Great Central Railway

About

The Great Central Railway is one of Leicestershire’s most successful, iconic tourist attractions. It is the UK’s only 
double track, mainline heritage railway.

Our aim in recent years has been to develop GCR as a family orientated business where young and old enjoy access to some of the best preserved locomotives, rolling stock and memorabilia from a bygone era.

Each of the stations between Loughborough and Leicester has a tearoom/café with additional attractions at each location.

• Loughborough Station has a café, emporium, retail outlet, ticket office, Loco Shed and museum
• Quorn has a café, turntable and restored features such as cattle docks
• Rothley has a miniature railway, the C & W works and a café
• Leicester North has a platform café and rest area, here you can see the train change ends.

Activities:
GCR is open all year round with steam and diesel locomotives running every weekend.  From Easter on wards, 
trains run during the week as well on selected weekdays and a programme of events caters for the whole range of our visitors.

Steam and Diesel Galas, popular events such as Peppa Pig, Santa Specials and Summer Fun days are there to cater to all tastes
 whether you’re a heritage railway enthusiast or a family who loves everything about Steam and trains.

On Train Dining services:
Our on train catering facilities allow the discerning diner to enjoy a sumptuous meal in carriages which hark
 back to the golden age of luxury travel.  Currently dining trains operate every weekend lunchtimes/evenings and selected lunchtimes 
and evening’s mid-week.

Corporate Hire/Charters:
Over the past few years the Charter business has grown and can now cater for parties 
of all sizes with our fleet of carriages, ranging from a small directors coach to a rake of carriages catering for 100 guests. For larger 
events we can also offer our marquee located on the Quorn and Woodhouse yard, this comes with its very own ‘Tin Shed Shanty Bar’ serving real 
ales and ciders along with the option for a specialist drinks menu.

Filming:
A number of films and TV programmes have used GCR as a location. The BBC filmed an episode of Casualty and previously Top Gear was filmed at GCR, we also boast of hit period dramas like The Crown and Victoria with films being as recent as Stan and Ollie, among our filming portfolio. CGI is a wonderful tool for a lot of film makers, why not come along and see if you recognise any more locations from the TV and Film world.

Additional Information:

• Private Tours available
• Groups: Min pax 15, Max pax 100
• We are wheelchair friendly at all 4 stations with allocated disabled parking available.