Terms & Conditions of Booking & Travel – Day Trips, Lunchtime Circulars, Evening Circulars, Santa Steam Express
Tickets are issued subject to the conditions below and your booking constitutes acceptance of these conditions
1) Tickets
(i) All tickets must be booked and paid for in full, in advance.
(ii) Each customer is allocated a reserved seat and tickets are only issued when full payment for the tour has been received.
(iii) On-line bookings will receive an email confirmation which you should keep for your records.
(iv) Bookings made by telephone will be acknowledged by email confirmation.
(v) We are regrettably unable to accept bookings where payment is by cash, cheque or postal order.
(vii) We endeavour to ensure that tickets and confirmed timings are dispatched, approximately 5-7 days before the tour, however we cannot send tickets without confirmed timings and we rely on third parties to supply these. You are advised to check the ticketing information thoroughly upon receipt and ensure you are at your departure station in good time.
(viii) Unless specified in Steam Dreams Rail Co. Ltd literature, your ticket price does not include transportation or entry to other attractions.
(ix) We do not offer part fares for any tours
2) Cancellations & Refunds
If the customer wishes to cancel the following refund policy will apply:
43 days or more prior to travel – 75% refund will be given.
31 to 42 days prior to travel – 50% refund will be given.
Less than 31 days’ notice – no refund will be given.
In the event of a tour being ‘cancelled or postponed’ by Steam Dreams Rail Co. Ltd customers will be offered the option of either a direct transfer to the new date, or a full refund of all monies paid. No other liability shall be incurred.
3) Transfers
We will be pleased to accept requests to transfer existing bookings (subject to availability) onto similar trains of equal value
Up to 21 days prior to travel no fee
50% between 21 days and 72 hours
100% 72 hours prior to travel
4) Locomotives
On steam hauled tours every effort is made to run with the advertised locomotive however, in times of difficulty such as high fire risk, locomotive failure or restrictions imposed by Network Rail or other third parties Steam Dreams Rail Co. Ltd. reserve the right to substitute locomotives as necessary, including substituting a steam locomotive with a diesel locomotive. This will only be considered as a last resort.
If the removal of a steam locomotive is necessary due to third party action outside of our organisation within 72 hours of a trip no compensation will be offered if the trip is hauled by a diesel or electric locomotive
On steam hauled trips, a diesel or electric engine may be included in the set in addition to the steam locomotive and at times be required to provide assistance.
5) Restrictions – Steam Dreams Rail Co. Ltd. reserves the right to refuse access to, or remove from
the train, any person or persons who are considered to be using inappropriate behaviour, affecting the safety of the train and its passengers, spoiling the enjoyment of other passengers on the train, or failing to comply with any reasonable requests made by a member of the train’s staff. Neither pets (except guide dogs) nor bicycles can be conveyed on our trains. Due to the relaxed nature of our tours and out of respect for other guests, we request that mobile phones should not be used in the passenger seating areas, but only if absolutely necessary in the entrance vestibules. In compliance with UK law and for the comfort and safety of everyone on our trains we operate a strict ‘No Smoking’ policy, including electronic cigarettes. This also includes all station platforms whether covered or uncovered. All luggage, cameras and personal effects are carried at your own risk and Steam Dreams Rail Co Ltd. accepts no liability for any loss or damage.
6) Complaints – If you have any issues during the tour, please bring them to the immediate attention of the on-train management so that there is an opportunity to rectify the situation. If the problem is not resolved, then please put your complaint in writing to arrive in our office no later than 10 days after the completion of the tour. We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 3 working days, investigate and respond within 10 working days.
7) Travel Insurance – We strongly advise that you purchase travel insurance when booking any Tour for your own protection and peace of mind. We are regrettably unable to arrange this for you.
8) Industrial Action – If we cannot run a trip due to industrial action passengers will be offered the opportunity to transfer their booking, take a voucher or a refund. Unless industrial action prevents us from running a trip it is the passenger’s responsibility to ensure they reach the train in time for the scheduled departure. No compensation would be offered for a missed trip.
9) Additional Costs – Passengers are responsible for all costs that do not relate to their original booking – travel costs to meet the train and any necessary hotel stays. We highly recommend these are booked at a cancellable rate.
