mystery tours are provided by anglo french train service

You’re Invited Onboard the Original Orient Express for a Murder Mystery Party

Get your glad rags ready for a trip back to 1920s france to help solve a murder based on a classic agatha christie novel..

• Copy Link copied

Play out Agatha Christie’s “Mystery of the Blue Train” onboard the restored vintage train cars of the Orient Express.

Photo by L. Hakimian

Agatha Christie fans, brace yourselves. Bookings are now open for the second murder mystery party hosted by bespoke luxury tour company Ariodante onboard the original Orient Express train—1920s costumes and all.

Between 1883 to 1977, the Orient Express hosted the likes of F. Scott Fitzgerald and Coco Chanel along its famed Paris to Istanbul route. Although the original train is rarely used these days, it is being brought back for this special event. From March to November each year, a different train called the Belmond Venice Simplon-Orient-Express operates along that original route also in restored 1920s train cars.

Based on Agatha Christie’s novel The Mystery of the Blue Train , the first murder mystery party took place on January 18, 2020 (and completely sold out). Ariodante just announced that the second party will kick off at 10 a.m. on Sunday, May 17, 2020, at the Train Bleu restaurant at Paris’s Gare de Lyon station. After the rules of the game are explained, passengers will depart on the Orient Express around 11:30 a.m. where they will step back in time to the 1920s for an all-day immersive experience complete with actors disguised as train staff and guests. The train ride ends in Nice in the French Riviera at 11 p.m. that same day.

Along the way, passengers will be treated to meals, including a five-course lunch with wine pairings and a dinner in the train’s sumptuous dining car. By the time the train arrives in Nice about 12 hours later that evening, the murder will be solved and guests will celebrate with champagne in the bar car before departing for their hotels in Nice for an overnight stay. The experience is a one-way trip—partygoers can either fly out of Nice’s airport or book a six-hour return trip to Paris on a high-speed TGV train .

In addition to the murder mystery party, guests will take meals in the train’s vintage dining car.

Photo by Thierry Hugon

How much does it cost?

This amount of luxury unfortunately doesn’t come at 1920s prices. Starting at $10,380 per person, a standard ticket includes train passage, participation in the murder mystery, and a full set of photographs from an onboard photographer to remember the experience. You’ll want to arrive hungry, too: not only are breakfast, lunch, and dinner included but also the aforementioned champagne reception. To make you truly feel like you’ve gone back in time to the golden age of travel, transfers to the hotel in Nice are included along with luggage pickup and delivery.

Book Now: From $10,380 per person, ariodantetravel.com

For an additional $3,916 per person, you can book a VIP package that also includes a private session with a French theater and film costume designer to get fitted for 1920s-era outfits for the party, plus a haircut and a manicure to complete your look. In addition to regular transfers to and from the airports in Paris and France, this package also includes a transfer from the hotel to the train station in a vintage 1920s car.

Ariodante has hotel packages with accommodations at the Hotel Meurice or Plaza-Athénée in Paris and the Hyatt Regency Palais de la Méditéranée in Nice for anyone who really wants to go all out.

The murder mystery party ends in Nice with a champagne reception in the bar car.

Courtesy of Ariodante

Will it happen again?

If you can’t make the May date work with your schedule, Ariodante is hosting one more murder mystery party this fall on the Orient Express in October 2020. (We will update this article with the specific date as soon as it is announced.)

Will there ever be a Murder on the Orient Express– themed party?

While Ariodante isn’t hosting any Murder on the Orient Express– themed murder mystery parties this year, Belmond is hosting a 1920s-themed package dubbed “The Party” from March 27 to 29, 2020, onboard its Venice Simplon-Orient-Express train. No murder mysteries will take place at this event, but it does include a speakeasy party à la Jay Gatsby at the Belmond Hotel Cipriani in Venice, followed by an overnight train ride to London with costumes and surprise performances.

Book Now: From $5,643 per person, belmond.com

This article originally appeared online on October 24, 2019; it was updated on January 27, 2020, to include current information. Products we write about are independently vetted and recommended by our editors. We may earn a commission if you buy through our links.

>> Next: The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express Is a Real-Life Time Machine

• Small & Medium Business Travel
• Sports Travel
• TV, Media & Music Tours
• Group Travel
• Multi-Destination Travel
• Active Travel
• Cruise Travel
• Special Occasion Travel
• Food & Drink Travel
• Beach Travel
• Family Travel
• Australasia
• Middle East
• North America
• South America
• Inspiration
• Meet The Team

The Mystery of the Blue Train

On 26 th May 2022, travel alchemist Ariodante will host an exclusive experience on board the legendary Orient Express as it travels from Paris to Nice.

Based on Agatha Christie’s famous novel, The Mystery of the Blue Train, this unique one-day activation will combine a murder mystery with immersive theatre and escape room drama, set against the backdrop of the 1920s, with all the splendour, glamour and excesses of those times. The trip has been scheduled to arrive in time for the Monaco Grand Prix.

Donning period costume, guests will be transported back in time as they embark on an unforgettable adventure across France. When a passenger is ‘murdered’, they will step into Poirot’s shoes, tasked with finding out who did it, how and why.  

Spread across the whole train, with actors disguised as guests and train staff, no one will know who is for real, while guests themselves may unknowingly become a suspect.  

With mobile phones and laptops prohibited, passengers must rely solely on their imagination and detective skills. The winner will be announced during a champagne party at the end of the day and will receive a reward worth £100,000, including an original Lalique piece from the period.

The mystery will start at the Train Bleu restaurant at Gare de Lyon in Paris where the rules of the game will be explained. Once onboard, passengers will enjoy a Burgundian gastronomic lunch prepared by one of the world’s best French chefs, with each of the five courses paired with a different rare vintage Krug champagne.  

In the afternoon, guests will be treated to a French-inspired tea with desserts and patisseries, while dinner will comprise a three-course light Provencal gastronomic dinner paired with fine wines, accompanied by a 1920s-style jazz band.

Not to be confused with the Venice-Simplon Orient-Express – a Belmond Train – the Orient Express is a French national monument that travels only rarely. In fact, it will be the first time this train will travel to the French Riviera since the Blue Train stopped in the early 70s.  

In its heyday it was known as the ‘Millionaire’s Train’ carrying famous passengers such as Charlie Chaplin, Coco Chanel, Winston Churchill and F. Scott Fitzgerald. The Blue Train will be recreated specifically for this experience, ensuring that every detail is true to the book, but taking the hospitality to a whole new level.

Dates for further Murder Mystery adventures in different locations around the world will be announced shortly. Each adventure is unique and crafted specifically around the story and in the context of the time it was originally based.

For further information, including pricing structure, please contact one of our Travel Managers on 0203 535 9290.

Share This Story, Choose Your Platform!

