Industry | Hospitality |
---|---|
Headquarters | Paris, France |
Key people | Omer Acar (CEO Orient Express & Raffles) |
Services | Trains, Hotels, Cruises |
Owner | |
Website | orient-express |
The Orient Express is a private luxury train service and luxury hospitality company operated by Accor. It will carry passengers between Paris and Istanbul, like the original Orient Express , beginning in 2025. [2] It will also offer journeys around Italy. [3]
In 2017, Accor purchased a 50% stake in the Orient Express brand from SNCF for the right to use the name. [4] In 2018, Accor began renovation work on 17 CIWL carriages from the defunct Nostalgie Istanbul Orient Express, which date back to the 1920s and 1930s, to create a modern Orient Express. [1] [5]
Two services will be operated, Central Europe (France, Germany, Austria, Hungary and Czechia) and the mythic/original route (France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey). [6] The first service will begin in 2025. [2] The service has no relation to the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express , which is owned by Belmond. [7]
A total of six Orient Express La Dolce Vita trains, each accommodating 62 guests, were constructed in Brindisi, Italy. The interiors are inspired by 1960s Italian design. The trains will offer overnight journeys around Italy, with itineraries including Rome, Venice and Portofino. [3] [8] [9] The service was first announced in 2021 and was supposed to launch in 2023 but delayed till 2024 and later 2025. [10] Its inaugural journey will embark on April 4, 2025. [11]
Private events for up to 62 people can also be reserved, including for weddings and corporate events, with the option to choose custom decor, menus, and itineraries. [12]
Accor purchased a 50 percent stake in the Orient Express brand from SNCF in 2017 to launch a chain of Orient Express hotels. [13]
In 2019 it was announced that the first Orient Express hotel would open in Bangkok, Thailand at the King Power Mahanakhon skyscraper. [14] It was planned to open in 2020 and would have had 154 rooms. [14] In 2020 Orient Express and King Power mutually agreed to part ways and the Orient Express Hotel Bangkok was cancelled. [15]
In February 2022 Arsenale S.p.A acquired The Grand Hotel de la Minerva in Rome, Italy. [16] In July, the opening of an Orient Express hotel in the space was announced. [16] [17] Also in 2022 the opening of an Orient Express at the Palazzo Dona Giovannelli in Venice was announced. [18] The hotel will open in 2025.
Name | No. of Rooms | City | Country | Opening | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Orient Express La Minerva | 93 (34 suites) | Rome | Italy | April 2025 | [19] [6] |
Orient Express Palazzo Donà Giovannelli | 45 | Venice | Italy | 2025 | [20] [6] |
Orient Express Diriyah Gate | 80 | Riyadh | Saudi Arabia | [21] [6] | |
Aqaba Gulf Hotel | Unknown | Aqaba | Jordan | Unknown | [6] |
Under negotiation | |||||
Unknown | Unknown | London | United Kingdom | Unknown | [21] |
Unknown | Unknown | Paris | France | Unknown | [21] |
Unknown | Unknown | Istanbul | Turkey | Unknown | [21] |
Legend Old Cataract | Unknown | Aswan | Egypt | Unknown | [22] |
Winter Palace | Unknown | Luxor | Unknown | [22] |
A superyacht cruise line will also be launched under the Orient Express name. [23] The Orient Express Silenseas will be the largest sailing yacht in the world and services will start in 2028. [24] [25] [22] A second yacht has also been commissioned and both will be built by Chantiers de l’Atlantique. [26]
In 2021 a collection of travel objects called "Steam Dream" launched with pop ups at La Samartaine (a Parisian department store) and the IFC mall in Hong Kong and online. The collection includes items made by Au Départ, Smythson, Cire Trudon, Bernardaud, Duvelleroy and more. [27] [28]
In 2023 in a collaboration with Montblanc they launched a limited edition collection of seven Orient Express themed pens for Montblanc's High Artistry Collection. [29] [30] [31]
The Orient Express was a long-distance passenger luxury train service created in 1883 by the Belgian company Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits (CIWL) that operated until 2009. The train traveled the length of continental Europe, with terminal stations in Paris in the northwest and Istanbul in the southeast, and branches extending service to Athens, Brussels, and London.
