The Conwy Valley Line, which runs between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog in North West Wales, has been ranked the fifth most beautiful railway in the world by Viva Holidays. It is the highest-placed UK route in the ranking.
The 26-mile line takes passengers past a wildlife-rich estuary, rolling hillsides and striking rock formations. The journey lasts well over an hour, with the winding route and steep gradients offering an unhurried trip through the dramatic landscapes of Snowdonia National Park. The line is about an hour's drive from Liverpool, with the station at Conwy 57 miles from the city by road.
How the ranking was decided
Viva Holidays assessed railways on their altitude range, bridges and viaducts, protected landscapes and water frontage. The results were divided by each route's length to measure how much scenery passengers could enjoy per mile. Tunnel sections counted against a route because they block the views.
The Bernina Express took first place. Its UNESCO-listed route between Thusis and Tirano crosses 196 bridges and viaducts and reaches 2,253 metres at Switzerland's Bernina Pass, on Europe's highest adhesion railway.
What passengers say
Although the Conwy Valley Line serves commuters and local residents, its scenery also attracts railway enthusiasts from across the country. One passenger wrote on Tripadvisor: "The line from Blaenau Ffestiniog up to Llandudno is incredibly scenic, and if you're looking for a rail journey in Snowdonia this is right up there with the heritage narrow gauge lines."
In an online discussion about Britain's most picturesque rail routes, another commenter said: "How has nobody mentioned the Conwy Valley? It's utterly spectacular and crams more into an hour than the ECML does into four. One of the nicest little tours you can do in the UK is a loop of Chester-Llandudno Jn-Blaenau-Porthmadog-Machynlleth-Shrewsbury-Chester, though you'll probably need to use a bus rather than the FfR for the middle bit at present."
The line calls at Betws-y-Coed, a starting point for visits to two nearby waterfalls. Conwy Falls lies roughly two miles south of the village, where the Afon Conwy tumbles through a wooded gorge. The multi-tiered Swallow Falls, on the River Llugwy, is a similar distance away.
Keeping the line running
Keeping the scenic route running has required significant work to protect it from severe weather. Passenger services resumed in October last year following four weeks of engineering work by Network Rail, part of a £1.4 million investment to improve the railway's resilience. Teams removed dangerous trees and cleared 600,000 square metres of vegetation along 54 miles of track to reduce the risk of fallen trees disrupting services during storms.
Last autumn, Network Rail also trialled a treatment to tackle leaves on the line. In a Welsh first, a road-to-rail vehicle applied a specialist gel directly to the tracks. The organisation announced last week: "Network Rail is expanding the use of an innovative rail treatment across North Wales following a successful trial which saw no reported slippery-rail incidents or related delays on the Conwy Valley Line last autumn, compared with almost 500 minutes of delays the previous year." The coating dissolves leaf debris and remains active for up to seven days before being reactivated by rain.
Network Rail described the Conwy Valley Line as one of Wales' most picturesque but also most weather-exposed routes. It said storms had forced the line to close for more than 500 days over the past decade, disrupting passengers and freight transport.
Anyone planning a trip should note that the line will be closed from Saturday, January 9, to Friday, January 29, 2027. No services will run between Llandudno and Blaenau Ffestiniog during that period.
