Rail journey · Himachal Pradesh
Kalka–Shimla Railway (Himalayan Queen)
A narrow-gauge climb from the plains at Kalka to the hill station of Shimla — more than a hundred tunnels, hundreds of bridges and thousands of curves through cedar and pine.
Kalka–Shimla Railway (Himalayan Queen) · Raghavan V · CC BY-SA 3.0
Typical time5 h 30 min
Route length60 miles
FromKalka
ToShimla
The ride
What you'll see
01
Over 100 tunnels including the Barog spiral
02
864 bridges and over 900 curves
03
Subtropical to alpine scenery in a morning
04
UNESCO World Heritage mountain railway
The route
Station by station
- Kalka
- Barog
- Solan
- Shimla
Route sketch · station coordinates · not to scale
Before you go
Good to know
01
Book the Himalayan Queen or the toy-train service well ahead in season.
02
Sit on the Shimla side going up for valley views.
03
The Kalka station connects to main-line trains from Delhi.
Typical times and distances are for guidance only — check the operator's timetable before you travel.
Photography credits
- Kalka–Shimla Railway (Himalayan Queen) — Raghavan V · CC BY-SA 3.0
This page is built with the community
Help the next visitor.
You know things we don’t. Add a photo, a tip or a correction — it takes a minute, and the next person benefits.