Why this country has Europe's most underrated bullet trains (250km/h!)

[@thornton]

Buy a DNA kit here: bit.ly/Thornton_MH Use the coupon code THORNTON for free shipping. I absolutely LOVED my time in Turkey, and I'm really grateful to all the nice people who made me feel welcome there. What are some other places that I should make sure to visit next time I'm there? ❤🇹🇷 ➡ 31-hour train ride across Turkey in a seat: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a5rTgaSheNFpnq8 ➡ 24 hours wild camping in Germany: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eZLLeoF6m9h0Y68

[@matpk]

Trains seats CANNOT rotate It's 💩 💩

[@strawanza2502]

Hell yeah! we travelled Istanbul - Karaman in First Class for like 16€ each. It was incredible comfortable, the board service is crazy, with a lunch and drinks provided. I loved it. can't wait to be back in turkey, incredible country and insane hospitality by the locals

[@Footexample]

Thank you for this comment my brother. You should search mardin, gaziantep, trabzon cities. I am sure that love these cities.

[@Talhacaglayankktc]

dont forget: they are also building a super high speed rail line from ankara to istanbul which journey will take 90 minutes and speed of 350kmh! project will be named ankara-istanbul süper hizli tren

[@hatehaters6563]

Turkey is doing pretty well..

[@guluturk]

lol no its not

[@ekintas1871]

@@guluturk yes it is

[@emrefifty5281]

The Single Person maybe not but the Country as a whole is doing okay. Saying this as a Turk myself.

[@aykanyldz8392]

@@guluturkamerikada hızlı tren yok düşün bakalım lafa gelince dünyanın süper gücü her şeyin öncüsü teknolojinin merkezi ve birde tren yolları okadar eski ve berbat ki sürekli kazalar oluyor nerede ise trenleri tarih öncesinden kalma . lan amerika da ne kadar geri kalmış ülke diyesi geliyor insanın 😂 . avrupanın yolları dökülüyor nerede ise adam gibi otobanları yok yolları berbat 😂 . ben demiyorum bunu türkiyeye gelip gezen yabancı turistler söylüyor . Acaba hızlı tren tren yolları konusunda geri kalmamızın nedeni bize yıllarca yutturulan yalan olabilirmi ? mesela demir ağlarla ördük ana yutu dört baştan başa bu marşı yazıp hiç bir şey yapmamışlar millette sanki yapılmış varmış gibi yutturdular halbuki türkiyedeki tren yollarınım hepsi o dönemde osmanlının yaptığı demiryollarıydı 😂 senin gibilerde bu yuttu haaa birde rahmetli turgut özal onun zamanında en büyük ilerleme sağlandı demir yollarında özal iktidarında cumhuriyet kurulduğundan o zamana kadar yapılanın iki katı yapıldı ve akp döneminde ise cumhuriyet kurulduğundan bugünd kadar yapıla tren yolu uzunluğu özal dönemide katarsak hepsinin toplamının belkide 10 katıdan fazladır .22 yıkda 80 yıl bouunca yapılanın 10 katından fazla demir yolu yapmış adamlar bire nankör . şimdi git derdini chp ibb ye ekreme anlat ve onlara kuz bizi demir ağlarla ördük yurdu dört baştan marşı ile neden uyuttunuz hiç bir şey yapmadınız diye sor angut😂

[@mcdtubes]

@@aykanyldz8392 Avrupa'nin otobanlari dokuluyor, he mi? Ulan bir git gor once sonra yaz yorumlarini beyinsiz adam

[@TasTepelerMedeniyet]

I absolutely love to travel by bullet train in Türkiye. The country has now fully developed its first indigenous Turkish bullet train, and it’s amazing. Even better than European-developed models

[@adamsojka3345]

WOW, youre getting real consistent with uploading, hope your channel blows up :)

[@akcaakyuz6360]

The ministry of transport even announced recently that they are make a new line between Istanbul and Ankara which will hit a high speed of 350km/h and will only take 80 minutes instead of 4 hours with the current YHT

[@thornton]

😮 sign me up

[@nest1109]

@@akcaakyuz6360 Is It really useful? I guess, Greek or Bulgarian border to Istanbul through the high-speed line should be more priority, because of tourists for Istanbul.

