World's most beautiful passenger stations of 2025 chosen by Prix Versailles

The Prix Versailles today revealed the names of the seven projects included in its list of the world’s most beautiful passenger stations for 2025. 

“The commitment and the technical and aesthetic prowess demanded by these structures are the highest possible tribute to the building community,” said Prix Versailles Secretary General Jérôme Gouadain in reference to the stations. “Already a part of this century’s heritage, this infrastructure is revitalizing the role that we as a society attribute to mobility.”

In December at UNESCO Headquarters, three stations from this list will receive the additional distinction of a World Title – Prix Versailles, Interior or Exterior. The unveiling of the passenger station shortlist comes not long after Prix Versailles’ releases of the emporiums, airports, restaurants, and hotels shortlists.

Look below to see and learn more about the recognized stations for this year. You can also see other shortlisted projects across other categories through our ongoing coverage of the series here.

Gadigal Station by Foster + Partners (in collaboration with Cox Architecture)
Sydney, Australia

Description: "Gadigal is the name of the Aboriginal people who were the original custodians of the land around this part of Sydney. Today, that ancient clan symbolises the ambitions of the city that is home to Australia’s first metro system. Located 25 m beneath high-rise buildings, this station designed by Foster + Partners (in collaboration with Cox Architecture) is the epitome of absolute modernity. At each entry, there is a monumental work of art entitled The Underneath, inspired by early railway tunnels and made of ceramic tiles in intense hues. It uses contrast to denote the movement of passengers through streamlined spaces whose curves and colour variations retrace the underlying geology. The future-facing Gadigal Station humanises the metro, encouraging and facilitating the shift to an ecological footprint through public transport."

Mons Station by Santiago Calatrava
Mons, Belgium

Description: "Mons Station is the linchpin of an urban reorganisation project, in which roads have been transformed into pedestrian squares, and the passenger station is now accessible from the city centre, with no need to cross any streets. All the artistry of Santiago Calatrava was to put work in an airy, streamlined style made up of steel and dazzling white to form a cathedral-like walkway that stretches 165 metres in length, connecting the historic heart of the city to the south and the emerging Grands Prés district to the north. The monumental gallery, which welcomes visitors below an expansive, suspended canopy, is a nod to the Galerie de la Reine in Brussels and exemplifies cultural and commercial vitality within a modern, multimodal transport facility. Entirely enclosed and insulated, its design guarantees comfortable temperatures in winter, while the skylight at the apex of the roof allows for natural ventilation in summer."

Baiyun Station by Nikken Sekkei
Guangzhou, China

Description: "In theory, nothing would seem to be more deeply rooted in the earth than a facility dedicated to 24 high-speed train lines, 6 subway lines and 3 bus terminals. And yet, Baiyun Station now stands out for its bright and airy layout, designed by the team at Nikken Sekkei. Where there was once nothing but a mass of unused airspace, there are now shops and off ices contained within an ethereal structure that has become the real cornerstone of the Baiyun business district. A multi-storey, circular pedestrian walkway connects the railway platforms to the surrounding commercial and office spaces, but more than that, it is interwoven with gardens to create a three-dimensional urban park that irrigates and unites the local community. Stylised versions of Guangzhou’s traditional arcades flood the station with natural light and deliver a unique spatial identity that is simultaneously monumental and human. Inspired architecture, indeed."

Saint-Denis – Pleyel Station by Kengo Kuma & Associates
Saint-Denis, France

Description: "At the edge of three municipalities, this iconic Grand Paris Express station was built in a territory marked by urban divide.  While a structure already existed to cross the 48 tracks serving Gare du Nord in Paris, the challenge for Kengo Kuma & Associates was to establish coherence between separate neighbourhoods. A draped effect, rising to a height of 35 metres, underscores the stature of this public facility where natural light reaches all the way to the platforms, 28 metres below ground. 'The place is the product of nature and time', the architect explains. In striking contrast to traditional passenger stations built out of steel and concrete, the atrium here is entirely covered in wood, 'a magical material' that creates warm spaces. In connection with time, more than 100 sculptures inspired by the earliest depictions of women in Palaeolithic art will be installed along the full height of the atrium, making the project part of a multi-millennial continuum."

Villejuif – Gustave Roussy Station by Dominique Perrault Architecture
Villejuif, France

Description: "Dominique Perrault is the architect of metal (stainless steel in the case of this station) in all its forms – smooth, mesh, perforated, polished to a mirror finish or satiny – and of every shade of grey, all the way to the colour bronze. In the middle of a wide pedestrian forecourt, an open pavilion topped with a spectacular glass roof blurs the line between interior and exterior. It covers a dizzying cylinder measuring 70 m in diameter, that allows air to circulate and creates different ambiances by casting light 50 m below, down to the platforms of one of France’s deepest passenger stations, through the interaction of reflections, shine and filters. What Perrault calls the 'architectonics of the link' reconciles the vertical motion of entry to the station with the horizontal movements of the city. Here, there is no monumental urban façade closing off the area. Instead, empty space is wielded like a material in and of itself, with long escalators organising the flow of passengers."

KAFD Station by Zaha Hadid Architects
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Description: "In 2000, the Saudi capital, with its 4 million inhabitants, did not yet have its own public transport infrastructure. But today, KAFD Station, located in the city’s f inancial district, is the hub of a network that now extends over 176 kilometres of tracks and 85 stations, making it the world’s longest driverless transport system. Designed by Zaha Hadid Architects, the new station connects the past to the future. The façade echoes the patterns created by desert winds in sand, where multiple frequencies generate the complex swirling motifs found in the natural world. At the same time, the undulating waves that form the building’s spine are the product of cutting-edge technology. In fact, the station’s expected rail, vehicle and pedestrian usage was modelled and mapped in order to conceptualise a space defined by changes in the frequency of traffic flows. The effect is that of a stylised desert rose, whose curves tactfully soften the verticality of its towers."

Qasr Al Hokm Station by Snøhetta
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Description: "Designed by Snøhetta, Qasr Al Hokm Station was created as a large urban plaza whose inverted conical canopy is intended to signal a paradigm shift in the city’s development. Like a periscope, this basin atop a glass roof reflects vibrant street life and indirect light from the plaza above down to the lower levels. From the concourse to the platforms, this creates a dynamic visual connection between the underground station and the cityscape above. Thanks to a mirror effect, daylight is cast into the station, while at night, the internal lights of the station are reflected onto the surface of the canopy. The interior is treated in adobe render along an immense, inclined wall, perpetuating a longstanding tradition of Najdi vernacular architecture. At the base of the atrium, a luxuriant garden unexpectedly materialises within the subterranean space."