Written By Bhagyashree Mahato.
Love travelling? Have you decided which mode of transportation you will be using while travelling? According to J.R.R. Tolkien “Not all who wander are lost”, as the modes of transportations has been evolving with the infrastructural developments for improving the communication system, businesses, travel, and tourism for improving the overall economic development taking place in each country.
This article will be giving you deeper insights into the top 10 unique modes of transportation systems available around the world with no excuses or regrets.
1. Barco De Totora In Lake Titicaca, Peru
While visiting markets we often see different products made up of reeds but do you know that the same reed can be used for making rafts and boats for fishing and travelling?
Barco De Totora in Lake Titicaca is an example of the type of boat crafted and used from the past 3000 years by the individuals residing in that particular geographic location. The Totora boats are crafted from dried bundles of Totora reed by the Uros who reside in the banks of the lake and are also known to resemble dragons.
Thus, this is one of the unique modes of transportation that you can use for getting across the beautiful and vast stretch of water while you are on a trip to Peru.
2. Underground Furnicular, Beyoglu, Turkey
If you are interested in experiencing travelling in an old-fashioned manner, the underground Funicular, Beyoglu, Turkey is exactly what you should look forward to. Funiculars are also known as inclined railways where a tram travels up and down a hill.
This is categorised into a unique mode of transportation due to its unique construction of the tunnel connecting two stations only!
It covers 60m between the quarters of Beyoglu and Karakoy and is the second shortest railway after the existing underground train in Continental Europe that has successfully reserved the visitors and residents of Istanbul since the late 19th century.
3. Hovercraft In Portsmouth, United Kingdom
Among the various modes of transportations existing in the United Kingdom, the Isle of Wight Hovercraft is one the last remaining commercial hovercraft services still operating around the world.
It is also one of the quickest modes of transportation and will give you the satisfaction of your journey if you run out of time within ten or less ten minutes across the Solent.
The current operating route of the Hovercraft is between the Southsea and Ryde in Portsmouth with excellent rail and road networks connecting on either side. Official terminology used for hovercraft journeys over water is “flying” not “sailing”.
4. Toboggan In Maderira, Portugal
Toboggan rides originated during the 19th century as “Funchai’s” for travelling downhill as public transportation. This is a type of wooden sledge which is pushed by the toboggan drivers.
Over the years it has also reduced the other means of transportation to be used in the areas as the toboggan drivers did not wish to lose their earnings and have successfully been operating.
Hence, no need to worry if you want to experience travelling downhill in Portugal you can find the wicker toboggans can be found around the Nossa Senhora do Monte Church/ Madeiran do Livramento, Funai.
Also Read: Top 9 Luxury Trains In India With Detailed Itineraries And Prices
5. Felucca Boats, Egypt
Travelling in the Land of Pyramids, sailing on the Felucca or the traditional wooden boats across the protected watts of Eastern Mediterranean, Red Sea, Nile, and Sudan will be giving lots of time for appreciating the beauty of the low mountains, rivers, and desert to one’s heart’s content.
These traditional boats come in different shapes and sizes with a canvas sail. The travelling in the felucca offers the travellers to slowly meander through the history of Pharaohs and myths of the Egyptian Gods during their journey. Hence, don’t forget to sail in the felucca boats and endure the beauty of the mysterious land.
6. Suspension Train, Wuppertal, Germany
Travelling in Germany you cannot miss out on travelling on the Suspension train at Wuppertal. Its original name is Einschienige Hängebahn System Eugen Langen (Monorail overhead conveyor system Eugen Langen) invented by Maxwell Dick.
The suspension railway system was built in Germany in 1901 in the city of Barmen and is the oldest electric elevated railway with cars in the world is a unique mode of transportation.
Schwebebahn covers a distance of 13.3 kilometres above the river Wupper at a height of 12 meters above the valley road between Vohwinkel and Sonnborne Stranße.
Currently, changes in the timing and dates have been updated due to the pandemic situation, however, you can always visit their official site and find these updates in the Schedule & Ticketing section.
