Top North Island Rail Services

Train was delayed but made up most of the time. Arrival at Auckland not far behind schedule. Seats comfortable. Happened to sit next to a lovely young and sympatico woman who was very helpful re suggestions of what to see and do in Auckland. Cafeteria stocks pretty decent food and the coffee is good everywhere in NZ. Toilets can get smelly but that’s people for you. Learn to aim, folks! Although cold and rainy, a great way to see the brilliantly emerald green landscapes, new born lambs etc. Staff very good.

Great experience topped with booking Scenic Plus. The food and friendliness of the staff are exceptional. Even the service once we arrived in Auckland was great, senior staff waited with us until an Uber arrived to pick us up

The views were fabulous, especially on the left if heading south. Don't expect to take a lot of pictures, there is a great deal of reflection on the windows so just look and enjoy. It did get quite warm in the carriage even though we were travelling in August so do layer your clothing. I wonder how hot it may be in the summer, even with the air conditioning. The food was fabulous, drinks were good quality and limitless. My Cool Destinations ticket gave me a massive discount on the Premium fare which made it more worthwhile than purchasing direct from the Trainline. Luggage is ticketed and goes in the hold. The Cool Destinations ticket seems to indicate no food for the Premium fare but there was so much individually served, silver service. Most people could not eat everything because by the end of the day it was a bit too much food but the taste and presentation was excellent. I highly recommend this trip on the Cool Destinations price which is much lower than buying direct.

Just amazing! Stunning views of volcanic landscapes, countryside, and the famous Raurimu Spiral. Comfortable seating and amazing staffs and delicious local food with local wine. One of the highlights of our 12 days New Zealand trip.

What a great trip. All the staff are friendly, informative and chatty. It was a long day and we all enjoyed the experience. Thank you Wilma, Eva, Sue, Leah and the lovely driver who sat down to answer all our questions!

People in charge,all were very nice.train comfortable,people all very nice ,thank you

Well worth doing this trip if you're in New Zealand and enjoy train travel. Great travelling from top to bottom of North Island in a relaxed manner. The open air carriage was the highlight for me. Plenty of toilets on board. Make sure you check in early. Do book larger bags in, however be prepared to wait when collecting at the end of the journey as there are many bags to unload. There are mobile device charging points at every seat. Plenty of leg room. There's a decent cafe-restaurant carriage. Prices are very reasonable. Have cash with you in case WiFi connectivity has fallen away. Snacks can be pre-booked online. The crew are helpful. Have your ticket readily available to show. There is good commentary throughout the journey without needing the website "app". The scenery is lovely, even if the weather is cloudy. Be prepared for windy and chilly Wellington. The train was very busy. Book well in advance.

Lovely comfortable train. Light and bright. Friendly staff and amazing views. Lots of useful commentary which you can also download from their App for more detail. The history of the railway and the towns along the way is interesting. The feats of engineering to make that line possible are awesome. We travelled the entire way from Wellington to Auckland.

There are no headphones so you have to bring your own Service in dining carriage is very slow App needs updating of information Wonderful viewing

Due to northern explorer and general north island outage of all trains we were held up around fifteen minutes mid travel The courteous service made up for it

The staff are friendly, food is amazing and the views spectacular, would highly recommend and family

Wonderful way to see New Zealand’s north island countryside. Made it a full day adventure round trip Auckland to Wellington and back with a flight back on Air New Zealand. Long day though we enjoyed the experience.

I liked the staff attention, order, cleanliness, train comfort, beautiful scenery

From Auckland to Hamilton a lot of industry. But then, you must have seen it for yourself. The Northern Express very nice and extensive food all day.

Long but scenic. The crew are very helpful and the process to board was streamlined. The food covered a lot of tastes and well priced. A must do trip for anyone. Just try to go on a clear day to enjoy the scenery. Highly recommended.

We were in Scenic Plus. There was a cook and two wonderful Maori cabin attendants assigned to the carriage. We were fed every 2 to 3 hours on the trip, usually small plates, and great local food. Meals were accompanied with a choice of local wine. New Zealand wines are very good and hard to fine outside the country. The trip is long (about 10 hours) but it didn’t seem long. The scenery was interesting. There is a commentary that you can get on your cell phone at points of interest. Clean rest rooms in the carriage. The Rairimu spiral is not obvious from inside the train. I think you have to observe it from the outside to appreciate it. The station in Auckland is only outdoors. We took a cab to get there from our hotel. We stayed at the Copthorne, which is not very far from the station, but too far for us as older people to walk with luggage. They don’t assign seats with your ticket purchase, but we got our seat assigned shortly before the departure date. Seats are at tables and we had a table to ourselves. Each group had its own table, although the tables could seat up to 4 people. Train on time, with no problems. A high point was the attendants singing in Maori language at the end of the trip, but I am certain not every train ride includes this. From Wellington station it was a short walk to our Rydges hotel. This train trip was one of the highlights of our New Zealand trip and I highly recommend it.