ONCF Morocco Trip Report 16-21st May 2026

DH410 of the ONCF powers Al Atlas train 101 from Casablanca to Beni Nasr along the shores of the Idris I dam as it approaches Matmata. 17/05/2026.

Saturday 16^th May

A fairly early start to get to Stanstead for our Ryanair flight to Fez 09:15. This was non-eventful and landed a little early. Getting through passport control was a breeze, and with hand luggage only we found ourselves stamped into Morocco around 30 minutes before our hire car booking!

DH420 skirts the Idris I reservoir working from
Oijda to Fez. 16/05/2026

Looking at the cloudy weather we quickly realised we would need all the time we had to photograph the diesels here, so diverted the car drop off to Rabat Airport allowing us a later return on Monday. It was quickly realised that in my haste of packing the previous night I had left my driving licence at home- so that was me out as an additional driver and condemned to giving direction from the back seat! Our first destination was straight to the Fez ‘Land Port’ on the west of the city, for there were no diesels to see for a little bit. This diversion was on the off-chance that one of the Alstom DF’s might be in the yard, which I believe they work trip freights to from the main yard at Fez. It wasn’t. And with seemingly no way to get anywhere near the main yard at Fez there was a little time to get supplies and cash before driving east to intercept the afternoon diesel arrivals.

It was unfortunate that being May and in a part of the world which sees a lot of sunshine, the forecast for our thee days in Fez was somewhat varied- and we had arrived to blanket of high cloud. This meant that the first two pictures of the afternoon were unfortunately lost- but thing did pick up for the 16:45 Fez – Oujda which was photographed on the useful ‘horse shoe’ west of Sidi Harazem, (which usefully turns the eastbound departures back into the sun during the afternoon), with DH367, pleasingly one of the older locos.

DH373 is at the head of the 18:20 Fez - Taza under dramatic skies. 16/05/2026

Luck continued as we headed up towards the Idris I dam where DH420 was captured on the 13:30 Oujda – Fez, before finishing the day with DH373, another oldie, on the last train our of Fes, the fairly recently reinstated 18:20 to Taza which was captured in some nice glinty evening light between the clouds.

Or at least we thought that was it, while stopped near the horseshoe to admire the sunset, a freight was spotted beneath us- resulting in a sudden chase back up the line to a suitable position- with some nice light behind it, DH414 was captured on a train of hoppers and steel flats heading east, and delaying our dinner in Fes somewhat!

After the last passenger train has past, DH414 heads east with a freight. 16/05/2026.

The famous tannery in Fez medina.

We drove back and checked into our hotel, the Riad Damia Suite, on the edge of the old city. While parking should have been available we were instantly directed by locals into a garage for 50Dh per night. The Riad was lovely, with a triple room on the ground floor. Now a little late it was time to head straight into the Medina for some dinner- tagine cous cous, very nice. Despite plans for a beer, we were pretty tired so it was straight to bed- especially since there was an early train in the morning!

In the end it had been a pretty decent first afternoon- we had seen two of the older DH350/370’s and a freight hopefully positive for the next few days photography!

Sunday 17^th May-

It was up not long after sunrise to drive 30 minutes out of the city for the first train the 06:20 from Taza since the forecast was much better for the morning. As suspected this was DH373 again, this time long nose leading as there is no run-around facility at Taza.
This shot achieved, despite a very hazy background it was back to Fez for a pleasant and leisurely breakfast at the riad.

In hazy morning conditions, DH373 heads the 06:20 Taza - Fez running long nose first. 17/05/2026

There isn’t a lot of action on the diesel lines in the morning aside from the early commuter turn from Taza, with no daylight departures until 10:30 and the first arrival not until 13:35- so it is nice to have a rare relaxing start. Shortly after 10 however it was time to head out in the car again, back to the reservoir for a shot I was very anxious to achieve on one of the bridges- the view accentuated by a very full lake, contrary to many of the dry pictures I had seen, following a very wet spring season.
DH410 obliged here, and we were all very pleased with the shot on the 10:30 Fez – Beni Nasr.

DH405 powers past Chebabat bound for Oujda 
on train 103. 18/05/2026

There are now a few trains in quick succession, and the following 11:20 Fez – Oujda with DH402 was captured a short distance away over wheat fields again overlooking the lake. We found another spot for the 07:50 Oujda – Fes, after which we adjourned for lunch- the sun was very high now and there weren’t really any locations that worked of for it ‘on the nose’ now heading out of Fez. We had seen a nice looking Meat Grill earlier in the small town of Oulad Ayad, which after a few language barrier differences (apparently the English speak Spanish) proved to be very delicious!

A leisurely lunch over with, it was time to drive back to yesterdays first shot for another go at the 09:25 Beni Nasr – Fes on one of the viaducts near Sidi Harazem. DH427 appeared today, and like yesterday was long nose forwards, and also like yesterday, in poor light.

A wide view captures DH402 powering the 11:20 Fez - Oujda through wheatfields near to the Idris 1 dam. 17/05/2026

Lunch doesn't get much fresher than this lovely
BBQ meat.

Since the afternoon forecast wasn’t conductive to sunny photography, and we do actually quite like a train ride too, the afternoon was spent doing a move from Fes to Matamata and back. The risk of such moves is that with the single line, and not all trains calling at each station, you don’t have much of an option of a ‘safe plus’, not near to Fez in the afternoon anyway.  After much deliberation we decided that the 16:45 Fez – Oujda ought to manage its +3 at Matamata… and if it didn’t we were sure we could find a taxi or something, since there were no more Fez bound trains! Anyway, this was the only move available now if we wanted to go more than the 20 minutes to Sidi Harazem!

DH429 passes Touabaa working the 07:50 Oujda - Fez. 17/05/2026

Tickets were easily purchased from the machines at Fez- and they were happy to reserve us seats both ways on our +3 move. There was even still time for a (rather expensive) ice cream before departure. DH429 got us underway, but by Sidi Harazem we were already a few minutes down after passing a train going the other way. We could have chickened out for a +1h42… but what would be the fun in that!? Instead we used took the sensible option when the guard came through to show our return tickets and try to explain the move… ‘would it make?’ By Matamata it was now about a -3 and DH420 was already waiting in the loop- but true to the guards gesturing, we were sent to the station staff who dispatched out train first, and then made sure that we got onto our return. Phew- job done!

The attractive old city of Fez.

