Rail Tours & Rail Vacations
One of the delights of many travelers is traveling the world's byways by rail. And indeed, there are several rail journeys around the world that rank among the world's best.
India offers two: the 3-night Heritage on Wheels visiting Jaipur, Bikaner, Deshnok, Gajner, Nawalgarh, Mandawa, Ramaarh and Churu. A 7-night program also is available, combining a trip by air conditioned SUV from Delhi to Jaipur, overnighting in Agra to see the Taj Mahal, then connecting with the 3-night Heritage on Wheels rail trip.
The second Indian rail trip of note is the famed Palace on Wheels, where one travels in the style of the maharajas on a 7-night roundtrip itinerary between New Delhi and Agra.
Africa also offers us two memorable rail trips, both in South Africa: The Blue Train, connecting Pretoria to Cape Town, and Rovos Rail. The Rovos trip offers a luxury trip using historic coaches.
Canada, with its stunning scenery and majestic mountains, offers a few rail options. The Rocky Mountaineer in Western Canada operates two-day tours between Jasper and Vancouver and Jasper or Banff or Calgary. The company also operates a 3-hour day train between Vancouver and Whistler.
In addition, one of the grand rail jounreys is the Trans-Canada route on Via Rail between Vancouver and Toronto, offering two levels of service, Silver & Blue Class.
In Europe, rail buffs might consider the Al Andalus Express – a vintage luxury train touring southern Spain or The Royal Scotsman, ultra-posh rail tours in Britain, part of the Venice Simplon-Orient Express operation.
And perhaps the most famous rail journey, that inspired Agatha Christie's famous novel Murder on the Orient Express, is the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express train, a reconstruction of the 1920's train that inspired Christie's famous mystery, featuring 5 nights from Paris to Istanbul or Venice, with options to depart from London.
In Asia, the same company also operates the luxurious Eastern & Oriental Express on the Asian continent, taking guests thru Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.
And then there's the grandaddy of them all, the Trans-Siberian, the world's longest rail trip of 9,000 miles from Moscow to Vladivostok, and with two dozen itineraries offered.
Down under in Australia, there's the Great Southern Railway, crossing the Australian continent.
Closer to home, in Mexico, is the Sierra Madre Express to Copper Canyon. While in Alaska, guests enjoy the day trains to Denali National Park, readily available as an add-on to an Alaska cruise.
Whatever rail vacation you may choose, our travel experts are eager to arrange it for you, and ensure your vacation is grand.