[@loccusloccus5315]

not gonna happen, at least not in the next 30+ years. These are just announcements with no financing or feasibility study in place. They are still building the lines between Ankara and Izmir, Ankara to Bursa, and Mersin to Gaziantep via Adana. All these lines are under construction for 10+ years and only finished by between 20% to 30%

[@nest1109]

@@loccusloccus5315 Wouldn't be better a direct high speed rail line between Istanbul and Izmir?

[@loccusloccus5315]

@@nest1109 yes absolutely. Initially, the idea was to build the Osmangazi car bridge over the gulf of Izmit with room for train tracks in the middle. But the Build-operate-transfer (BOT) companies involved, refused to finance the bridge if not solely build for cars. The automotive lobby won, and the bridge was built w/o a train in mind. This circumstance makes a direct train connection between Istanbul and Izmir too lengthy and costly. It would have been a great line, not only connecting the largest city Istanbul with the 3rd largest Izmir, but also the 4th largest Bursa on it's route...

[@Vierwiel-Knyntsje]

Thank you for taking us on this trip.

[@loccusloccus5315]

Fantastic video! A few remarks: It is confirmed that Haydarpaşa, the main train station on the Asian side of Istanbul, will reopen again either this year or more likely in the first half of 2025. The station will have 5 tracks that will be exclusively utilized by YHT high speed trains. Söğütlüçeşme is also undergoing a major expansion, with an additional platform, one more track for long distance trains, and multiple new facilities currently under construction. You should have also visited Sirkeci, the terminus station on the European side of Istanbul. That station was also dormant for over 10 years, and just recently reopened and connected to the network. It’s unfortunately unclear if European sleeper trains will terminate here again. The only long-distance train that made it recently to Sirkeci was the VSOE (Orient Express) from Paris to Istanbul. In regards to the intermediate stations alongside your route. For budget and train speed purposes, the decision was made, to build the tracks and stations further away from the actual cities in remote locations. Regarding the long-distance sleeper trains to Kars, Diyarbakir, Van etc., there is some hope that they might terminate in Haydarpaşa again, as they are also building a turning loop and sidings in the northern part of the area…

[@Emirhan_HIDIR]

10:33 This is an old map, many lines under construction have been opened(Ankara-Sivas, Konya-Karaman)

[@anothergreatetcetera]

Man, that ad segment was such a throwback to when DNA tests were all the rage on KZbin. Good on you for getting those brand deals, Viking Tom!

[@minbajunid]

i love the smooth flow trip report like this. Such an ease to view and hear..

[@dianaw248]

Thank you for yet another excellent travel post….always so informative!

[@audioupgrades]

Informative and entertaining, as always.

[@Travel-by-Train]

😃Watching your train video in Turkey make us motivated to organise our next holiday trip in Turkey. Well done 🍒🍒🍒

[@BornaAbramovic]

TCDD YHT trains are excellent! 🙂

[@timor64]

Another great video from you. There is something about the quality of your voice, the measured speed of your delivery, but above all your conveying the *experience* of a journey that is just so enjoyable to watch, and sets you apart from every other travel KZbinr I've found. The emphasis is less on the technical aspects, more on what it's like to actually do it. Not so keen on the sponsor of this video, but you have to make a living.

[@84axwall]

The photograph purportedly showing the old, now demolished Penn Station in New York is, in fact, a photograph of the beautiful, and still fully operating New York's Grand Central Station.

[@thomas-xj1hs]

Very interesting, thanks

[@rvids20]

The timeline definitely confused me for the first bit with this being a prequel, but great video!

[@niklas7816]

Lovely travel vlog.

[@hasimrutkayboyac7246]

Unfortunately It seems like Haydarpaşa is not going to open in near future. While renewal of the railways they have found Roman artifacts that dates back to 5th century and when archeologist dig more and more the place got bigger and bigger. The whole place in front of Haydarpaşa is now a huge Archeopark. It is a huge find for Istanbuls history but a unfortunate situation for a beauty like Haydarpaşa.

[@loccusloccus5315]

The excavations in the track apron area are completed, and the platforms are finished. They just need to build the roofs over the platforms, and lay the tracks to connect Haydarpaşa to the remaining network again. The renovation of the building itself is also done. Therefore, Haydarpaşa will reopen again by the end of 2024, or possibly 2025.

