The world's best railway stations

[lang rabbie]

New Antwerp is all underground, isn't it??

Below ground level, but the central escalator concourse is completely open from Level -2 to the top of the original 19th century train shed.

I thought I was hallucinating when I got off the semi-fast train from Bruxelles Midi two years ago on what turned out to be the first day in passenger service.

 

[teuchter]

I just thought of Liege, which is quite dramatic, although it feels slightly overdone for what it is, to me.

It too has only been completed for a couple of years.

I haven't really looked at it properly though, only from the platforms for about ten minutes while changing trains.

 

[lang rabbie]

I just thought of Liege, which is quite dramatic, although it feels slightly overdone for what it is, to me.

Oddly enough, I had been pondering that no one had nominated any of Santiago Calatrava's bravura railway structures of the last two decades as being among "the world's best" railway stations.

I've not been back to Liege since it was finished or to the earliest Swiss ones, but from my experience of Lisbon Oriente and his buildings in Valencia he creates elegant engineering solutions, but [IMHO] they don't feel like real "places" with a sense of arrival.

 

[teuchter]

Oddly enough, I had been pondering that no one had nominated any of Santiago Calatrava's bravura railway structures of the last two decades as being among "the world's best" railway stations.

I've not been back to Liege since it was finished or to the earliest Swiss ones, but from my experience of Lisbon Oriente and his buildings in Valencia he creates elegant engineering solutions, but [IMHO] they don't feel like real "places" with a sense of arrival.

To me, he seems kind of stuck somewhere between engineer and architect. His structures seem over-architected, and his architecture over-engineered.

 

[ATOMIC SUPLEX]

I thought I would have a look though google for the worlds best stations but they seem to all think that crappy grand central it the nicest. Fuckwits.

PS this thread is the third top google.

 

[HackneyE9]

I came through Liege on the way to Berlin, cool but a bit OTT.

Come to think of it, Aix-en-Provence TGV station is probably the coolest looking train station in the world. Anyone know how to post a pic?

If you want to go back in time, Kandy in Sri Lanka - all mahogany seats and clocks and "2nd class ladies waiting room" and "Station Masters's Office" Victoriana.

 

[teuchter]

That one?

I think I vaguely remember passing through it half-asleep on the way to Marseilles.

 

[Crispy]

Lyon TGV is pretty spanky

 

[teuchter]

I've just remembered this one, don't know why I didn't think of it before because it's an obvious candidate for this thread, and probably in my top five anywhere.

The Estacion del Norte, Valencia. It's a magnificent station, both in scale and in detail, much of which survives in good condition in the booking halls.

Architecturally it's an example of Modernismo style, the Spanish version of Art Nouveau.

I feel like I owe the Estacion del Norte an apology for forgetting it up till now.

 

[teuchter]

Lyon TGV is pretty spanky

Another Calatrava one?

 

[paolo]

My favourite forgotten one: Canfranc, the lost 'international' station in Spain. Two trains a day I believe.

(It's been restored a bit since the photo).

 

[teuchter]

My favourite forgotten one: Canfranc, the lost 'international' station in Spain. Two trains a day I believe.

(It's been restored a bit since the photo).

Ah yes, I really wanted to visit that the other year when I was in Spain but didn't manage. They were going to convert some of into a hotel or something, weren't they? Is that going ahead?

Was discussed here too: http://www.urban75.net/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=221626&page=2

 

[oneflewover]

Have to vote for Milan but

The station itself is a little plain, the approach to Marseille station is something else. It's at the top of a hill then you get the stairs. You wouldn't want to run for a train.

Whilst we were there, a heatwave was occurring and all over the concourse there was a mist of water trying to cool the place down. It didn't work, it was the hottest i've known it. Summer of 2003.

 

[paolo]

Ah yes, I really wanted to visit that the other year when I was in Spain but didn't manage. They were going to convert some of into a hotel or something, weren't they? Is that going ahead?

I've seen something alluding to that... need to do some more digging on it. If the project has failed, I'd be tempted to go and have poke around.

 

[brix]

Some wonderful photos on this thread.

