All aboard the trainspotting revival

Rather than hopping on a plane, making a conscious decision to book a long-distance train trip suggests the journey is just as important to the traveller as the destination.

One person, who has revived the world’s interest in trains, is 23-yearold British trainspotter, Luke Nicolson, who posts videos on social media such as TikTok and Instagram under the pseudonym Francis Bourgeois. 

His quirky videos show his unbridled passion for trains which has, in turn, attracted a whole new audience, both young and old, to the imagery and delights of train travel. 

So popular are his little vignettes on trains that since he began making and posting his videos during COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, he had amassed, as of May 2023, more than 2.9 million TikTok followers and 1.8 million Instagram followers. 

He has also written a book, The Trainspotter's Notebook, and now hosts an ongoing digital series Trainspotting with Francis Bourgeois for English TV network Channel 4. 

Francis’ greatest joy though appears to come from simply spotting a train, any train from beside the tracks, and getting the train driver to respond to his wave with a loud toot or two of the horn. 

Such is his popularity, that various media personalities want to take time out of their busy schedules to join him on his travels and appear in his videos, which can range from analysing trains in television shows and movies to just hopping a train and recording the ride.

All over the world, there are train journeys which capture the imagination and can only be described as trips of a lifetime. 

Some of these iconic train trips can last several days while others are relatively short such as the Hokkaido Shinkansen, one of Japan’s bullet train lines, which covers 824km in four hours between Tokyo and Hakodate at speeds of up to 300km/h. 

In the luxury category, there are trains like the two-day, one-night Venice Simplon-Orient Express running from London to Venice or South Africa’s Blue Train between Pretoria and Cape Town which takes 27 hours. 

Options are sleeper accommodation, all meals, high tea, alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks, and excursions. 

For the adventurous and with a more limited budget, there’s the two-day Reunification Express in Vietnam from Ho Chi Minh City to Hanoi, the three-day California Zephyr between Chicago and San Francisco, the overnight Caledonian Sleeper, which starts in London and goes to Fort Williams via the Scottish Highlands, or the Rocky Mountaineer in Canada between Vancouver and Banff. 

In Australia, for long-distance travel, there is The Ghan that runs between Adelaide and Darwin—a distance of 2,979km—which involves four days, and three nights. 

Or there is the Indian Pacific, which starts in Sydney, travels over the Blue Mountains to Broken Hill, and on to Adelaide before crossing the mighty Nullarbor Plain into Perth. It’s a journey of 4,352km, four days and three nights.

During the pandemic, with international travel at a standstill for most Australians, my husband and I, along with three friends, decided to give the Indian Pacific a burl. 

Flying from Brisbane to Sydney, and after a bit of sightseeing around the Harbour City that included the Opera House, the Powerhouse Museum, the Sydney Fish Markets, Darling Harbour, and Watsons Bay, we boarded the mighty Indian Pacific. 

As train travel in Australia seemed to explode during the pandemic, our choice of cabins was limited when we booked so rather than book one with an ensuite where either my husband or I would have to climb into a top bunk, we opted for a single cabin each where the seat turns into a bed at night and there’s a shared bathroom at either end of the carriage. 

Considering my husband is a big chap, and I am not petite, I was concerned about the size of the single cabins at the time of booking but they were more than comfortable. 

Once unpacked, we headed, with our friends, to the lounge car for a welcome beverage and to meet some of our fellow travellers. Without going into the finer details of the trip, which I would thoroughly recommend, I will just list some of the highlights. 

Firstly, the food and staff. Both were five-star and the range and quality of food absolutely superb with one of my favourite dishes being the Sweet Peking Duck Breast (although the sweets were pretty good, too). 

All meals were accompanied by an excellent choice of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. 

As our trip took place during ‘COVID times’, some staff were off due to illness which meant those who were onboard had to pick up the slack but this did not mean a lowering of service, which was always friendly and professional. 

As to the scenery, it was magnificent, especially seeing the contrast from the densely-treed Blue Mountains to the burnt reds and emptiness of the Nullarbor leading into the richness and vibrancy of the landscape as we got closer to Perth. 

A favourite off-train excursion was Broken Hill where the mining community and its history are fascinating. Another favourite was the visit and dinner at the historic Seppeltsfield Winery in the Barossa Valley. 

Having travelled on the bullet trains in Japan, which are pristine and always run on time, scenic trains in Switzerland, and the Jungle Railway through Malaysia (which I loathed, and my husband loved), I would recommend the Indian Pacific to anyone wanting to see Australia at a stylish, leisurely pace. 

Apart from the Indian Pacific and The Ghan, other interstate trains include the Great Southern between Adelaide and Brisbane, and The Overland between Adelaide and Melbourne. 

Australians are also spoilt for choice with intrastate train trips with Queensland having, for example, the Tilt Train as a great alternative to driving between Rockhampton and Brisbane, the Savannahlander that runs between Cairns and Forsayth, and the Spirit of the Outback, operating between Brisbane and Longreach. 

There are others in Queensland for train aficionados to sample, and elsewhere in Australia, but when it comes to lifelong train enthusiasts, simply catching a suburban train is just as enjoyable as the big-name journeys.

For Graeme Ross, a past president of the All Gauge Model Railway Club in Brisbane, there is nothing better at the weekend than hopping on a train, sitting in the air-conditioning, and going for a ride around the city. Graeme, 63, has been collecting for the past 10 years and has his own model railway set up in his home. 

Graeme says model trains are the most popular hobby in the world after LEGO. 

There are approximately 30 members, mostly retirees, in the Brisbane model club, which has been running for 50 years this year. 

Graeme believes model trains and railways will become more popular with the younger generation when they realise digital command controls for trains can be operated through their mobile phones. 

He says British model trains were among the most popular collector items and among those who were model train collectors are English singer Rod Stewart, American rocker Alice Cooper, and former music critic and journalist Molly Meldrum. 

“People like them do it as an escape from their public life, it’s very popular,” he says.

National Seniors Travel has a variety of train journeys with special member discounts. Visit National Seniors Travel for more information.

This article is featured in National Seniors Australia’s quarterly member magazine, Our Generation. 

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