The Shakespeare Express is Vintage Trains’ flagship journey, and nothing else on the British railway matches it: a genuine mainline heritage locomotive, running at full speed through the Warwickshire countryside, into the town where William Shakespeare was born. It runs on select Sundays throughout the year (with a summer series in August), giving you a full day in Stratford-upon-Avon before the evening return.  

Standard tickets start from £26.50 per person. Child and family tickets available. 

What’s included in every ticket: 

• A heritage locomotive-hauled journey from Birmingham to Stratford-upon-Avon and back, on the national mainline behind a fully restored locomotive
• Over four hours in Stratford-upon-Avon, with the RSC, Shakespeare’s birthplace, and the river all within easy reach
• Comfortable seating with picture windows and a buffet car on board
  
  

Once you’ve chosen Birmingham as your boarding station, ticket options become available. Upgrade to First Class and a full English breakfast is brought to your seat on the way out, with afternoon tea on the return, so the meal becomes as much a part of the day as Stratford itself.

Departing Birmingham Snow Hill, Birmingham Moor Street, and Tyseley.

Sundays: 21 June, 26 July, and 2, 9, 16, 23 and 30 August.

All prices include a 6% booking fee.