‘Let the train take the strain’, as the ’70s slogan goes.
If you have a full day to spare, there’s a scenic railway journey that takes passengers on a 500-mile journey from London Euston to Fort William in the Scottish Highlands.
Spanning approximately 500 miles across roughly 12 hours and 45 minutes, the Caledonian Sleeper now holds the title of the UK’s longest direct rail route.
There are plenty of landmarks to look out for on the journey, including Rannoch Moor, Loch Lomond, Loch Ness and coastal views of St Andrews and Arbroath.
The early morning light across the Highlands is particularly spectacular as you approach your destination.
Rannoch Moor and the rugged West Highland Line is one of the most photographed railway stretches in the world.
The Caledonian Sleeper departs from London Euston at around 9.15pm six days a week (Sunday to Friday), travelling through Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Inverness during the night.
Accommodation options vary from basic reclining seats to private compartments featuring beds, charging points, washbasins, or even fully en-suite facilities in premium cabins.
The Caledonian Sleeper train is pictured as it crosses Rannoch Viaduct on the scenic West Highland Line railway in the Scottish Highlands
Spanning approximately 500 miles across roughly 12 hours and 45 minutes, the Caledonian Sleeper now holds the title of the UK’s longest direct rail route
There are plenty of landmarks to look out for on the journey, including Loch Lomond, the largest lake in Great Britain by surface area
The return trip from Fort William to London Euston takes slightly less time than the outbound journey, clocking in at 12 hours and 10 minutes.
The Club Car offers guests a selection of snacks, drinks and meals, including haggis, neeps and tatties, traditional Scottish dumplings and Scotch whisky.
Standard seating starting at £59 and classic twin bunk bed rooms start at around £240 for the journey from Euston to Fort William.
By comparison, the fastest route takes around 10 hours and requires multiple changes, costing around £160 for standard accommodation.
Caledonian Sleeper services from Aberdeen, Fort William and Inverness will soon include a stop at Birmingham International before heading to London Euston.
Tickets incorporating this new stop are already on sale, with the Birmingham halt set to be introduced from 15 January 2026.
However, the Caledonian Sleeper has faced recent criticism.
Nearly £3million of compensation has been paid out to Caledonian Sleeper passengers since the service was nationalised in 2023.
Accommodation options vary from basic reclining seats to private compartments featuring beds, charging points, washbasins, or even fully en-suite facilities in premium cabins
The Club Car offers guests a selection of snacks, drinks and meals, including haggis, neeps and tatties, traditional Scottish dumplings and Scotch whisky
The huge payouts, which amount to more than £22,000 per week, were made to compensate travellers for delays to the service.
It has led to claims SNP ministers are ‘making a mess’ of running the popular overnight route, which links Scottish stations to London, while taxpayers are picking up the tab for passengers being ‘let down’.
Since the service was brought into public ownership two and a half years ago, a total of £2.73million has been paid out to passengers beset by delays to their journey.
It comes after the discontinuation of the historic Aberdeen to Penzance route earlier this year, which was previously Britain’s longest direct train journey.
The long-running 785-mile service, which connected Cornwall to northeast Scotland for more than a century, was axed by CrossCountry in May 2025 to establish a ‘more efficient timetable.’