[@Echo_Sierra]

2:25 That's a photo of Grand Central Terminal and it's still there and still in use. Your point is still correct though.

[@thornton]

Me getting too excited looking at NYC train stations in the search results lol

[@TRAVEL.HIGHLIGHTS]

🙂 Hello, actually I did not know about Turkish Train and their Highspeed train.... Very interesting video full of information. Well Done

[@yprasannasUTube]

Excellent video! Surprised to see lots of winter jackets.

[@416KPD]

I believe this was recorded sometime in the spring lol. I assure you no one would be wearing jackets now, it's above 30 degrees celcius.

[@davidsmeath4556]

Wow, so impressive! Great video 👏👏👏

[@emirlistenstomusic]

as a turkish person i can say that the current government was investing in highways instead of high-speed trains but in these days i can say that i’m really happy that high-speed trains are getting the recognition that they deserve! but unfortunately turkey’s economy is going really bad so making these high-speed train lines in this economy is being sooooo freaking expensive and it takes too long!

[@BoredSquirell]

I've seen some of the highways around Istanbul. I your government invested half of that money into rail Turkey would have the best high speed rail in Europe

[@Frederick-765]

yes it's criminal how the minimum wage is just 17000 TL and prices are as much or more than western europe

[@emirlistenstomusic]

@@BoredSquirellyou are so correct! and istanbul wasn’t built with a city planning so its unbelievably crowded and complex that any highway couldn’t fixed the traffic.

[@Swedey]

Could be worse. Could be us Swedes with paltry 200 km/h infrastructure that's crumbling.

[@Mrbatlefield4]

Stop crying it was literally necessary to build highways since the infrastructure before was crumbling. The Turkish economy is not going down , the average spending power of the average person is. So two different things. And no the Ankara Izmir line for instance is being build quite fast.

[@ozzyteam]

6:57 its not sea it is lake of sapanca

[@Cepia120]

Great video. The train at 5:31 is Spanish :D build by CAF. (Contructores Auxiliares de Ferrocariles) are in the C/Sepia. Im verry happy that you enjoyed these trains as there my favorite in Spain :D. Fun fact in Spain these train nunbured S120.05 (By Renfe) can change gauge (the wheels can adadapt to the width of the track. ¡¡In Motion!!! ). It was odd in your thumnail was this train but now you show one of the n ewer german build Velaro train which you did not travel (A bit of cliclbait there). Well anyways It will be verry fun if you travel on these trains in Spain with its unique tecnologly that It has and to see the diferences. Just a sugestion (: I do look foward to your next train adventure 🙂

[@halukipek5943]

The train at 5:21 is built by Hyundai Rotem. Its Marmaray, the suburban train line of Istanbul. CAF trains are in use in M4 metro line in Istanbul and did not being showed on video.

[@Cepia120]

​@@halukipek5943thanks I havent realised the minute marker mistake I do apolgies 😅

[@olasola1013]

The train type you were on is not the entirety of the YHT network. They also have a few Siemens trains (model used in Germany as well) that even appeared in video that I believe have way higher comfort.

[@samanli-tw3id]

The Velaros are also used in the Channel Tunnel

[@napoleonsdauphin]

Tom Thorntondahl, my long lost cousin.

[@yesidoskate]

that first pic was grand central station not penn station lol

[@thornton]

🫡 I live to get duped again another day

[@timlaw406]

Lines 3 to Sivas and 6 to Karaman are already active, and the other red dots are under construction.

[@berkesekeroglu3631]

Great video, but the route shown at 6:15 is horribly wrong

[@aduh95]

Wanted to commented about this, it's even debunked by that very video at 10:35 when it shows the actual train routes of the country

[@badllama4554]

Am i missing something. How is the Sea of Marmara to your left in the direction of travel from Istanbul? Is the footage rewound?

[@user-sb3yq5hi5p]

İt ıs Sapanca lake

[@badllama4554]

@@user-sb3yq5hi5p ah that makes more sense

[@Grenzfalle-kt5ev]

Love how you avoided to pronounce the stations name "Sögütlücesme", so here's a guide: You know how the "i" sounds in "sir"? And can you pronounce the german "ü" letter? Use them, remove the r from "sir" and say si-ütlücheshme.

