Journey type

High-speed

Published train experiences of the high-speed kind, with route, season and booking intelligence for each.

39 published journeys

An Amtrak Acela trainset runs through the Northeast Corridor in daylight.

United States · Epic

Acela: Boston to Washington

America's only high-speed service, down the Northeast Corridor

7h · Amtrak

Epic
High-speed

Photo: 4300streetcar · CC BY 4.0

An Al Boraq high-speed train stands at Tangier Ville station.

Morocco · Engineering

Al Boraq: Tangier to Casablanca

Africa's first high-speed line, along the Atlantic coast

2h 10m · ONCF

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Phil Richards from London, UK · CC BY-SA 2.0

A Madrid–Seville AVE service passes through the Andalusian landscape near Adamuz.

Spain · Engineering

AVE: Madrid to Seville

Spain's original high-speed line, Madrid to Andalusia

2h 35m · Renfe

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Pablo Nieto Abad · CC BY-SA 2.0

A Eurostar e320 train at Hoofddorp in the Netherlands.

United Kingdom → Belgium → Netherlands · Epic

Eurostar: London to Amsterdam

Three countries and the Channel Tunnel before lunch

5h 04m · Eurostar

Epic
High-speed

Photo: Rob Dammers · CC BY 4.0

A Haramain high-speed train running through open country between Makkah and Madinah.

Saudi Arabia · Engineering

Haramain High Speed Railway: Makkah to Madinah

Makkah to Madinah across the Hejaz at 300 km/h

2h 30m · Saudi Arabia Railways

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Saudi Press Agency · CC BY-SA 4.0

An ICE train crossing a bridge at Strullendorf on the Berlin-Munich high-speed corridor.

Germany · Engineering

ICE Sprinter: Berlin to Munich

Germany's two biggest cities in under four hours

3h 55m · Deutsche Bahn

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Reinhold Möller Ermell · CC BY-SA 4.0

A TGV Duplex runs at speed across the sunlit Provencal landscape on the LGV Mediterranee.

France · Scenic

TGV inOui: Paris to Marseille

Paris to the Mediterranean in three hours flat

3h 04m · SNCF Voyageurs

Scenic
High-speed

Photo: Jean-Louis Zimmermann · CC BY 2.0

An E6 series Komachi Shinkansen crossing a bridge in autumn colour.

Japan · Scenic

Akita Shinkansen: Tokyo to Akita

A mini-shinkansen over the mountains to the Sea of Japan

3h 37m · JR East

Scenic
Engineering
High-speed

Photo: 掬茶 · CC BY-SA 4.0

Modern high-speed train crossing snow-covered northeast China plains between Changchun and Harbin.

China · Epic

Beijing to Harbin High-Speed Railway

Into the north-east, on a line built for deep winter

4h 52m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Epic
High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

Modern high-speed train crossing a broad river and loess landscape on the Beijing–Xi’an corridor.

China · Epic

Beijing to Xi'an High-Speed Railway

Two imperial capitals, joined at 300 km/h

4h 19m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Epic
High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

A CR200J3 train crossing Mianshan Bridge on the Emei–Guangtong section of the Chengdu–Kunming railway.

China · Scenic

Chengdu to Kunming High-Speed Railway

Sichuan to Yunnan across the mountains of the south-west

7h 30m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Scenic
Engineering
High-speed

Photo: 来斤小仓鼠吧 · CC BY-SA 4.0

A CR400AF-A high-speed train running on the Guangzhou–Shenzhen–Hong Kong Express Rail Link.

China · High-speed

Guangzhou South to Hong Kong West Kowloon

Mainland high-speed rail into central Kowloon

47m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

High-speed

Photo: 20001 · CC BY 4.0

Modern high-speed train in the karst landscape near Guilin on the Guiyang–Guangzhou corridor.

China · Scenic

Guiyang to Guangzhou High-Speed Railway

Karst country between Guizhou and the delta

4h · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Scenic
High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

Unbranded green-and-white high-speed train in the wooded landscape of southern Hokkaido.

