Trains in the New Forest & the UK

From the London main line to branch-line shuttles and heritage steam — here is every train that takes you to and around the New Forest, with routes, tips and where to book.

Arriving by train also keeps a car off the Forest’s narrow lanes — verge parking is the single most common way visitors slow a fire crew down on open heath.

Getting to & around the New Forest

The National Rail services that bring you to the Forest — and the branch line that potters around it.

South Western Railway

South West Main Line

London Waterloo ↔ Bournemouth & Weymouth — straight through the Forest

South Western Railway

Lymington Branch Line

Brockenhurst ↔ Lymington Pier — the Forest's own branch line

CrossCountry

CrossCountry (Manchester – Bournemouth)

Manchester & Birmingham ↔ the New Forest & Bournemouth, no changes

Scenic & heritage railways

Steam days out in and around the Forest — from Exbury’s garden railway to Victorian carriages on the Isle of Wight.

HeritageExbury Gardens

Exbury Gardens Steam Railway

A steam railway inside the New Forest's great garden estate

HeritageMid Hants Railway

Watercress Line (Mid Hants Railway)

Alton ↔ Alresford — ten miles of Hampshire steam

HeritageSwanage Railway

Swanage Railway

Norden ↔ Swanage past Corfe Castle, across Poole Bay from the Forest

HeritageIsle of Wight Steam Railway

Isle of Wight Steam Railway

Victorian steam across the Solent — reached via the Lymington ferry