I just spent a lovely afternoon on the Weardale Heritage Railway. Travelling from Bishop Auckland to Stanhope and back. The line travels through beautiful countryside and woods following the river Wear. We were in a heritage diesel multiple unit but a steam locomotive is under restoration. At the moment the last passenger stop is Stanhope, further stations are planned. We had an hour and a half before the return train so had ample time to look at the gift shop on platform 2 (over the foot bridge) lots of beautiful gifts some handmade by local children. We made use of the cafe on platform 1. I can personally recommend the lemon meringue pie. For the more energetic there is several walks starting from outside the station. Maps are available free on the platform. We then travelled back to Bishop Auckland. The platform is at the far right of the National Rail station on Newgate Street. The total time of the journey including cafe stop was 3 1/2 hours. It’s well worth a visit and I plan to come back in the autumn.

Lovely well kept railway station, with a crafts/ gift shop, cafe and bookshop. The latter has a wide range of railway related books.

I’ve followed the Weardale Railway’s progress as a heritage line with interest, although my only visit for a train ride was some years ago, so this review reflects my experience at the time. My visit coincided with a WWII-themed event, which I remember being enjoyable and well presented, with demonstrations that added to the atmosphere. Unfortunately, there were delays to the steam-hauled service earlier in the day, which meant we did not have time to complete the originally planned return journey. However, we still enjoyed travelling behind steam between Stanhope and Wolsingham. I would like to return in the future, although diesel-hauled services are less of a draw for me personally. That said, I appreciate the costs and challenges involved in operating steam locomotives, and additional visiting steam engines would certainly encourage a return visit.

I was given the driver experience for my 40th birthday and it was absolutely fantastic! I got to drive the sentinel locomotive for a lot of the 2 hour experience. Staff were brilliant, friendly and very knowledgeable about the train, the railway itself and it's history. You could tell they loved working there and made the whole experience great. Beautiful scenic views as well along the way. Capped off at the end with a great cup of tea! Would highly recommend for any train enthusiasts

A nostalgic train journey, we were on the journey as part of a wedding celebration. The journey was approximately 4hrs in duration, I would say we were very lucky with the weather. The train chudded through the scenic countryside in places one side was better than the other due to the trees coverage. Just before all the level crossings you got a blast from the train's horn. It was a lovely day out. Now down the question would I go again? I most probably wouldn't, I've had the experience of the nostalgia ride now.