Touristic Doğu Express

TCDD Taşımacılık (Turkish State Railways)
Turkey
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The Journey

Navigate from Ankara Railway Station to Kars Railway Station across a span of 1360km. This is an overnight service.

Scenery Highlights
  • Karanlık (Dark) Canyon — 100m vertical rock walls south of Erzincan
  • Euphrates River Valleys west of Erzincan
  • Deep Anatolian Winter Snowscapes — Yozgat and Sivas plateaus
  • Erzurum historic city centre (Çifte Minareli, Yakutiye)
  • Ani Ruins near Kars (UNESCO World Heritage Site)
  • Kars stone architecture and Kars Castle
  • Sarıkamış pine-forested approach to Kars
  • Frozen Lake Tortum region as the train climbs toward 2,000m
Quick Facts
  • Duration

    32 hours

  • Distance

    1360 km

  • Est. Price

    Mid-Range (12,000–17,000 TRY per person for a 2-berth cabin)

Official Booking Provider
Classes & Accommodations

Meals: None (TCDD bistro car available for hot drinks and simple meals)

Ensuite: No

Meals: None

Ensuite: No

Meals: None

Ensuite: No

Meals: None

Ensuite: No

Engine / Locomotive

TVS2000 diesel-electric locomotive (TCDD fleet), occasionally TCDD DE33000 or TCDD DH7000 on Touristic services

Locomotive Weight

~120 tonnes (TVS2000 series)

Track Gauge

1,435mm standard gauge

Braking Technology

Air brakes, Westinghouse or Knorr-Bremse systems

Route Engineering Challenges

  • 1,360km route crosses multiple mountain ranges and river valleys (Anatolian Plateau, Taurus foothills, Armenian highlands)

  • Deep snow operation in Anatolian winters — snow-clearing crews pre-position at critical mountain passes (Yıldızeli, Sivas, Sakaltutan)

  • Extended multi-hour stops require passenger excursion coordination and platform cleaning between arrivals

  • Crossing the Karanlık Canyon requires careful timing because the line reduces to a single track through the gorge

  • High elevation plateaus (up to ~2,000m) in Eastern Anatolia cause consistent sub-zero temperatures from December through February

  • Single-track sections through central Anatolia limit capacity to one Touristic train per direction per day during peak season

  • Heritage rolling-stock maintenance — the 8 sleeping cars are vintage TCDD-built stock refurbished annually before the winter season launch

Rolling Stock

8 sleeping cars (10 compartments each) + 1 dining car + 2 service cars

Capacity

160 passengers

Max Speed

120 km/h

Avg Speed

~43 km/h (including sightseeing stops)

Route Distance

1,360 km Ankara–Kars

Electrification

None — entirely diesel operation

Max Gradient

~2.5% on mountain sections (Karanlık Canyon approach)

Tunnels

Multiple tunnels on Ankara–Sivas and Sivas–Kars sections (notably the Sakaltutan Pass tunnel complex)

Altitude

Up to ~2,000m in eastern Anatolia

Operator

TCDD Taşımacılık A.Ş. (subsidiary of Turkish State Railways)

Established (Touristic variant)

2017 — viral breakthrough on Turkish social media from 2020 onwards

Principal Stations

Ankara, Kayaş, Sivas, Erzincan, Erzurum, Kars

Quick Facts
  • Duration

    32 hours

  • Distance

    1360 km

  • Est. Price

    Mid-Range (12,000–17,000 TRY per person for a 2-berth cabin)

Official Booking Provider