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There is something inherently romantic about travelling by train.
Watching a city disappear beyond the carriage window, settling into a beautifully prepared dining room or waking somewhere completely different without ever boarding a plane creates an experience that air travel simply cannot replicate.
Luxury rail is entering a new chapter. The world's great trains are evolving, new routes are emerging and travellers are rediscovering that the journey itself can be one of the most memorable parts of a holiday.
The classics are evolving
Few names are as synonymous with luxury rail as Belmond's Venice Simplon-Orient Express.
Travelling through Europe in restored 1920s carriages, the train combines fine dining, attentive steward service and the theatre of grand rail travel. Its grand suites add private living and sleeping areas, marble bathrooms, butler service and in cabin dining.
New itineraries are also taking the experience beyond the traditional Paris to Venice route, with journeys including Paris to Portofino and the Amalfi Coast.
Italy's new generation of luxury rail
La Dolce Vita Orient Express is bringing a distinctly Italian interpretation to the concept.
Journeys connect destinations including Rome, Venice, Tuscany, Portofino and Sicily, with the food, landscapes and culture of Italy forming part of the experience.
Orient Express is taking this further with its Grand Italian Tours, combining rail journeys with stays in Orient Express hotels and voyages aboard its new sailing yacht.
The result is a journey designed around movement itself, rather than simply a collection of destinations.
Luxury rail, the Australian way
Australia has its own extraordinary rail journeys, and Journey Beyond continues to elevate the experience aboard the Indian Pacific.
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Crossing the continent between Sydney and Perth, the journey passes through some of Australia's most dramatic landscapes, from the Blue Mountains to the Nullarbor. New suite concepts are bringing more spacious private accommodation to the experience, while off train excursions and fine dining add another dimension to the journey.
The luxury here is distinctly Australian. It is less about European grandeur and more about experiencing the immense scale of the country at a pace that allows the landscape to become part of the story.
Beyond the destination
Luxury rail travel is also flourishing in some of the world's most spectacular regions.
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Belmond's Royal Scotsman carries just 18 guests through the Scottish Highlands, with fine dining, an observation car and even a Dior Spa on board.
In Canada, Rocky Mountaineer takes a different approach, with daylight journeys through the Canadian Rockies where the scenery becomes the main event.
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The appeal across all of these experiences is remarkably similar. Luxury rail turns the space between two destinations into part of the holiday.
There is no airport terminal, no repeated security process and no need to rush through the landscape at 35,000 feet. Instead, there is time to settle in, enjoy the view and watch the world change beyond the window.
For travellers who have experienced the world's great hotels, luxury rail offers something different.
Not simply somewhere to arrive, but a reason to enjoy the journey.
Contact the Apex Travel powered by TAG team below to start designing your luxury rail journey.