Japan · Engineering

Hokkaido Shinkansen: Shin-Aomori to Shin-Hakodate-Hokuto

Honshu to Hokkaido through the Seikan Tunnel

1h 01m · JR Hokkaido

Engineering
High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

Unbranded modern high-speed train crossing an Apennine viaduct on the Rome–Milan corridor.

Italy · Design

Italo: Rome to Milan

Europe's first private high-speed operator, Rome to Milan

2h 55m · Italo

Design
High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

An E7 series Shinkansen working a Tanigawa service on the Joetsu Shinkansen.

Japan · Engineering

Joetsu Shinkansen: Tokyo to Niigata

Across the spine of Honshu to the snow country

1h 29m · JR East

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: MaedaAkihiko · CC BY-SA 4.0

A KTX-Eum train on the Gangneung line at Jeongdongjin.

South Korea · Scenic

KTX: Seoul to Gangneung

Seoul to the East Sea across the Taebaek mountains

1h 55m · Korail (Korea Railroad Corporation)

Scenic
High-speed

Photo: Rsa · CC BY-SA 3.0

An N700-7000 series Sakura Shinkansen running in daylight.

Japan · Engineering

Kyushu Shinkansen: Hakata to Kagoshima-Chuo

The length of Kyushu in under ninety minutes

1h 19m · JR Kyushu

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: MaedaAkihiko · CC BY-SA 4.0

A high-speed train on the Lanxin high-speed line approaching Jiayuguan South in the Gobi.

China · Scenic

Lanzhou to Urumqi High-Speed Railway

High-speed rail along the Hexi Corridor

11h 30m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Scenic
Epic
High-speed

Photo: Liuxingy · CC BY-SA 4.0

An N700S Kamome trainset on the Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen.

Japan · Design

Nishi Kyushu Shinkansen: Takeo-Onsen to Nagasaki

Japan's shortest Shinkansen, opened in 2022

23m · JR Kyushu

Design
High-speed

Photo: MaedaAkihiko / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

Unbranded modern high-speed train crossing Jiangnan waterways on the Shanghai–Hangzhou corridor.

China · Excursion

Shanghai to Hangzhou High-Speed Railway

The easiest day trip on the Chinese network

45m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Excursion
High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

Editorial illustration of an unbranded high-speed train crossing vineyard country in southwest France.

France · High-speed

TGV inOui: Paris to Bordeaux

Two hours and two minutes from Paris to the Gironde

2h 02m · SNCF Voyageurs

High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

Modern high-speed train emerging from a tunnel in the forested Qinling corridor.

China · Scenic

Xi'an to Chengdu High-Speed Railway

Through the Qinling mountains, mostly in tunnel

4h 07m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Scenic
Engineering
High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

A TCDD HT80000 high-speed train on the viaduct at Bilecik on the Ankara-Istanbul line.

Turkey · Engineering

YHT: Ankara to Istanbul

Anatolia's plateau to the Bosphorus by high-speed train

4h 10m · TCDD Taşımacılık

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Kabelleger / David Gubler · CC BY-SA 4.0

A Renfe Class 103 AVE high-speed train, the type used between Madrid and Barcelona.

Spain · Engineering

AVE: Madrid to Barcelona

Spain's flagship high-speed corridor

2h 30m · Renfe

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Peter elektro · CC BY-SA 3.0

A CR400AF Fuxing train on the Beijing-Guangzhou high-speed line.

China · Epic

Beijing–Guangzhou High-Speed Railway

North China to the Pearl River Delta, all of it at 350 km/h

7h 48m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Epic
High-speed

Photo: N509FZ · CC BY-SA 4.0

A CR400AF Fuxing trainset working service G6 departing from Shanghai.

