Asia
Asia
Asia has a lot of interesting railways, including the famous Trans-Siberian railway and the Eastern & Orient Express.
The Trans-Siberian Railway is probably the most well-known long-distance train in the world. Nowadays, you can choose between the Trans-Siberian running between Moscow and Vladivostok or the Trans-Mongolian running between Moscow and Beijing. You can read more about the Trans-Siberian Railway here
The Eastern & Oriental Express runs between Singapore and Bangkok. It is a luxury train which is neither the cheapest nor the fastest way of travelling between Bangkok and Singapore, but it is an experience worth trying. You can read more about the Eastern & Oriental Express here
Asia is also home of what probably is the best train service in the world, the Japanese Bullet Train, or Shinkansen as it is called in Japanese. You can read more about the Bullet Train here
India has an extensive rail network with many interesting trains. The first railways in India were built during the British rule. Today, the rail network covers 63,140 kilometres, supposed to be fourth largest in the world. The best known train in India is the Palace on Wheels. It is a luxury train aimed at tourists, starting and ending in New Delhi. That said, the train has a little bit of retro feeling, so do not expect a modern luxury train. It is a seven day tour, stopping at the most important places in Northern India.
China has an extensive rail network. Unfortunately, travelling by rail in China will be difficult unless you have some basic skills in Chinese. That said, as long as you have a lot of patience, travelling by train is cheap and can be fun as well. As a rule of thumb, always buy the best class you can get. Night trains have hard and soft sleeping compartments. Soft sleep ticket holders generally have their own waiting room and board the train first.
The Qingzang railway going up to Lhasa includes Tanggula Railway Station, 5,068 meters above sea level, which is the highest railway station in the world.