If I had a bucket list, this would be at the top of it

There are some travel experiences that are so iconic that they are bound to be disappointments.

The Venice-Simplon Orient Express is not one of them.

Venice-Simplon Orient Express must be the most famous train journey in the world.

The Paris to Istanbul route of Belmond’s legendary train must be the most famous railway trip in the world, even though the classic five-day journey is only now offered about once a year.

Its legend has been a force in pop culture for over 120 years – having featured in several books and movies, including the classic novels Dracula (1897) and Murder on the Orient Express (1934, plus its multiple film adaptations), and the films Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1925), From Russia with Love (1957), and Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning (2023), to name a few.

If I had a “bucket list”, this would be near the top of it. But it’s not for everyone.

As luxurious as it is, it’s not a modern, high-speed train whizzing you through Europe at a breathtaking speed. It’s more like a gentle sway and rattle than a sprint.

A rendering of the new L’Observatoire Suite.

It’s a journey that’s experienced almost exactly as it was in 1920 – no wireless internet, no television, no en-suite bathroom and single bunk beds that turn into bench seats by day.

But that is the thrill of it.

You are utterly transported, quite literally, to another era when travel was slow and the attention to detail was immaculate.

It’s something of a miracle that it exists at all.

The Express d’Orient, as it was originally known, first set out from Paris for Constantinople in 1883, and for years afterwards, it was a vital link between Western Europe and the Middle East. Passengers on the early trains carried revolvers for fear of brigands. The Armistice of 1918 was signed in car 2419.

The journey revives the romance of Europe.

Over the years, the train carried world leaders like De Gaulle, celebrities like Josephine Baker, and royalty such as the Maharaja of Cooch Behar, who tipped the staff in diamonds.

But the advent of air travel in the 1950s made slow train journeys redundant and the service officially stopped in 1977. By then, most of the beautiful old carriages had been sold, and what remained were three meagre modernised cars and one sleeping car.

Enter American James B. Sherwood, the new owner of Venice’s Cipriani Hotel, who bought two of the original cars at auction in Monte Carlo in October 1977 with the intention of recapturing the magic of the train and having his beautiful Venice hotel as a stopover for passengers.

Sherwood searched the world and managed to buy back 18 original first-class cars in total, although most were stripped of their beautiful marquetry, Lalique glass panels and fittings. Luckily, plans still existed for the train’s woodwork, as well as many photographs of the upholstery and furnishings to aid in copying.

In May 1982, the expensively revamped train set off from Victoria Station with Liza Minnelli and the Duchess of Westminster on board.

It was a passion project then, but it’s now perfectly on the zeitgeist, with trains becoming the most popular form of transport in Europe.

It’s not about the destination but the journey.

And there are more journeys on it than ever. Where once departures were limited to Paris, Venice and Istanbul, now you can travel to Amsterdam, Prague, Cannes, Bruges, Lyon, Portofino and Florence, among several new stops and one-day voyages. There are 46 journeys in total.

This year, Belmond is adding the L’Observatoire Suite, which unfolds across one whole carriage.

But before travelling, there are some things you should know. Firstly – and this horrifies some people –the lack of en suite bathrooms in the historic carriages means that the antique WC is down the end of the corridor. But it’s kind of wonderful. (The gorgeous new Suites and Grand Suites have private bathrooms.)

In the cabins, there’s a wash basin, shelves for toiletries and a safe, all tucked away behind marquetry doors in one corner. There’s plenty of room for small suitcases and bags on the racks above and a small table that lays flat when the plush seat turns into bunk beds at night. The design is ingenious, and the details are exquisite.

There are three dining cars that are rotated between guests so each can be experienced. All the meals, astonishingly, come from the one cramped galley kitchen.

On the longer journeys, every second night is spent in a hotel.

Guests put on their finery in the evenings. It’s one experience where you miss out if you don’t dress to the nines.

I’ve been lucky enough to travel on the VSOE from Venice twice, and I am just wowed by it. I’m besotted by the gleaming timbers and shiny brass and the lovely old-fashioned service with cabin stewards and restaurant maitre d’s looking dashing in tails.

If you’re looking to recapture the romance of travel in Europe, this is the trip.

The writer was a guest of Belmond.