[@thornton]

Thanks for the guide!

[@Grenzfalle-kt5ev]

​@@thornton Thank you for your videos!

[@hannibalbarca5621]

Come on, any Germans to comment negatively on this yet?

[@greekyoghurtù]

oh man i recomend going to malta its such a beutifull country! also did you enjoy tunisia?

[@Tch5802]

I believe that Siemens helped to design these trains.

[@Garvm]

Habitual suspects here. Siemens trains, Thales signaling and OHL (Spanish) in the civil works. I think CAF provides trains too

[@Cepia120]

YHT train that he rode was a HT650000 based on the Cepia familly build by CAF (: not Siemens

[@plonss]

The 2nd generation is designed and produced by Siemens, yes, and resemble some of the German ICE models

[@SisterSunny]

woah, man's going non-linear with his video releases 👀

[@thornton]

release sequence approved by chris nolan

[@redademe]

Only a tiny portion of the high speed network (< 1%) from Halkali station to the Bosphorus is arguably in Europe. It is mostly on the Asian side of the country.

[@theo3357]

Why does it matter so much?

[@redademe]

@@theo3357 It can't be the most underrated in Europe if it's not in Europe in the first place.

[@loccusloccus5315]

Technically, that sliver of tracks within the city limits of Istanbul is not high speed either. It's part of the old main line and suburban train corridor. Yes, YHT's are using these tracks to reach Istanbul's core, but do so at low speeds of ~50km/h due to the curvy infrastructure...

[@irregular_force2602]

More to come in 2025 when the section to kapıkule (Bulgarian border) starts operation

[@syedabdussubhan786]

HI TOM THORNTON DO YOU NEED THUMBNAIL DESIGNER?

[@perpetuummobile100]

the train itself reminded me of the Deutsche Bahn trains...ICE...

[@thornton]

Yep strong ICE vibes, with added TVs

[@simonk.8594]

That seat looks exactly like the old ICE 1 first class seats. Must be the same model

[@thornton]

Yeah the tray table absolutely stank of ICE to me! The seat also kind of, but definitely the table was giving me DB deja vu

[@dcgurer8353]

6:20 that is not the right route of the YHT. The YHT goes southwards through Eskişehir not Bolu. Apart from that great video

[@kingofbithynia]

Route is wrong btw. It goes down to south after Arifiye until Eskişehir and eastwards from Eskişehir

[@babylatte4444]

❤❤❤

[@imguvenc]

Hey, how do you make a living, remotely ? 😊

[@BadSloucher]

$19?! 😱

[@AL5520]

For a local with an average monthly salary of a bit more tha 400$ it's not cheap.

[@BadSloucher]

@@AL5520 thanks for putting that into perspective

[@siyahbeyaz9527]

Thank you so much for visiting Türkiye.

[@D-ig6qj]

Ne diyon aq

[@BotondPálfi]

You made a great video, as usual. However, you made one little error - Turkey did not gain independence in 1923 per se, as the turks were the dominant force in the Ottoman empire. The turkish independence war was about the sovereignty of the nation, and as a result the power passed from a sultan/caliph to the peoples.

[@Jack-my4mx]

All killa, no filla. 👌

[@thornton]

👊

[@TilmanBaumann]

That's great development for the country. Izmir is still pretty cut off, but I get why the east is more relevant.

[@samtrak1204]

Were you able to chooase your seat when making reservation? I see you don't have a good window seat...more wall than window really.

[@umutumut4768]

The map you draw is wrong. Train route is absolutely different than the map.

[@TheParkanyi]

As a Hungarian at 1:55 I burst out laughing 🤣🤣🤣

[@BotondPálfi]

Kíváncsi vagyok mit adhatnak ott 🙊

[@witlof5492]

I'm not being rude, but if you want to improve your English, the correct sentence is 'I burst out laughing'.

[@TheParkanyi]

@@witlof5492 thanks 🙂

[@budapestkeletistationvoices]

@@TheParkanyi DNS-t :)

[@greendsnow]

@@witlof5492no no it's not rude. The initial shock takes 3 seconds to accept that we were wrong and correct ourselves

[@und3rcut535]

Turkey might have great rail connection to Europe but the Balkan countries lack in quality so much

[@Sayitlikitiz101]

Can't be the most underrated in Europe when it's not in Europe!

