Winter Steam and Luxury Trains in Bohemia

A unique one off-tour to Prague and the Czech countryside for some of the grandest steam locomotives and luxury carriages in Central Europe, all embedded in a romantic winter landscape.

• Enjoy the very best of Czech main line steam on four different days and diverse routes over ‘rare track’ through the picturesque countryside with excellent chances for snow in the Eagle Mountains and Jeseniky Range.
• Travel with steam legends like the elegant 4-8-2 tender locomotive 475.111, the powerful Skoda-built 2-10-0 freight engine 50.1171 and the recently refurbished tank green tank 312.3629.
• On two days of main line steam in northeast Bohemia you will have the benefit of being accommodated on one of the finest early 20th Century luxury trains in Central Europe, with a splendidly refurbished rake of classic 1st Class coaches dating from the 1930s, a Bar Car and an amazingly restored 1906 teak dining car.
• The tour is based in the beautiful Czech capital of Prague, giving you ample free time to explore and appreciate all that this amazing city has to offer. You will also spend three nights at Letohrad Castle in a stylish countryside hotel with historic flair.

Saturday 14th February
London to Prague
You have a direct morning flight from London to Prague, with a mid-day arrival in the Czech capital. After arrival to your centrally located hotel, you will be greeted with a welcome lunch before having the rest of the day to spend at your leisure exploring Prague and all of its historic as well as cultural attractions (L)

Sunday 15th February
Steam in the Giant Mountains with 312.3629
After breakfast you take a service train from Prague’s elegant 1909 main station through much of Central and North Bohemia to Tanvald. Along the way you will pass through the so-called ‘Czech Paradise’, marked by rugged cliffs and romantic hilltop castle ruins. You are also likely to encounter snow on these remote routes. You arrive to Tanvald in the late morning, where you will continue on the steeply graded line to Korenov and Harrachov. You will have a private charter train with the newly overhauled green tank engine 312.3629, an industrial 0-6-0 dating from 1957 one the only one of its kind currently in running order. As you steam towards the Polish border over towering viaducts, the scene will be marked by vast forests and deep valleys. Photo stops and run-pasts with your private charter steam train will be included. In the late afternoon you return to Prague by service train. (B L)

Monday 16th February 
Prague at leisure
After a full day of steam, this Monday is designed to let you relax and enjoy Prague, making the most of your complimentary public transport rover to ride the historic Tatra trams or sightsee on foot in the charming old town.
Walk across the Charles Bridge, ride the tramway up to Prague Castle or visit one of the many brewpubs. The choice is yours and your Tour Manager will be pleased to advise you. (B)

Tuesday 17th February
Main line steam in West Bohemia with 475.111
A real highlight of European steam awaits today with the elegant and refined Czech Class 475. These mighty 4-8-2 tender locomotives were built by Skoda in the late 1940s and are iconic for their large driving wheels and lofty boiler placement. These graceful machines were mainstay motive power until the late 1970s and have featured in countless major motion pictures since. You will travel with the Pilsen based 475.111 from Pilsen north on the scenic secondary line to Zatec. Along the way you pause for photos and lunch. In the late afternoon your private charter train returns to Pilsen’s elegant Art Nouveau station, from where you return to Prague by Intercity train. (B L)

Wednesday 18th February
Free morning in Prague, ‘Baltic Express’ to Letohrad
In the morning there’s more free time to continue your exploration of Prague, before you take the early afternoon ‘Baltic Express’ EuroCity train from Prague to Letohrad, located near the Polish border. This railway junction is also a pretty historical town and features a stately 18th Century Baroque Chateau, where you will be accommodated for the next three nights. Dinner is at the hotel restaurant. (B D)

Thursday 19th February 
Luxury train and main line steam to the Jeseniky Mountains
After breakfast you take a service train from Letohrad to Dolni Lipka, one of the large steam sheds in the Czech Republic. From there you will have a private steam charter hauled by the mighty Skoda-built 2-10-0 freight locomotive 50.1171 dating from 1942. Your train will be formed of 1930s former Swiss coaches and the vintage 1906 Ringhoffer-built Teak dining car, which was only just restored in 2025, after decades out of use. You will steam through the Sudetenland along the Polish frontier and pause for photos at one of the Czech defensive bunkers built in the 1930s. After pausing for photos you continue to the railway junction Hanusovice, before then also steaming on the steeply graded branch line to Stare Mesto. Lunch will be served in the Teak car and the train also includes a fine bar car originally dating from 1913. You return by steam to Dolni Lipka in the afternoon, once again pausing for photos and also a run-past. From there you continue to your hotel for dinner. (B L D)

Friday 20th February
Luxury train and main line steam in the Eagle Mountains
In the morning the same wonderful steam train consist as from the day before picks you up in Letohrad and then takes you for another charter run on the main line westbound to Usti nad Orlici and the the branch line to the UNESCO World Heritage town of Litomysl, this time passing through the scenic Eagle Mountains.Lunch will once again be served in the beautiful teak dining car and dinner at the castle hotel. On the return run you pause for more photo stops. (B L D)

Saturday 21st February 
Return to Prague by train, flight to London
You return to Prague by train and then transfer by coach to Prague airport for your return flight to the UK. (B)