The Railway Touring Company Reviews 

Premier Dining Experience… apparently stuck in 1972

We booked the York to Edinburgh steam train (04/04/2026) as a “Premier Dining Experience” at £329 per person. What we received was a deeply disappointing and frankly misleading experience.

A member of staff proudly told us the carriage was from 1972, which, unfortunately, was the most accurate part of the day. This was not charming heritage; it was tired, cold, and poorly maintained.

The steam locomotive failed after approximately 2 hours (cylinder issue), meaning, only around 1/7 of the journey was actually steam-hauled. The rest was completed by diesel, not what anyone paid for.

Yes, the company hides behind its terms and conditions regarding mechanical failures, but when a train breaks down almost immediately on a 15-hour experience, serious questions about preparation and maintenance are unavoidable.

The so-called “Premier service” was equally poor (pictures available if required):
- Not once were we offered water, even during a long unscheduled stop
- Tea was served carelessly, spilling everywhere, with no apology
- Dirty cups were simply refilled
- Breakfast was mediocre at best
- The carriage was cold, with passengers repeatedly asking for doors to be shut. The experience of travelling back in time didn’t happen in a positive fashion.

We eventually gave up and booked LNER back cleaner, warmer, more professional, and a fraction of the cost.

After complaining, we were offered a £30 voucher per person, which frankly feels insulting given the price paid.

Even more telling: all reviews are marked “unprompted” because customers are never actually invited to leave feedback. That says a lot about how seriously this company takes customer experience.

A very expensive, poorly delivered experience that fails to meet its own promises. No Premier Experience and all negative comments are addressed in a passive aggressive manner and a dismissive tone.

Avoid at all costs.

Update following company response on my TripAdvisor review :
“ The company’s response illustrates the issue perfectly. Rather than acknowledging clear failings (cold carriage, lack of basic provisions, poor service), they shift responsibility onto customers and external factors. Staff was informed on several occasions to close the broken sliding doors, service on a train or a plane is not very different and an apology is not hard to mak and you don’t promise a “premier dining experience” if you can’t freshen up cups or anything else!

At no point do they address the core issue: the significant gap between what is marketed as a “Premier Dining Experience” and what is actually delivered.

If nostalgia is your thing, then the Edinburgh Flyer delivers in spades—just perhaps not the era you were hoping for.

Marketed as a “premium dining experience” behind a magnificent steam locomotive, the reality feels more like a lovingly preserved tribute to British Rail circa 1983… and not in the charming, heritage sense. When the steam engine gave up somewhere north of Newcastle (arguably the most authentic part of the experience), we were gently reintroduced to diesel reality—along with carriages and cuisine that appear to have travelled through time with it.

The dining element is particularly impressive if your benchmark is school dinners from a bygone decade. “Premier” might be stretching it slightly; “vintage” would be more accurate—both in flavour and ambition. One can only assume the menu was curated with a strong commitment to historical accuracy.

Service, meanwhile, had a certain chaotic energy—tea offered repeatedly but rarely in a way that suggested fresh cups were part of the plan. At times it felt less like hospitality and more like a social experiment in beverage distribution.

There is, of course, something poetic about sitting in a freezing carriage, watching the British countryside roll by slowly, wondering whether you’ve accidentally boarded a time machine set to “mild disappointment.”

All in all, an experience that promises the romance of steam travel but delivers a rather more immersive lesson in why we moved on.

Needless to say, the return journey will be via LNER—modern, warm, and reassuringly anchored in this century.

It clearly wasn’t for me and my guests

The train was on time and we had good views from our seats. The staff were mostly friendly & welcoming with the exception of the man on the buffet bar. He was rather miserable, the cold drinks were not on view so I had to ask what was available, He was a bit reluctant to tell me. We wanted a hot breakfast & were told by him that there "might" be some sausage or bacon left after the first class passengers had had their food. We found this a little cruel as we had left our home very early in order to catch the train & had not had a breakfast. There were some cold sandwiches but we couldnt understand why cant everybody be catered for with hot food, as we were willing to pay.
The journey was good and Buxton was nice, we would have liked more time to look at the train but there were lots of people that were not passengers crowding round so we had difficulty trying to get near it! Maybe keep the area more private in future as we paid for an experience we couldnt get the full value of!
We did however enjoy the day.

It was a very good trip with excellent time keeping.