7. Hand Carts Or Human Pulled Rickshaws, Kolkata, India
Hand-pulled rickshaws can still be found in the streets of the City of Joy (Kolkata) and are a convenient means of transportation on the busy roads along with the cycle rickshaws.
According to the historical sources the hand-pulled rickshaws were first spotted in the streets of Calcutta now known as Kolkata since the end of the 19th century and became a representative of transportation used by social class in the North and South Calcutta.
Currently, you can find these hand-pulled rickshaws more in the streets of North Kolkata only and a few in the Middle Calcutta.
8. Reindeer Sledge, Lapland, Finland
Travelling in Finland is safe, easy, and reliable due to the excellent services facilitated by Finnish transportation networks with their well-developed inter-city routes.
However, if you would like to experience a traditional way of travelling through the snowy forests of Lapland, riding a Reindeer Sled will be a perfect idea! This reminds us of the Christmas holidays as we eagerly waited to watch the special Christmas movies and the arrival of Santa Claus on Christmas eve in a reindeer sledge to fulfill all our wishes.
Therefore, travelling in Lapland, riding this unique mode of transportation for visiting the traditional reindeer farms, Santa Claus Village, learning the art of herding, and experiencing the mythical atmosphere of the Northern Lights cannot be excluded from the bucket list.
Apart from this, several tours and travel packages are offered by the travel and tourism firms functioning within those areas for providing a thrilling and unforgettable experience to all age groups.
So, don’t wait any more if you are in Finland or planning to visit Lapland soon, check out the reindeer sledge when you travel.
9. Zipline, Costa Rica
Zipline above the canopy is one of the major attractions for transportation while travelling in Central America for adventurous and hodophile individuals.
The lush green habitats, tropical beaches and exotic wildlife attracts numerous tourists for planning their vacation from the monotonous exaggeration from their busy work schedules and spending time with their families, friends, loved ones or pay a solo visit to Costa Rica.
Canopy tours are offered by different National Parks using the zip line through the treetops a hundred meters in the air. Hence, the zipline also widens the scope for experiencing the mesmerising view of the place from a height and reminds us of one of the characters Mowgli from Rudyard Kipling’s- The Jungle Book.
Although the story was written based in India, the concept of human beings travelling above the canopy can be said transformed into reality by using zip lines in different National Parks located in Costa Rica.
10. Bamboo Train, Cambodia
Bamboo trains or Norry is an improvised rail vehicle used for travelling in the South-West part of Cambodia. It is one of the major attractions for the tourists to experience their journey in the wilderness by sitting on a platform made from bamboo and powered by an electric generator engine.
It can travel up to a speed limit of 40km/hr. This unique mode of transportation, although has several flaws such as lack of brakes and safety measures, is used by the travellers for avoiding any hustle-bustle of using the scheduled train service which is slow and irregular.
Despite several controversial resettlement programs and budget issues, the construction of the Southern line from Phnom Penh to Sihanoukville was completed in 2013.
Also Read: 12 Spectacular Locations For Skydiving In Europe – Ultimate Bucketlist Experience
Feature Image Credit- Travel Earth
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I am glad that India was included among these points. All the transportation are so unique, I personally haven’t been to any of them, not even on the Kolkata ride. But, it was an interesting read to know on the transportations around the world.
Thanks Vansh for reading. We hope that you get to try all of these crazy unique rides soon and not only these ten but all that there are. We would love to hear your experiences.
Thanks for the reply. I wish the same for you!
These all look so amazing! We were lucky to have done the rickshaw in Jaipur. My spouse asked the driver if he could pedal. So I sat in the back with the driver while my hubby cycled us around Jaipur. It was so fun!
I’d love to try the others one day! It does make me nervous seeing those people on Lake Ticatica without life jackets on!
Wow that must have been so much fun at Jaipur. Now I feel like trying pedalling a rickshaw too.
Yes that’s true about the Lake Ticatica ride. I hope that now they do wear life jackets.
Lovely compilation! would be wonderful to try these at least once in life! TFS!
Thank you so much for reading. We are glad that you liked the compilation.