• 0 Shopping Cart $ 0.00 -->

How it Works

Magical Mystery Tours specializes in customized mystery trips. Travelers set the parameters, we put together a trip based on those specifications, and then travelers discover their destination upon arriving at the airport!

First, you complete our mystery travel survey and provide your trip specifications. Then we get to work putting together a getaway that’s individually designed and customized for you. A week before your trip, we email you a weather forecast, packing list, and flight departure time.

Shortly afterward, we mail your reveal packet containing a destination overview, why we chose it for you, all your trip booking information, and guidance on dining and activity options. You’ll take this sealed red envelope to the airport to open and discover where you’re headed!

Resist the temptation to rip it open early…this is all part of the mystery trip experience!

This vacation style means you don’t have to—can’t, even—spend hours poring over destination options, flight schedules, hotel reviews, lists of things to do, restaurant reviews, and so on. We handle all of the details, drawing upon our considerable travel knowledge and experience.

You simply get to revel in the anticipation and excitement and then show up and enjoy this unique travel experience, with the peace of mind that we have planned your trip just for you, based on the parameters you’ve provided. It’s stress-free and fun!

Are you intrigued? Let’s get started…

What They’re Saying

From Oprah Winfrey and The New York Times to Vogue magazine and hundreds of satisfied clients, folks are raving about Magical Mystery Tours!

Get Inspired

Ever wondered if mystery travel is for you? Read these client testimonials in our Mystery Traveler Q&A series.

Book Your Next Trip

Ulisa (Curaçao)

Felix & Sarah (Spain)

Dave & Jaclyn (Azores)

Bringing History alive through theatre!

Find everything you need to know about the latest information on the theatrical tours coming up for 2024!

"They are excellent. fully recommend them to everyone. Such great fun and so interesting”⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

About the mystery tours, our audiences.

We envision a world where arts and entertainment are accessible to everyone. We believe that creativity is a fundamental human trait that should be nurtured and celebrated. Our goal is to bring history alive through theatre.

The Mystery Tours are suitable for from the ages of eight through to adult. Tours normally last between 60 and 90 minutes, with a maximum of 20 people. During this time, the Time Traveller will transport you back in time and act as your guide.

Our Content

 Our content is designed to inform, entertain, and inspire our readers. We will be updating and adding more information on the upcoming tours for 2023 and 2024.

Next Mystery Tours! Tickets now on sale!

The mystery tours - 'the hidden secrets of the northampton & county club' 28th may at 12pm.

Come join the Time Traveller for the next exciting adventure, as we explore the hidden secrets of the Northampton & County Club ! Our Mystery Tour will take you on a journey through the historic rooms and mysterious 14th century cellars of this exclusive club that once was Northampton's Infirmary. Who knows what secrets and ghosts of the past we will uncover along the way? Don't miss out on this one-of-a-kind experience!

Meeting point: Outside The Northampton & County Club

Suitability: Adults and children over the age of ten. Lasts approx 1hr. Tickets: £15 plus booking fee

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mystery.tours/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/themysterytours  

To book, click the link below!

Mystery Tour Tickets On Sale Now! Walk with us, if you dare!

Mystery tour quotes, here's what some of audience had to say about the tours:.

General Comments 

"Loved it 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟”

"Highly recommend the Mystery Tours - every one is packed full of everything you ever wanted to know about Northampton’s interesting & rich past. The time traveller transports you back to relive different parts of the town’s history with each tour focusing on a different theme & some interesting characters appearing along the way to tell their own stories. The tours are very well researched & engage & inform the audience throughout. Always an interesting glimpse into Northampton’s past & a celebration of the heritage of the town"

'Crime and Punishment' - April 2024

"It was brilliant! So engaging and bringing the stories to life, also really refreshing to hear all correct historical facts and dates within the tour- really good work!" - Louise Hannam-Jones |Events and Projects Officer (Northampton Town Council)

"Best Mystery Tour since their return! Much of Northampton’s history requires imagination to think of what was once present, but for the crime & punishment themed tour, Northampton’s Grade I listed Sessions House built in 1675 provides an apt & grand location. If its walls could talk, they would tell the tales presented so succinctly by the time traveller of highwaymen, witches & theft, of judges & waggling tongue devils passing the ultimate sentence & of the walk of shame to the execution yard. This mystery tour offered all of this & more - participating in a trial in a 17th century court house, experiencing the original cells & treading the same path as those condemned to death by the court. Utterly brilliant, packed full of interesting information & the opportunity to visit such an amazing building & hear the tales it has to tell!" - Public Review

“We enjoyed the event immensely … brought home a little of what it must have been like” - Richard Blacklee (Author of 'the Culworth Gang' and 'Gaols, Gallows and Ghosts'

Northampton 'Theatreland - Past and Present - Feb 2024

"Another brilliant Mystery Tour with a theme of Northampton’s Theatreland - Past & Present. The time traveller transported our audience back in time to relive the hey days of different theatrical spaces located around the town. The tour was well researched & packed full of everything you could possibly want to know about Northampton’s theatre heritage. As is often the case with Northampton’s history, imagination is needed in parts  where buildings no longer exist, but the story of the past was conveyed excellently through a detailed factual narrative which brought it to life once again. You learn something new everytime & always end a tour wanting to know more & this was no exception. Bring on the next one!"

Northampton 'Ghost Walk' Oct 2023

"Most enjoyable almost forgot it was raining!"

"It was great really enjoyed it thank you"

"Brilliant as always - informative, interesting & engaging. Have missed the tours & so glad they are back"

Past Tours!

Mystery Tours - 'Ghost Walk' - November 2023

Mystery tours - 'a journey into aylesbury's past' heritage days - september 2023, drop us a line.

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Better yet, see us in person!

We looking forward to seeing you on our tours!

The Mystery Tours

Next tour: Northampton 20th Jan and Aylesbury 27th Jan 2024

All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players.

William Shakespeare

Copyright © 2024 The Mystery Tours - All Rights Reserved.

• Privacy Policy

Powered by GoDaddy

This website uses cookies.

We use cookies to analyze website traffic and optimize your website experience. By accepting our use of cookies, your data will be aggregated with all other user data.

The LNER Encyclopedia

Discussion and reference site for the London North Eastern Railway

Skip to content

• Home Forum Non-LNER Chat Railway Chat

B.R. Mystery tours & excursion trains

Moderators: 52D , Tom F , Rlangham , Atlantic 3279 , Blink Bonny , Saint Johnstoun , richard

Post by Mickey » Thu Apr 04, 2013 4:30 pm

Re: B.R. Mystery tours & excursion trains

Post by 1H was 2E » Thu Apr 04, 2013 8:12 pm

Post by StevieG » Thu Apr 04, 2013 9:58 pm

Micky wrote: " Back in the 1960s & 1970s British Rail use to run a number of trains around the country usually at weekends advertised as 'Mystery tours' to the general public the 'in joke' being back then with B.R. staff was that even the train crews didn't know where they were going let alone the general public that were riding on these trains?. .... "

Post by strang steel » Thu Apr 04, 2013 10:01 pm

It lists a lot of mystery excursions by date and I've looked at the dates you mention and, ironically, details apart from date seem to be a mystery.

