crossborderrail.eu
Record attempt: Longest train journey in the EU
### Crowdfunding for this project is now open
Rather than a full crowdfunding setup, this time finance will be organised via my newsletter subscription system. There is a special subscription newsletter for the duration of the project (€5/month for 3 months). You can also give a small tip for my work on this project (suggested €10). If you would like to support my work more permanently, consider signing up to my weekly railway newsletter.
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### What is the idea?
In August 2026 a new cross border passenger rail connection will open between Tornio in Finland and Haparanda in Sweden. This then allows an uninterrupted rail journey from Kemijärvi in Finnish Lapland to Lagos in Portugal, the two places furthest apart in the EU that can be connected by train. I, Jon Worth, the person who worked this out, aim to be the first person to complete the whole trip, and set the first record time for this journey.
### Why would someone possibly want to do this?
Because it’s fun! What’s not to like about a massive and crazy journey?
Seriously though, telling stories through concrete experiences is a really powerful way to explain complicated political and technical railway topics in a way that is fun and relatable. The #CrossBorderRail project as a whole has shown this, and this record attempt will build on that work.
Just even working out the possible timetable for this trip has caused so many headaches so as to make the whole project worthwhile. Stuck in Boden for 5 hours, why? And when doing the trip there will be further positive and negative experiences aplenty.
Locomotives in Boden station – a view I can admire for 5 hours on the trip
And hell, if I don’t do it, some rail Youtuber will likely do it for clickbait instead. If I do it then I can manage to get some solid political analysis out of it too.
### What is the definition of the longest train journey?
The two places in the EU that are the greatest geodesic or great-circle distance (i.e. how the crow flies) distance apart that can be connected by multiple trains.
Start and end points are Kemijärvi, Finland (station geo-coordinates: 66°43′25″N 027°24′14″E or 66.72383, 27.40368) and Lagos, Portugal (station geo-coordinates: 37°6′31″N 8°40′18″W or 37.1085361111, -8.6716722222). The geodesic distance between them can be calculated using this tool, and it is **4008.33km**.
The route-km is **6165.8km** , although that does not really concern us here.
### What are the rules of the record attempt?
A request to Guinness World Records was submitted in spring to 2026 to adjudicate on the criteria, but as their processes are notoriously slow and I am still waiting for a reply – so I am going to have to set my own criteria. These are:
1. For the record attempt only regular, public train services can be used – trains the general public can use.
2. Train services on tracks of the Single European Railway Area (SERA) can be used (this is the best definition of an EU rail system there is), and this means non-EU countries can be transited if necessary if their tracks are part of the Area.
3. Other public transport, including on tracks, is not allowed – so that means no trams, metros or suburban trains that are not part of the Single European Railway Area.
4. When changing trains, stations are simply defined as anything within the same building – walking out of stations and onto public highways is not permitted.
5. Exiting stations for whatever purpose (to purchase food and refreshments, for meetings, for hotel stays) is allowed, providing the next leg starts at the station where the previous one ended.
De facto these rules mean that transiting Switzerland would be permissible, using the Metro or RER to cross Paris is not permitted (as it is a standalone network not included in the SERA), and walking from Madrid Puerta de Atocha to Atocha–Cercanias is allowed as these are in the same building.
High speed trains at Madrid Atocha
To make a competition of this there is a time element: the record is the **fastest trip on the longest train journey in the EU**. This is to be timed from the moment the doors close on the train departing Kemijärvi and the moment the doors open at Lagos, or vice versa if the journey is attempted in reverse.
### Can other people attempt this?
Of course!
I see this as something like the Tube Challenge, and as better services, improved timetables and elimination of temporary speed restrictions happen in subsequent years it ought to be possible to eventually complete this trip more quickly than in 2026. I would also like more people to be part of my record attempt – please see “How can you help?” below.
All I would ask is if you are trying it yourself you let me know, or link to this post. And if you complete it, tell me your total time. Contact me via this form.
