Steam & Excursion > Question re Farrail Tours

Anyone have any experience with Farrail Tours from Germany? They have some interesting steam charter tours on tap for next year and I'm curious about the outfit.

masterphots Wrote:
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> Anyone have any experience with Farrail Tours from
> Germany? They have some interesting steam charter
> tours on tap for next year and I'm curious about
> the outfit.


I've never been on one of their trips. But, the owner use to be regular contributor to the Steam In a China yahoo group. That is till someone really pissed him off. He is an expert on steam in China. People would ask him questions while planning their own trips to China and he happily answered them even though there was no money in it for him. He also would provide maps of lines his groups visited and provide detail trip reports on his website. If I had an operation its to go on one of his trips, I definitly would go.

I have been on several of Bernd's trips in Germany, Romania, Argentina, and the U.S. Bernd runs excellent trips for the serious photographer trying to recapture some of the glory of steam. A lot of effort goes into historic recreation. But expect to get up for sunrise, stay up for sunset, and put up with the usual kind of inconveniences that go with serious photography: heat, cold, maybe rain, some walking, and occasional rides in freight cars. But the trips are well thought out, well organized, the accommodations are the best available (which can range from first class to dark hole, depending on what is available), and you can usually count on three decent meals per day. But Bernd occasionally pushes the envelope and things sometimes do not work as planned. Personally Bernd is a very nice guy, honest, and works very hard for the benefit of his customers. I highly recommend his trips so long as you are serious about train photography and a bit adventurous. My website (http://www.lifewastedchasingtrains.com/main.php) has several albums based on his trips if you look under HSB, Romania, Argentina, and Rio Grande Narrow Gauge.

JBWX

Alan,

Don't hesitate to go on a Farrail tour. Bernd is a great photographer and serious about the tours that he runs. He get's equipment painted back into proper era specific lettering, to the extent of getting 20 coal wagons on the EFDTC repainted! As John West says, the trips are hard core, about 1/2 Germans and the rest Brits, Swiss, Dutch and the odd American. Bernd's English is excellent and he gives the same information twice in both languages. Go to his website and subscribe to the newsletter access. Then you can see all his trip reports. He isn't running as many tours as he used to since he is now a manager on the HSB.

As a previous poster mentioned, he is a generous guy. We ran into him in China and he told us when and where his chartered trains were running and invited us to tag along. He does get bent out of shape over deliberate freeloaders though, but I doubt if there will be too many fan's flying to Brazil to freeload the tour!

Michael Allen

So what is the Farrail website. I'd like to check it out.

It is....surprise...http://www.farrail.net

JBWX

Berndt recently wrote in his newsletter that he is now working for the Hartz Mountain Railway as a engine crew member. Not sure how that will affect his tours. One thing that you will notice is his tours are often more expensive than tours that were run 10 years ago by other operators. However the costs to get what you want have gone up considerably. If you are not a serious or hardcore railfan type it may not be for you.

There are fewer World Steam Charter operators anymore. He has been one of the most reliable in organizing special tours. I have not been on one of his tours.

Dale Brown
wingsandrails on facebook.

trainrider47 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Alan,
>
> Don't hesitate to go on a Farrail tour. Bernd is
> a great photographer and serious about the tours
> that he runs. He get's equipment painted back
> into proper era specific lettering, to the extent
> of getting 20 coal wagons on the EFDTC repainted!
> As John West says, the trips are hard core, about
> 1/2 Germans and the rest Brits, Swiss, Dutch and
> the odd American. Bernd's English is excellent
> and he gives the same information twice in both
> languages. Go to his website and subscribe to the
> newsletter access. Then you can see all his trip
> reports. He isn't running as many tours as he
> used to since he is now a manager on the HSB.
>
> As a previous poster mentioned, he is a generous
> guy. We ran into him in China and he told us when
> and where his chartered trains were running and
> invited us to tag along. He does get bent out of
> shape over deliberate freeloaders though, but I
> doubt if there will be too many fan's flying to
> Brazil to freeload the tour!
>
> Michael Allen


Any freeloaders would probably get car jacked before they got out of Florianapolis...LOL We had a couple of friends that got mugged at the Belo Horizonte airport baggage claim on the way to the World Cup.