With no sign of a freight ready to head east tonight, it was a more sensible hour to head into Fez for dinner. Though after a diversion to see the tannery, consider buying Fez’ and for me to pick up some slippers, out dinner ended up being some street food near to the restaurants- it was delicious and bought us time to celebrate with a beer. Finding one wasn’t difficult, but getting the local ‘Casablanaca’ was more so. Plenty of establishments claimed to have it, only on further grilling to just have Heinken. Eventually we did track down some genuine ‘Casablanca’ and even treated ourselves to a second bottle- to then be told almost immediately that the bar was closing and we now had to drink up. Ah well…

Monday 18th May-

One of my favourites of the trip- especially with the flowers. DH417 is in charge of the 10:30 Fez - Beni Nasr as it powers over the viaduct at Bouhlou. You wouldn't know that the motorway is just meters away from this idyllic scene behind us! 18/05/2026

Another leisurely start (our last), since nobody fancied getting up for the 06:20 Taza today. We knew the loco was cab leading, but also that there were no other locations and it was cloudy anyway. Not leaving the city until around 10:00, we soon abandoned the nearby shots with the cityscape as the Fez area was clearly still cloudy, and the weather further east showed promise. It was better therefore to chase the weather and make sure we were in position at Bouhlou for the viaduct shot rather than miss mucking it up. This worked a treat, with DH417 at the head of the 10:30 Fez – Beni Nasr and we were all (mostly) very pleased with the picture among the spring flowers.

The next couple of trains were photographed in this area before we again adjourned out of the high midday sun for lunch at our now favourite meat grill- the staff were quite surprised to see the 3 ‘Spanish’ Englishmen again!

DH402 blasts out of the tunnel as it heads uphill towards
Ain Sbit working the 16:45 Fez - Oujda. 18/05/2026

With a bit of a gap now until the afternoon flurry of trains we went to check out some locations for later- in doing so noticing that the ballast hoppers which had been parked up at Sidi Harazem were being loaded from the car park- was there going to be some freight action? We popped into the station to ask, and fortunately the ‘Chief du Gare’ spoke enough English to give us enough of an idea of what was going on- very helpfully letting us know that those wagons weren’t going anywhere, but there should be an eastbound freight that *should* have left Fez about 14:00… but due to a problem hadn’t. It might leave ‘around 18:00’. That sounds very much like the path we had seen the freight in two days ago… by which point really we should be on the road! The chap was very friendly and was pleased to show us some of his other railway photographer friends on Facebook- a few names familiar from the Flickr world!

The 13:30 Oujda - Fez (continuing to Casablanca) is the last inbound train of the evening and is captured near Sidi Harazem with DH429 providing the power. 18/05/2026

Wrapping up the Fez diesels in the best way is DH414
climbing uphill with a freight in the last light between
Sidi Harazem and Ain Sbit. 18/05/2026

While we could have chatted longer, we couldn’t afford to miss our third attempt at the viaduct shot- finally today achieving it in the light we wanted with DH410 on the 09:25 Beni Nasr – Fez. I can only presume there is no run-round at Ben Nasr, hence this train  ending up long nose leading on every occasion we had seen it. Back on the road we wanted to check out the tunnel on the ‘horseshoe’ where the light would be right for the 16:45 Fez – Oujda if there was a shot. Not being put off by small dirt tracks we found our position and caught DH402 for a pleasing shot. A few more shots were taken in the evening light of the last passenger trains, before we adopted our shot for the anticipated freight- of course we would have to stay for it before the long drive to Rabat!

Knowing that the train had come very much in the last light two days ago, our theoretic cut-off was the loss of the light… And really we still had very little idea if the train was going to come now at all- fortunately it did. DH414 closing the chapter on Fez diesels nicely.

Tonight’s dinner was biscuits and crisps on the drive, and by the time we reached the hotel in Rabat any thoughts of seeing the city were long past. We had an early train in the morning!

Tuesday 19^th May-

Alstom Prima II E1477 has deposited us at 
Marrakech after our run from Rabat. 19/05/2026

This morning had arguably become a bit of a pointless transit trip- but it got us all a nice ONCF train ride from Rabat to Marrakech behind E1477. After arrival there was a bit of action to photograph with shunter DI513 before heading straight to the airport in another taxi for our next hire car! Now on the road we would largely trace our steps back to Ben Guerir to get onto the Safi line. Here the targets were the phosphate trains which still run with Hitachi E1100’s several times a day. We didn’t have long to catch one, so it was good news when we pulled into the station at Elaria that the staff were able to tell us that one was coming in the right direction in about 40 minutes. Working out that this would cross the passenger at Youssoufia we could try to find a position to capture both.

E1254 passes the arable fields near Soualem working the 16:05 Safi - Benguerir. 19/05/2026

An 'arty' hire car shot with the phosphate train!

We hoped that heading to the area around Soualem would find us some desert landscapes, but this time of year it was still just dry arable land. E1254 was captured on the 16:05 Safi – Benguerir, confirming these veterans still worked on the line, and shortly afterwards the main event followed with E1117 on its westbound Phosphate train. A chase valiant chase was given, but the lack of roads in the area meant that we only just about caught up with the train again.

E1117 does the business with a westbound phosphate train heading for the port of Safi and pictured in the Soulem area. 19/05/2026

After a wild chase E1117 is caught again at Bidane as it 
accelerates away from the station loop. 19/05/2026

No other activity was observed on this sleepy line until the return passenger, 19:23 Benguerir – Safi which provided disappointment in two ways- the sun almost completely giving way to haze around 5 minutes ahead of the train passing, and also the sight of Prima E1412 on the train. Clearly the Hitachi had been swapped, and that would scupper our morning shot too. Tonight we stayed at the Valley Boutique Hotel in Safi- which was lovely, except for the room not having enough beds! Dinner was in town, where every restaurant had the football on, and our chosen one couldn’t provide their ‘Moroccan’ dishes. 

Wednesday 20^th May-

DH357 is caught alongside the Atlantic ocean as it works a long train from the port of Safi to the industrial works to the south of the town. 20/05/2026

DH357 crawls through the docks at Safi- a fortuitous and quick
picture on my phone before we were stopped! 20/05/2026

In the original plan, today should have been a nice easy day on the Safi line before ending in Marrakech- but in the later stages of planning we picked up that Phosphate trains also run on the line to Khourigba, and can produce E1300’s… so this obviously also now had to be covered. The hotel in Marrakech cancelled and an apartment in Settat booked instead.

