In the context of steadily growing international tourism, TopRail is a UIC project that actively promotes railway tourism products by increasing the visibility of service offerings. This is accomplished by fostering close collaboration between stakeholders and their customers to encourage railway tourism opportunities. Railway tourism is able to offer a wide range of tourism alternatives combining exclusivity, technology, luxury and sustainability whilst contributing to fostering local economies.
In 2016, UIC launched TopRail.org, created using the latest information directly provided by its own railway companies, with the ambitious goal of presenting a global overview of the existing leisure experiences by rail.
Tourism by railway is heterogeneous and attractive to all types of customers (young people, adults, active, retired people, families, railway enthusiasts, domestic and international tourists) and the opportunities to develop and enjoy leisure by rail are many and varied.
Some of these include:
Supporting sustainable tourism through the railways is not only a strategic framework for ensuring a positive image of the railways but is also a way to respond to social concerns, create a competitive advantage and manage risk. It can also make an important contribution to encouraging regional development policies.During the International Year of Sustainable Tourism the TopRail group identified:
TopRail members took the opportunity to publish the “TopRail Guidelines on Sustainable Tourism” which was reinforced by a Charter on Sustainable Tourism signed by the CEOs of TopRail members.