Post by Boris » Fri Apr 05, 2013 9:51 am

Post by Mickey » Fri Apr 05, 2013 7:28 pm

Post by cambois » Fri Apr 05, 2013 10:16 pm

Post by Andy W » Fri Apr 05, 2013 10:54 pm

Post by manna » Fri Apr 05, 2013 11:58 pm

Post by sandwhich » Fri Apr 12, 2013 5:26 pm

Return to “Railway Chat”

• All times are UTC+01:00

Powered by phpBB ® Forum Software © phpBB Limited

Privacy | Terms

Related Content

Helpful links:, the 16 things most worth knowing..., taking a tgv, taking an intercités service:, taking a ter service:, travelling with bicycles:, booking in advance online:, saving money:, buying tickets at the station:, seat reservations:, child tickets:, detailed train ticket guides:, by train to and from paris, journeys from paris, journeys from lyon, journeys from marseille, journeys from lille, a general note about the timetables:, the most scenic routes:, international rail routes from france:, good to know:, left luggage:, detailed info on the major stations, please support showmethejourney, other travel guides, related resources.

• Cities & Stations

• France by train

Welcome to the guide on how to save money, time and confusion when travelling in France by train.

Travelling on French trains can be an exhilarating experience, and once you’re used to the many quirks of national rail operator SNCF, it can be less complicated then it first seems.

These are the seventeen things that are particularly useful to know about French rail travel:

• The French national rail operator is SNCF and it manages virtually all train services in France.
• Most French cities are served by high speed rail lines on which trains travel at up to 300 km/h, but those which aren't include Caen, Clermont-Ferrand, Le Havre, Limoges and Rouen.
• On most of the high speed routes there is a choice between a regular InOui service , or a typically cheaper, but more basic Ouigo service - TGV trains are used for both.
• These TGV trains can travel beyond the high speed lines to serve cities that include Brest, Nice, Perpignan and Toulouse.
• Intercités are the long-distance express trains which don't use the high-speed lines and they primarily operate on these routes:
• Paris - Nevers - Vichy - Clermont-Ferrand
• Paris - Limoges - Toulouse
• Marseille - Nimes - Montpellier - Toulouse - Bordeaux
• Nantes - Bordeaux
• Nantes - Bourges - Lyon
• The timetables on long-distance French rail routes are typically irregular, aside from Paris ↔ Lille and Lyon, the express train routes don't typically have hourly departures.
• Discounted tickets also known as Prems tickets are available for travel by InOui and Intercités services.
• Seat reservations are complimentary and are therefore included when booking tickets for a journey by an express train - InOui, Intercités and Ouigo.
• It's not uncommon for all seats to be sold out on specific InOui services ahead of the day of departure, particularly when heading to holiday destinations - during July and August 2023 around 40% of InOui services were fully booked prior to departure.
• The local and regional trains are known as TER services , but if you book the cheapest type of ticket for last minute travel at a station, you can only travel by these trains and cannot board any of the express services .
• TER trains depart at least hourly on routes around Lyon, Nice, Metz and Lille, but gaps of two hours or more between departures are fairly common on other routes.
• All international daytime trains to and from Paris are high-speed services: Eurostar - to/from London, Amsterdam, Brussels and Cologne
• TGV and ICE - to/from Frankfurt and Stuttgart
• Lyria - to/from Basel, Geneva, Lausanne and Zurich
• TGV and Frecce trains - to/from Milan and Turin
• TGV trains - to/from Barcelona.
• Nightjet trains now link Paris to Berlin and Vienna.
• Overnight trains , which don't convey sleeping cabins, connect Paris to destinations in southern France including Nice and Perpignan.
• At major French stations , the voie (platform / track) that each train will be leaving from will appear on the departure screens around twenty minutes prior to departure.
• The departure info shows where to wait for easy boarding into the coaches of the TGV and Intercités train in which reserved seats will be located.
• The centre of Paris is surrounded by multiple stations used by long-distances trains to / from different destinations.
• Est = trains to/from Colmar, Frankfurt, Luxembourg, Metz, Nancy, Reims, Strasbourg and Stuttgart
• Lyon = trains to/from Antibes, Avignon, Basel, Barcelona, Cannes, Dijon, the French Alps, Geneva, Grenoble, Marseille, Montpellier, Mulhouse, Nice, Nimes, Valence and Zurich
• Montparnasse = trains to/from Biarritz, Bordeaux, Brest, La Rochelle, Le Mans, Nantes, Poitiers, Rennes and Toulouse
• Nord = trains to/from Amsterdam, Brussels, Calais, Cologne, Lille and London
• St Lazare = trains to/from Bayeux, Caen, Cherbourg, Le Havre and Rouen
• Transferring between the different stations in Paris can often be avoided by taking InOui and Ouigo services which use routes which circle around the capital and provide direct links, such as:
• Lille ↔ Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier, Nantes, Rennes and Strasbourg.
• Nantes and Rennes ↔ Lyon, Marseille and Strasbourg
• Bordeaux ↔ Strasbourg.

Travelling on the trains:

SNCF is the national rail operator in France and it provides virtually all French train services, which are grouped into these five categories

(1) TGV InOui = standard (superior) TGV services, which use the high speed lines for all or most of their journeys.

(2) Ouigo - More basic lower cost TGV services, which provide an alternative to the TGV InOui services on the high speed lines.

(3) Intercités = Express train services which don't use the high speed lines. Cities which are only served by Intercités trains include Clermont-Ferrand and Limoges.

(4) TER services = The regional train services in France, but this encompasses a broad swathe of services including;

• trains that can spend more than two hours travelling between cities; and some of these routes can parallel the high speed lines;
• the local trains outside Paris.
• many of the services to and from Paris which until fairly recently were categorised as Intercités services, - these include the trains between Paris and Belfort, Boulogne, Cherbourg and Le Havre. How tickets can be purchased and used on these TER services from/to Paris can differ from the norm.

(5) Transilien services = the longer distance 'commuter' trains to/from Paris. (The RER trains which travel across central Paris are co-operated between SNCF and RATP, which also operates the Paris Metro).

All on board announcements on domestic trains are French language only. The conductors may not speak English on IC and TER trains, particularly those that don’t serve Paris.

The modernised trains used for many 'InOui' services offer enhanced Wi-fi, but if you will be travelling on other TGV trains, the connectivity can be patchy and is only theoretically available on the high speed lines. Few other train services have Wi-Fi, it's not available on the Ougio or Intercités services.

There are four* different types of regular TGV train , which travel on the TGV InOui routes.