[@Fufu8881]

Q: "Why this country's bullet trains are the most UNDERRATED in Europe" A: Because those trains run in the Anatolia peninsula, which is not part of Europe....

[@ZRHTrainspotter]

They also run to Istanbul Halkalı Station (Europe)

[@irregular_force2602]

​@@loccusloccus5315They do, I recommend you check out TCDD's timetable

[@forgottensage-o5o]

There are 340,000,000 Americans. I'm one of them. You might want to include miles as well because it's very frustrating to stop the video and go google km to miles. I had to do this twice.

[@cemdursun]

Just start learning and using km like the rest of the world and you'll be good 😏

[@sarah.sarah.sarah.sarah.]

🇵🇸🇵🇸🇵🇸

[@balporsugu2.0]

Son 20 yılda Çini örnek alsaydık bütün ülke yht ile donatılırdı.

[@samtrak1204]

The windows don't look clean.

[@turtletamer5386]

ben türküm. kaç para aldınız bu içeriği yayınlamak için. neresi hızlı. neresi 250km. baştan aşağı reklam, 50km ile giderken anlarsınız hızını, ne kadar amazing olduğunu

[@musakarakaya2483]

Beğenmiyorsan kullanmazsın,seni zorlayan mı var?

[@turtletamer5386]

​@@musakarakaya2483 ne zoruna gitti. beğenmiyorum mecburum. 25 30 milyon nüfusa hitap ettiği halde halk tüm koltukları dolduracak kadar talep gösterdiği halde bu kadar kötü,köhne,yavaş, sefer sayısı az olan bu hat bu ülkeye yakışmıyor. sadece adı hızlı yolun çoğunu 50km ile 100km ile gidiyor. sadece polatlı ankara arası bir tek 250 km görüyor. yolun çok çok küçük bir kısmında. koltukları daima full para basıyor ama fiyatı da otobüslerden daha pahalı ne hikmetse. hızı desen ankara istanbul otobüslerinden max 30dk farkediyor. otobüs hızında yüksek hızlı tren.. yersen ne zoruna gitti sen mi yönetiyorsun hattı

[@musakarakaya2483]

Beş senedir kullanıyorum.Diğer araçlardan ucuz,hızlı ve rahat bir şekilde gidiyorum.Gayette memnunum.

[@wildfire9782]

Turkey is NOT Europe. Not even by a long shot. Never ever make that mistake!

[@ballyhigh11]

I suggest you look at a map, and not through racist tinted glasses.

[@n.bastians8633]

@@ballyhigh11 This entire train trip (Söğütlüçeşme to Ankara) was located inside Asia. Europe is in fact a very short shot from the start of it, but still no cigar.

[@Talhacaglayankktc]

west of bosphorus is europe clearly.

[@nest1109]

A part of Turkey is Europe.

[@irregular_force2602]

I recommend you going to Greece, Bulgaria and Cyprus and then comparing to Turkiye to discuss that "long shot"

[@rambo10101]

Two kinds of comments under this post: 1. Turkey isn’t Europe. 2. The photo is Grand Central Station, not Penn Station. Get a life, people!

[@LeniTV]

I personally wouldn't recommend travelling to a fascist country because of good trains, but I guess that's personal preference.

[@paulthiel5145]

It makes the world really small if that is part of the consideration. 🤷

[@ZRHTrainspotter]

Awwwww, a westerner complaining about “fascism” in other Countries, before looking in the Mirror. NO COUNTRY is investing more Money in Wars and Global Destruction than the USA. They are the true fascists. Türkiye is a Country defending its borders, while the USA donates Weapons and Money to support Genocides and Wars instead of their People. THAT is Fascism! 🤡

[@Talhacaglayankktc]

no country is more fascist than USA

[@STNW1956]

I lived in Turkey for 6 months. I had a few difficult moments but overall it was a very enjoyable experience. Most of the people were hospitable and down to earth. Food was local, organic and delicious. They have a turbulent and very interesting history. Some excellent historical sites away from tourist areas and spectacular inland scenery. Different, yes, but definitely worth the visit!

[@Talhacaglayankktc]

Nothing is worse than USA