10) Dining Options – Meals are provided to a set menu. We offer Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten Free and Pescatarian options as standard, which must be requested no later than 7 days prior to the date of travel. The requirement of any other special dietary needs may not be possible to provide for, and therefore must be discussed with our reservation team prior to booking, so as we are able to advise whether we can accept or decline any such request. It is not possible for guests to bring on board their own alcoholic drinks for consumption in Pullman Dining.
Whilst every effort is made, we cannot guarantee that all our food will be totally free of specific allergens (such as nut, garlic or gluten)
11) Children – In the interests of other customers our Pullman Dining carriages are not considered a suitable environment for children under the age of 12 years and we are therefore unable to accept bookings for such. However, we accept bookings for children in Premium Standard and First Class.
12) Dress Code (Pullman Dining) – Smart Casual attire should be considered as only the minimum suitable requirement, by avoiding clothing such as ripped denims, baseball caps, sports trainers, collarless or sleeveless T-shirts and shorts. We reserve the right to ask guests not suitably attired to change before boarding.
13) Operation – On the day of operation, all reasonable efforts will be made to ensure that the excursion runs as planned, but Steam Dreams Rail Co. Ltd. cannot accept any responsibility for any events or circumstances outside our direct control and we are only responsible for returning passengers to their joining stations, nor can we accept any responsibility for missed connections as a result of late running.
14) Wheelchairs & Mobility – Due to the age and construction of our train it is not possible to board whilst seated in a wheelchair, however we will be pleased to convey disabled passengers whenever possible provided they can step onto the train from the platform and move to their reserved seats with the help of an able-bodied carer as our staff are regrettably unable to assist, the wheelchair then being folded and stored at the end of the carriage. Some of the platforms on our tours are much shorter than our train which may necessitate walking through a number of carriages when boarding or alighting, in addition the platforms at some remote stations are rather low or accessible only by a footbridge. These points should be borne in mind for guests who may have mobility issues. We are unable to convey motorised scooters, buggies or electric wheelchairs at any time.
15) Train Timings – The departure/arrival times shown in any publication or website are ‘provisional’ being an approximation based on the best information we had when the tour was first planned, however you should be aware that these can vary considerably when the confirmed timings are received from Network Rail and we are unable to offer a cancellation or transfer due to the confirmed timings being different to provisional ones previously advised.
16) Covid – We will operate within any government guidelines set at the time of travel. In the event of a proven positive covid test (from an authorised medical professional) prior to travel, we will honour a transfer onto a trip of the same value.
17) Important Information – All details about our tours are offered in good faith and whilst we endeavour to run our tours to the proposed routes, timings, rolling stock, locomotives, itineraries, station stops and options in place, we reserve the right to alter these at any time and shall not incur any liability to any person who has bought, or contracted to buy a ticket, or tickets as a result of any such changes.
18) Force Majeure – Except where otherwise expressly stated in these Conditions we will not be liable or pay you any refund or compensation if our contractual obligations to you are affected by any event which we or the supplier(s) of the service(s) in question could not, even with all due care, foresee or avoid. These events can include, but are not limited to, war, threat of war, civil strife, terrorist activity and its consequences or the threat of such activity, riot, the act of any government or other national or local authority including port or river authorities, industrial dispute, lock closure, natural or nuclear disaster, fire, chemical or biological disaster, adverse weather, sea, air, ice and river conditions and all similar events outside our or the supplier(s) concerned control.
19) Copyright – The copyright of material used on our website and publications belongs to ‘Steam Dreams Rail Co. Ltd’’, all rights reserved. Except solely for your own personal and non-commercial use, no part of our website or publications may be copied, adapted, modified, distributed, transmitted, displayed, performed, reproduced or published without the prior written permission of ‘’. Any prohibited and unlawful use of material on our website or publications will result in legal action.
20) Conditions of Carriage – All our trains are operated by Locomotive Services (TOC) Limited, the conditions of carriage for which can be found at www.lsltoc.co.uk
21) Vouchers – All Steam Dreams vouchers are non refundable. In the event of a customer cancellation, the charges in the cancellation/transfer conditions stated above will apply. In the event of a booking paid for by voucher being cancelled by Steam Dreams, or the customer, the remaining value, after any charges, may only be transferred into a new Steam Dreams voucher valid for one year. Third party vouchers may only be redeemed on particular trips as specified by Steam Dreams.
Terms & Conditions updated 08.11.2023 and supersede any previous Terms & Conditions provided by the company.