Both The Clermont Victoria and The Clermont Charing Cross were once 19th-century railway hotels, so we just had to share our love of London’s railway heritage with you. So, if you’re a fan of trains and find London’s rail history as fascinating as we do, then here are a few ways you can indulge your passion for trains in London.
See the London Transport Museum’s trains
A trip to the London Transport Museum in Covent Garden is a must. At the TFL Museum, London presents its impressive collection of important and unusual rail vehicles, from the 1896 wooden milk railway van to Britain’s oldest working steam locomotive from 1866.
Learn about the Metropolitan Railway – the world’s first underground railway – and the engineering challenges of putting steam locomotives underground. Book time in for a visit to The Canteen too, which is kitted out with salvaged luggage racks, station benches, Embankment Station light fittings and seats covered in the classic moquette upholstery.
Take the Euston Lost Tunnels Tour
Step back in time and uncover a forgotten chapter of London’s transport legacy on The London Transport Museum’s Euston: The Lost Tunnels tour. Sealed off from the public for half a century, these lost tunnels share their secrets during this guided tour, which takes you on a nostalgic trip to an underground world frozen in time. There’s the charming old ticket booth, old signs and vintage movie posters still in place.
As well as a trip into the past, you’ll also learn how the underground keeps eight million passengers moving today. Plus, there’s a chance to peek through the ventilation shafts to see commuters waiting on a platform along the Victoria line – yes, we can see you! The tour is not part of a standard London Transport Museum admission ticket, so you need to book it separately.
Step into the Murder Express immersive dining
Enjoy an immersive theatre dining experience at the fictional Pedley Station. A 1920s-style first class carriage awaits – but all is not as it seems. As passengers on board the Murder Express, you’re in for a delicious three-course meal and a gripping whodunit storyline where everyone is a potential suspect. Is it the moody train conductor? The clumsy server? Or that glamorous passenger sitting nearby?
Live actors and interactive elements create a unique evening of entertainment and suspenseful dining in the heart of London. The dress code isn’t strict, but it’s worth avoiding being too casual – plenty of passengers dress in 1920s clothing for the night. So, put on your glad rags, enjoy your delicious meal and be ready for a few surprises along the way.
See inside the Acton Depot Museum
For more vintage trains, make a beeline for the London Transport Museum’s Acton Transport Depot for a behind-the-scenes peek into a treasure trove of train nostalgia. Inside this expansive warehouse are iconic double deckers, historic underground train carriages and lots of engineering marvels and vintage maps.
Take your pick of guided tours, from the art and poster tour to “Cab It!,” a tour of train driver cabs of train stock from the 1930s to 1980s. This is a fantastic way to delve deeper into London’s locomotive heritage and uncover the stories behind these beloved modes of transport.
Ride the Mail Rail at The Postal Museum
At 65 feet long, just five feet high and travelling along a 2ft-wide track deep underground, the Mail Rail is a unique train travel experience in the heart of London. This battery-powered train operated from 1927 to 2003, carrying four million letters between London’s sorting offices at its peak.
Today, as part of a visit to the Postal Museum, you can squeeze in and ride the subterranean mail rail for a 20-minute journey along the tracks. The museum also shows a fantastic seven-minute train documentary film from 1936 called Night Mail, with words by WH Auden and a music score by Benjamin Britten.
Sip cocktails at Cahoots underground station speakeasy
Cahoots on Soho’s Kingly Street is a 1940s bar in an abandoned train station. Spend your rations on cocktails in the Ticket Hall, sip spirits at the Signal Station and enjoy a thrilling rendez-vous in The Underground. Live jazz bands and swing music keep spirits high as you enjoy the different spaces in this station-themed bar, including a vintage underground tube carriage.
Cahoots also hosts a Bootlegger Breakout escape room experience in the Signal Station every weekend afternoon. You’ll have to solve a series of puzzles to reach the end and a delicious cocktail. This station-themed bar is the perfect place to celebrate your railway adventures in London.
Make this the ultimate train adventure with a luxurious stay at one of our heritage railway hotels, The Clermont, Victoria, The Clermont, Charing Cross, just steps from Central London’s major transport links. Our grand rooms and suites are so cosy and relaxing there’s a chance you’ll miss your train home.