China · Engineering

Beijing–Shanghai High-Speed Railway

1,318 km between China's two great cities at 350 km/h

4h 18m · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: MNXANL / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0

A CRH train leaving a tunnel on the Chengdu-Chongqing intercity railway at Jianyang.

China · Excursion

Chengdu–Chongqing High-Speed Railway

308 km across the Sichuan basin in about an hour

1h · China State Railway Group (China Railway)

Excursion
High-speed

Photo: Dingli35 · CC BY-SA 4.0

A Eurostar train on High Speed 1 near Sellindge in Kent.

United Kingdom → France · Engineering

Eurostar: London to Paris

Under the Channel, city centre to city centre in 2h16m

2h 16m · Eurostar

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Julian P Guffogg · CC BY-SA 2.0

Unbranded red high-speed train crossing the Florence-area countryside on the Rome–Milan corridor.

Italy · Design

Frecciarossa: Rome to Milan

Rome to Milan through Florence and Bologna

2h 45m · Trenitalia

Design
High-speed

AI-generated editorial illustration by Rail Atlas

An E7 series Hokuriku Shinkansen train crossing a viaduct above a rural valley.

Japan · Scenic

Hokuriku Shinkansen: Tokyo to Tsuruga

Over the mountains to the Sea of Japan coast

3h 06m · JR East

Scenic
High-speed

Photo: MaedaAkihiko · CC BY-SA 4.0

An ICE train on the Lahn valley viaduct at Limburg on the Cologne-Frankfurt high-speed line.

Germany · Engineering

ICE: Cologne to Frankfurt

A steep, fast hour through the hills above the Rhine

1h 05m · Deutsche Bahn

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: DIZer · CC BY-SA 3.0

A Korail KTX-Cheongryong high-speed train running on the Gyeongbu corridor at Guro in Seoul.

South Korea · Engineering

KTX: Seoul to Busan

The length of South Korea in a morning

2h 15m · Korail (Korea Railroad Corporation)

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Takeshi Aida · CC BY-SA 2.0

A 500 series Sanyo Shinkansen train runs through the countryside of western Japan.

Japan · Engineering

Sanyo Shinkansen: Shin-Osaka to Hakata

Osaka to Kyushu along the Inland Sea corridor

2h 21m · West Japan Railway Company (JR West)

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: JobanLineE531 at Japanese Wikipedia · CC BY 3.0

A Taiwan High Speed Rail 700T train on the elevated main line through green hills.

Taiwan · Engineering

Taiwan High Speed Rail: Taipei to Zuoying

350 km down Taiwan's west coast, turn up and go

1h 36m · Taiwan High Speed Rail Corporation (THSRC)

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Rsa · CC BY-SA 3.0

An SNCF TGV crosses the Cize-Bolozon viaduct over open French countryside.

France · Engineering

TGV INOUI: Paris to Lyon

The line that proved high-speed rail in Europe

1h 43m · SNCF Voyageurs

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Kabelleger / David Gubler · CC BY-SA 3.0

A JR East E5 series Hayabusa service standing at Morioka Station on the Tohoku Shinkansen.

Japan · Epic

Tohoku Shinkansen: Tokyo to Shin-Aomori

The length of northern Honshu at Shinkansen speed

2h 58m · JR East

Epic
High-speed

Photo: brian25_tw / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0

An N700S series Shinkansen on the Tokaido line at Higashi-Tagonoura, with Mount Fuji rising behind it.

Japan · Engineering

Tokaido Shinkansen: Tokyo to Shin-Osaka

Japan's original high-speed line, still its busiest

2h 21m · Central Japan Railway Company (JR Central)

Engineering
High-speed

Photo: Takeshi Aida / Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0

An E3 series Tsubasa train of the Yamagata Shinkansen runs through open countryside.

Japan · Scenic

Yamagata Shinkansen: Tokyo to Shinjo

Japan's first mini-shinkansen, into the Yamagata hills

3h 40m · JR East

Scenic
High-speed

Photo: Original uploader was Jet-0 at ja.wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0

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