This page was assembled on 4 October 2007, and
last modified on
23 September 2024.
This is a listing of all public railtours which HDL has operated, since our train’s return to main-line running in 1996, up to the present time.
This archive does not include railtours run by other operators (e.g. Branch Line Society, UK Railtours), nor other excursions our train has worked (e.g. Portsmouth – Cardiff rugby specials).
All tours began at Hastings unless otherwise stated.
All railtours since 2001 were advertised on this website. The archived publicity material for each has been made available through the links shown (in latter cases this is via the event’s news-article).
This archive is listed in reverse chronological order.
| Date | Railtour | Details | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saturday 14 September 2024 | Glevum DEMU | to Gloucester and Cheltenham | |
| Saturday 13 July 2024 | Derby Researcher | to Leicester, Loughborough and Derby | |
| Saturday 8 June 2024 | Lincolnshire Poacher | to Boston and Skegness | |
| Saturday 6 April 2024 | Cogload Climber | via Reading to Exeter, back via Eastleigh | |
| Saturday 6 January 2024 | Surrey Hills Surprise | to Hayes (Kent) and Guildford | |
| Sunday 3 September 2023 | Cambridge Clipper | to Cambridge and Ely | 7-car train: motor coach 60119 in passenger service |
| Saturday 8 July 2023 | Jurassic Coast Explorer | to Reading and Weymouth | 7-car train: motor coach 60119 added |
| Saturday 25 March 2023 | Avon Ambassador | to Bath and Bristol | |
| Saturday 18 February 2023 | Medway Valley Venturer | to Maidstone West and Faversham | Retention toilets fitted |
| Saturday 18 June 2022 | Jolly Fisherman | to Skegness via Sleaford | Curtailed because of a faulty fire alarm |
| Saturday 7 May 2022 | Worcester Sauce DEMU | to Worcester Shrub Hill via Redhill, Oxford and the Cotswold Line | HDL’s 85th main-line railtour |
| Saturday 2 April 2022 | Medstead Mountaineer | to Alton and the Mid-Hants Watercress Line | |
| Saturday 8 January 2022 | Southern Mariner | Via Redhill and Chichester to Portsmouth Harbour | |
| Saturday 11 September 2021 | Faversham Flyer | Via Rye and Ashford to Canterbury East and Faversham | |
| Saturday 7 August 2021 | Sussex & Kent Explorer | Started at Eastbourne; to Hastings and Tonbridge and back to Hastings, twice | |
| Saturday 11 January 2020 | Faversham Hop | Started at Eastbourne; to Hastings, Rye, Ashford, Canterbury East and Faversham | |
| Saturday 14 September 2019 | Ludgershall Legionnaire | To Salisbury and MoD Ludgershall, out via Westbury, return via Fareham | |
| Saturday 6 July 2019 | Dean Forest Foray | To Gloucester and the Dean Forest Railway | |
| Saturday 11 May 2019 | East Anglian Explorer | To Norwich and Lowestoft | |
| Saturday 6 April 2019 | Dave Markwick Memorial Tour | To London Charing Cross, Isle of Grain, and Angerstein Wharf | |
| Saturday 4 August 2018 | Weymouth Warrior | Via Redhill and Guildford to Southampton and Weymouth | |
| Saturday 16 June 2018 | South Devon Coaster | Via Redhill and Reading to Exeter, Dawlish, Teignmouth and Paignton | |
| Saturday 21 April 2018 | West Norfolk Wanderer | To Cambridge, Ely and King’s Lynn, plus a visit to the old Middleton Towers branch | |
| Saturday 30 September 2017 | Alpine Sunset | To the Mid-Hants Watercress Line via Redhill, return also via Ascot and Reading | |
| Saturday 30 July 2017 | Strike Back Express | Via Redhill to Bath and Keynsham, outbound via Didcot, return via Newbury; joint charter/railtour with Strike Back Against Blood Cancer | |
| Saturday 1 July 2017 | Cleethorpes Clipper | To Lincoln and Cleethorpes | |
| Saturday 27 May 2017 | Oxford Rover | To Oxford: out via GWR route, back via Chiltern | |
| Saturday 13 May 2017 | Fawley Forester | Via Redhill and Woking to Southampton and the Fawley branch; joint charter/railtour with Three Rivers Community Rail Partnership | |
| Saturday 31 December 2016 | Canterbury Bell | Started at Eastbourne; to Hastings, Rye, Ashford, Canterbury East and Faversham | |
| Sunday 18 September 2016 | Ardingly Arrow | To London Victoria, Haywards Heath, Ardingly and Brighton | |
| Saturday 23 July 2016 | Weybourne Wanderer | To Norwich, Cromer and the North Norfolk Railway | |
