina Express, The Ghan, TranzAlpine and Coastal Pacific. Nearly 300 photographs and paintings, a route map for every journey, and the history, landscape and engineering outside the window.
California Zephyr
Chapter 1: The California Zephyr, Chicago to Emeryville
Photo: “San Francisco Zephyr with SP helper at Soda Springs, December 1980” by Drew Jacksich, CC BY 2.0
Empire Builder
Chapter 2: The Empire Builder, Chicago to Seattle
Photo: “Empire Builder @Two Medicine Trestle ( 2 Views )” by Steve Wilson, CC BY-SA 2.0
Coast Starlight
Chapter 3: The Coast Starlight, Los Angeles to Seattle
Photo: “Coast Starlight in the Cuesta Hills above San Luis Obispo, 1985 - 4 Photos (31042473146)” by Roger Puta, digitized and shared by Marty Bernard (railfan 44), public domain
Rocky Mountaineer
Chapter 4: The Rocky Mountaineer, Vancouver to Banff
Photo: “Rocky Mountaineer 1” by The Land, CC BY-SA 3.0
West Highland Line
Chapter 5: The West Highland Line, Glasgow to Mallaig
Photo: “Jacobite Steam Train passing Glenfinnan Viaduct (2025) (1)” by S. Perquin, CC BY-SA 4.0
Bergen Line
Chapter 6: The Bergen Line, Oslo to Bergen
Photo: “NSB El 18 2252 Haugastøl - Finse” by Kabelleger / David Gubler, CC BY-SA 4.0
Glacier Express
Chapter 7: The Glacier Express, Zermatt to St. Moritz
Photo: “RhB Ge 6-6 II Versam-Safien” by Kabelleger / David Gubler, CC BY-SA 4.0
Bernina Express
Chapter 8: The Bernina Express, Chur to Tirano
Photo: “RhB ABe 4-4 III 56 and 51 Lago Bianco” by Kabelleger / David Gubler, CC BY-SA 4.0
The Ghan
Chapter 9: The Ghan, Adelaide to Darwin
Photo: “NR45 + NR10 + Ghan Alice Springs, 2015 (02)” by Bahnfrend, CC BY-SA 4.0
TranzAlpine
Chapter 10: The TranzAlpine, Christchurch to Greymouth
Photo: “KiwiRail DXC 5039 with TranzAlpine Cass - Cora Lynn” by Kabelleger, CC BY 4.0
Coastal Pacific
Chapter 11: The Coastal Pacific, Picton to Christchurch
Photo: “Diving sperm whale near Kaikoura” by Mathijs van den Berg, CC BY-SA 4.0
Each card shows a photograph from that chapter of the book. All of them are credited again on the photo credits page.
Look inside
Sample pages
Companions
The book and the app
They are companions, not the same thing. The book is the stories and photography in print, to read before you go or long after. The app narrates them by GPS on the train, as you reach each place.
The book
236 pages in full color: all eleven journeys, their photographs and route maps, and the stories behind the view.
The app
Free to download. As your train moves, it plays the story of what is outside the window, offline and in either direction.
The Pass unlocks every journey guide, including future ones, for life.
For the train lover in your life
The hardcover is the gift edition: every page in full color, between hard covers.
Questions
About the book
- Is this the same as the app?
- No. The book is the stories and photography in print. The app narrates them by GPS on the train, as you pass each place. They are companions, sold separately.
- Does the book include train tickets?
- No, it is a book only. Tickets come from the railway that runs your train.
- Where is it sold?
- On Amazon, as a Kindle edition, a paperback and a hardcover.
- Do you ship internationally?
- The book is sold through Amazon's marketplaces, so it reaches every country your local Amazon store delivers to. Which formats a store carries can vary.
Book news
A short note when the book reaches a new format or a new country. Nothing else.
Rail Journeys of a Lifetime is an independent guide, not affiliated with any railway or operator.
Bookstores, museums and press: wholesale and press enquiries.