Qype: The Wrexham, Shropshire & Marylebone Railway Company Limited in London

London

I can’t really get over how much I love traveling on the Wrexham and Shropshire railway. It harks back to a golden age of rail travel, when you weren’t penned into a pendolino, a table with enough space to spread your broadsheet was a given, and breakfast was served on china plates. Fortunately, a few sage railwaymen had a dream, and with the backing of none other than the veritable Deutsche Bahn, have bought 5 class 67 diesels, and leased some original BR Mark III coaches from 1975. This very morning I was paying for standard class, and yet sat in first class luxury, being served my local-sourced full English breakfast and drinking milky tea as we trundled from Shrewsbury to London. The service currently takes a little over 3 hours due to timetabling restrictions (in reality the class 67 is capable of 125mph), and it’s a world away from the horror of the west coast main line. In the evenings, you might want to indulge in a selection of real ales from Oswestry, or perhaps a tasty pork pie!

And what price, this luxury? Well, there are no peak-time fares, in fact you can walk up and buy a ticket on the train, for 20 quid each way. And they’re not receiving any subsidies. Richard Branson, you should come and join me aboard “A Shropshire Lad” someday.

Check out my review of The Wrexham, Shropshire & Marylebone Railway Company Limited - I am filchambers - on Qype