Guides
Tracing the Chinese Eastern Railway across Manchuria's storied landscapeThe romance of the rails has long captured Australian imaginations, from the red dust of the Ghan to the coastal curves of the Indian Pacific. Yet for those…Meals on the move: dining car secrets across the Trans-SiberianThe clatter of cutlery against porcelain, the soft sway of the carriage, snow-laden taiga sliding past the window, a bowl of steaming borscht appearing at your…Crossing the Gobi by rail: from Ulaanbaatar to BeijingThe Trans-Mongolian railway has long attracted travellers who want to see the world the slow way, and Australians are no exception. A two-stop flight from…Language Survival Guide For Independent Travellers In RussiaTravelling independently across Russia rewards preparation. A few Russian words can make a train journey, market visit or hotel check-in calmer, especially…When To Travel The Trans-Siberian For Clear Skies And Mild WeatherFor Australian travellers, the Trans-Siberian Railway is a journey of changing seasons as much as changing landscapes. A train can leave Moscow in mild…A Beginner's Guide To The Mongolian Gobi DesertThe Mongolian Gobi is a vast landscape of gravel plains, red cliffs, dunes, rocky mountains and scattered wells rather than a single stretch of sand. For…Golden Eagle and Other Luxury Trains on the Silk RouteFor many Australian travellers, a Silk Route journey is a once-in-a-lifetime holiday rather than a simple rail transfer. The distances are vast, the border…How to Survive A Sleeper Train Night Without A ShowerA sleeper train can be one of the best ways to cross Russia, China, or Mongolia, especially when the route covers thousands of kilometres. You save a hotel…Spotting Trans-Siberian wildlife from your train compartmentAustralians are no strangers to long-distance overland travel, whether it is crossing the Nullarbor or hopping between capital cities for a long weekend. Few…The art of the Russian banya after a train journey in YekaterinburgAfter hours watching birch forests, villages and industrial towns slide past the carriage window, a Russian banya offers a distinctly local way to slow down.…