Tag Archives: Society of IRT

Magical Technical Tour: German High-Speed Rail

12 May
German ICE-3

Germany's 220 mph ICE-3

“This September’s German high-speed rail tour includes factory tours, the main station in Berlin and the airport station in Frankfurt,” said Rick Harnish today in an email. Harnish is executive director of the Midwest High Speed Rail Association and will lead the High Speed Germany journey September 17 – 24, 2011.

“We will ride both Siemens’ 220 mph ICE-3 and their 150 mph RailJet. We even managed to fit in a sleeper train [first-class German Rail City Night Line service Berlin-Munich].

RailJet

Austrian Federal Railway's 150-mph RailJet

“To top off the week, we will spend a night in Munich during Oktoberfest.  This trip is limited to 25 people, and the initial respond has been strong.  So, please call Eleanor Hardy at the Society of International Railway Travelers soon if you are interested [800-478-4881 within the U.S.; 502-454-0277 elsewhere]. Click here for the full itinerary.”

This is billed as a behind-the-scenes technical tour, but no one will mind if spouses wander away to shop, visit museums, ride trams or simply sit in cafés and watch the world go by.

Last year, we were honored to develop the journey High Speed France: An exploration of High-Speed Rail, Stations and Intermodal Transit. Participants gave the journey the highest ratings, returning to the US quite excited in their advocacy for rail. See this link to a great slide show about last year’s journey.

This year’s trip will be just as exciting.

Let us know if you want to join dynamic tour leader Rick Harnish on High Speed Germany. Don’t you wish you could hop aboard?

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Elephants, ceramics, markets: Which would you choose?

9 Feb
Eastern & Oriental Express

View from Eastern & Oriental Express compartment window. Photo by Jim Butkus

I knew I was going to like the Epic Thailand journey we are offering next year on the Eastern & Oriental Express.  But little did I know the incredible array of choices our travelers will enjoy. In Chiang Mai alone, there are two all-day choices and 10  half-day options. Each sounds more tantalizing than the next.

I leave next Thursday for Bangkok to prepare for our 2012  Owners’ Choice Epic Thailand journey (Feb. 26-March 3). Which of these included off-train experiences would you choose if you were doing this trip?

This is just a partial list:

  • A full-day visit to the Pang Song Nature Trails Project, a new collaboration between tourism interests and a local village working to protect the stunning Mae Lai Community Forest
  • A Day at the Mandarin Orient Dhara Dhevi Resort, with its spa and two swimming pools
  • Antiques and textile shopping
  • An introduction to Thai ceramics, meeting a ceramics expert John Shaw, educated at Oxford and a lecturer at Chiang Mai University, at his home and viewing his personal and private collection
  • A visit to an elephant camp, where visitors can see them at work – or even ride one
  • Tour of Doi Suthep Temple, an important monastery and symbolic landmark of Chiang Mai.
  • Tour of Pak Chong “wet market,” a truly “authentic” institution that is giving way to supermarkets and convenience stores, says the ground operator in Thailand “But be prepared for some strong smells and sights: all parts of animal produce will be on display.  This is ideal for those who wish to see a slice of daily rural life in Thailand. Due to lack of refrigeration in the old days, most Asians do daily marketing at the wet markets.”
  • Khao Yai National Park will be the obvious choice for nature and adventure seekers,. Khao Yai was Thailand’s first national park. Today, it is the second largest in Thailand, and along with the surrounding mountains was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.  This will include hiking one of three trails, each lead by a highly qualified park guide.

What would you choose?

Of course, the Eastern & Oriental Express is one of our World’s Top 25 Trains™ — and reason enough to go by itself — as shown in this short, experiential video: [wpvideo Uwm1S0aE]

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India’s Maharajas’ Express Joins World’s Top 25 Trains List

29 Nov
The Maharajas' Express

©The Society of International Railway Travelers Photo by Angela Walker

The Society of International Railway Travelers® is pleased to christen the newest member of its World’s Top 25 Trains list, The Maharajas’ Express. The Society announced the 2011 list for release Nov. 30.

The Indian luxury train began service in March and boasts 19 cars (excluding staff and generator cars). The train’s four itineraries begin and end in Delhi or Mumbai and include visits to such iconic locales as Agra, Varanasi, Jaipur and Jodhpur.

The Maharajas‘ Express brings to four the number of Indian trains on the Society’s list of World’s Top 25 Trains, a remarkable feat, said Society CEO Owen C. Hardy. “India has proven time and again its incredible commitment to rail — not just luxury service but service for the everyday person. Congratulations to the builders, owners and operators of the Maharajas’ Express.”

Other trains in India on the World’s Top 25 List, returning this year, are the Deccan Odyssey luxury train, which offers touring from as far afield as Mumbai to New Jalpaiguri; the Palace on Wheels, a first-class touring train in royal Rajasthan, and the tiny Darjeeling Himalayan Railway in W. Bengal, which runs up to the hill station of Darjeeling, and whose remarkable engineering and history earned it UNESCO World Heritage status.

Meanwhile, Angela Walker, Vice President for Operations for The Society of IRT, recently returned from India and issued a glowing report about the Maharajas’ Express. Find her report here.

The trains on the Society’s World’s Top 25 Trains list come from all over the world, and just about every continent.  The Society welcomes comments on our list. It is based on extensive first-hand experience on trains the world over by owners, staff, writers and members, who evaluate them extensively upon their return from travel. “These trains are the best of the best,” said Hardy. “We salute them for providing amazing and adventurous experiences for those lucky enough to take them.”

The World’s Top 25 Trains-2011

(Note:  Trains are listed by region and are not ranked within the list.  * signifies luxury train; + means the train provides a luxury service option on board.)

Africa

Pride of Africa*

Blue Train*

Asia

Darjeeling Himalayan Railway

Deccan Odyssey*

Eastern & Oriental Express*

Maharajas’ Express*

Palace on Wheels

Shangri-La Express

Europe

Bernina Express

British Pullman*

Danube Express

El Transcantabrico*

Flam Railway

Glacier Express

Golden Eagle Trans-Siberian Express

Royal Scotsman*

Venice Simplon-Orient-Express*

North America

Royal Canadian Pacific*

The Canadian

Rocky Mountaineer

South America

Andean Explorer

Hiram Bingham*

Australia

Ghan+

Indian Pacific+

Sunlander+

The Society of International Railway Travelers® is an award-winning publishing company and full-service travel agency and tour operator based in the U.S. and serving clients from around the world. To order a complimentary emailed PDF of the IRT Society’s Best-Loved Railway Journeys 2010, register on the company web site:http://www.irtsociety.com/.  To order the printed version, please contact the company for payment details. The Society specializes in luxury, deluxe and railfan journeys around the world.

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