TrainRouter

Data story

The longest train journeys in the world

93 rides over 1,000 km, ranked by the distance they cover — from a full week across Siberia to overnight hops between capitals.

Open the interactive railway map →

How far can a single train take you? This ranks every journey in the atlas over 1,000 km by route length. 26 of them run more than 2,000 km and 4 cover more than 4,000 km — but one, the Trans-Siberian Railway, is in a league of its own at 9,289 km. Every one is a scheduled ride you can plan, not a freight line.

Journeys ranked
93
Longest
9,289 km
Over 4,000 km
4
Over 2,000 km
26

One journey is in a class of its own

The Trans-Siberian Railway runs 9,289 km from Moscow to Vladivostok — more than double the next-longest ride on Earth (the The Canadian, 4,466 km). It takes the best part of a week and crosses eight time zones without leaving one country.

The longest rides are almost all domestic

Every journey longer than 2,439 km stays inside a single country. The longest train that actually crosses a border is the Hong Kong–Beijing High-Speed Sleeper (2,439 km) — a nation has to be continental in scale, like Russia, Canada, Australia, India or the US, to hold a journey this long.

And they are still being built

Long-distance rail is not just heritage: the Floridian (Chicago–Miami, 3,340 km) entered service in 2024. It is part of the wider night-train revival putting sleepers back on the map.

The 25 longest, by distance

route lengthkm2k4k6k8k1Trans-Siberian9,2892The Canadian4,4663Indian Pacific4,3524Vivek Express4,1545California Zephyr3,9246Baikal–Amur3,8007Himsagar Express3,7858Southwest Chief3,6459Empire Builder3,55010Floridian3,34011Sunset Limited3,21012The Ghan2,97913Great Southern2,88514HK–Beijing sleeper2,43915Silver Star2,41016Maharajas’ Express2,40017Palace on Wheels2,30018Jingguang High-Speed2,29819Shanghai–Kunming2,25220Silver Meteor2,23521Coast Starlight2,21622Crescent2,21623Deccan Odyssey2,20024Grand Trunk Exp.2,18025Texas Eagle2,102

Route length in km — the 25 longest journeys in the atlas, longest first. The full ranking of all 93 is below.

The longest in each category

High-speed
Jingguang High-Speed · 2,298 km
Classic
Vivek Express · 4,154 km
Night train
Trans-Siberian Railway · 9,289 km
Scenic
California Zephyr · 3,924 km
Luxury
Indian Pacific · 4,352 km

How we measured it

Each figure is the route's length in km — an approximate published value for the corridor the train runs. The ranking covers scheduled passenger journeys in the TrainRouter atlas (a 1,000 km floor keeps it to genuine long-distance rides); commuter and metro lines are out of scope. Every number comes from the open TrainRouter Atlas (CC BY 4.0, archived at DOI 10.5281/zenodo.21322030) — free to check or reuse.