The Palace on Wheels is India's first luxury tourist train launched by the Indian Railways in joint collaboration with Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC) to promote tourism in Rajasthan. The train was launched in 1982. The train has been renamed as Heritage Palace on Wheels.
Accor S.A. is a French multinational hospitality company that owns, manages and franchises hotels, resorts and vacation properties. It is the largest hospitality company in Europe, and the sixth largest hospitality company worldwide.
MSC Cruises is a Swiss-Italian global cruise line based in Geneva, with operations offices in Naples, Genoa and Venice. It was founded in 1988 in Naples, Italy, as part of the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC). In addition to being the world's largest privately held cruise company, employing about 23,500 people worldwide and with offices in 45 countries as of 2017, MSC Cruises is the third-largest cruise company in the world, after Carnival Corporation & plc and Royal Caribbean Group, with a 10.2% share of all passengers carried in 2021.
Montblanc is a German manufacturer and distributor of luxury goods, founded in Berlin in 1906, and currently based in Hamburg. The company is most known for its luxury pens; it also designs and distributes bags, perfumes, small leather goods, and watches. Since 1993, Montblanc has been part of the Swiss Richemont group.
Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits is a Belgian-founded French company known for providing and operating luxury trains with sleepers and dining cars during the late 19th and the 20th centuries, most notably the Orient Express. Founded by Georges Nagelmackers in 1872, CIWL developed an international network of trains beginning in Europe, and later expanding to Asia and Africa. The trains provided luxury and comfort at a time when travelling was still rough and dangerous. The Armistice with Germany was signed in a CIWL train carriage, the Compiègne Wagon, on November 11, 1918.
Orient Express was the name of a long-distance passenger train service that ran from 1883 to 2009.
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The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express (VSOE) is a private luxury train service from London to Venice and other European cities. It is currently owned by Belmond.
Dolce vita or la dolce vita is Italian for "the sweet life". It may refer to:
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Uniworld Boutique River Cruises is a luxury river cruise line located in Los Angeles, California. Uniworld also has operational offices located in the Netherlands, Switzerland, France, and China. Their fleet of 19 ships sails the rivers of Europe, Egypt, India, Peru, and Southeast Asia. The company is part of The Travel Corporation group, which also includes businesses such as Trafalgar Tours and Contiki Tours.
The Maharajas' Express is a luxury tourist train owned and operated by The Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC). It serves four routes across North-West and Central India, mainly centered on Rajasthan between the months of October and April.
A luxury train is a premium passenger rail service. Some luxury trains promote tourism in destinations across a region, while others take passengers on a ride through a single country. Luxury trains include restaurants, bars, bathrooms, and sleeping and seating areas.
Belmond British Pullman is a private luxury train that operates day and weekend journeys around Britain. Until 2023, it also served as the British leg of the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express (VSOE) service between London and Venice.
Minor Hotels is an international hotel owner, operator, and investor headquartered in Bangkok, Thailand, with more than 550 hotels in over 55 countries across Asia-Pacific, the Middle East, Africa, the Indian Ocean, Europe, and the Americas. Minor Hotels operates as a subsidiary of Minor International, one of the largest hospitality and leisure companies in the Asia-Pacific region. The group operates hotels under the brands of Anantara Hotels & Resorts, Avani Hotels & Resorts, Elewana Collection, Oaks Hotels, Resorts & Suites, NH Hotels, NH Collection, nhow Hotels, and Tivoli Hotels & Resorts.
Raffles Hotels & Resorts is a Singaporean chain of luxury hotels which traces its roots to 1887 with the opening of the original Raffles Hotel in Singapore. The company started to develop internationally in the late 1990s. Since 2015, Raffles is part of Accor.