Supreme Steam in Staffordshire

DAY 1

Journey from your home station to Stoke and, on arrival, we will make our way to the Holiday Inn Hotel, our hotel for the next four nights. We enjoy free time to explore our new surroundings before meeting for our first evening meal together.

DAY 2

After breakfast this morning, we depart by coach to Wirksworth for a steam-hauled ride on the scenic Ecclesbourne Valley Railway, Derbyshire's longest heritage railway. We journey through the charming village of Idridgehay, passing the beautiful rural station of Shottle, to the southern terminus of Duffield and return. After free time for lunch, we continue by road to the Crich Tramway Museum, a unique open-air museum combining a period village with a working tramway, and we enjoy time to explore their huge collection and ride the vintage trams before returning to the hotel in time for our evening meal together.

DAY 3

Today, our coach takes to the nearby Apedale Railway where we can view their fantastic narrow-gauge collection and discover the industrial history of the area in the museum ahead of our steam journey over the 2ft gauge line. Our day continues in Leek, known as the 'Queen of the Moorlands' and home to Railtrail, where we enjoy a light lunch and a sampling of the renowned Titanic Beer at the characterful Roebuck Pub. This afternoon, we visit Rudyard Lake Railway for a charming journey through this local beauty spot running along the lakeside before making our way to Froghall, set in the picturesque Churnet Valley, where we enjoy an early evening meal at the Railway Inn. Afterwards, we experience a special evening ride on the Churnet Valley Railway steaming through Staffordshire's 'Little Switzerland' as it was marketed by the original North Staffordshire Railway and, on our return to Froghall, our coach will take us back to the hotel.

DAY 4

This morning, we head to Chasewater Railway for their morning steam-hauled train over the former colliery line around the edge of the reservoir before continuing to Statfold Barn Railway which started as a private passion project and has developed into a vibrant destination for railway enthusiasts, and we enjoy another narrow-gauge steam journey and time to view their amazing collection of locomotives. Finally, we make our way to the rarely visited Amerton Railway for a nostalgic narrow-gauge steam journey over the circular, mile long route before returning to the hotel in time for our final evening meal together.

DAY 5

After breakfast, we bid farewell to Stoke and make our way to the station for our homeward journeys.

*Important Note: Whilst the arrangements for all described steam train travel are in place, we do reserve the right to make substitutions should it be deemed necessary for whatever reason.

B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner