If you’re new to Train Sim World, or been playing for a while and looking for a new experience, it can be tough to know which route to jump into. With everything from historic steam, to epic freight and high-speed modern passenger across different countries – Which should you play next? We caught up with some of the Railfan TV crew and Development team at Dovetail for their recommendations and favourite driving experiences.

My selection may come as a surprise, being a northern lad, but I feel like this is a great route. Based around the bustling city of London, connecting the many towns in Kent, with a choice of High Speed and Commuter services, you have a nice variety of ways to drive. Talking about the variety of services, may I cheat a little with my choice? This route really shines when you’re able to add the Southeastern Timetable Enhancement Bundle. Amongst the additional scenarios that are great, you’ll have various freight and even some special services. Keep an eye out for those. The fact that we have returned to this route multiple times to keep on elevating the content included, lengthens the legacy of the route and has been a welcoming return every time I get to play it.

With a fine selection of LMS Machines and beautiful scenery, Peak Forest is a great route for steam enthusiasts with banking, double heading and plenty of shunting. It’s a route I have walked over on the Monsol Trail and Riden on the Now Peak Rail. LMS Locomotives have a big place in my heart. With the 4F sound recordings being my own from KWVR 4F 43924, if you haven’t got into steam yet this is the route to start off with plenty of services and fun scenarios. Bringing the End of British Steam to life in Train Sim World.

The Niddertalbahn has been an enchanting journey through time, reminding me of my summers spent on the German countryside. The familiar sounds of humming diesel engines and the clickety-clack of the rails brought a warm wave of nostalgia. But not only are the sounds a treat, the visuals are too. The lovingly crafted landscapes are the cherry on top of this nostalgia packed sundae. It's a heartfelt trip down memory lane and a real must-have for any fan of trains from the 90s.

London to Brighton is well known for its high traffic levels throughout history. Most services run at 2tph, however, with the many destinations that Victoria services, this quickly adds up and there's rarely a quiet time, especially north of Purley Oaks. They offer a variety of different service lengths, ranging from 8 minutes to over 60 minutes. The service types also vary between stopping, semi-fast and fast services that rarely stop anywhere. There are also some freight services brought in by layers from other routes and the class 166 services to Redhill/Gatwick Airport. There are even some AI layers at Victoria and Brighton. I also love the close 387 diagrams and how throughout the day, trains will split and become two different services, then join up to another formation later in the day. It really shows what the dispatcher is capable of! I really like busy routes so I'm not surprised that I constantly play this route repeatedly, it feels like the fun will never end.

My selection my not surprise regular viewers of our RFTV streams, because this route was something I first played with Matt Peddlesden live on air, and the challenging gradients, combined with the massively powerful locomotives make for such an exciting combination! We had a nail-bitingly close call as we raced down the summit trying to maintain a stable speed whilst only just staying on the track, so if you’re interested in high tension gameplay, with sunny desert scenery, this would be a great choice!

Of all the German routes, this one is a clear winner for me because it offers something for every type of interest and gets even better with layers. The branchline to Meissen adds significant interest, but the main draw is having a roster of trains being used covering everything from the BR 363 shunter to mainline freight and passenger. Beautiful scenery and multiple paths keep me coming back to this over and over.

You can find all of these routes, and many more, on the stores. Have you got a favourite route for Train Sim World that you would recommend to other players looking for something new to play? Let us know in the forums.