You can check which of these TGV trains will be used on a departure you will be taking by following these simple steps .

*Technically there are more than 4 types of TGV train, but we have focused on the four trains, that will have obvious differences in the on-board experience.

The Ouigo Services:

However, on most the high-speed routes, travellers now have a choice between travelling on standard TGV InOui service, OR on low-cost, more basic TGV services, which are branded ' Ouigo '.

In contrast to TGV InOui services, the Ouigo services:

• are 2nd class only,
• have no catering facilities available
• have no Wi-Fi etc,
• don't permit bikes on board,
• require pre-booking for pushchairs/strollers,
• have a less generous luggage allowance
• have a different boarding procedure
• have tickets that that can be booked up to 6 months ahead, but can't be refunded.

Previously most Ouigo services had used alternative stations away from the city centres, some still do so, but new Ouigo routes now offer a like-for-like comparison with TGV InOui services. Particularly because many Ouigo services now depart from stations in central Paris.

Away from the LGVs (high speed lines):

TGV InOui trains can travel long distances away from the high speed lines. But on these non-high speed routes, travelling by InOui services can* be more expensive than taking alternative Intercités or TER services.

* Tickets for the TGVs will be more expensive if you book last minute at the station, but will usually be cheaper if you book in advance.

The most popular routes on which the InOui trains don't travel at high speed are:

• Bordeaux ↔ Toulouse
• Marseille ↔ Nice
• Bordeaux ↔ Biarritz/Hendaye/Lourdes
• Rennes ↔ Quimper/Brest

Somewhat confusingly there are two distinct types of non-high speed express train services, which are both branded 'Intercités'.

(1) Longer distance trains which are the top-tier services on long distance routes that have no, or very limited, TGV services. We have used the Intercités branding on ShowMeTheJourney for these train services, because they have specific ticketing terms and conditions, including the fact that seat reservations are compulsory (so are included when booking tickets).

(2) Other cross-country express train services. ShowMeTheJourney has classified these services as ' IC France ' - due to the differences in ticketing terms with the other Intercités trains.

TER train services are the regional trains in France, they can vary between local stopping trains in cities or rural areas - and faster services, which cross multiple regions.

The four key things worth knowing about TER services are:

• Seats can't be reserved.
• On routes which don't serve Paris, tickets aren't discounted, so you will pay the same price if you book last minute at the station; so if you'll be making a journey by most TER trains there's no need to book online.
• Though discounted tickets are offered on the longer-distance TER services between Paris and destinations to the north now branded as 'Krono' services; these are the routes on which Intercités services have been replaced by TER services in recent years.
• No on-board catering services will be provided.
• A wide variety of trains are used for TER services, you could be travelling on a brand new train, or a train that still conveys its sense of 1970s style.

The usual travel ‘rules’ in France for folding bikes, bagged and placed on the floor by your seat, can also apply to standard bikes IF you can fit your bike in a bag measuring 120cm X 90cm max, by removing its front wheel and then by placing it and the rest of the bike in the bag.

If you CAN'T meet those requirements, the rules for taking a non-folding bike on a train vary according to both the type of travelling you will by AND in which region you will be travelling; though it is now much more likely than not that you will be able to travel on French trains if you don't disassemble your bicycle.

What is particularly useful is that the recently launched national train ticket / travel ticket service, SNCF Connect , has incorporated the ability to add a wish to travel with a non-folding bicycle, into its journey search service. So without buying a ticket, you can look up a journey and check which departures you can take a non-folding bike on board.

The ticket prices you will see for journeys by TGV and Intercités trains will include both your travel AND the bike’s; general info about booking French train tickets is available here .

Taking bikes on express trains in France:

You can take a non-folding bicycle on board Intercités trains for a flat fee of €5 regardless of the distance you will be travelling; and this price has recently been reduced by 50%.

For journeys by TGV, a recent changes is that a flat-rate reservation fee of €10 now covers journeys by any TGV InOui service, including the previously excluded double-deck TGV Duplex trains.

If you will be travelling by an Intercités, TGV Atlantique, TGV Duplex or TGV POS train, you usually have to interact with the train conductor, so when you’re at the station it’s worth checking what you’ll need to do. Particularly if you won’t be joining a train at its starting point, so will have limited time on the voie (platform/track) to work out what the procedure is, when the train arrives.

However, the new TGV Oceane trains have been fitted with bike racks, so when you book a bike ticket on these trains, you will be reserving a space on the rack.

What’s also worth knowing is that you can’t book Premiére/1st class tickets for journeys by TGV or Intercités if you want to travel with a bike; presumably because the bike storage on these trains isn’t adjacent to the Premiére Class seating areas.

Taking a bike on regional trains in France:

In France the regional trains are the TER trains and most local train services outside of the Paris area are also classified as TER services.

You won’t need to purchase bike tickets for journeys by TER trains, but each region in France co-manages its TER trains with the national rail operator SNCF and the region can set certain stipulations, such as bikes not being allowed on trains at all at busy times. Though what is universal is that when dedicated bike spaces are provided, they will be the only places on the train in which bikes can be stored and they're allocated on a first come, first served basis. Meaning that you can't absolutely guarantee that space will be available for your bike(s); and many TER routes, particularly in rural areas, have gaps of two hours or more between departures.

Specific info is available by clicking the names of the regions on this list, though you'll need to use a translation facility if you can't read French - Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes ; Bourgogne-Franche-Comte ; Bretagne (Brittany); Centre val de Loire (the popularity of exploring the Loire Valley by bike has led to the creation of a special Train Velo Loire service , which can accommodate up to 83 bikes); Grand Est ; Hauts De France ; Normandy ; Nouvelle Aquitaine ; Occitaine ; Pays de Loire and Provence-Alps-Cote d’Azur .

You can also take a bike on board a Transillien train , the longer-distance commuter routes to/from Paris EXCEPT when travelling on Monday to Friday between 6:30 - 9:30 and 16:30 - 19:30.

Notes on the ticketing:

On your ticket ‘voiture = the coach/carriage number, ‘Place Assise’ = the seat number.

Also have your passport (or another form of ID) with you on any journey including domestic journeys solely within France. You need ID with you for ANY ticket to be valid.

The earlier you can book journeys by Intercités and TGV InOui trains, the more money you can save. That's because only limited numbers of the most heavily discounted tickets are made available on most routes taken by TGV and Intercités trains, but not by TER services. Though on some routes by TER trains to and from Paris specific types of discounted tickets are available, but the saving is typically less than €10. As the limited numbers of discounted tickets at the cheaper prices, inevitably sell out faster, the earlier you can book, the more likely it is that you will save money.

Tickets for journeys by Intercités and TGV InOui trains are now generally placed on sale 6 months (180 days) ahead of the travel date; this a relatively new extension of the advance booking period, which used to be 4 months. In contrast tickets for Ouigo services are now typically available up to 9 months ahead!