Finding toilets "out of order" is something tha happens all too frequently on your excursions and this was no exception.
I was in the back coach and the public address system was inaudible - though for me this was a "Plus" as I consider 90% of the announcements unnecessary and irritating. The steward sometimes made announcements in the coach, but just stood in the middle and I could not hear a word he said; he did not come to each seating bay and repeat the announcements as I would have expected.
As far as the operation of the train goes, the time-keeping was good in spite of the locomotive stalling on the Copy Pit incline and needing to be pushed by the diesel to re-start (not your fault of course).
I was saddened that the original plan to travel to Blackburn via Darwen had to be cut from the itinerary (again not your fault, though it puzzles me why problems of "gauging" and "pathing" - the reasons given for this change - sometimes arise shortly before the date of a tour when one would have thought that everything had been sorted out and agreed with Network Rail or whomever months previously). You also were apparently forced at short notice to make another change - going outward to Buxton via the L.N.W. route and retrning via the Midland instead of the other way round - but here, fortunately, the Midland route via Great Rocks was still covered in daylight - that was my main reason for booking on this trip as the last time I had done that line (the 29th of October 2023) it had been in the pitch dark.

It was a long day, but perfect all the way, we left Euston at 6.50 and returned at 22.30. The carriage and trains were very comfortable, the food absolutely gorgeous and the staff very attentive, polite and happy. Even the weather was kind to us as we went under steam, the sun shining over stunning countryside. Certainly will look at doing more!

We had very enjoyable trip to Carlisle on the 28th February. All the staff were excellent and looked after us well. The train was warm and comfortable and good food and drink. Thank you

Just found out 3 days before our tour it has been cancelled. They say they emailed previously but no email received and no refund received. After ringing they say they will now process the refund. Really not happy.

The Winter Cumbrian Mountain Express – Review

This was our second trip with The Railway Touring Company. Our first experience was the Dorset tour, where Mandy looked after us superbly—I left a glowing review and, based on that experience, we booked First Class only thereafter.

For the Cumbrian tour, we decided to upgrade further and booked Premier Dining.

The positives

The scenery was absolutely fantastic, and parts of the steam engine journey were genuinely special. The seats were comfortable, and it was a pleasure to meet Ron again—he was as friendly and welcoming as he had been on the Dorset trip.

Areas for improvement

Breakfast was average, but what really disappointed me was being refused an extra slice of toast when I asked. I was told it would come later, but it never did. This may sound minor, but it left a very bad taste—both literally and figuratively. A single extra slice of toast would have cost very little, yet the refusal reflected a poor customer-service attitude. Mandy would never have handled it that way.

In the evening, the soup was tasty, though some spilled onto my iPhone while being poured due to the rocking of the train—understandable and not really avoidable. However, the speed and rush of the dinner service were quite off-putting.

The main course was below average. The “crispy potatoes” advertised were not crispy at all and left an unpleasant aftertaste, as if cooked in old oil. I actually had to chew strawberry gum afterwards to remove the taste from the roof of my mouth.
On a positive note, the dessert was divine.

The staff experience was mixed—some were genuinely friendly, while others gave the impression they weren’t enjoying their role.

Final thoughts

My advice would be:
   •   Either book First Class and bring some of your own food (especially if Mandy is on duty, as she is exceptional), or
   •   Travel Standard Class and bring your own provisions.

I would not recommend spending this amount on Premier Dining again.

It’s unfortunate that something as small as an extra slice of toast ended up defining the overall experience—but customer service is often judged on the smallest moments.

HIGHLIGHTS OF SWITZERLAND IN WINTER.
This amazing trip exceeded all of our expectations with well chosen hotels, exceptional, scenic rail journeys and a super efficient tour manager in Lowri who kept a low-key but reassuring eye on us!
Each day the journeys became more exciting with spectacular vistas.
We would certainly recommend this experience - not only to railway enthusiasts but to tourists such as ourselves who wanted to see the snow covered mountains of Switzerland - and wow, that certainly happened!

Great trip, well planned and executed. Very knowledgeable and helpful tour manager/leader.
Have just booked my next RTC trip.

Overall the trip was good,BUT the Saturday prog. was totally cancelled from the prog i paid for when booking early November.
1st srasshof was cancelled
2nd the Ferris wheel was cancelled ,in fact the whole park was closed.
3rd the steam train on the park railway was not available .
4th the steam ride in Czech republic was not as long as was advertised , I feel some compensation should be paid TO COMPENSATE

Booked for Valentine's Day trip, informed with three weeks to go that because of 'routine maintenance', the return leg would not be a steam train. Asked for a refund. Was told I had agreed to terms and conditions and that despite not offering the agreed product, there would be no refund. Offered a credit or alternative date. Emails from the company were unhelpful, confrontational and dishonest.

An extremely well organised tour .A quality day out.Well worth the cost.

I booked The Royal Duchy as a special experience and paid a premium price for Premier Dining, but the day fell a long way short of what was advertised and what we paid for.

The trip was supposed to be hauled by Tornado, but this did not happen and no explanation was given. The Black 5 then failed a quarter of the way into the journey, leaving us diesel hauled for the remainder. We were also seated in diesel-era coaching stock rather than the steam-era Mk1 which feature in all the pictures on the website, which removed much of the historical atmosphere that is central to a steam charter.