It was also now getting rather warm… midday temperatures peaking in the low 40’s, so the sensible plan was to spend the morning around Safi, drive during the middle of the day for an afternoon arrival in Settat, catching the best of the light.
We only knew 99% that the morning train out of Safi would be Prima E1412 again, so it was worth a punt. Or was it- the sun hadn’t cleared the haze when the train passed the outskirts of Safi, and was indeed E1412 again.

Another look at E1117 at Bidane on its westbound phosphate train. 19/05/2026

Our other target in this area was the green DK diesels which can work trains between the docks and the works in the city. A look in at the station revealed not a DK, but DH357 set up on a train looking ready to go ‘soon’. We sneaked a quick picture before we could be chucked out of the area, an action which was clearly in progress!
Setting up outside the factory area, we now just had to wait and hope that the DH would indeed delivery it’s train, and ideally before 09:20 so we could still make it back to the hotel for breakfast!

DK556 shunts within the phosphate terminal at Safi. This nice 
clear view is the result of considerable work to remove overhead
wires from the front of the picture in Photoshop! 20/05/2026

Just before 09:15 a horn was heard, and we were somewhat surprised to see the train moving much more quickly than anticipated- perhaps not resulting in all of the party quite getting the shots we had in mind! Anyway- it was a diesel shot and we could get back to the hotel for what turned out to be a very nice breakfast.

We had spotted a DK shunting next to the ‘No Photography’ sign at the Phosphate terminal earlier, so this became a target for after breakfast. First though, we just happened to spot a freight train slowly ambling along the line to the docks- it was DH357 again, now heading north. Bundling the car into a parking space and rushing through the security check at the port entrance, we just about managed to find a position to capture the train entering the port complex. The timing probably couldn’t have been better as the authorities didn’t have time to tell us not to take pictures until the train had passed! Back now to our other ‘No Photos’ spot, where the DK kept us waiting, seemingly for ages while we kept a low profile waiting for it to get into a position where we could nab it from the bridge. It isn’t the greatest photo (but a lot better with a it of photoshopping of the overheads!), but DK556 is in the sightings book and they are rare beasts these days (plus they sound good)!

Now it was time for the drive, but opting to keep near to the railway just in case we happened to stumble across a sulphate train, having only so far seen one. This we did, and on the section of the road which actually follows the railway, allowing us to get into a decent position for the passing of E1111 with a westbound train- the sun was a little high, but you have to take what you are given!

Our drive north was punctuated by a stop at the motorway services for lunch. This is probably the best service station lunch any of us had had! A whole chicken cooked in a tagine- I won’t be expecting that at Clacket Lane any time soon!

Heading back towards Benguerir E1111 is intercepted on only our second Phosphate train- fortunately also heading in the right direction for the light towards Safi. 20/05/2026

Unfortunately our afternoon on the Khourigba line was less successful.
Pulling in to the station at Tamdrost where an E1300 was stabled, we were quickly ushered away unable to access the loco. In the escape we ended up stuck the wrong side of the barriers when a loaded Phosphate train then passed heading south with E1352- the chase was fairly futile as it was going at a good pace, and the light was all wrong for this direction anyway. We stumbled upon a level crossing with the warning lights on, which must have now meant a northbound train was due. The crossing keeper confirmed this, so we scrambled to a very average location for it… After about 20 minutes and several reassurances from the crossing keeper that the train was coming, it was concluded by all involved, that it was not, and the crossing was faulty. Panic over, we had time to find a proper location, and thoroughly ‘garden’ the view. Now all we needed was a train… and sadly all we got was E1318 going in the wrong direction. In 4 hours there had been no sign of a northbound train at all, but at least both trains we had seen were in the hands of the E1300’s, and we were able to confirm that the evening train to Oued Zem was an E1200- so we knew we at least had one of them to photograph in the morning!

Prima II E1412 is in charge of the 19:23 Benguerir - Safi in place of the hoped for Hitachi. 19/05/2026

Getting into our apartment in Settat wasn’t the simplest- but despite no common language with the host, we managed to locate the place, and be shown inside. A decent flat with enough beds, but this time not enough towels!

It was a drive back into bustling Settat for dinner- another meat grill for our final evening meal. All of us were relieved to get back into the apartment, since we had no idea what we were going to do if somebody had locked the secondary dead-bolt on the door that none of our keys would open! 

Thursday 21^st May-

E1419 provides our first freight on the Khourigba line, heading east with box wagons bound for the factory at Loulad. 21/05/2026

Since we had a flight home tonight, there was a realistic cut-off around midday to head back to Marrakech from the Khourigba line. Given the observed lack of trains yesterday, we had to be out at first light and hope for the best.

It was a good hour until our first train, predictably the passenger with E1258. It made a decent side shot, but as with the Safi line, the light was well off the front- we would have to hope the first southbound produced for the shot we really wanted.

Another Prima when we hoped for a Hitachi- E1376 never the
less makes a nice picture with the 08:14 train from Cassablanca
to Khourigba. 21/05/2026

I always feel a bit nervous moving from ‘the spot’ to take an average picture of a train heading the ‘wrong’ way on double track when you have no real idea of when you might see what you are actually waiting for. Fortunately fate didn’t send the only freight past us while we were out of position, but less than 10 minutes later, one did indeed round the corner. Not a sulphate train, but vans behind E1419- not quite what we wanted, but it was something. I believe these vans head up the diesel line to Loulad- perhaps something to chase later?

Since this train wasn’t part of the Phosphate circuit, I still had some hope that we might get our prize. E1313 headed north, and of course, the 08:14 Casablanca – Khourigba passenger turned up Prima hauled with E1376- our last chance at a passenger Hitachi.

E1258 works the first Khourigba train of the day, bound for Casablanca. 21/05/2026

Finally, at 10:00, after only just over 2 hours of waiting, the broken nose of E1318 crawled into view- We had our shot! And with the train going so slowly an enjoyable chase would follow. By now the established format of me quickly scouting locations down the line and directing while Rob drove quick enough to get the shots without us getting killed… that’s teamwork- and thanks to the absolute pedestrian pace of the train, we managed to get ahead of it for 4 more shots before it arrived at the Phosphate terminal at Sidi Hajjaj! The terminal here is all fenced off, but that didn’t stop us sneaking in for a final picture- the ground staff clearly not in the least bit bothered.

Finally a nez-casse phosphate train! Alstom E1318 powers its load towards the phosphate loading terminal at Sidi Hajjaj. 21/05/2026

There was no point sticking around the line any longer so we had a quick reccie of the line to Loulad- which yielded absolutely nothing except some gen from the station master at Mrizig that the freight was down the branch, and would leave around 18:00- no good for us.

