The very damp view of the turntable outside Wolsztyn steam locomotive shed on the day of the Steam Festival.

Poznan, Poland

Hotel Mercure
 Poznan Centrum 
ul. Roosevelta 20
 60-829 Poznan

Locations visited included Pila, Wolsztyn (Steam Festival), Nowy Tomśl and Gniezno

From the UK by Air and Train
returning to the UK by Train

Intercity locomotive EP07-1009 arriving at Gniezno just about to pass local 4-car EMU EN76-046d.

ELL branded Vectron 193 297 leaves Dresden Hbf for Prague. 

Dresden, Germany

Locations visited included Dampfest, Schwebebahn Standseilbahn Dollnitzbahn Weisseritztalbahn Lossnitzgrundbahn Fitchtelbergbahn

Lossnitzgrundbahn 0-10-0T 99 713 runs around it's train at the Radeburg terminus

Electric motive power at Zurich Station buffer stops.

2017

Mulhouse, France

Hotel Ibis Mulhouse Gare Centrale 57Rue de Bale,68100 Mulhouse, France.

Locations visited included Cite du Train, Colmar, Olten, Biel, Zurich, Basel, Schaffhausen, Pratteln. 

BBO Class 378-78 2-8-2T prepares to leave Haltingen for the terminus at Kandern

Most services on Rügen are operated by 5-car Stadler FLIRT EMUs.  No 429 026 is seen at Ostseebad Binz with a train for Rostock.

N. Germany

InterCity Hotel, Tribseer Damm 76, 18437 Stralund Mecklenberg 
Germany

Locations visited included Stralsund, Rostock, Rugen & Molli Preserved Railways, Peenemunde, Szczecin Glowny Sta (Poland) and Hamburg Miniatur Wunderland model railway

To/from UK by Air

900 mm gauge 2-8-2T No 99 2322 (O&K 1932) is seen taking water at Kühlungsborn West, the country terminus of the Molli

Ra846 (ASEA/NOHAB, 1955) stands at Stockholm C ready to haul its vintage train to Gävle for the railway museum's centenary celebrations

2015

Sweden

Best Western Kom Hotel,
 Doebelnsgaten 17, Stockholm, Sweden 

Locations visited included National Railway Museum at Gävle, Hallsberg as well as riding on some of Stockholm's local rail and metros

To/from UK by
Air

2-2-2 No 75 Göta, built by Beyer Peacock in 1866, stands in the railway museum awaiting its next turn of duty

DFB No 1 is seen at Oberwald, ready to haul its 3-coach train over the spectacular summit route to Realp.  No 1 was built by SLM in 1913.  It was sold to Vietnam in 1947 and repatriated in 1990.

2014

Switzerland

Hotel de la Paix, Bernastrasse 24, 3800 Interlaken, Switzerland 

Locations visited included Brienz Rothorn and Schynige Platte railways, the Dampfbahn Furka-Bergstrecke and the Pilatus Bahnen

To/from UK by
Air

ZB 101 061 is seen at Interlaken Ost at the head of an all-stations train to Meiringen.  The eight locos in the class have been relegated to secondary duties following the introduction of new EMUs

0-6-0T No 394.023, built in Budapest in 1923, brings our charter train into the platform at Sámsoni út on the Zsuzsi Forest Railway

2013

Hungary

Hotel - Öreg Miskolcz Hotel, Horvath Lajos utca 11, 3525-Miskolc, Hungary 

Locations visited: The Lillafüred Forest Railway, Tatranská Lomnica in Slovakia, Zsuzsi Forest Railway, Szilvásvárad Forest Railway, and Gyöngyös,

To/from UK by
Air

With Debrecen's Great Reformed Church in the background, a tram pulls into the Városháza stop to convey members to the station for the return journey to Miskolc

No 39 is the 700 mm gauge, 500 V DC electric loco built by AEG in 1926 that hauled us through the mine on our return Minièrsbunn journey

2012

Luxembourg

Hotel - Empire Hotel, Palace de la Gare, Luxembourg

Locations visited:
Oetrange, Wiltz, Diekirch, Auden-le Tiche, Volmerange-les-Mines, Metz, Nancy, Saarbrücken, Trier and Liège as well as the heritage railways of Train 1900 and Minièrsbunn  

To/from UK by
Eurostar

Just part of the spectacular roof of Liège Guillemins station

SHM 0-4-0T oil-fired tram locomotive No 26 Ir P H Bosboom, built by Hanomag in 1922 for the Limburg Tramway, is seen at Medemblik at the head of our train to Hoorn

2011

Holland

Hotel - Ibis, Bizetlaan (Utrecht)

Locations visited:
Arnhem, Den Helder, Den Haag, Medemblik, Hoorn, Valkenburg and Rotterdam

To/from UK by
Eurostar

The former Benelux service between Brussels and Amsterdam, for many years the province of Class 11, is now hauled by hired Class 28 locos (aka Class 186) under the Hispeed banner.  No 2811 is seen at Den Haag HS with a northbound service

2-car Desiro unit 312 001/002 in McDonald's advertising livery and almost uniquely devoid of graffiti, is seen at Sežana with a service for Divača

2010

Slovenia

Hotel - Central Hotel (Ljubljana)

Locations visited:
Jesenice, Divaca, Maribor, Zagreb (Croatia), Koper and Ljubljana Castle

To/from UK by
Air

Croatian (HZ) 4400 kW 25 kV Bo-Bo loco No 1142 011 is seen at Zagreb, en route to Beograd.  It took over our train at the border station of Dobova for the 29 km run to Zagreb.