If you look up journeys MORE than 6 months ahead on SNCF Connect, on routes shared by TGV InOui and Ouigo services, you will usually only see the Ouigo departures listed; so in these circumstances, don't assume that travelling by a Ouigo service will be your only journey option. SNCF will alert you to the fact that additional tickets will become avaialable.

Looking up journeys for travel after the second Sunday in December

The booking period can be shorter when looking up journeys which involve travelling after the second Sunday in each December. The nationwide and international train timetables / schedules have a major annual update, which takes effect from the second Sunday in December. However, tickets can't be placed on sale until the new timetable is confirmed and this confirmation tends to occur around mid-October, there isn't a set date for this. So if you will be be looking up a journey for travel after the second Sunday in December and can't find any tickets on the route you want to take, it will be because the tickets haven't yet been made available.

Introducing SNCF Connect:

SNCF Connect is the new website for French rail tickets, hence ShowMeTheJourney's guide to what to look out for when making a booking .

Though some less obvious key features when booking on SNCF Connect, which are also different to the norm when booking European train tickets, are:

• For any journey in 2nd class on most French trains (Ouigo services are the exception) it isn't possible to choose between different types of ticket at the time of booking, only one type of ticket will be offered.
• It isn't possible to separate direct trains from journeys which involve connections.
• Journeys which involve more than two connections between trains (excluding transferring between stations in Paris) aren't available.

Aside from booking in advance for journeys by Intercités and TGV InOui trains, other money saving tips are:

• Ticket prices can be dependent on how popular a specific departure is likely to be, so different Intercites and InOui trains leaving the same day can be (much) cheaper than others.
• If you can book ahead, it's possible that tickets for the TGV InOui trains and Intercités may be cheaper than taking the TER trains, so you can have the option of getting to your destination faster AND saving money. TER train tickets can cost more than you might expect.

And if Ouigo trains are an alternative to the TGV InOui trains when making a high speed journey, you'll save money by taking a Ouigo.

If you will be travelling by local or TER trains, tickets will cost the same price if you buy them last minute at the station (some TER routes to/from Paris are now an exception). However, when you buy a ticket(s) at the station it will be train service specific, meaning that if you buy a ticket that is valid for a journey by TER train services, you cannot then use on Intercités or TGV InOui trains.

All tickets* must be stamped at on the small yellow machines prior to boarding a train. Normally these can be found at the entrance to a voie/track/platform. *Tickets = tickets printed out by ticket machines or issued at ticket counters.

Reservations are compulsory for all journeys by TGV InOui trains, irrespective of whether the journey is on a high speed line, AND on some (but not all) Intercités trains. The reservation will automatically be included, when booking tickets for journeys by these trains online; this also the case when booking tickets for Ouigo journeys

If you are booking 2nd class tickets for TGV InOui services you can choose the part of the train you would prefer to travel in. However when booking 1st class tickets, you can also select specific seats from a seating plan; the more expensive of the two types of Ouigo tickets also enables the selection of specific seats.

Reservations are also mandatory on virtually all express trains to and from France including:

• on Eurostar,
• RENFE/SNCF,
• TGV France/Italy services
• the TGV trains between France and Belgium The reservation will automatically be included when booking tickets for journeys by these trains.

Children aged under 4 travel for free. Children aged 4-11 pay half fare on all trains EXCEPT for Ouigo services, on which they travel at a flat rate of €5. The adult rate is charged for all travellers aged 12 and over.

There is no main central station in Paris instead the city is ringed by seven terminals.

Train services between Paris and destinations to the north depart from and arrive at the Gare Du Nord , while those between Paris and the south-east France use the Gare De Lyon . The two stations are linked by frequent RER (commuter) trains.

However there are direct TGVs between Lille and many destinations served by trains to/from the Gare De Lyon, including Avignon, Lyon, Marseille and Montpellier.

The journey guides include access to booking links and information about the trains, tickets and destination stations. Plus for the scenic routes there are insights on how to make the most of the rides on the trains.

Search for a journey:

• No Matching Cities
• List is empty.

French train timetables are often irregular, many specific train services/departures only operate on certain days of the week.

Also few train services operate at regular intervals; timetables on which trains leave at the same minutes passed every hour are comparatively usual in France. Though what's becoming more common is that the same departure and arrival times are used on each day, but the train services can be travelling to and from different final destinations on different days of the week. Meaning that the shorter the distance you will be travelling, the more likely it is that you will able to take trains leaving at regular intervals.

On TGV InOui routes the service can vary from a train every 30 mins at peak times, to gaps of two hours or more between trains in the middle of the day.

The longer distance regional TER trains also tend to operate to very sporadic timetables. 1 x train per hour is the exception rather than the norm; on many TER routes there can be gaps of 3-4 hours between trains.

The most stunning journeys taken by long-distance trains are:

• Nimes <> Clermont Ferrand
• Marseille <> Toulon - Les Arcs > Nice
• Chambery <> Bourg St Maurice
• Beziers <> Clermont Ferrand
• Grenoble > Veynes > Marseille
• Chambery <> Modane
• Geneve <> Aix-les-Bains
• Geneve <> Bourg-en-Bresse
• Besancon <> Belfort (not the high speed line)

Other beautiful journeys by local and regional trains include:

• Toulouse <> La Tour de Carol
• Marseille <> Sausset-Les-Pins (the Cote Bleu route)
• Vallorcine > Chamonix - St Gervais
• Perpignan <> La Tour De Carol (not SNCF)
• Nice <> Cuneo
• Nice <> Digne (not SNCF)
• Nice <> Ventimglia
• Gap <> Briancon
• Perpignan <> Cerbere

Short videos showcasing some of these journeys have been uploaded to the ShowMeTheJourney channel on YouTube .

Notes on using the major stations:

Most of the main stations in French cities are very evocative of how they were originally constructed back in the 19th century. So they can be beautiful locations in which to wait for and board a train, but they weren't built to accommodate 21st century travel requirements.

As a result the access to and from the trains at some non-terminal stations can be comparatively awkward, because at this type of station, a passage beneath the tracks can be the only means of accessing many of the voies (platforms/tracks) which the trains depart from and arrive at. And these passage ways are often not equipped with escalators or lifts (elevators); if they are provided at all, their use is restricted to travellers who require mobility assistance. Meaning that staircasess can be the only means of transferring to and from the trains, at some or most of the platforms/tracks at many stations including Bordeaux St Jean, Dijon-Ville and Toulouse Matabiau.

More info, including how to find your way to your train, is available on the guide to using French train stations .

Eight things that are particularly good to know when using any major station in France.

1 . 'Voie' = the platform/track.

2 . The voie (platform/track) that an express train will depart from is divided into zones, a repére = a zone.

3 . Letters and not numbers are used for each repére (zone), but at some major stations the voies (platforms/tracks) also have letters in place of numbers.

