Traversing the Andes in the Most Beautiful Train in the World

In this case study, I take the reader on a voyage through Ecuador’s railway system. It was inaugurated as a unifying component of the nation’s transportation infrastructure at the beginning of the 20th century, then reconstructed and transformed into a heritage tourism attraction in the early years of the 21st century. The reconstruction project, initiated in 2008 by controversial President Rafael Correa Delgado (2007–2017), restored a large portion of the original railway system for heritage and tourism purposes. Even though subsequent administrations have abandoned the project, the revitalization of the railroad system is considered to this day as one of the most emblematic successes of Correa’s tourism policy and a model for railway tourism. Based on ethnographic and bibliographic research conducted between 2014 and 2023, I discuss the successes and limitations of using railway heritage tourism to enforce political ideologies and nation-building. To Matt, my favorite eternal wanderer © The Author 2023