Euromost European Rail Networks & Services
Orient Express Express Services
The Orient Express
The mere mention of the 'Orient Express' evokes nostalgic images of a golden era of rail travel, combining luxury hotel standards with a sense of history, romance and elegance.
In 1883, the legendary 'Express d'Orient' made its first journey from Paris to Vienna, its original terminus, forever after capturing the imagination of writers and film-makers. Later the service would be extended, eventually transporting its aristocratic passengers all the way to exotic Istanbul via some of Europe's most beautiful cities. The train, whose passengers enjoyed attentive waiting staff and sumptuous environs, was officially renamed Orient Express in 1891.
Nowadays, however, those planning a trip on the Orient Express could face some confusion over which service and train to take..
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The Original Official 'Orient Express' Service
The original scheduled Orient Express service has now been truncated and only travels between Strasbourg and Vienna, with a TGV connection to and from Paris. It doesn't serve either of its original endpoints: Paris and Istanbul. The Orient Express was always a service, and not a particular set of carriages making up a particular train. Various rolling stock was used at different points in its history.
Today you won't get the old-fashioned experience on this service, as it uses modern coaches and it's far from exclusive: you can travel on it using normal tickets, including Eurail and InterRail passes. Yet this is the service that still officially holds the name 'Orient Express' in European train timetables, and for that reason it's the 'real thing'. And despite the lack of romance (except in the name), this is still the most convenient way to travel by rail between Paris and Vienna.
The 'Venice Simplon Orient Express'
The 'Venice Simplon Orient Express' (VSOE), however, is nowadays the service most commonly perceived to be the 'Orient Express', as it offers a close-to-authentic Orient Express experience between London and Venice (via Paris). The entire trip lasts for 24 hours and costs a hefty £1550 one-way, or £2325 return (2009 prices). Occasionally the train also runs to Rome, Krakow, Budapest and (once annually) Istanbul (the ultimate destination of the original Orient Express).
It is a privately-run service made up of two trains, one on each side of the Channel: a British Pullman train from London to Folkestone, and a Continental Wagon-Lits sleeping-car train from Calais to Venice. Passengers are transported across the channel by Eurostar (train), bridging the gap between the two Venice Simplon Orient Express trains.
The journey sweeps passengers through the same landscapes as the original Orient Express once did, and visits some of Europe's most evocative cities: Paris, Rome, Venice, Vienna, Budapest, Prague and Istanbul (depending on the trip you choose).
The trains themselves are made up of immaculately-restored classic coaches, mainly from the 1920s and 1930s, but also including some from the 1950s, with marquetry panels and Art-Deco designs. As trips on the Venice Simplon are expensive, they tend to attract glamorous passengers who mirror the train's elegance, and you'd be out of place if you didn't seriously dress up for dinner. Guests can expect fine dining, luxurious (if compact) compartments and attentive staff. The private compartments aim for luxury, converting from daytime apartments into night time bedrooms. If you have the budget, you can bag some extra space by booking two interconnecting double cabins. Normal departures are scheduled for Thursdays and Sundays. The price includes all meals, but excludes drinks, which aren't cheap. If your budget is less generous, you can still get a taste of the Orient Express experience at a fraction of the cost by taking a UK-only lunch, dinner or day trip rather than travelling all the way to Venice.
Visit the official website for more information at www.orient-expresstrains.com.
Companies offering unique packages on these routes include: Luxury Trains, Murder Mystery Weekends, and Manoir.com