4 . If you be will taking an Intercités or TGV service, for easy boarding when you are on the voie (platform/track) that your train will be leaving from, you can use the info screens to check which specific repére (zone) each 'voiture' (coach) will occupy. This repére (zone) information is only usually available when you are on the voie (platform/track).

5 . The number or letter of the specific voie (platform/track) that a train will be departing from will not usually be confirmed until 20 minutes before the departure time It may only be confirmed only 5 minutes in advance. As a result the concourses at major stations can become crowded.

6 . Because the voie (platform/track) is only confirmed so soon before departure, few major stations have departure sheets/posters. If, for example, you want to check the return timings of a TER train, a good option is to pick up a pocket timetable for the route you will be taking, from a ticket office or 'Accueil' information desk.

7 . However, not all 'Accueil' information desk staff will speak English.

8 . All tickets* must be stamped at on the small yellow machines prior to boarding a train. Normally these can be found at the entrance to a voie/track/platform. *Tickets = tickets printed out by ticket machines or issued at ticket counters.

French stations have staffed luggage offices, you need to process your bags and then having done so, you take them to a locker. Therefore pay attention to the opening times when you drop off your luggage, you can only return and retrieve it at designated hours.

Click the buttons below to discover how to travel to and from the stations by public transport, plus links to additional info including the station and city websites.

This second version of ShowMeTheJourney is exciting and new, so we are genuinely thrilled that you are here and reading this, but we also need your help. We’re striving not to let anything get in the way of providing the most useful service possible, hence a facility has been set up with DonorBox which can be used to support the running costs and make improvements.

Instead of advertising or paywalls, your financial support will make a positive difference to delivering an enhanced service, as there’s a lot of ideas which we want to make happen.

So if you have found the info provided here to be useful, please go here to say thank you .

These guides all contain info relevant to French train travel, so dive in and discover more about how to explore France by train.

Help keep us advertising and paywall free!

This second version of ShowMeTheJourney is exciting and new, so we are genuinely thrilled that you are here and reading this, but we also need your help.

We’re striving not to let anything get in the way of providing the most useful service possible, hence a facility has been set up with DonorBox which can be used to support the running costs and make improvements.

So if you have found the info provided here to be useful, please consider saying thank you.

See if there’s a unique journey guide for your trip, featuring info on the trains, tickets & stations.

• Austria by train
• Wien / Vienna
• Belgium by train
• Bruxelles / Brussels
• Czechia by train
• Praha / Prague / Prag
• Denmark by train
• København / Copenhagen
• Germany by train
• Frankfurt (Main)
• Köln / Cologne / Koeln
• München / Munich
• Great Britain by train
• Hungary by train
• Italy by train
• Firenze / Florence
• Milano / Milan / Mailand
• Roma / Rome
• Torino / Turin
• Venezia / Venice / Venedig
• Netherlands by train
• Norway by train
• Poland by train
• Warszawa / Warsaw
• Spain by train
• Sweden by train
• Switzerland by train
• Basel / Bâle
• Genève / Geneva
• Zürich / Zurich

This is one of more than 100 train travel guides available on ShowMeTheJourney , which will make it easier to take the train journeys you want or need to make. As always, all images were captured on trips taken by ShowMeTheJourney.

• Europe by Train
• Journey Guides
• Rail Stations
• Trip Planning
• Travel Articles
• Tips from 100s of journeys
• How to take a night train
• Good to know about daytime trains
• Travelling with Children
• Taking Bikes on Trains
• Travelling with Luggage
• Taking dogs on trains
• Common benefits of first class travel
• Journeys with multiple connections
• Money saving advice
• The best permanent deals and offers
• Intro to seat reservations
• Step-by-step booking guides
• InterRail/Eurail
• Access over 500 rail holidays
• Save 5% on more than 30 Swiss rail holidays
• Book a range of Swiss rail passes
• Buy Half Fare Cards for Switzerland
• Book train tickets with Trainline
• Book rail holidays worldwide with Bookmundi

• Search forums
• Our booking engine at tickets.railforums.co.uk (powered by TrainSplit) helps support the running of the forum with every ticket purchase! Find out more and ask any questions/give us feedback in this thread !
• Other Rail & Transport
• Railway History & Nostalgia

1970's BR Rail Tours and Mystery Tours

• Thread starter Requeststop
• Start date 11 Feb 2012
• 11 Feb 2012

Requeststop

1975-80, at Uni in Bristol, a cheap way to travel the nation was by British Rail Tours, Mystery Tours and Specials. For 5 pounds you'd get a days outing on a Saturday/Sunday to some fantastic rides covering some lines, loops and curves not usually used. You'd normally get to spend 3-5 hours at the destination, for a lookaround/shop/bite to eat. (no catering on board) I recall a Heart of Wales Special - Bristol-Swansea-Shrewsbury-Newport-Bristol; Bristol-Edinburgh; Bristol-Lincoln (around Sheffield-Retford- Gainsborough Lea Road); Bristol-Nottingham; Bristol Canterbury West; Newport- Weymouth (not such a surprise) Newport-York (a better surprise) Bristol-Exmouth (via Yeovil Pen Mill-Junction and a reversal at St James Park) and an exceptional Bristol-Norwich (via New Street-Leicester-and Ely Loop). Was this just a Bristol/Newport thing, or did other areas do the same at such a cheap price? I remember that they were very popular and in fact the Bristol-Edinburgh was sold out on the first day of sale, over the counter at Temple Meads, even though the departure was somewhere around 5 am and we didn't return until 5am on the Sunday. I'd be happy to hear of other BR Tours of the time that may have been out of the way and unusual.  

RailUK Forums

Established member.

I remember going with a party from my church on a mystery tour from Huddersfield in 1973/4. We were all seated together in one coach - a Mk 1 open. I remember we went through Mirfield, but unfortunately I was chatting to other people in the group and didn't pay too much attention until I noticed we were at Rotherham Masborough. I wish now I could remember the route we took [was the Midland line through Middlestown and Crigglestone still open then?]. From Masborough we traversed the "old" route avoiding Sheffield through Treeton, then Chesterfield, Derby and Birmingham, where it was announced we were heading for Worcester Shrub Hill. They handed-out information about Worcester and a city guide, and we had about 4 hours there before returning. It was a good day out, for, I think, about £10 each, in an age when the railways had the resources to provide pleasure trips and mystery tours. Happy days!  

We went on three of these tours. One to margate, one to littlehampton and one to Rhyl. All three times we started at Kettering. I think they all had a tea trolley in the luggage area of the brake coach. At least one run was behind a peak.  

Emeritus Moderator

We did quite a few of these trips from Swansea in the 1970's. I can remember going to Hastings, Portsmouth, Weston Super Mare, Paignton and Ramsgate. Staff came through the train just after departing Bridgend (usually) with a map of the destination, showing the station, the town and any places of interest, plus info on what time you had to be back on the train. Good days!  

theblackwatch

I think the £10 fare is a bit wide of the mark - tours were much cheaper than that! I'll have a look for some leaflets at some point.  

