What better way to spend summer’s end than on a two-week rail odyssey through California, travelling along the scenic west coast on Amtrak’s ‘Coast Starlight’ train, hopping on-board the Napa Valley Wine Train, enjoying journeys on the California Western Railroad’s ‘Skunk Train’ and Yosemite Mountain Sugar Pine Railroad, and much more? Departing 4 September, this 15-day holiday costs from £4,655 pp (two sharing) including flights (London), all rail travel & excursions as per the itinerary, room-only accommodation, two lunches, two dinners, San Francisco Visitor Passport (for travel in the city) and tour leader.

Journey over land and sea through Finland, Estonia, Russia and Latvia on a 15-day escorted tour for rail connoisseurs that also allows ample time to explore the cities of Helsinki, Tallinn, Riga, Moscow and Stockholm at your own pace. Take to the water, too, on a steamboat cruise in the Swedish capital and an evening lake cruise in Tampere. Departing 28 August, The Baltic – Trains, Boats & Trams costs from £2,990 pp (two sharing) including flights (Heathrow), 14 nights’ B&B, one lunch & one dinner, all rail/ferry/cruise transport, transfers and excursions as per the itinerary, city passes and tour leader

As the pace of modern life becomes ever more frenetic, what nicer way to spend this summer’s holiday than in a destination as charmingly unchanged as rural Romania? This 15-night escorted tour visits medieval cities, Saxon villages and painted monasteries, travels on steam-hauled railways through spectacular scenery, and promises warm hospitality in traditional homestay accommodation. Departing 15 June, Romania – A Living Heritage costs from £2,695 pp (two sharing) including flights (London), rail travel & excursions as per the itinerary, B&B, seven lunches, six evening meals, tour leader and local guide.

Explore a country brimming with cultural treasures and spectacular scenery on this small group tour to Bulgaria. Visit historic sites at Madara and Veliko Tamovo, the Ivanovo rock churches and Thracian tombs, enjoy a vintage tram tour of Sofia (by private charter), ride the narrow-gauge line from Septemvri to Bansko, and much more. Departing 11 June, Bulgaria’s Hidden Secrets costs from £2,435 pp (two sharing) including flights (Heathrow), ten nights’ B&B, two lunches & five dinners, all rail/coach travel and excursions as per the itinerary, Sofia transport ticket and the services of a tour leader from the UK plus local Bulgarian guide.