I had a final shot planned on the electric line close to Marrakech, but the area was dodged by clouds, and the train never showed up anyway- maybe we missed it, maybe it was late- we will never know! All that was left now was to return the hire car to and head home on our flight from Marrakech after a successful trip.

 

Conclusions-

The final shot of the trip with E1318 now within the loading termina at Sidi Hajjaj. 21/05/2026

This trip was very different to my first visit, solo, to Morocco 9 years ago. Much more photography based, and very successful in that respect. The trip had initially been planned for later in the year when the days would be cooler, and hopefully the light more pleasant, but the potential imminent arrival of ‘DO’ class diesels from China, of which very little seems to be known, pushed this trip forward. It is expected that the new diesels will take over the passenger work east of Fez, replacing the DH400’s which themselves only date from 2013, with the displaced diesels then displacing older classes which are used on freight. Also looming is a large order for new EMU’s which will replace at least the majority of the loco-hauled passenger trains and their now ageing Corail coaches.

As is so often the case, this trip aimed to cover a little bit of everything in the minimum time- and really could have done with another day or two. That said, all the objectives were achieved, though a better picture of a ‘DK’ would have been preferable.

Getting one of the older diesels is always pleasing- DH367 is seen in charge of the 16:45 Fez - Oujda between Sidi Harazem and Ain Sbit on the 'horseshoe' curve which is so useful for photography. 16/05/2026

Chasing the diesels east of Fez is a pleasure- I’m sure there are more trains than when I first visited, but other than a few gaps, there is plenty of activity at some point throughout the day to maintain interest. Scenery is abundant also, and even sticking to not much more of an hours drive from Fez plenty of different shots can be achieved. There are a few of the older liveried DH300/350’s still active on passenger which add a nice bit of variety.

On the electric lines, it is good to see the older classes still just about hanging on. A big change from 2017 is that virtually all services are now in the hands of the E1400 Prima’s since delivery of the second batch. Only a handful of E1250’s still work on the Safi and Khourigba lines, and even here E1400’s can also appear.

It was good to capture both the old E1100 Hitachi’s and the Alstom E1300’s on freight, and having seen recent reports it was pleasing that, while I suspect we didn’t see every circuit, all of the Phosphate trains we did see on the Khourigba lines were in the hands of the older traction. The big risk to the remaining old locos surely comes from displacement of the E1400’s on passenger trains by EMU’s, likely in the next couple of years.

Having waited several hours, it was pleasing to catch one of the 'broken nose' Alstom electrics on the Khourigba line, which appears to be their last stronghold. 21/05/2026

I have always enjoyed travelling in Morocco, there are good people and the food is good. Generally we had no issues with photography and nobody caused us any bother. Aside from one near-death experience and a couple of road fines (and we were being careful!), the roads were not too tricky, and driving seemed much more regulated than other north African countries we had visited- though this didn’t necessarily translate to less accidents or an understanding of roundabouts!

I’d happily return to Morocco, but with changes on the horizon and other priorities, this might just be one of those countries that can now be put on the ‘done’ list!

ENR Egypt Trip Report 09-14 February 2026

GE 'Evolution' 2565 is hauling 'Russian' stock as it heads south towards Cairo at Qalyub. 15/02/2026

Introduction:

Hot on the heals of January's trip to Bangladesh came the next item on the agenda of possibly 'less desirable' countries to visit - Egypt. This one came with a lot of apprehension - the trains look great, and I had long wanted to visit, but there is one large drawback; Photography of railways is effectively illegal. 

There have been several reports of enthusiasts being detained, arrested or just generally having a very tough or unpleasant time. Couple this with a population who many consider to be unpleasant and a road system that is, at best, chaotic and it is easy to see why this trip had been shunted down the list for some years. 

In travelling to Egypt we knew all the risks. We had a plan to keep out of trouble as best as we could- keep cameras away at stations and just use phones, don't stay in any one place too long and avoid busy areas. As well as this there were practised techniques to protect our haul- my pictures were written to two memory cards, one of which was backed up to my phone every evening. On my phone as well, a hidden album was created for all of those 'naughty' railway pictures. Making sure we had some photos of our railway work in the UK, and of some general Egypt touristing was also thrown into the mix.

EMD JT42 (that's a class 66 to most of us) 1401 speeds south at Qalyub with an Alexandria - Cairo Talgo service, the highest standard of train currently operated in Egypt. 15/02/2026

The dates of the trip were fairly fixed- my friend Rob was travelling to Eritrea on railfanning business, flying via Cairo, so the week before would have to work- and fortunately for me it did. The weather at this time of year should be favourable, and I found some good priced flights out with Wizz and back with EasyJet. Where our dates didn't 100% marry up, this would give a solo day for touristing in Cairo. 
While the initial plan was to head up into the Nile Delta, and then down the Nile Valley to Aswan overnight, this had to be discounted when we realised quite how long it would take to reach Aswan (and more to the point, how long it would take me to get back for my flight home!). In addition we became aware that most of the trains we wanted to see, with the older locomotives in the ENR fleet were to be found around the Delta in the north of the country following the near complete take over of Nile Valley services by the new GE 'Evolution' ES30MCi's. 

Monday 9th February:

EMD GT22 3879 fills the street scene having made its call at 
Fawwah with a service from Al Busayli to Desouk. 11/02/2026

An early start got me to Luton and onto my Wizz Air flight to Cairo Sphinx. Despite being airborne before 0800, the length of the flight, and loosing 2 hours meant it was late afternoon by the time I arrived. I had pre-registered for a Visa, and there was little delay at immigration, not that it seem that the visa on arrival queues were particularly arduous. I never expected to see any trains today- though there were some views as we came in to land of the new Egyptian high-speed railway which is currently under construction. The local taxi drivers efforts to get my attention, and my fare, were not rewarded as my pre-booked taxi did finally turn up around 30 minutes late. $20 was the fare to my hotel in downtown Cairo- the Swiss Tahir Tourist Hotel, which despite being 4 floors up within a building with some quite vintage lifts, was a good base for the next couple of days. 

Having dropped my bag (hand luggage only on this trip!) I walked the 40 minutes or so to the Khan El-Khalili market to get my first sense of the country. So far, so good- I didn't feel unsafe or particularly like I was being scammed and I really enjoyed visiting the vibrant streets. I took the metro back to the hotel once I had fought my way through the street scene to find the station. Tickets are 8 EGP for up to 9 stations, which works out at around 12p.