### How long will the trip to take?
My current detailed timetable (below), and attempting the trip in the Kemijärvi – Lagos direction, has a total trip time of 100 hours and 9 minutes (so just over 4 days). Of this 61 hours and 8 minutes are on trains.
The average speed of the trains themselves is 102.46km/h, the average speed of the trip inc. time not moving is 61.52km/h.
### When will it start?
Provisional start time is 19:00 EEST on 7th September 2026 at Kemijärvi station. Due to other commitments I cannot attempt it in August immediately once Tornio – Haparanda has opened.
### How much will the trip cost?
At a later stage I will calculate the total theoretical ticket price using regular tickets, but I am going to make the trip using an Interrail pass. This will require a 5 day pass, and with reservation costs on top, should be possible for between €400 and €500.
### What happens if something goes wrong?
The timetable has been planned with what I estimate are adequate buffers to accommodate normal delays throughout the trip. If something more serious goes wrong I will have to re-plan and re-book accordingly, even if this then means arriving in Lagos a day later.
### Will there be merchandise?
Absolutely! This will be ready shortly! And there will postcards too!
### How can people help?
Above all I want to meet interesting people en route – especially in Kemijärvi and Lagos, the start and end points, and at important points en route, notably Tornio-Haparanda, Boden, Stockholm, Hamburg, Strasbourg, Lyon and Madrid. And people are welcome to join me on board for a leg, or part of a leg. You can find the full provisional timetable below.
Rather than a full crowdfunding setup, this time finance will be organised via my newsletter subscription system. There is a special subscription newsletter for the duration of the project (€5/month for 3 months). You can also give a small tip for my work on this project (suggested €10). If you would like to support my work more permanently, consider signing up to my weekly railway newsletter.
The whole idea is crazy and compelling enough to mean someone might want to cover it in the media or come along and film it all. I am open to any sort of partnership of that sort too!
There will be all sorts of ways to follow the project online, and plenty of data, photos and video generated.
For the moment please use this form to contact me about any aspect of the project.
## The detailed nerdy stuff!
### What’s the detailed timetable?
In mid July it looked like something was changing in northern Sweden – on 10th August train times Haparanda – Boden were changed to better match the Finland – Sweden cross border trains, but it seems this better timetable only applies on the launch day. So, for the moment, this looks to be the timetable for the record attempt – with 5 hours stuck in Boden.
Mon 07/09| 1| 274| VR| 19:00| Kemijärvi| Kemi| 22:27
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---
Night in Kemi, hotel| | | | | | |
Tue 08/09| 2| IC 401| VR| 06:08| Kemi| Haparanda| 05:45
| 3| R 7183| Norrtåg| 07:40| Haparanda| Boden Centralstation| 09:08
| 4| R 7107| Norrtåg| 14:05| Boden Centralstation| Umeå Central| 17:24
| 5| D 91| SJ| 20:19| Umeå Central| |
Night in night train| | | | | | |
Wed 09/09| | | | | | Stockholm Central| 06:18
| 6| X2 523| SJ| 07:22| Stockholm Central| Lund C| 11:40
| 7| R 1065| Øresundståg| 11:51| Lund C| København H| 12:44
| 8| ECE 397| DSB, DB Fernverkehr| 14:22| København H| Hamburg Hbf| 19:01
| 9| NJ 471| ÖBB| 22:11| Hamburg Hbf| |
Night in night train| | | | | | |
Thu 10/09| | | | | | Offenburg| 06:39
| 10| RS4 (87408)| SWEG or SNCF Voyageurs for TER Fluo| 07:05| Offenburg| Strasbourg| 07:34
| 11| TGV 9877| SNCF Voyageurs| 09:04| Strasbourg| Lyon Part Dieu| 12:59
| 12| AVE 9742| Renfe| 14:35| Lyon Part Dieu| Barcelona Sants| 19:23
| 13| IRY 6200| Iryo| 19:40| Barcelona Sants| Madrid Atocha| 22:42
Night in Madrid, hotel| | | | | | |
Fri 11/09| 14| A 190| Renfe| 08:51| Madrid Atocha Cercanias| Badajoz| 13:26
| 15| R 482| CP| 14:09| Badajoz| Entroncamento| 15:55
| 16| IC 512| CP| 15:59| Entroncamento| Lisboa Oriente| 16:52
| 17| IC 184| CP| 17:23| Lisboa Oriente| Tunes| 19:53
| 18| R 5914| CP| 20:07| Tunes| Lagos| 21:09
Some of these connections are quite tight, although in most (but not all!) cases I have some backups ready. I will re-plan as necessary during the journey.