All local services in Barcelona are provided by EMUs. Trains of Class 450/451 double-deck stock occupy the bays at Vilanova i la Geltrú, ready for northbound departures.

2009

Spain

Hotel - Sabadell (Barcelona)

Locations visited:
Manresa, Montserrat, Nuria, Vilanova, Reus, Tarragona and Barcelona locality

To/from UK by
Air

British made. The hydraulic buffers installed at all twelve platforms at the impressive Estació de França come from the Ipswich factory of Ransomes & Rapier.

Our InterCity service from Hannover to Northeim was hauled by 8500 hp electric Bo-Bo No 101 016, carrying a UNICEF livery.

2008

Germany

Hotel - Nordhausen and  Wemigerode

Locations visited:
Hanover, whole Harzer Schmalspurbahnen network and Magdeburg

To/from UK by
Air & rail

On the metre gauge HSB, 2­10-2T No 99 7241, built in 1956, takes water at Drei Annen Hohne in readiness for the severe climb to Brocken.

At Filisur we were given a demonstration of the RhB's no-nonsense method of dealing with a damaged pantograph. The loco is Ge 4/4 III No 641 in Co-op advertising livery.

2007

Switzerland

Hotel - Filisur

Locations visited:
Whole Rhatische Bahn network, into Italy, (Tirano) and Brusio spiral

To/from UK by
Air & rail

During a visit to the RhB depot at Landquart, society members are seen in the lathe shop examining a stack of recently turned tyres.

Skoda-built 4125 hp electric Bo-Bo No 240027 took us 29 km through Slovakia from Komárno to Nové Zámky. This class of loco unusually employs GRP body panels.

 2006

Austria

Hotel - Vienna

Locations visited:
Vienna area, Austrian Alps, Hungary and Slovakia

To/from UK by
Air

Höllentalbahn 760 mm gauge loco E1, seen here at Hirschwang with our charter train, dates from 1903 and is thought to be the world's oldest operational narrow gauge electric.

Mk48 2031, a 760 mm gauge DM/DH dating from 1961, is ready to depart from Királyrét, the northern terminus of the forest railway, for its 11 km run back to Kismaros.

2005

Hungary

Hotel - Budapest

Locations visited:
Kismaros, Királyrét, Esztergom, Szentendre and Budapest locality (including Children's Railway)

To/from UK by
Air

Preparing to join its train at Esztergom is 2-8-0 No 424 247, dating from 1955. Several members, on payment for a small fee, enjoyed a cab ride on the 53 km journey to Budapest.

.A visit was made to the railway museum at Nördlingen, where the obligatory fireless loco was one of the best displayed exhibits.

2004

Germany

Hotel - Stuttgart

Locations visited:
Stuttgart area, southern Bavaria and Schwarzwald

To/from UK by
Air

After a visit to the television tower we travelled on Line 15, Stuttgart's last remaining metre gauge tram route. The tram is seen here at the Ruhbank terminal loop.

Looking far more like a cathedral than a railway station, this is RENFE's magnificent terminus at Toledo. It is now served only by Standard gauge AVE trains.

2003

Spain

Hotel - Madrid

Locations visited:
Madrid area, Ciudad Real, Toledo,
Aranjuez and Segovia

To/from UK by
Air

Our visit included an AVE experience, the 171 km, 49 min trip from Madrid to Ciudad Real. Our train, with Class 100 No 04 in the lead, is seen at Madrid Atocha.

Dual voltage Bo-Bo No 25191 has reached the end of the standard gauge rails at St Gervais, providing a connection to the Tramway du Mont-Blanc and the Ligne de Savoie.

2002

France

Hotel - Chambery

Locations visited:
Grenoble, Montenvers, Chamonix
and Aiguille du Midi

To/from UK by
Rail

With snow still on the ground at Chamonix, the MC BDeh 4/8 unit from 1996 has worked through from Martigny with rack assistance, using both overhead and 3rd-rail supplies.

Nærumbanen's Regiosprinter No 25 leaves Jægersborg for its 8 km, 12 min run to Nærum. These articulated diesel-hydraulic units were introduced to the line in 1999.

Denmark

Hotel - Helsingor

Locations visited:
Odense, Copenhagen, along north coast - including Rorvig, Sweden (Malmo & Helsingborg)

To/from UK by
Air & rail

A train of new Class SA wide-bodied articulated stock stands at Køge, the southern terminus of S-tog Line 4. The driving cars have two axles; the intermediate cars have only one.

Rack-equipped Achenseebahn 0-4-0RT No 2 Jenbach, built in 1899 and so already over 100 years of age, has successfully completed its climb from Jenbach to Achensee.