Henschel 3105 with a local train at Al Badrashein. 10/02/2026

Tuesday 10th February:

Your author, the pyramids of Giza and a camel!

Still no trains yet- it was the booked tourism morning and I had made a last minute group booking onto a tour of the Pyramids of Giza (you can't really come here and not see them!). A little more opportunity to be ripped off and to ride a camel (probably at the same time), but at least the transport and logistics were all arranged and I had some fellow tourists to share the experience with. Having finished my time here I already had my eyes on the railway, and asked to be dropped off at Giza Metro station after the tour. 

Here I encountered my first issue with Egyptian Railways- actually getting on a train.
I had been recommended the very helpful 'EGY Train' app which would usefully allow me to search for train connections and times, even including local services. I therefore knew that there should be two trains within the next hour which would call at my first spot, El Badrashin. To get into the stations is a bit of a rigmarole, passing through a metal detector and scanner, and then being required to produce a ticket. While I thought it was possible to buy on the train, you have at least got to be able to communicate this or get on the platform. 

GE 'Evolution' 2499 heads south through Al Badrashin with a southbound express towards Luxor. 10/02/2026

'Class 66' 2153 heads south (with the tail lights on!) bound for 
the Nile Valley as it approaches Al Badrashin. 10/02/2026

I tried to communicate my destination and was let away by a helpful chap who I assumed would show me where to buy a ticket. Unfortunately I was wrong. For whatever reason it was decided that I would not be getting the train and I was instead walked to the side of the road to wait a mini-bus. Well, this is how the locals do it I suppose. One chap with me knew where I was going and eventually ushered me into one of these vehicles. Much like my previous experience in Ukraine, you guess the fare, hand a few notes down via the passengers to the front of the bus and your change and ticket is handed through the passengers back to you. This was all fine, except that the bus terminated a long long way short of El Badrashin! Rapidly loosing time, the only sensible option was to get an Uber, which generally are plentiful, cheap and safe in Cairo. Eventually a car picked up my job and it became apparent that it was not 'just down the road' as I had hoped. After persuading my driver to drop me off in a sensible location near the station, I only had just over an hour of useable light at my disposal. 

Freight at Al Badrashin as 'Evolution' 2416 passes in fading 
light with a southbound container train. 10/02/2026

As always in these situations, the first flurry of trains was all heading the wrong way, including my first Henschel, 3105, on a short passenger. Other than this, the entire traction I would see here on the line between Cairo and Luxor was GE 'Evolution' locos as well as the occasional EMD JT42 (that's a '66' to you and I). With the light fading fast, I took a 'Russian' train (formed with the new Russian-Hungarian built stock) back towards Giza. The power was, predictably, a GE Genesis #2630, and while I was expecting to have to change trains at the new 'Upper Egypt' station, the train did continue to the main station at Cairo Ramses. I had assumed someone would come round to sell me a ticket on the train since I could not get one at El Badrashin but nobody did. This would come back to cause me issues later!

Line up at Cairo Ramses with GT22 3851 and 
Henschel AT22T 3136 on the blocks. 10/02/2026

On arrival at Ramses my first task was to get the loco number- this is more difficult than normal as they are all written in Arabic- so really I needed a picture to confirm and memorise it. Walking to the front of the train this was no problem, and without many staff around I thought it was worth getting a 'proper' picture of the train (on my phone)- I was encouraged to find the driver giving me a friendly wave- a good start. There were several locomotives nearby, and a steady stream of passengers crossing over the track to where a 66 was nicely positioned. So I followed them and got a couple of pictures, walking back down the platform, for I didn't intend to stay long, I was also able to snap a EMD G22, AA22T 'Henschel' and a GE C18-71 on shunt duties. Having had no issues, temptation got the better of me, and in a busier part of the station I couldn't resist photographing a well lit Heschel on a couple of coaches in the middle road- this unfortunately did attract attention (though I suspect I had been seen beforehand) and I was politely told by station security that I could not take photos. I wasn't altogether surprised when the usual 'dumb tourist' apology didn't work. No- I couldn't just walk off, I was to follow the man to the stationmasters office. 

The only example of the GE C18-71 class seen was 2310 which
appeared to be being used as a shunter at Ramses. 10/02/2026.

Here again, more pleasantries were exchanged, and while it was clear that taking pictures had been a problem, I got the feeling I wasn't going to be in terrible trouble. The staff spoke good English and were friendly. I was to hand over my phone and the stationmaster flicked very quickly through all of the pictures I had just taken. I didn't expect to see them again. 
My phone back- now the next problem. What was I doing on the station? Well, I wanted to buy tickets for Alexandria for the following day. But where was my ticket? I wasn't expecting automatic barriers to leave the station... Anyway- a bit of confusion later, several accompanied laps of the station and eventually someone was found who could sell me a ticket to Alexandria... for now! No- that wasn't what I needed! Now that it was understood I needed tickets for *tomorrow* somebody else was sent to accompany me up to the foreigner's ticket office to buy my ticket, before I could finally leave the station, after leaving my new security friend a couple of dollars for his assistance, of course.

Henschel 3105 is in one of the centre roads at Cairo Ramses. This is the same stock which I had seen earlier at Al Badrashin, and the last picture I would take before the days photography was curtailed! 10/02/2026

It wasn't until I was 'safely' on the metro that I went back to check on my pictures from the station- I did think the chap had gone through them very quickly- and to my amazement they had not been deleted! Time to back those up somewhere! The evening was spent attempting to wander along the Nile (though it is largely separated from public spaces) and look at the Cairo Tower. On the way I found a great local restaurant serving Koshari- Egypt's staple dish consisting of a mix of pasta, rice, lentils and noodles served with a tomato sauce. Given I like all these things it was unsurprisingly a hit, and the whole meal cost less than £1! The Cairo tower however was a disappointment, there isn't really anywhere to get close to it and to go up to the top was 350EGP- only about £6, but it was dark. I couldn't take my camera in, and the drink I had just purchased would have to be confiscated... I'll pass then!

Wednesday 11th February:

At Alexandria, JT42 2134 has released from its 
'Russian' stock on the blocks. 11/02/2026.

This morning I was meeting Rob who had flown in overnight. Our first port of call was the Railway Museum next to Ramses station, which, since it opened at opened at 09:00, meant that I actually had time for my hotel breakfast. I think we were virtually the only visitors and we had come with very low expectations, and I have to say, these were exceeded. There isn't much in the way of full size real trains, but there is a good collection of models of locomotives and infrastructure though the 'model railway' looked to have seen better days!- well worth 30 minutes either way.

