Travel Picks: Top 10 trains around the world

SYDNEY (Reuters Life!) - Traveling by train can be a drag -- or convert you to rail travel for the rest of your life.

Web site Askmen.com has come up with a list of the top 10 trains around the world, rating them on attributes like amenities, comfort, convenient routes, reasonable fares, and technology. Reuters has not endorsed this list.

1. TGV, France

The French sense of style extends to train travel and the TGV is an acronym for "train grande vitesse" - or high-speed train -- which can travel at 357 mph while the passenger runs hit 200 mph. Top route: Lorraine - Champagne-Ardenne

2. Japan Railways Group, Japan

Japan's original 130-mph bullet train of 1964 has inspired imitators, but the country's high-speed trains are still among the fastest and most technologically advanced and are reliable, safe and fast. Passengers aren't treated to the same 361-mph top speed achieved in testing, but 186 mph still isn't bad. Top route: Tokyo - Shin-Osaka

3. Eurostar, England

There are Eurostar lines throughout the continent and they're some of the best ways to get around. The 1,290-foot trains cruise up to 186 mph in certain areas. But one route stands apart -- it's the trip through the Channel Tunnel, with the journey beginning at London's historic St. Pancras International train station and ending in Paris. Top route: London - Paris

4. ICE/NachtZug, Germany