The situation deteriorated further on the return journey. Due to a failure of one of the charter buses to Par, we were put onto a GWR service train between Par and Plymouth for nearly an hour - time that should have been spent enjoying the charter. As a group of four who had paid for Premier Dining, we were split up and placed in crowded standard class carriages. We were told to hurry over a footbridge at Par to catch the train, which was particularly stressful as one member of our group has a heart condition. There was little time, no assistance, and no sense of care for passenger welfare.

When we eventually rejoined the charter, our dining experience was badly handled. Our starters had been left out on the table while the rest of the carriage were already being served their main course. No explanation or reassurance was offered, leaving us feeling rushed and forgotten.

Other issues added to the disappointment. Both toilets in our carriage were declared out of order shortly after Exeter on the outward journey. Despite paying double what tables of two paid, we were seated on the inland side of the train, missing the coastal views that are a major selling point of this route, while cheaper tables had the best seats. There appeared to be no attempt at fair allocation.

Customer service afterwards acknowledged the problems but only offered a £20 per person discount code towards a future trip, which feels inadequate given the scale of the issues and the cost of the experience. Their Black Friday sale was offering £40 discount per person to brand new customers.

Mechanical failures may be unavoidable, but the combination of poor communication, lack of care, and failure to deliver what was advertised made this a deeply disappointing experience. I would not recommend this company based on our experience.

On the 10th October 2025 for the 17th December I booked a trip on the White Rose Experience from Cambridge to York as a Christmas surprise for my family that turned into a Christmas dissapointment , the carriage felt like it was an after thought tagged onto the end of the empty luggage compartment for the over spill of passengers that we certainly were not, the carriage was not of keeping of the period of steam it was more like the older versions of our modern trains, 70/80s style, the tables between the seats were too low down making it very akward to get into your seat, the Christmas decorations were very sparse, the mulled wine was cold and our name was spelt incorrectly on the table sticker..the door between the toilet and carriage would not stay closed making the carriage constantly cold as it was in constant use, we were told that the carriage would be cleaned when we were in York, I can only assume the cleaners were unaware of the end carriage tagged onto the empty luggage compartment as the rubbish bin in the carriage and toilet were still overflowing, the paper hand towels were all over the toilet floor as the towel holder container was broken lying open as it would not close and lock. Yes we were first carriage on the return journey but we were being pulled by a diesel and not a steam train due to unforseen circumstances? And the heating had been turned off...I will not be booking any more steam train experiences it will be modern trains only from now on and I will be unsubscribing from their website.

Train either on time or early, stewards helpful and courteous. Small point in your on train brochure, the A16 no longer goes through Deeping St.Nicholas, but goes about 5 miles east. The old A16 is now A1175, and the pub became the village stores about 5 years ago.

Boarded at Reading for this great day out to The Dickensian Festival at Rochester via West Brompton, pulled by the SR Light Pacific 'Eddystone'. The staff were as always friendly, helpful and fun. Think we paid a satisfactory price for the day, even found seats in a pub on the High Street that added to the enjoyment. Thank you guys, got us in the Christmas spirit!

DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY IF YOU ARE DISABLED OR HAVE MOBILITY ISSUES.

I booked a trip from Bristol to Cornwall for my parents. My father is 90 and disabled. I confirmed with the company, via many telephone calls, that my father was on a mobility scooter and was assured everything would be ok.
From the outset my parents were made to feel like an inconvenience. Getting the scooter on and off the train and which trips they were not able to do in Cornwall.
Ultimately though, this is where this company really fails.
The company failed to request that the disabled access was opened at Par station. My 90 year old father and 80 year old mother along with other disabled passengers were stranded on an island platform. It was cold, it rained and there was no shelter, there was nowhere to get a drink or a toilet.
When this was raised with the company they said it was outside of their control.
I contacted Network Rail for more information who confirmed the request to open the disabled access was never made.

Whilst this disaster was very much within their control they point blank refuse to take responsibility. A trivial compensation payment was offered but has ne er materialised.

Even the Managing Director has confirmed that she is aware of my complaint and is happy with how her company has handled this situation.

The trips are not cheap and the minimum standard of care towards my father and the other disabled passengers was not provided
AVOID THIS COMPANY THEY ARE ABSOLUTELY TERRIBLE.

Trip ran to time both ways with no obvious problems. These trips have been made less interesting for railway enthusiasts in the last 2(?) years because of restrictions on opening windows and the restriction on not standing in the vestibules seems silly.

Collection of rubbish on tables was less often than usual and I heard no announcement that the buffet was closing at the end of the trip. A the title says: minor niggles.