There wasn't much time to look around Ramses station prior to boarding the 10:00 Express service to Alexandria, which amongst all the kerfuffle, I had booked tickets for the previous night. The train was, as expected, hauled by one of the GE 'Evolution' locos, 2623. The train was one of the 'VIP' class trains formed of stainless steel Chinese/Egyptian stock which was delivered around 10 years ago. The train was comfortable and made the journey in just over 3 hours. On the final approaches to Alexandria there was considerable construction work relating to the 'Alexandria Metro' project, which has replaced the suburban line which formally ran through the city, powered by EMD G22's. 

What remains of the Raml tramway is very much on borrowed time before the line shuts for modernisation. Kinki Sharyo car 215 is one of the six double-deck trailer cars constructed for the line, and is leading set towards the Raml terminal. 11/02/2026

Given the time it was thought best to check into our hotel, the Royal Jewel Al-Raml where we were upgraded to a 'suite with an ocean view'- more importantly the ocean view also meant that the room would have a view of the Raml tramway! This system is one of two tram networks in Alexandria, this one using mostly Kinki Sharyo railcars dating from the 1970's and 80's- it's claim to fame being the six double-deck driving trailer cars which are formed into some sets. 

This is a really interesting old tramway, and one I was very pleased to see in operation- in the lead up to the trip I had read that the network was due to close for modernisation just days before our visit- fortunately this was clarified to only be part of the network, and the end at the Raml terminal where we were staying was thankfully still in operation- though this temporary stay of execution is thought to only be for a couple of months. 

Our next quest was to pick up our hire car- I had thought that the 'Budget' office located near our hotel was the pick up location- but in reality it turned out to be much further to the east of the city. The obvious way to get there was on the Raml tram- but we had not quite accounted for how slow this would be. This tram system is billed as being the more efficient of the two since it runs on a segregated tramway, but is still delayed at multiple grade crossings- to have any resemblance to a modern, quick and efficient system, that re-build is clearly needed!  While the ride did net us some photographs of the double deck cars, it was clearly not going to get us to the car any time soon, so after a short ride it was into an Uber to continue the journey and try to make best of what light remained of the afternoon. 

GE Evolution 2562 appraoches Kafr El-Dawar with a train to Alexandria. 11/02/2026

By the time we had reached our chosen spot at Kafr El-Dawar, which while close to Alexandria, is still an hour away by car, it was already gone 16:00 and we would have, at most, 90 minutes of light left. 
As is typical in these situations, a look at the EGY train app revealed that most trains would be going in the 'wrong' direction- however we did get the shot we wanted, all be it with GE Evolution 2562- obviously we would have preferred some older traction. With shadows growing, we moved to a location where we could shoot the southbound trains side-on, and of course as soon as we did a top-and-tail rake came past, which would have given us our desired shot had we stayed put a few more minutes. Such is life! By 17:30 the light was gone and it was time to head back to the city at a reasonable hour. 

GT22 3816 catches the glint of the setting sun as it accelerates away from Kafr El-Dawar on a top-and-tail set of stock (possibly empty!?) 11/02/2026.

Back in Alexandria there were a few aims- to photograph the Raml tramway more extensively, to seek out some trams on the 'City' tramway, find dinner with a beer and walk out to the site of the old Alexandria Lighthouse- oh- and plan our moves for the next day. Quite a lot to fit in actually!

Another 'Evolution', 2632 heads towards Alexandria and is 
reflected in one of the many drainage channels as it 
approaches Kafr El-Dawar. 11/02/2026.

Dinner was taken at Calithea restaurant on the seafront which ticked off both the food and beer requirements, before embarking on quite a long walk to the Quitbay Citadel. This castle is built on the site/ruins of the Lighthouse of Alexandria, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Of course being night time the castle itself was closed, but the structure was still impressive. 
The plan was to get a City Tram back into town, as one of the routes ran nearby- but unfortunately no trams were seen for the duration of the walk back. The tracks looked as if they had been used, recently, but not that recently. One for the next evening perhaps. 

Thursday 12th February:

GT22 3626 gets away from Desouk with a service towards Tanta. 12/02/2026

The morning began with quite specific aims- there was a shot we had seen on the line between Desouk and Tanta which had two 'improved' trains passing within an hour- Given that most of the local lines in the Nile Delta area have a service around 2-hourly, this is frequent. We had also by now realised that the interesting traction was on these 'improved' trains, and this gave us two bites at the cherry. Both turned up with G22's, but unfortunately, both with the long-hood leading. A nice shot, but not 100% what we wanted. 

Now it was time to head north, another long drive, to a shot we had in mind near Rosetta, where the line does a 'fish hook' turning around 200 degrees, meaning we should be able to shoot with sun on the front despite this line being worked push-pull with locos on the north end. 

GT22 3879 leads a push-pull set south from Al Busayli to
Desouk. 12/02/2026

There was, however, a distraction on the way. We hadn't realised when planning that our route north would follow the railway between Desouk and Mutubas. As with many railways in these areas, it was difficult to tell if the line was in use- until we overtook a push-pull train on it heading north, which provi ded quite conclusive evidence! The light was no good for this, but if there was a southbound train, we did just have time to capture it, and there were some interesting street scenes through which the railway passed. 
A look on the EGY Train app revealed that there was, the search was now on to find a spot in time, and without deviating so much that we missed our next picture! 

Unfortunately, the train was late, which meant that inevitably a large cloud which had been approaching got there first, and our first GT22 cab leading was in dull. The train was slow however, so there was no disadvantage to chasing it, and pleasingly two further shots were taken through a promising break in the clouds. Now it was back to 'plan A' and Rosetta. 

Typical traffic hazards on the rural roads!

We arrived with a good 10 minutes or so to spare if the train was on time and the earlier cloud had kindly cleared away, but there was an immediate problem. The picture we had seen had needed some height- and it was quickly deducted that it must have been taken from the top of a building. This was, at least now, a private residence so was not exactly easy access in the short time we had. What was more, some 'gardening' would also be needed for the shot we planned. With some interest from locals, it was eventually established that we wanted to get onto the building roof... and amazingly after some persistence, there we stood! The shot had to be slightly re-imagined due to vegetation growth, but, around 20 minutes behind schedule our train could be heard rounding the big curve and into view came GT22 3841 making probably our favourite shot of the trip. Thanks were paid to our hosts and a position quickly found to catch the train, now with the loco pushing, for the return trip. 