I'm very fond of Oxford Road, Manchester. Not that I'm putting in the category of one of the world's best stations you understand.

 

[teuchter]

Have to vote for Milan but

The station itself is a little plain, the approach to Marseille station is something else. It's at the top of a hill then you get the stairs. You wouldn't want to run for a train.

Whilst we were there, a heatwave was occurring and all over the concourse there was a mist of water trying to cool the place down. It didn't work, it was the hottest i've known it. Summer of 2003.

I've got a feeling i've run up those stairs for a train. I'd forgotten that till now.

 

[paolo]

Have we had Glasgow Central yet? I think that's got a proper charm to it.

 

[paolo]

Some wonderful photos on this thread.

I'm very fond of Oxford Road, Manchester. Not that I'm putting in the category of one of the world's best stations you understand.

Yep that's nice. Modest is good too.

 

[teuchter]

Have we had Glasgow Central yet? I think that's got a proper charm to it.

It has. Not sure if it qualifies for "world's greatest" but it's one of the nicer large terminii in britain, for sure.

 

[quimcunx]

Have we had Glasgow Central yet? I think that's got a proper charm to it.

I took a friend for a long weekend to Glasgow a few years back. We got off the train at Glasgow Central. Walked up the platform onto the concourse where a drunk was sat cross-legged, a constable all very good naturedly dragging him along the floor by the collar. They seemed to know both each other and the routine.

''Welcome to Glasgow'' I said, ''We can go home now. You've seen all you need to see. That has summed it up rather nicely.''

It does have some charm but I wouldn't put it up there with the world's best.

 

[paolo]

I took a friend for a long weekend to Glasgow a few years back. We got off the train at Glasgow Central. Walked up the platform onto the concourse where a drunk was sat cross-legged, a constable all very good naturedly dragging him along the floor by the collar. They seemed to know both each other and the routine.

''Welcome to Glasgow'' I said, ''We can go home now. You've seen all you need to see. That has summed it up rather nicely.''

It does have some charm but I wouldn't put it up there with the world's best.

Last time I saw it, admittedly, I'd arrived (with GF) at dawn on the Caledonian Sleeper.

It looks very nice when you've got the whole place to yourself, I reckon. Just a coffee shop open, and M&S food to stock up on supplies. 40 mins to kill before getting on one of those appalling scotrail contraptions.

(It was like a old bus, but on rails. Then an overhead tour of just how grim Glasgow can be, and in the space of what (by London standards) is a short journey, we're seeing swoopy big hills and water, and allsorts. Love Scotland. They really should move it to Surrey or something.)

 

[quimcunx]

Love Scotland. They really should move it to Surrey or something.)

Agreed. I could visit my family more often but for less time.

 

[HackneyE9]

Some wonderful photos on this thread.

I'm very fond of Oxford Road, Manchester. Not that I'm putting in the category of one of the world's best stations you understand.

Not just you, brix. Oxford Road, Manchester is actually a listed building!

 

[DJWrongspeed]

Cracking thread. Agree about German stations Leipzig & Koln are pretty amazing. The new Berlin one is unbelievably huge as well.

Gare du Lyon in Paris is lovely as is the view on arriving at St. Charles station in Marseille , get off the TGV walk straight onto the promenade and this is what you see. It's a bit like if Euston ended on Parliament Hill

img now fixed!

 

[Crispy]

Your pic doens't work

 

[_pH_]

oh. when i saw you'd posted, crispy, i thought you were gonna add that lego Hbf from the other thread on here

 

[teuchter]

Went through Limoges yesterday and thought of this thread.

It's certainly a very impressive building (although the platforms themselves are a bit disappointing because they are underneath the concourse level).

It's hard to convey what the interior is like by photographs - an enormous domed ceiling sits over the main concourse.

 

[agricola]

Four pages and noone has mentioned Llangollen?

 

[teuchter]

Nice as it might be, I think it's pushing it a bit to say that Llangollen is one of "the world's best railway stations".

 

[agricola]

Nice as it might be, I think it's pushing it a bit to say that Llangollen is one of "the world's best railway stations".

Well if people are putting St Pancras top of the list it is, certainly I know which station I enjoy more.