Every journey over 1,000 km, ranked

#JourneyCountryDistance (km)
1Trans-Siberian RailwayMoscow–Vladivostok · night train · ≈ 7 days🇷🇺 Russia9,289
2The CanadianToronto–Vancouver · night train · ≈ 4 days🇨🇦 Canada4,466
3Indian PacificSydney–Perth · luxury · ≈ 65 h🇦🇺 Australia4,352
4Vivek ExpressDibrugarh–Kanyakumari · classic · 3 days🇮🇳 India4,154
5California ZephyrChicago–San Francisco · scenic · ≈ 52 h🇺🇸 United States3,924
6Baikal–Amur MainlineTayshet–Komsomolsk-on-Amur · night train · ≈ 4 days🇷🇺 Russia3,800
7Himsagar ExpressJammu–Kanyakumari · classic · 68 h🇮🇳 India3,785
8Southwest ChiefChicago–Los Angeles · classic · 43 h🇺🇸 United States3,645
9Empire BuilderChicago–Seattle · night train · ≈ 46 h🇺🇸 United States3,550
10FloridianChicago–Miami · night train · ≈ 47 h🇺🇸 United States3,340
11Sunset LimitedNew Orleans–Los Angeles · classic · 46 h 30 min🇺🇸 United States3,210
12The GhanAdelaide–Darwin · luxury · ≈ 54 h🇦🇺 Australia2,979
13Great SouthernAdelaide–Brisbane · luxury · ≈ 3 days🇦🇺 Australia2,885
14Hong Kong–Beijing High-Speed SleeperHong Kong–Beijing · night train · 10 h 28 min🇭🇰 Hong Kong2,439
15Silver StarNew York–Miami · classic · 31 h🇺🇸 United States2,410
16Maharajas’ ExpressDelhi–Delhi · luxury · 7 days🇮🇳 India2,400
17Palace on WheelsDelhi–Delhi · luxury · 8 days🇮🇳 India2,300
18Jingguang High-SpeedBeijing–Guangzhou · high-speed · ≈ 8 h🇨🇳 China2,298
19Shanghai–Kunming HSRShanghai–Kunming · high-speed · ≈ 11 h🇨🇳 China2,252
20Silver MeteorNew York–Miami · night train · ≈ 28 h🇺🇸 United States2,235
21Coast StarlightSeattle–Los Angeles · scenic · ≈ 35 h🇺🇸 United States2,216
22CrescentNew York–New Orleans · night train · ≈ 30 h🇺🇸 United States2,216
23Deccan OdysseyMumbai–Mumbai · luxury · 8 days🇮🇳 India2,200
24Grand Trunk ExpressDelhi–Chennai · classic · 33 h🇮🇳 India2,180
25Texas EagleChicago–San Antonio · night train · ≈ 32 h🇺🇸 United States2,102
26Eastern & Oriental ExpressSingapore–Bangkok · luxury · 3 days🇸🇬 Singapore2,000
27Duronto ExpressMumbai–Kolkata (Howrah) · night train · 27 h 25 min🇮🇳 India1,968
28Qinghai–Tibet RailwayXining–Lhasa · scenic · ≈ 21 h🇨🇳 China1,956
29ArktikaMoscow–Murmansk · night train · ≈ 35 h🇷🇺 Russia1,940
30Shanghai–Chengdu HSRShanghai–Chengdu · high-speed · 11 h🇨🇳 China1,920
31Golden Temple MailMumbai–Amritsar · classic · ≈ 32 h🇮🇳 India1,890
32TAZARADar es Salaam–Kapiri Mposhi · classic · 46 h🇹🇿 Tanzania1,860
33CardinalNew York–Chicago · night train · ≈ 28 h🇺🇸 United States1,844
34Lanxin High-SpeedLanzhou–Ürümqi · high-speed · ≈ 11 h🇨🇳 China1,776
35Khyber MailKarachi–Peshawar · night train · ≈ 32 h🇵🇰 Pakistan1,732
36Reunification ExpressHanoi–Ho Chi Minh City · night train · ≈ 33 h🇻🇳 Vietnam1,726
37Winnipeg–ChurchillWinnipeg–Churchill · classic · 45 h🇨🇦 Canada1,697
38Spirit of QueenslandBrisbane–Cairns · classic · ≈ 25 h🇦🇺 Australia1,681
39Jaffar ExpressQuetta–Peshawar · classic · 35 h 10 min🇵🇰 Pakistan1,632
40Rovos RailPretoria–Victoria Falls · luxury · ≈ 3 days🇿🇦 South Africa1,600
41The Blue TrainPretoria–Cape Town · luxury · ≈ 31 h🇿🇦 South Africa1,600
42Trans-MongolianUlaanbaatar–Beijing · night train · ≈ 31 h🇲🇳 Mongolia1,553
43Lake Shore LimitedNew York–Chicago · night train · ≈ 19 h🇺🇸 United States1,543
44Shosholoza Meyl Trans-KarooJohannesburg–Cape Town · classic · 27 h🇿🇦 South Africa1,530
45Green Line ExpressKarachi–Islamabad · night train · ≈ 22 h🇵🇰 Pakistan1,515
46City of New OrleansChicago–New Orleans · night train · 19 h 30 min🇺🇸 United States1,500
