The Kandy to Ella highland railway appears on more serious travellers’ lists than almost any other train journey in Asia – and the reason is simply the experience: open carriage doors, tea estates dropping away on both sides, a valley floor hundreds of metres below, and a journey that passes through places most visitors never reach by road. Reserved seats on the correct side of the carriage must be booked three to four weeks ahead. The journey is the experience, not a transfer between two stops.