| Saturday 7 May 2016 | Hastings Blue Belle | To the Bluebell Railway and Uckfield | |
| Saturday 5 December 2015 | Salisbury Star 2 | To Salisbury via Guildford | |
| Saturday 19 September 2015 | Leicestershire Bell | To Leicester and the Great Central Railway (Nottingham) | |
| Saturday 4 July 2015 | Warwickshire Wanderer | To Leamington Spa, Warwick and Stratford-upon-Avon | |
| Saturday 18 April 2015 | Green Dragon | Via Guildford, Woking and Salisbury to Cardiff | |
| Saturday 13 September 2014 | Essex Coast Express | Via London Liverpool Street to Clacton | |
| Saturday 12 July 2014 | Hastings Diesels Crewe | Via the WCML to Crewe | GSM-R fitted |
| Saturday 20 July 2013 | Weymouth Envoy | To Waterloo and Weymouth | |
| Saturday 24 November 2012 | Canterbury Trail | To Rochester, Canterbury and the Dungeness branch | |
| Saturday 15 September 2012 | Western Forester | To Gloucester and the Dean Forest Railway | |
| Saturday 7 July 2012 | Channel Two | To Bath, Bristol and Weston-super-Mare | |
| Saturday 12 May 2012 | Nene Machine | To Peterborough and the Nene Valley Railway | |
| Saturday 31 March 2012 | Thames Tidal | To Fenchurch Street, Southend and Shoeburyness | |
| Saturday 3 December 2011 | Old Curiosity Mystery | To London Cannon Street, Rochester and Ashford | |
| Saturday 10 September 2011 | Midland Pioneer | To Leicester, Loughborough and Butterley | |
| Saturday 25 June 2011 | Dorset Diadem | To Bournemouth and Swanage | |
| Saturday 14 May 2011 | Metrolander | To Beaconsfield, Aylesbury and Quainton Road | |
| Saturday 26 March 2011 | Norfolk Navigator | To Ely and Dereham | |
| Saturday 19 February 2011 | Winter Enigma | To Bedford and Bletchley | |
| Saturday 18 September 2010 | English Electric Echo | To Boston and Skegness | |
| Saturday 19 June 2010 | West Somerset Limited | To Minehead via Guildford | |
| Saturday 24 April 2010 | Severn Explorer | To Kidderminster and the Severn Valley Railway | |
| Saturday 20 March 2010 | Solent Sentinel | To Chichester and Portsmouth via London Victoria | 6-car train: CEP coach reinstated |
| Saturday 5 December 2009 | Christmas Scholar | To Cambridge via Rye | |
| Saturday 3 October 2009 | Worcester Leveller | To Worcester, return via Lickey Incline | |
| Saturday 4 July 2009 | Midland Forester | To Nottingham via Loughborough | |
| Saturday 21 March 2009 | Wiltshire Warrior | To Salisbury via Tonbridge, Guildford and Eastleigh | |
| Sunday 21 December 2008 | Christmas Onward tour | To London Victoria and Folkestone Harbour | 5-car train: CEP coach and motor coach Hastings removed; CDL fitted |
| Sunday 17 July 2005 | Mid-Hants Venturer | To Alton and the Mid-Hants Railway | |
| Saturday 25 June 2005 | West Country Cruiser, plus Tarka Special | To Exeter, plus a Special down the “Tarka” line to Barnstaple | |
| Saturday 7 May 2005 | Lincoln Green | To Lincoln, returning through Nottingham | |
| Sunday 13 March 2005 | Lydd Ranger | Down the Lydd branch to Dungeness, also taking in Canterbury and Dover | |
| Saturday 13 November 2004 | London Tripper / Hastings Time Traveller | Two return trips between coast and capital, in conjunction with the Lord Mayor’s Show | |
| Saturday 25 September 2004 | Suffolk Clipper | To Norwich, Ipswich and Lowestoft | |
| Saturday 10 April 2004 | Salisbury Bunny | Easter Saturday trip via Guildford to Salisbury | |
| Saturday 6 December 2003 | Medway Cracker | To the Medway towns, plus a trip down the Sheerness branch and a visit to Charing Cross station | 6-car train (just this tour) |
| Saturday 5 July 2003 | Deal Wayfarer | To Deal, with reversal at Dover and photo-stop at Newington | |
| Saturday 7 December 2002 | Cambridge Cracker | Pre-Christmas trip to Cambridge | 7-car train: motor coach Mountfield added |
| Saturday 31 August 2002 | Cardiff Chieftain | To Cardiff, running out via Salisbury and back via Didcot | |
| Saturday 20 July 2002 | Canterbury Champion | An afternoon/evening trip to Canterbury and Ramsgate | |
| Saturday 16 March 2002 | Dover Belle | To London Bridge and then to Dover, returning via a reversal at Chislehurst | |
| Saturday 8 December 2001 | Salisbury Star | Pre-Christmas trip to Salisbury via Clapham Junction | |
