Refurbished vintage carriages, hauled by a steam locomotive, will make the return journey every Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday, starting on September 10.

And visitors will have the chance to tour local attractions like Abbotsford House and Melrose Abbey when they alight in the Borders.

ScotRail has announced that tickets are already on sale for the special service which is run in partnership with Surrey-based Steam Dreams.

Tickets are £75 for first class, £40 for standard class and £20 for a standard class child. A family ticket for two adults and two children standard class is priced at £100.

In a bid to attract visitors from far and wide, all tickets will include travel on ScotRail services to get to and from the steam train.

The locomotive will be the 60009 Union of South Africa, built in Doncaster in 1937 and one of six surviving LNER Class A steam locomotives in the UK.

Tickets for the journeys – and the opportunity to book a visit to Abbotsford House and Melrose Abbey – can be purchased by calling Steam Dreams on 01483 209888.

“It’s fantastic to see these iconic trains back in operation and to see them running on the Borders Railway will be real jewel in the crown for Scotland’s tourism and rail industries,” enthused Scottish transport minister Derek Mackay MSP.

“There can be few railway journeys which match the outstanding scenery on this new route and I look forward to it being extremely successful.” Mike Cantlay, chairman of VisitScotland, said: “The magical Scottish Borders is one of Scottish tourism’s greatest assets and I’m convinced the addition of steam trains will make the new railway one of Scotland’s most sought-after attractions.” For further information on ScotRail’s steam services go to scotrail.co.uk/steam-trains.

Meanwhile, while it has already been reported that a member of Royal Family is due to open the railway with a journey on a steam train on Friday, September 4, Transport Scotland has declined to confirm that this has been rescheduled.

“Services will begin on the Borders Railway on September 6, with a Golden Ticket day of community celebrations to mark the opening on September 5,” said a spokesperson yesterday.

“Further details of the opening celebrations will be confirmed in due course.”