Enjoy Dinner on a Steam Train on the Bodmin & Wenford Steam Railway

You can enjoy a steam train dinner as part of your holiday, or even to celebrate a special event, when you're next in Cornwall.

The Bodmin & Wenford Steam Train has a dining train, which can cater for up to 72 people, at tables for 2 or 4.

The dining train is a genuine old-fashioned steam train, complete with wood panelling, lamps on the tables and curtains, Each table in the dining coach has a window - so you can watch the scenery go past as you eat.

You will travel at a leisurely pace, the 3.5 miles between Bodmin General Station and Bodmin Parkway Station, before returning to the starting point. Each half of the journey takes 25 minutes, so the round trip is one hour in total.

The Bodmin & Wenford Railway is run mostly by volunteer workers - so you should always check the details of any planned trip or meal, and book your seat where possible, to ensure everything's as you expected.  Sometimes changes do need to be made to timetables or routes, simply because the service is being improved and developed all the time. 

Each year, the available steam train dinner options are revised, so check with the Bodmin & Wenford Steam Train official website to find out what's happening this year, but you can usually find you can dine on the steam train:

• A Sunday lunch - on six Sundays a year, including Mothering Sunday. Sunday lunch on a steam train usually departs Bodmin General station at about noon.
• Valentines Day Dinner is available - and there will be two days when you can book a steam train dinner to celebrate Valentine's Day.  Check which dates it is running this year as dates will vary as the day of the week that Valentine's Day falls on will affect the bookings diary.
  
• Enjoy an evening steam train dinner on five Saturday evenings during the peak summer seaon (July-August). The train usually departs from Bodmin General station at 7pm.
  
• Christmas Lunch is available Saturdays and Sundays during December. As part of this, children are invited to visit Santa in his Grotto, so you will need to give the ages of your children when booking. The Christmas Lunch steam train dinner is not recommended for children under 5. Although the dinner and journey last for one hour, you're invited to remain on the train and repeat the journey for a second time, giving you a chance to see everything a second time for free!
  

Each menu will vary as it's adapted and revised each year, but it's always a 3-course dinner followed by tea, coffee and mints.

Dinner is served at your table, by stewards in full uniform, but you may need to collect your drinks from the bar.  The service is first-class.

There are two starters, at least one will always be vegetarian. The main course is one meat or fish dish and one vegetarian option. Desserts will usually be cold and will often feature locally-produced Cornish clotted cream, or you can opt for cheese and biscuits instead.

Licensed Bar on the Steam Train

There is a licensed bar, offering wines, spirits, locally-brewed Cornish beers and soft drinks.

Steam Train Dinner Tickets

An experience such as this is priced in line with demand and supply, so for adults it's £34 each and for children £24 each. It's certainly an experience of a lifetime, so well worth the cost if you want something a little unusual to remember.

You do have to book, because the dining car is limited to just 72 people. As the tables are only for 2-4 people it's unlikely to be suitable for larger groups. However, if you want to host a really special event then you can hire the dining car for your own private function! It's perfect for weddings or family anniversaries.

If you want a steam train dinner on the Bodmin & Wenford Railway, your journey will start at Bodmin General Station on the edge of Bodmin town. This is a different station to Bodmin Parkway - although you can travel by train from Bodmin Parkway Station, Platform 3. Alternatively, you can catch the 555 bus from Bodmin Parkway to Bodmin General Station.

The steam train is a standard gauge, full-size railway.

There is a free car park for travellers on the Bodmin & Wenford Railway at Bodmin General Station.

The train travels from Bodmin General Station to Bodmin Parkway Station, taking an hour to do the return journey.