| Saturday 15 September 2001 | Wessex Wanderer | To Poole via Guildford, return via Woking and London Bridge; including visit to Hythe & Fawley branch | |
| Saturday 21 July 2001 | Western Ranger | To Gloucester via Brighton and Eastleigh | |
| Saturday 16 June 2001 | Mid-Summer Evening Explorer | To Tonbridge (non-stop) and back to Hastings, then to Folkestone Harbour via Rye, return via Paddock Wood and Tunbridge Wells | 7-car train (just this tour): with motor coach 977940 (ex 1131) |
| Saturday 5 May 2001 | Spalding Flower Special | To Spalding via Kensington Olympia | |
| Sunday 11 March 2001 | All Points of the Kent Compass | A meander around Kent, including the disused Lydd and Dungeness branch, Margate, Sheerness-on-Sea and Maidstone West | |
| Saturday 9 December 2000 | The Oxford Rover | To Oxford via Tonbridge and Redhill | |
| Saturday 15 July 2000 | The Arun Valley DEMU | A midsummer’s-evening trip (1600 start) to Bognor Regis via Hove, return via Arundel | |
| Saturday 10 June 2000 | The Torbay DEMU | Via Kensington Olympia, Reading and Westbury to Exeter, Dawlish, Torquay, Paignton and Kingswear | 6-car train: “BIG” buffet-car added |
| Saturday 26 February 2000 | The Bristolian DEMU | Via Bromley South, Reading, Didcot and Swindon to Bath, Bristol and Weston Super Mare | |
| Saturday 11 December 1999 | The Fenman DEMU | Via Kensington Olympia, Hitchin, Cambridge and Ely to Kings Lynn, plus a visit to the old Middleton Towers branch | |
| Tuesday 10 & Wednesday 11 August 1999 | The Eclipse DEMU | A railtour nearly 24 hours long, to see the total eclipse of the sun! Ran from Hastings (Tuesday 2230) via Clapham Jn (0020 Weds), Basingstoke (0134), Salisbury (0225-0535), Westbury and Totnes to Buckfastleigh (arr 0900), returning by same route (1330-2157); eclipse itself was 0958-1234, totality 1113-1114 | |
| Saturday 19 June 1999 | The North Norfolk DEMU | Via Bromley South, Stratford and Shenfield to Norwich, Wroxham, Cromer and Sheringham | |
| Friday 5 June 1998 | The Downs, Marsh & Weald DEMU | A circular trip via Eastbourne, Lewes, Redhill, Godstone, Tonbridge, Maidstone West, Paddock Wood (reverse) and Ashford to Hastings, rounded off by a return trip to Eastbourne and Lewes | |
| Saturday 9 May 1998 | The South Devon DEMU | Via Waterloo, Woking and Salisbury to Exeter, Dawlish and Totnes, continuing through to Buckfastleigh (1417-1515); return including Exeter St. Davids – Exeter Central and back, and via Basingstoke & Waterloo | |
| Saturday 6 December 1997 | The Sarum DEMU | Via Waterloo, Salisbury and Sherborne to Yeovil Junction & Yeovil Pen Mill | |
| Saturday 27 September 1997 | The Rutland DEMU | Via Clapham Junction to Leicester, a trip via Oakham to Corby and back, return via Oakham, East Coast Main Line, and Kensington Olympia | Class 31 haulage for part of tour |
| Saturday 10 May 1997 | The Broadsman DEMU | Via Kensington Olympia, Stratford, Shenfield and Diss to Norwich, Lowestoft, Berney Arms and Great Yarmouth | |
| Saturday 8 March 1997 | The Shakespeare DEMU | Via Kensington Olympia, Reading, Oxford, Leamington Spa and Warwick to Stratford-upon-Avon and the reopened Birmingham Snow Hill | |
| Saturday 14 December 1996 | The Bath and Cranmore DEMU | To Bath Spa and Cranmore (East Somerset Railway) via Kensington Olympia and Reading | |
| Saturday 21 September 1996 | The Quantock DEMU | To Westbury, Frome, Bishops Lydeard & the West Somerset Railway to Minehead, out via Kensington Olympia and Reading and returning through Virginia Water | |
| Saturday 17 August 1996 | The Crewe & Chester DEMU | To Crewe (Works open-day) and Chester, via Kensington Olympia, Watford Junction, Northampton (photo-stop) and Lichfield Trent Valley; returned departing Crewe 1616, photo-stop at Tamworth, pathing-stop at Lichfield TV, arr Hastings 2128 | 5-car train: CEP coach added |
| Saturday 11 May 1996 | The Hastings DEMU Phoenix Tour | Hastings 0905 to Ashford, Canterbury West, Minster, Dover Priory, Deal, Margate and Ashford; then to Folkestone Harbour (plus 2 shuttles to Folkestone East), then via Headcorn and Tonbridge to Charing Cross. The tour concluded with a non-stop journey from Charing Cross to Hastings at 1734. This was HDL’s return to the main line, and was 10 years to the day since the Hastings DEMUs’ final day of BR operation. | 4-car train. |