### Is this mapped?
The zoomable version of the map is here.
### Why is this using a geodesic distance definition?
There are two other potential definitions, but each has its downsides.
The first – the most route-km on a single train (currently the night train Berlin Hbf – Stockholm Central, 1444.1km) is simple to calculate, but anyone who has taken that train holds the record. There is no skill, no challenge, in doing that one.
A common critique of the geodesic definition is “but aren’t there longer routes?” and yes, you could keep adding more and more via stations to add route-km, but more km for the sake of it doesn’t really strike me as a useful pursuit. However you could just about come up with a definition along the lines of “the most route-km on multiple trains in the EU where no shorter route is available”. But trying to work out the route of this one was so ridiculously complicated that I think it ought to be eliminated. I _think_ it is Savonlinna, Finland to Vila Real de Santo António, Portugal, and the total is 6744.5km, but I am not at all confident about this due to the complexity of the calculation. This is all explored in more detail here.
So one train is too simple, and most route-km on multiple trains in the EU where no shorter route is available is too complicated. Geodesic distance on multiple trains is a good compromise.
### What is the route to Kemijärvi, and back from Lagos?
By train of course!
There are a few borders I am missing in the Baltics, and at the Portugal – Spain border, for my main #CrossBorderRail work, and I will check out those places before and after the record attempt. You can find all my route planning for all of that in a spreadsheet in Nextcloud here, and all of this is mapped here.
I aim to get to 20 new rail borders en route to Kemijärvi and back from Lagos, and after Innotrans:
Eglaine 🇱🇻 – Czarny Brod 🇱🇹 (Possible former 600mm gauge line during WWI)
Eglaine 🇱🇻 – Obeliai 🇱🇹
Subate 🇱🇻 – Obeliai 🇱🇹 (600mm gauge)
Akniste 🇱🇻 – Rokiškis 🇱🇹 (Former 600mm gauge line during WWI)
Nereta 🇱🇻 – Suvainiškis 🇱🇹 (Former 600mm gauge line during WWI)
Rucava 🇱🇻 – Šventoji 🇱🇹 (Former 600mm, later 750 mm)
Priekule 🇱🇻 – Skuodas 🇱🇹
Vainode 🇱🇻 – Luše 🇱🇹
Renge 🇱🇻 – Mažeikiai 🇱🇹
Mõniste 🇪🇪 – Ape 🇱🇻 (Former 750mm gauge line)
Valka 🇱🇻 – Mõniste 🇪🇪 (Former 750mm gauge line)
Möisaküla 🇪🇪 – Ipiki 🇱🇻
Barca de Alva 🇵🇹 – Fregeneda 🇪🇸
Marvao Beira 🇵🇹 – Valencia do Alcántara 🇪🇸
La Farga de Moles 🇪🇸 – Sant Julià de Lòria 🇦🇩 (Future tramway)
Szöreg 🇭🇺 – Novi Kneževac 🇷🇸
Szöreg 🇭🇺 – Banatsko Aranđelovo 🇷🇸
Cenad 🇷🇴 – Apátfalva 🇭🇺
Ściborzyce Małe 🇵🇱 – Osoblaha 🇨🇿
Pilszcz 🇵🇱 – Opava západ 🇨🇿