GT22 3841 is seen on the final approach to Rosetta, taken from the roof of a nearby dwelling! 12/02/2026

We were surprised to bump into the train again on the drive to our next location, and a few extra shots were achieved of the not unattractive driving trailer against the semaphore signals at Al-Busayli. We then finished our railway exploits for the day at an overbridge we had passed earlier at Damanhour. Unfortunately the clouds finally had beaten us and sunny pictures were no longer available. Our highlight here was a short ballast train led by one of the older 'Evolution' locomotives, with a Henschel on the rear, a class we had still seen very little of in traffic.

3841's push-pull train is seen with the driving 
trailer leading, passing semaphore signals at
Al-Busayli. 12/02/2026.

Quite tired again, we returned to the same restaurant in Alexandria after I had insisted on a ride on the double decker tram- after all these are finishing soon and Alexandria is one of just three systems in the world to use them in commercial service (the other being Hong Kong and Blackpool... if that latter even still counts!?). I enjoyed the journey, but it was slow, not helped by our tram on the return breaking down mid way back to the Raml terminal!
We also caught sight of the Alexandria 'Heritage' tram, which I didn't realise was still running, and saw one tram take the connection onto the 'City' network. We enquired if any more would go this way, but unfortunately not. It was a toss up between a beer at the 'Spitfire' bar just across the road, or searching for City trams. Since the network seemed to have so little activity we opted for the beer.

Friday 13th February:

GT22 3855 disturbs the peace as it gets underway from Mahallat Rawh with a train for Tanta. 13/02/2026.

Back on the road, and leaving Alexandria for the final time without too much of a plan other than to track down some Henschel's in the Tanta Area. We first stopped off at the bridge from the previous night at Damanhour, catching two southbound trains, both with 'Evolution' traction, before setting up at our first, fairly unremarkable spot, south of Tanta. We didn't actually see any trains here, because I came up with a better plan to catch an 'Improved' train on the line towards Mit Ghamr where we knew that JT22's had been reported. It was a lovely spot, and the sun was shining brightly despite looming clouds. However the train didn't appear. Eventually the problem was established- it didn't run on Fridays. 

Back to the drawing board there were some trains on the line to Mahallat Rawh which actually were running, and here we found a lovely array of semaphore signals to set the scene. Unfortunately the light had worsened considerable for the for the two GT22 departures we saw, and a freight (going the wrong way) headed by a Henschel. 

GE 'Evolution' 2619 passes the outskirts of Damanhour as it heads south towards Cairo. 14/02/2026.

Despite having had our Semaphore fix, we stuck to our original plan for the afternoon to head to Menouf, which we knew to be another location filled with traditional signalling. There was a gap in trains, allowing us a break from the dreadful local roads for a nice, very local, lunch- once we had found a restaurant to whom we could communicate that we wanted food!

 Henschel AT22T 3107 arrives at Menouf with a service from
Shibin Al Kawm. 13/02/2026

Menouf is one of those locations that sits dormant for a few hours, and then comes alive with trains from all directions. We didn't have to wait long for our first, and finally a passenger with a Henschel in charge! We were wary of attracting attention by standing too near to the signal box, but needn't have worried as the only unwanted attention we received was from a group of about 5 kids. They started off nice enough, but soon became the most annoying people we had come across on the trip, begging for dollars and eventually trying to threaten us with pieces of ballast. Once our shots here were done it was good to get further away from the station area. A couple more arrivals, all with Henschels until the very last, which arrived with what we *really* wanted to see, one of the triple windowed EMD JT22MC's (similar in cab design to the Irish 071 or Yugoslav 666). It wasn't the light we wanted to catch one in- but at least we had seen one. We even dared to visit the station platforms for a couple of pictures of the loco running around its train in the weird sandy low light (on phones, as per our rules). 

Henschel 3091 approaches Menouf from the direction of Banha. 13/02/2026.

Now it was time to get back to Cairo and de-hire the car. Driving along the motorway it was very apparent just how dusty the air was and how we had lost the light for the afternoon. The last 5 miles or so of traffic can only be described as 'awful' with the busy road being stop-start and full of Egyptian hazards; vehicles going the wrong way, motorbikes weaving around the road and even road sweepers just standing with their wheelie bins by the central reservation. It was with some pride that we dropped the car off scratch-free! 

Our first JT22, 3450 stands at Menouf having run around its train to Shibin Al Kawm. 13/02/2026.

This was my final night in Egypt, and this time we stayed at the Mar Charbel, again close to the centre of Cairo, while Rob was staying another night before his flight onward to Eirtrea! I was keen that he saw the old market at Khan El-Khalili so we headed there, again enjoying an 'Egyptian pancake' for dinner and planning our moves for our final train day.

Saturday 14th February:

A very clean JT22 3453 departs from Qalyub with a service from the Zagazig line. 14/02/2026.

Keen to have breakfast, and noting previous stresses of travelling by train, we revised our plan to get an Uber out to our first location, near the station of Qalyub to the north of the city. Despite having to navigate for the driver, a nice chap who spoke good English and temporarily away from his current home in South Africa, the taxi move saved us about an hour getting into position. To get to our planned spot involved crossing the railway, and we were both keen on the view from the footbridge. By this point, having had the best part of a week with no bother at all from security, we had mellowed on our stance somewhat and spent the best part of an hour happily photographing the variety of trains from this bridge. Some luck also came to us in the first train to meet our lenses being hauled by one of the JT22's- finally a nice sunny shot of this somewhat elusive class (but still no sunny Henschel!). I also caught the familiar frame of an EMD JT42 (class 66) #1401 hauling one of the new Talgo sets, the highest quality trains now running in Egypt.

We moved into our planned field when there was a gap in trains, and finally got our Henschel. There were so many GE 'Evoloution' hauled trains here that we even took to attempting pan shots with some of them. It had been an excellent morning... 

Henschel 3105 with 'Improved' train 124 from Tanta to Cairo seen near Qalyub. 14/02/2026

Street food for lunch after our run in with the 
authorities at Qalyub. 