These were great for a cheap day out - plenty of mileage, some spotting opportunity and maybe a pint or two in somewhere you wouldn't normally go. Leeds to Clacton is one which stays in the memory. On the other hand, there were plenty of complaints on another occasion when families with kids and buckets and spades found out that their destination was Birmingham.  

• 13 Feb 2012

Went on many of these from Carlisle in the mid 70s - Nottingham, Cambridge, Cardiff/Barry Island, Bristol/Weston Super Mare (Western hauled from New St!), Oxford and Brighton come to mind. There were also regular trips to York via the S&C - on departure at night from York there'd be a blackboard with details of maybe over a dozen returning excursions to various parts of the country!  

• 15 Feb 2012

I can remember going on a number of these trips mostly from St Pancras, to Newport, Sth. Wales via I think Birmingham. Another to Morecombe then another to Paington from my then local station, Bowes Park. Also did one from Bowes Park to Blackpool. That was interesting as it ended up bringing a load of Football Supporters back to North London.  

• 17 Feb 2012
• 22 Feb 2012

Bevan Price

Liverpool area also ran excursion and mystex trains. Destinations I recall include Largs (40111 both ways), Skegness, Hereford, Portsmouth (Class 33 south of Coventry), Windsor & Eton Central.  

• 24 Feb 2012

theblackwatch said: I think the £10 fare is a bit wide of the mark - tours were much cheaper than that! I'll have a look for some leaflets at some point. Click to expand...

• 23 Aug 2012

ChiefPlanner

Treherbet to Ramsgate MUST have been a killer. Did a non mystery from Swansea to Edinburgh - 0400 Sat am departure , - back sometime Sunday morning (LHCS Mk2) -£8 I think. A stamina tester that was. No heat for the first bit to Cardiff where the loco was changed for one with ETH !  

• 24 Aug 2012

A circular trip hauled by 40018 from Carlisle (September 1978 if my memory is correct), to Edinburgh via Beattock and Carstairs East Curve (then rare track for passenger trains), then onto Berwick via Penmanshiel Tunnel (which collapsed early the following year), then back to Carlisle via Newcastle. It was on the return to Carlisle that things got really interesting. The 40 failed near Blaydon, and the rescue loco, 47323 then propelled (yes, propelled) the train to Hexham where the plan was for the 47 to run round in the loop. One problem - the train was longer than the loop, so attempts were made to revive the 40. When this didn't work, a more unorthodox solution was tried. As Hexham is on a gradient, the 47 came off the rear and into the loop, then the brakes were released on the train so it could roll back far enough for the 47 to run round (passengers still on board) and haul the train back to Carlisle, about 3 hours late. Not sure if any of these manoeuvres contravened the BR rule book.  

A shame something similar couldnt happen these days. Weekend HST (or the Olympic Mk2 rakes?) off to somewhere, for maybe 20 quid a head?  

• Preplanned tours
• Daytrips out of Moscow
• Themed tours
• Customized tours
• St. Petersburg

Moscow Metro 2019

Will it be easy to find my way in the Moscow Metro? It is a question many visitors ask themselves before hitting the streets of the Russian capital. As metro is the main means of transport in Moscow – fast, reliable and safe – having some skills in using it will help make your visit more successful and smooth. On top of this, it is the most beautiful metro in the world !

. There are over 220 stations and 15 lines in the Moscow Metro. It is open from 6 am to 1 am. Trains come very frequently: during the rush hour you won't wait for more than 90 seconds! Distances between stations are quite long – 1,5 to 2 or even 3 kilometers. Metro runs inside the city borders only. To get to the airport you will need to take an onground train - Aeroexpress.

RATES AND TICKETS

Paper ticket A fee is fixed and does not depend on how far you go. There are tickets for a number of trips: 1, 2 or 60 trips; or for a number of days: 1, 3 days or a month. Your trips are recorded on a paper ticket. Ifyou buy a ticket for several trips you can share it with your traveling partner passing it from one to the other at the turnstile.

On every station there is cashier and machines (you can switch it to English). Cards and cash are accepted. 1 trip - 55 RUB 2 trips - 110 RUB

Tickets for 60 trips and day passes are available only at the cashier's.

60 rides - 1900 RUB

1 day - 230 RUB 3 days - 438 RUB 30 days - 2170 RUB.

The cheapest way to travel is buying Troyka card . It is a plastic card you can top up for any amount at the machine or at the ticket office. With it every trip costs 38 RUB in the metro and 21 RUB in a bus. You can get the card in any ticket office. Be prepared to leave a deposit of 50 RUB. You can get it back returning the card to the cashier.

SamsungPay, ApplePay and PayPass cards.

One turnstile at every station accept PayPass and payments with phones. It has a sticker with the logos and located next to the security's cabin.

GETTING ORIENTED

At the platfrom you will see one of these signs.

It indicates the line you are at now (line 6), shows the direction train run and the final stations. Numbers below there are of those lines you can change from this line.

In trains, stations are announced in Russian and English. In newer trains there are also visual indication of there you are on the line.

To change lines look for these signs. This one shows the way to line 2.

There are also signs on the platfrom. They will help you to havigate yourself. (To the lines 3 and 5 in this case). 

Firebird Travel

RUSSIA TRAVEL HOME

Thank you for your enquiry.

RUSSIA TRAVEL PACKAGES A selection of Russian tours to take as they are or adjust to your needs.

THE GOLDEN RING Visit the heart of ancient Russia. What is the Golden Ring?

MOSCOW TOURS What you can see in Moscow.

MOSCOW DAY TRIPS Get out of Moscow and take a relaxing trip to some of these places

ST. PETERSBURG Some of the sights to see in Petersburg

LAKE BAIKAL TOURS Hiking and trekking around the world's deepest lake in the heart of Siberia

RUSSIAN DIGS Come and work in the field on a Russian Archaeological dig. Full training given on site.

TRAVEL TIPS & SERVICES Getting around in Russia

If you do not receive a confirmation email shortly then you have probably incorrectly entered your email.

Number of travelers ">

Special Interests or requests.          "> ">

If you experience difficulties please use this link to send Regular Email . All information is treated as confidential

• Bahasa Indonesia
• Slovenščina
• Science & Tech
• Russian Kitchen

A ride across passages of history - Moscow Metro rolls on

Click on the map to enlarge it

Lying at a depth of 5 (Pechatniki station) to 80 metres (Park Pobedy station), the history of the last eight decades unfold before your eyes, carved out of marble and granite and built in iron and glass – revealing the tastes, ideas, dreams, hopes and disappointments of the previous generations and contemporaries. The Moscow Metro dates back to 1931, when its construction first began, although engineers Pyotr Balinsky and Evgeny Knorre submitted their first designs to the Moscow City Duma as far back as 1902. “His speeches carried a strong temptation: like a true demon, he would promise to cast Moscow down to the bottom of the sea and raise it above the clouds”, a journalist for the Russkoye Slovo newspaper commented on Balinsky’s idea. Yet the Duma, made up of rich people, did not bite the bait: after all, they all lived in the centre of the city and never rode overcrowded trams.

