This superbly illustrated book features 24 of the most exceptional railway journeys in the world, from the superlative Venice Simplon-Orient Express, which has provided luxury transport across Europe to priviledged travellers since 1883 to the Savannahlander that crosses the hot and dusty track between Cairns and Forsayth in Queensland, Australia. All the excursions can be made today, and practical information and contact details are given at the back of the book for those who want to undertake them. Star through the Alaskan wilderness to the frigid reaches of the Arctic Circle in Norway; from the Vistadome that takes travellers to the mysterious Machu Picchu in Peru to the Jitong Line, which is plied by one of China's last steam trains. This select portfolio of stories is presented by respected travel and railway writers from around the globe, each of whom has recent first-hand experience of the journeys they have written about. Authoritative and precise, the text also clearly conveys the authors' passion for the lines, locomotives and carriages, and their deep respect for the men who planned and built them.