The antique wooden train which runs between Palma and Sóller could become the first train in Spain to join the European Federation of Museum & Tourist Railways or FEDECRAIL.
A formal request has been submitted to the Association which aims to preserve vintage trains and has a network of more than 650 in 27 countries worldwide.
The Vice-Presidents of FEDECRAIL, Jacques Daciff, Heimo Echensperger and Josep Boya from the Railway Museum in Mora la Nova, Tarragona visited the facilities of the Sóller train and met Óscar Mayol who’s been President of Sóller Railway since 2007.
The Palma-Sóller vintage wooden train dates back to 1912 and was originally used to transport citrus fruit from the Sóller Valley to Palma.
Now it’s one of Majorca’s main tourist attractions with around 1 million passengers a year hopping aboard for a trip to Sóller.
It leaves from the Ferrocarril de Sóller station next door to Estació Intermodal several times a day and chugs through more than 20 miles of stunning countryside with staggering mountain views, stopping in Bunyola for a few minutes so that passengers can jump off and take some photos.
Tickets cost 18€ one way, 25€ return or 32€ for a return journey including return tickets for the tram in Sóller, can only be bought on the day and must be paid for with cash, credit cards are not accepted.
According to Daciff, “the Sóller train meets all the necessary conditions to be accepted in the Association, it’s old and the conditions for travellers are perfect”