Suddenly from down the line behind Rob I saw an approaching uniformed man. He was obviously here in some sort of security capacity. Having given the warning, memory cards were stashed and we braced ourselves for the conversation that was clearly going to ensue. Our fears were correct, and the chap was clearly not happy we had been photographing the trains. Where he came from (apparently a field) and who had tipped him off, we were not sure, but we were in a much busier area today. Once again it was clear that apologising and leaving was not an option and re-enforcements were called. Fortunately the second man was a bit calmer and spoke a little more English. We were led down the line at which point I realised he was equipped with handcuffs and a gun! Stopping under the shade of our earlier footbridge was a relief- it was clearly better for us to be having this conversation by the lineside instead of in a police office. By this point we were feeling a little more comfortable that whatever the issue was, it would be resolved fairly amicably. Words and passports were exchanged, and having established that our pictures were the issues, these were calmly deleted in front of the officers. After that we were free to go. Phew. It is of course worth noting that this was the exact scenario we had planned for, and the exact reason that my pictures were duplicated- I'd not have been so calm deleting everything had I not known there was another copy in my pocket!

Henschel 3093 has just departed from Qalyub taking the long route to Tanta via Manouf. 14/02/2026.

Clearly continuing at this location was now off the cards (the light was getting too head on anyway), but we would also have to be very cautious on the branches radiating from Qalyub where we had planned to spend the afternoon. We re-grouped over some fresh falafel from a street stall (very nice) and headed on onto the branch to Shibin Al-Qanatir and Zalazig. I was sure the train we were after was scheduled today, but some 20 minutes after it was due, a look on the App revealed the next train of that number to be the following day. Walking back from the spot, as we had no desire to hang around conspicuously, or within sight of the level crossing, a train was heard... surely- had itcome afterall and we had missed it? Does the App updated to the following days schedule after the booked time of the train? We would never 100% know, but it was a bit of a blow to start off the afternoon. 

Onto the other branch, towards Manuf, where we had been yesterday, there were several trains, but not many locations as the line was quite built up and adjacent to a main road. We didn't want to stand anywhere too public, but managed a nice shot from behind some buildings- and finally a good close up view of a well lit Henschel! 

Our final lineside picture with JT22 3458 approaching Qalyub from the Zagazig line. The horse cart was well timed to compliment the scene. 14/02/2026.

Back to our original branch, we were determined to see the next train here before calling a day on our activities. Another Henschel was what we really wanted, but it was a JT22 that ultimately turned up- a few hours ago we would have been longing for one of these, and in truth it was still a very nice picture and way to finish up the trip. 

I wanted the last journey into Cairo to be by rail, as we had travelled on so few trains, so after walking back to the station we purchased tickets to Cairo for the next service. This ticket office clearly wasn't set up to sell 'foreigner' fares, so we were charged the local rate without question, which was about 10 Egyptian pounds- around 7p. The train came in behind another JT22 and we were gestured on board. It paused in a lovely sunny position for a photo, and since we would need a record of the Arabic number to identify it, we both dared to take a quick picture of the train before boarding on our phones since this would be easier than with it on the blocks at Cairo. This turned out to be a mistake! 

Causing more trouble than it was worth, my picture 'of the 
driver' of JT22 3469 at Qalyub before heading to Cairo. 14/02/2026

We had a very stressful journey back to the city, as in the several intervening minutes between boarding the train and it departing, some sort of ticket collector also boarded and started gesturing that we needed to get off. Given we had a ticket and the station staff told us to get on, we did not. Soon there was hollering about 'foreigner' fares, police and all sorts. Sticking to ground since we had done nothing wrong, and with a young lady next to us trying to translate, a demand of $30 each was made! I wasn't having this for a 30 minute local journey when I knew the fare to Alexandria in 1st class, so security boarded at the next station and demanded our passports. The young lady didn't know the problem either, and about 10 minutes late, almost as quickly as the commotion had begun our passports were handed back and she informed us that 'It is no problem. There will be no charge'. Too right- only we soon found out what the problem really was- I had taken a picture 'of the driver'! Our 'friends' still with us, it was mentioned that on arrival at Cairo, we should visit the Tourist Police to 'help us'- fortunately the train driver on arrival into the 'Lemon Bridge' annex station to Ramses wasn't bothered about the whole thing and we escaped to the streets- not really the final interaction we wanted with Egyptian Railways, who seem to make it incredibly difficult to travel on anything but the trains that the tourists are 'meant to take'.

A short top-and-tail rake of coaches with GT22 power accelerates away from Kafr El-Dawar. 11/02/2026.

Khan El-Khalili market, Cairo.

I now just needed to get to the airport and back to the UK, leaving Rob for his final night. 

Even getting into an Uber was a bit of a pain, since they don't appear to be able to stop outside the station, and of course numberplates are all in Arabic. Eventually I managed to track the car down in the middle of the road and finally felt at ease that I would get to the airport in good time. Then we sat in almost stand still traffic for about 30 minutes while the driver kept trying to tell me in broken English that there was an 'extra' charge of 50 Egyptian Pounds. Having just given my spare currency to Rob, this was an issue I would have to deal with later! Getting out of the city onto the motorway was a good feeling- even if we did reverse back down the fast lane after missing a turning! The driver begrudgingly accepted $5 for his 'extra' fee and I had made it. Back to Cairo Sphinx Airport. The ridiculous airport security; three full body pat-downs, three swabs for explosives and a search of my entire hand luggage could warrant a post in itself, so I will spare you that. The day had been hard work and I was glad to finally be boarding the EasyJet plane that would take me back home. 

GT22 3841 powers past the Fixed distant signal for Rosetta as it pushes its train bound for the Alexandria suburbs. 12/02/2026.

Conclusions:

If it wasn't for the security issues, Egypt would be a fantastic country to visit for trains. Even with the influx of new traction, there are plenty of attractive older classes to be seen, and lots of ancient infrastructure on which to photograph them. 
Even with the difficulties, and in spite of the warnings, we had a very enjoyable week. The trip had intentionally been a short one as we really weren't sure how much fun it would be- but with hindsight several more days would have been very worthwhile. The vast majority of the people we had interactions with were pleasant, and the majority of our time by the lineside was trouble free. 

Traveling at this time of year meant slightly shorter, more sociable days, and pleasant temperatures which made everything far more tolerable. Planning can be hard work as town names appear either in Arabic or in various different English spellings, leaving the user unsure what name to search for in journey planners. For planning pictures, of course, the lack of Google street view is very unhelpful, but clear stretches of line can usually be found- especially if travelling by car. The trams in Alexandria were a bonus too- and while it was disappointing not to see any of the City trams, it was a big tick in the box to catch the double-deck cars of the Raml tramway, something which was far from guaranteed - if you want to see these, get booking your flight immediately!

Would I go back? Yes- absolutely!

Kinki Sharyo double-deck car 209 lines up with one of its single deck classmates at the Raml Terminal in Alexandria. These vehicles, and the line, were expected to last only a few more months in service. 11/02/2026.