Welsh Highland Railway, Heritage railway in Porthmadog, Wales
Welsh Highland Railway is a narrow-gauge line in Porthmadog, Wales, running about 25 miles between Caernarfon and Porthmadog through the mountains of Gwynedd. The route passes through forests, beside lakes and along hillsides, with passengers riding in open or enclosed carriages pulled by steam locomotives.
Operations started in 1828 as an industrial line carrying slate from the quarries of Snowdonia to the coast. Two companies merged in 1922 to form the railway, which later closed and was gradually rebuilt from the 1990s onward.
The route passes through Welsh-speaking communities where station names and signs reflect the local language of Gwynedd, and you can hear Welsh spoken by staff and passengers. The locomotives and carriages preserve the look and sound of narrow-gauge railways that once carried slate from the quarries to the coast.
Tickets are available at the station in Porthmadog, and trains run regularly from March through October, with fewer services in winter. The journey takes several hours for the full route, and there are stops along the way where you can get on or off.
In Porthmadog there is the only flat crossing in the United Kingdom where two different gauges meet at the same level, connecting with the Ffestiniog Railway. Trains from both lines share a junction where the tracks cross without one passing over the other.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 60,000 contributors worldwide.
