Welsh Highland Railway

The Welsh Highland Railway is a narrow-gauge heritage line that runs for 25 miles between Caernarfon and Porthmadog, making it the longest heritage railway in the United Kingdom. From its terminus beside the walls of Caernarfon Castle, the route strikes inland through the Gwyrfai valley, climbs over the high pass at Rhyd Ddu and skirts the southern flank of Snowdon before dropping down through Beddgelert and the dramatic Aberglaslyn Pass to reach the coast at Porthmadog.

Trains are typically hauled by powerful Beyer-Garratt articulated locomotives originally built for service in South Africa, now restored and adapted to work the steep gradients of Snowdonia. Carriages range from open observation cars to first-class Pullman-style dining coaches, allowing passengers to watch waterfalls, lakes and mountain scenery roll past in comfort. The journey takes a little over two hours each way.

The line was rebuilt in stages between the 1990s and 2011 along the trackbed of an earlier railway that closed in 1937. At Porthmadog it connects with the Ffestiniog Railway, allowing onward travel into the slate-quarrying landscape around Blaenau Ffestiniog. The Caernarfon terminus sits a short walk from the bus station and town centre.