Travelling by train is without doubt the best way to see a country. You can relax in comfort, meet other travellers and watch the scenery go by. Anybody who has experienced a long-distance or overnight bus trip will immediately know what I mean! You can have a look at a list of the best train trips that I've done and see if you agree.

Below are links to a number of rail web sites, both national and private. If any of these no longer exist or you know of any that I have not listed, please email me and I'll include them.

The very best site on the internet for any kind of information about rail travel worldwide is The Man in Seat 61. This site is a comprehensive encyclopedia of information about all things train-related, maintained entirely through the efforts of one dedicated individual. I recommend it unreservedly.

Africa :
-> Democratic Republic of Congo
-> Egypt
-> Ethiopia
-> Kenya
   (1) Steam Trains
   (2) Nairobi Railway Museum
-> Mauritania
-> Mauritius
-> Morocco
-> Mozambique
-> Namibia
   (1) TransNamib (national rail operator)
   (2) Railway History (by Dr. Klaus Dierks)
-> Nigeria
-> Senegal
-> Sierra Leone
-> South Africa
-> Tunisia
-> TAZARA (Tanzania Zambia Railway Authority)
-> Zimbabwe
   (1) NRZ (national railway)
   (2) Bulawayo Railway Museum

North America :
-> Canada (VIA Rail)
-> Mexico
-> USA
   (1) Amtrak
   (2) Alaskan Railroad
   (3) California's High Speed rail project
   (4) New Jersey Transit
   (5) New York City's mass transit
   (6) Texas Railway History
   (7) Florida's Tri Rail

Australasia :
-> Australia
-> New Zealand

Europe :
-> Index (too many countries to list on this page)
-> RailPassenger.info

Asia :
-> Cambodia (or here)
-> China (People's Republic)
   (1) China Train Ticket
   (2) China Train Guide
-> India (or here or here)
-> Japan
-> Korea (South)
-> Malaysia & Singapore
-> Thailand
-> Pakistan
-> The Trans-Siberian Railway (Russia, China, Mongolia)
-> Vietnam

South America :
-> Chile
-> Peru
   (1) Peru Rail (national railway)
   (2) Lima-Huancayo Railway

Middle East :
-> Middle East Railways (excludes Israel)
-> Iran
-> Israel
-> Saudi Arabia
-> United Arab Emirates

Worldwide :
-> Railroad Development Corporation
-> Orient Express Trains (a number of classic journeys all over the world)
-> The Trans-Siberian Railway (Russia, China, Mongolia)

Railway Associations :
-> UIC (International Railway Union)
-> CER (Community of European Railways)
-> UNIFE (Union of Eureopean Railway Industries)
-> UITP (International Association of Public Transport)
-> AAR (Association of American Railways)
-> RailPassenger.info
-> APRHF (American Passenger Rail Heritage Foundation). Also here

Rail Videos/DVDs :
-> The Railway Shop
-> Greg Scholl Video
-> A-Trains (mostly North American)
-> Belhurst Productions (mostly steam)
-> Globe Video (mostly UK)
-> CineRail Videos
-> MITV (Swiss rail)
-> Video 125 (Europe)
-> Video Lines
-> Ticket To Ride
-> Classic Steam (ITV and BBC films)
-> Railroad Video Warehouse

Miscellaneous sites of interest :
-> Rail.cc (rail forums, trip reports, blog posts, route planners, etc)
-> Rail Dude (the best forum for European passenger rail information on the web)
-> Train Web (incredibly comprehensive site, well maintained and up-to-date)
-> The Man in Seat 61 (an excellent private site)
-> Trains.com
-> RailServe
-> Mike's Railway History
-> Rail Links
-> The Train Traveller (USA and Canada)
-> Rinbad (railway geography worldwide)
-> Tourist Railways
-> A-Trains.com (railway memoribilia and souvenirs)
-> International Union of Railways (based in France)
-> Railway gauges in use round the world
-> Printed train timetables (worldwide)
-> Railway Technology news (worldwide)
-> Institute of Railway Studies (University of York)
-> Subways.net (links to underground rail systems worldwide)
-> LookSmart (worldwide rail directory)
-> Railway Museums (worldwide)
-> Fallen Flags (railway photographs worldwide)
-> Rail & Transport Conferences (worldwide)
-> RailChoice (international timetables, links, railpasses)
-> RailBook.org (guidebooks to many rail routes in the USA)
-> PassengerRail.com
-> A brief history of Trolleys, Trams and Streetcars
-> Carly Hallman's history of Streetcars, Trolleys and Subways

Rail Pictures :
-> RailPictures.net (worldwide)
-> Railroad Picture Archives (worldwide)
-> Rail Photo Archive (Great Britain only)

Rail News :
-> Railway Herald (high quality downloadable magazine)
-> RailNews.net (updated daily)
-> RailRoad.net (forums, news and more)
-> TrainTraveling.com (general rail news)
-> International Railway Journal (IRJ)
-> European Railway Server
-> Worldwide Railway Preservation News
-> Railway Age Magazine
-> Railway Gazette International (magazine)
-> Railways Africa (African rail news)
-> The New Electric Railway Journal

Rail Passes :
-> Railpass.com
-> RailEurope.com
-> EuropRail International
-> Rick Steves' Europe through the Back Door
-> The Rail Connection
-> Europe On Rail, Inc
-> Train-Ticket.net

Forums and discussion groups :
-> South African Rail list server (news group)
-> South African Transport list server (news group)
-> RailForum.com (USA mostly)
-> RailChat.com

Rail Tour Operators :
-> In South Africa
-> Northumbria Travel (UK, phone +44 1670 829 922)
-> Great Rail Journeys (UK, phone +44 1904 521 900)
-> The Railway Touring Company (UK, phone +44 1553 661 500)
-> Geoff Cooke's Trains & Treasures (UK, phone +44 1938 556 198)
-> Explore Worldwide (UK, phone +44 1252 760 000)
-> Globe Steam Railway Tours (Germany)
-> Train Travellers Club (Czech Republic, phone +420 2 606 808 241)
-> Rail Travel Centre (USA, phone +1 802 387 5812)
-> African Train Safaris (USA, fax +1 580 762 7583)
-> Trains Unlimited Tours (USA, phone +1 530 836 1745)
-> Overland Trail (USA, phone +1 714 546 6923)
-> Fox River Rail (USA, phone +1 262 763 5525)
-> Mountain Outin' Tours (USA, phone +1 949 837 9061)
-> Society of International Railway Travelers (USA, phone +1 502 454 0277)
-> Mirage Adventure Tours (USA, phone +1 716 754 1628)