After five failed proposals before the Duma, the Moscow Metro finally threw open its doors on May 15, 1935, 18 years after the revolution, and carried the first passengers on its moving staircases, escalators, and the padded seats of its new wagons (unlike the wooden seats in trams). The first metro line – from Sokolniki to Dvorets Sovetov (now known as Kropotkinskaya) -- was 11 km long and had 13 stations. Now, the Moscow Metro has a track of over 300 km with 12 lines and 182 stations. The city’s development outline for 2020 envisages that, by then, another 120 km will have been added to the existing routes.

For the first 20 years of its history, the Moscow Metro was named after Lazar Kaganovich, the “iron commissar” and Stalin’s right hand man, who was in-charge of construction of the first stage of the metro (incidentally, he personally blew up the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in December 1931 as a part of the Proletarian Capital project). In 1955, however, the Metro was renamed after Vladimir Lenin. Although Russia has long since changed its political track, you can still find the images of the former leader at over 10 stations, including, for instance, busts of Lenin at Belorusskaya and Komsomolskaya stations, impressive mosaics at Baumanskaya and Kievskaya stations, a tile panel in the passage between the Borovitskaya and Biblioteka Imeni Lenina stations. By a bitter irony of fate, Lenin’s full-face and side-face images decorate the Tsaritsyno (translated as the Tsarina’s Estate) station (dubbed Lenino up until 1990) – images of the very person who ordered the shooting of the royal family. You will not, however, find any images of Stalin in Moscow’s underground. A symbol of Russia's victory, he was omnipresent in the late 1940s. After his death in 1953 and the denunciation of Stalin’s personality cult, his images were gradually withdrawn from the Moscow Metro.

“Architecture developed along the same lines, both above and below the surface. Anything that emerged above ground had a reflection underground. It is equally true that vice versa never occurred: good architecture underground but bad architecture above the ground,” says Nikolay Shumakov, chief architect of the Moscow Metro. The first metro stations, up until the mid-1950s, were conceived and built as luxurious “palaces for the people”, great architecture for a great state. Art historians insist that the richly-decorated underground was a deliberate ideological move to eulogise the young Soviet country. Stations built between 1937 and 1955 are characteristic of the first architectural period. Everything completed at this time is worthy of special attention. For instance, look at the ceiling at Mayakovskaya and Novokuznetskaya stations to see mosaic panels based on designs by artist Alexander Deineka – 24-Hour Soviet Sky and Heroic Labour of the Soviet People on the Home Front. The mosaics were assembled by famous mosaic artist Vladimir Frolov, author of the mosaic icons in St. Petersburg’s Church of the Saviour on Blood. The Ploshchad Revolutsii station was decorated with 76 bronze sculptures of workers, soldiers, farmers, students and other Soviet people. You can even find a frontier guard with a dog and rub its nose for good luck. You may also note that all the figures (except pioneers) are either sitting or bent, which engendered the sad joke – “Any Soviet man is either in jail or on his knees.”

 Elements of decoration in Moscow's metro.   Photos by Alexandr Ganyushin

1955 heralded the end of the good times for Russian architecture – both underground and above ground – after the Communist Party issued a decree "On elimination of extravagance in design and construction.” Dull stations, without any stucco work, mosaics, original columns or other “unjustified” elements, were built under the slogan “Kilometres at the expense of architecture”. Things were the same above the ground, where entire cities were built of commonplace five-storey apartment blocks, all looking the same, nicknamed ‘Khrushchevkas’ after the then leader, Nikita Khrushchev. To get a sense of this period’s architecture, see the few stations built in the 1960s-1980s like Tverskaya, Kitay-Gorod and Kolomenskaya. In 2002, with the reconstruction of the Vorobyovy Gory station, the development of the Moscow Metro entered a third stage, which could be defined as ‘renaissance’. The platform of the station offers a splendid view of the Moskva River, the Luzhniki Olympic Complex and the Academy of Sciences building. Architectural canons of the 1930s-1940s were once again in use in the design of underground stations. By the same token, artists once again become involved in decorating the stations. As such, the Sretensky Bulvar station boasts silhouettes of Pushkin, Gogol, and Timiryazev and Moscow sights; the Dostoevskaya station is decorated with black-and-white panels featuring the main characters from Dostoyevsky’s novels The Idiot, Demons, Crime and Punishment, The Brothers Karamazov, and the Maryina Roshcha station flaunts its pastoral mosaic landscapes. In 2004, Russia's first monorail transport system was launched into service – an elevated track (running 6 to 12 metres above the ground) in the northern part of Moscow, linking the All-Russian Exhibition Centre and the Timiryazevskaya metro station. The evolution of the Moscow Metro goes on. It’s still a work in progress, with ambitious plans to move the Moscow Metro even closer to passengers over the next ten years, not just by adding an extra 120 km to its total track. “We want to strip the stations of everything we can,” says Nikolai Shumakov. “We are trying to show the passengers their very framework, what the metro is made of. Cast iron and concrete are beautiful.”

Joy ride: Read Gogol, Dante or savour art

The Aquarelle Train.   Source: Reuters/Vostock-Photo

With any luck, you can ride in a retro train, a moving art gallery or a library. The trains are actually a part of the general traffic (i.e., they do not run to any special schedule) and are used on certain lines. The Reading Moscow Train , an ordinary train on the face of it, features extracts from literary works for adults and children. Each wagon has its own selection, from children’s fairy tales to Gogol. Circle Line. The Poetry in Metro Train carries an exposition, updated this year, dedicated to Italian poets Dante Alighieri, Francesco Petrarch, Giacomo Leopardi, etc. All the poems are featured in two languages, Russian and Italian. Filevskaya Line. The Sokolniki Retro Train looks exactly like the first Moscow Metro train, both inside and out. Painted brown, it has padded seats, typical wall decorations and retro lamps. Sokolnicheskaya Line. The Aquarelle Train looks like a cabinet painted with flowers and fruit on the outside. Inside, it is an art gallery featuring art reproductions from the Vyatka Apollinary and Viktor Vasnetsov Art Museum. Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line.

Revolution Square station (built in 1938) is close to the Red Square area. There are 72 sculptures in the station, depicting the people of the Soviet Union, including soldiers, farmers, athletes, writers, industrial workers and school children.

All rights reserved by Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

to our newsletter!

Get the week's best stories straight to your inbox

This website uses cookies. Click here to find out more.