This is the longest train journey you can take from Portugal to Singapore: how much does the experience cost?

Although flying remains the most practical means of transportation for traveling from one country or continent to another and covering long distances in less time, there are those who, due to a phobia or simply a sense of adventure or a sense of old, prefer to make the trip by land. Long but safe, some would say.

There's always the option of taking a car, which allows you to stop wherever you want, untethered. There are also bus services, which have ensuite bathrooms and, in some cases, entertainment screens and padded reclining chairs for long, tiring journeys. And finally, there's the train, the industrialized mode of transportation par excellence, which guarantees a safe, relaxing trip with the opportunity to appreciate the scenery and stop at any station you wish. It's also a more sustainable means of transportation than flying.

Have you ever wondered what the longest continuous route spanning the railway system is? More than 18,000 kilometers, 13 countries, and two continents. The journey can begin in the Algarve, Lagos, in southern Portugal, and extend all the way to Singapore, or vice versa . The uninterrupted journey lasts 21 days, costing approximately €1,200 each way, according to media outlets such as National Geographic. That's around €5,700,000 in Colombian pesos.

The route would cross Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia, Mongolia, China, Laos, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. Some of the stops for changing trains are in Paris, Moscow, Beijing, and Bangkok.

One of the most challenging stretches will be the one between Russia and China , where you must cross the extreme and vast region of Siberia, then connect with Mongolia and then reach Beijing, to continue the journey.

The possibility of getting from Europe to Singapore by train is recent, specifically it occurred in 2021, thanks to the opening of a railway section between Boten, a border city with China, and Vientiane, the capital of Laos, of 1,035 kilometers –414 are those that cross Laos–, and which will be part of the Kunming (in China)-Singapore line.

Since December 2021, and after years of negotiations between the Chinese and Laotian governments, overcoming complexities due to geographical conditions and delivering the necessary engineering works, Laos-China Railway Company Limited began operations .

What's more, this is the first railway line in the small Southeast Asian country, intended to boost its economy and connect China to the peninsula. The Chinese government was the largest funder of the project, which cost $6,000, under its Belt and Road strategy.

Although the Asian giant's interest is in establishing the "New Silk Roads" to increase Beijing's power, this policy also served to increase the mileage and continuity of the longest train journey.

Previously, the longest route from Europe to Asia reached Shanghai or Beijing, and there was even a route to Saigon (Vietnam), passing through Portugal, Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia and China.

Of course, both the Europe-Vietnam and Europe-Singapore routes require multiple tickets, visa processing, and taxi, bus, or metro transfers from one station to another to catch the correct train. For example, the route to Singapore requires bus connections between Vietnam and Cambodia, as well as between Malaysia and Singapore.

The trip from the Algarve to Singapore can be completed in 21 uninterrupted days, but you can also hop off at each station, explore the city, and then return to the route. However, if you decide to take on the 21-day challenge, you must adhere to the itineraries, as missing a train would ruin your plan.

The route, days, and price of the trip are not official information from any transportation authority or train company. When the China-Laos section opened, a debate arose on the social network Reddit, which functions as a news forum, about what the itinerary would be like, how long it would take to get from one city to the other, and how many kilometers it would cover.

This required the help and intervention of Mark Smith, creator of the blog seat61.com, who worked for the UK rail system and is passionate about the topic. The conclusions? A 21-day trip, covering 18,755 kilometers, crossing at least 13 countries, at an approximate cost of 1,200 euros.

The cost, according to Smith and Reddit, includes costs for transfers from one station to another, visa processing, overnight stops, and other items strictly related to the trip.

They also clarified that the route is currently closed in all its sections; for example, those that pass through the affected area of the war between Russia and Ukraine . This is the case with the Trans-Siberian Railway, which is the longest single-train journey of the entire route.

This isn't a time for discouragement, but rather for planning. There are various websites that calculate prices and routes, recommend direct links to the operating companies for ticket purchases, hotels for overnight stays, fares by class, departure times, train specifications, and other information. Consult rail.cc, Trainline, or Rome2Rio.com , and when normalcy returns and services resume, you'll be just a click away from an intercultural adventure.