Austria (via Munich)

Hotel - Jenbach

To/from UK by
Air & rail

Stubaitalbahn unit No 83, an ex-Hagen tram with an ex-Bielefeld centre section, stands at its country terminus of Fulpmes at the end of its 20 km run from Innsbruck.

EU07-038, a 2680 hp Bo-Bo electric introduced in 1963 but belying its age, heads a train southbound out of Poznañ Glowny.

1999

Hotel - Poznañ

Locations visited: 
Poznañ area, Berlin, Wolsztyn 
(including steam cavalcade) and Sroda

To/from UK by
Air & rail

Tki3 87 may be only a humble 2-6-0T but, at 91 years of age, it generates plenty of smoke and steam as it is prepared for a run in the Wolsztyn Cavalcade.

Class 1551 2180 hp Co-Co diesel-electric No 1565, a single cab design introduced in 1973, passes the imposing water tower as it brings its train to a stand at Torres-Vedras.

1998

Portugal

Hotel - Lisbon

Locations visited:
Lisbon area, Porto and Braga

To/from UK by
Air

Society members queue to board one of Lisboa's vintage trams, No 557 dating from 1931, at the Jardin de Estrela stop.

Class Z600 No 602 2-car EMU stands at Chamonix, having made the climb from St Gervais on the steeply graded, metre gauge, 3rd-rail electrified Ligne de Savoie.

1997

Switzerland

Hotel - Brig

Locations visited:
Simplon into Italy (Domodossola), Chamonix,
Zermatt and Gornergrat

To/from UK by 
Air & rail

SBB articulated unit Bem 550 003 is seen at Genève with a service for La Plaine. This class works on SNCF metals under 1500 V DC, with an auxiliary diesel engine for depot access.

In happier times for the metre gauge Vivarais Railway,  Mallet No 403, built in 1903, makes a photo-stop with its lengthy train at Boucieu-le-Roi on the return journey to Tournon.

1996

France

Hotel- Lyon

Locations visited:
Lyon area, Le Puy, Nîmes, Ardèche,
Avignon and  Vivarais

To/from UK by
Rail

A 4-car Class Z7100 1500 V DC EMU is seen at Dijon. This is a design, effectively motor car and trailers, dating from the early 1960s.

At Praha-Libeñ, we had a chance encounter with 4250 hp Bo-Bo electric No 169 001, a Skoda prototype built in 1987 that was not adopted for series production.

Germany

Hotel - Bad Schandau

Locations visited:
Berlin, Prague & Czech Republic
Altenburg, Kurort Kipsdorf
and Dresden

To/from UK by
Air & rail

No 234 304 is a Russian-built ex-DR 2950 hp diesel-electric. It is seen at Dresden Hbf in an experimental livery matching its train of InterRegio stock.

A train of ex-DR Class 485 S-Bahn stock makes is way over the Berlin Stadtbahn, having just passed the Fernsehturm (television tower) at Alexanderplatz

Germany

 Hotel - Riesa

Locations visited
Berlin, Dresden locality,
Saxony and Leipzig

To/from UK by
Overnight Ferry (Jetfoil back) & rail

Our visit to Dresden coincided with a Dampflokfest which brought several steam locos to the main line. Here, 4-6-2 No 01 2137, built in 1935, prepares for departure from Hbf.

Metre gauge 2-10-2T No 99 7222, the only surviving locomotive of three built in 1931, stands on the  turntable at the HSB's Wernigerode depot.

Germany (via Holland)

 Hotel - Göttingen

Locations visited
Hook of Holland, Rotterdam, Utrecht,
Hamburg, Hanover, Wuppertal,
Magdeburg and Harz Mountains

To/from UK by
Overnight Ferry (Jetfoil back) & rail

An impressive example of structural engineering supports a Wuppertal Schwebebahn unit as it crosses a main road intersection at Ohligsmühle.

Wir streiken was the message at Frankfurt (Main) tram depot; nothing was going to move. The same situation applied to the Wuppertal Schwebebahn, another of our targets.

1992

Germany (via Belgium)

Hotel - St Goarshausen

Locations visited
Köln, Trier, Frankfurt, Mannheim,
Industrial Germany, Rhine Valley
and Belgian stations

In the old red and beige InterCity livery, 103 126, DB's flagship electric locomotive of the day, stands beneath the characteristic canopy extension at the southern end of Köln Hbf.

 

The hair-raising outward crossing by Jetfoil is still a talking point, nearly twenty years later. On smoother waters, Princesse Clementine is seen on her approach to Oostende

1991

Belgium

Hotel - Oostende

Locations visited:
Oostende, De Panne, 
Liège, Gent, Luxembourg
Antwerp and Brussels

To/from UK by
Jetfoil

Preserved Class 54 diesel­ electric loco, numbered 204.004, was seen at Brussel Zuid in connection with an international exhibition of rolling stock

AC Bo-Bo electric loco No 16056 is seen at Paris Nord at the head of a train of Corail stock. Note the station's characteristic lighting

1990

France

Hotel - Paris

Locations visited:
Around Paris and Le Mans

To/from UK by
Hovercraft & rail