47Southern Xinjiang RailwayUrumqi–Kashgar · night train · ≈ 15 h🇨🇳 China1,475
48Arctic Circle TrainStockholm–Narvik · night train · ≈ 18 h🇸🇪 Sweden1,470
49Southeast Coastal HSRHangzhou–Shenzhen · high-speed · ≈ 6 h🇨🇳 China1,450
50Howrah RajdhaniNew Delhi–Kolkata · night train · ≈ 17 h🇮🇳 India1,447
51Frecciarossa Milan–Reggio CalabriaMilan–Reggio Calabria · high-speed · 9 h🇮🇹 Italy1,400
52Mumbai RajdhaniNew Delhi–Mumbai · night train · ≈ 16 h🇮🇳 India1,384
53Auto TrainLorton–Sanford · night train · 17 h 30 min🇺🇸 United States1,376
54Doğu EkspresiAnkara–Kars · scenic · 25 h🇹🇷 Türkiye1,365
55OceanMontréal–Halifax · night train · 24 h🇨🇦 Canada1,346
56Benguela Railway ExpressLobito–Luau · night train · ≈ 30 h🇦🇴 Angola1,344
57Spirit of the OutbackBrisbane–Longreach · night train · ≈ 25 h🇦🇺 Australia1,325
58Jinghu High-SpeedBeijing–Shanghai · high-speed · 4 h 18 min🇨🇳 China1,318
59Al ÁndalusSeville–Madrid · luxury · 7 days🇪🇸 Spain1,300
60Tulpar TalgoAlmaty–Astana · night train · 16 h 19 min🇰🇿 Kazakhstan1,300
61SnälltågetStockholm–Berlin · night train · 16 h 30 min🇸🇪 Sweden1,290
62Raja Tehran–Bandar AbbasTehran–Bandar Abbas · night train · 20 h🇮🇷 Iran1,286
63Venice Simplon-Orient-ExpressParis–Venice · luxury · ≈ 21 h🇫🇷 France1,270
64Van Gölü EkspresiAnkara–Tatvan · night train · 25 h 50 min🇹🇷 Türkiye1,267
65Güney Kurtalan EkspresiAnkara–Kurtalan · night train · ≈ 25 h🇹🇷 Türkiye1,265
66Central LineDar es Salaam–Kigoma · classic · 38 h🇹🇿 Tanzania1,254
67SAR North TrainRiyadh–Qurayyat · classic · 11 h🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia1,242
68European SleeperBrussels–Prague · night train · 15 h 30 min🇧🇪 Belgium1,200
69Jingha High-SpeedBeijing–Harbin · high-speed · ≈ 5 h🇨🇳 China1,198
70Nightjet Vienna–RomeVienna–Rome · night train · 14 h🇦🇹 Austria1,180
71SkeenaJasper–Prince Rupert · scenic · ≈ 32 h🇨🇦 Canada1,160
72EuroNightStockholm–Hamburg · night train · ≈ 13 h🇸🇪 Sweden1,150
73CarolinianNew York–Charlotte · classic · 13 h 31 min🇺🇸 United States1,133
74AVEBarcelona–Málaga · high-speed · 5 h 52 min🇪🇸 Spain1,121
75Tashkent–Khiva Night TrainTashkent–Khiva · night train · ≈ 14 h🇺🇿 Uzbekistan1,120
76CrossCountryAberdeen–Plymouth · classic · 11 h 30 min🇬🇧 United Kingdom1,118
77European SleeperParis–Berlin · night train · ≈ 13 h 30 min🇫🇷 France1,100
78NightjetHamburg–Vienna · night train · 13 h🇩🇪 Germany1,100
79Nightjet Munich–RomeMunich–Rome · night train · 13 h 58 min🇩🇪 Germany1,100
80Alexandria–Aswan ExpressAlexandria–Aswan · night train · 16 h 40 min🇪🇬 Egypt1,090
81Intercités de Nuit Paris–NiceParis–Nice · night train · 12 h 20 min🇫🇷 France1,088
82TGV inOuiParis–Nice · high-speed · 5 h 42 min🇫🇷 France1,088
83TGV inOuiParis–Barcelona · high-speed · 6 h 39 min🇫🇷 France1,073
84InlandsbananMora–Gällivare · scenic · 2 days🇸🇪 Sweden1,070
85Zhengzhou–Chongqing HSRZhengzhou–Chongqing · high-speed · 4 h 23 min🇨🇳 China1,068
86EuroNight Praha–ZürichPrague–Zurich · night train · ≈ 15 h🇨🇿 Czechia1,050
87Laos–China RailwayKunming–Vientiane · classic · ≈ 10 h🇨🇳 China1,035
88Almaty–Tashkent TalgoAlmaty–Tashkent · night train · ≈ 16 h🇰🇿 Kazakhstan1,000
89Belmond Royal ScotsmanEdinburgh–Edinburgh · luxury · 5 days🇬🇧 United Kingdom1,000
90El TranscantábricoSan Sebastián–Santiago de Compostela · luxury · 8 days🇪🇸 Spain1,000
91Nightjet Zurich–AmsterdamZurich–Amsterdam · night train · 11 h 15 min🇨🇭 Switzerland1,000
92Seven Stars in KyushuFukuoka–Fukuoka · luxury · ≈ 4 days🇯🇵 Japan1,000
93Shosholoza MeylJohannesburg–East London · night train · 20 h🇿🇦 South Africa1,000