Belmond's Venice Simplon Orient Express Train Journey from Venice to Paris Offers Luxury Travel Experience

The Venice Simplon Orient Express train journey from Venice to Paris provides a luxury travel experience steeped in history and glamour. This route, launched in 1982, has been favored by artists and actors. Travelers often begin their trip with a stay at the Hotel Cipriani on Giudecca island in Venice, which reopened in 2025 after a two-year refurbishment. The hotel, founded by Giuseppe Cipriani in 1958, features interior design by Peter Marino and displays artworks by Conrad Marca-Relli, Carla Accardi, and Emilio Vedova. Rooms are furnished with Venini vases and Gio Ponti mirrors. The train itself consists of carriages dating from the 1920s and 1930s, originally built by Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits. Many were restored in the 1980s with meticulous attention to marquetry, Lalique glass, and Japanese lacquer. Onboard amenities include Officine Universelle Buly products and Rivolta Carmignani robes. The journey includes dining in three restaurant cars: L’Oriental, Côte d’Azur, and Etoile du Nord. Meals feature dishes like scallop ceviche and rack of lamb. The bar car, number 3674, has hosted notable figures such as Josephine Baker, Leo Tolstoy, Grace Kelly, and Agatha Christie. Staff stewards, some with decades of service, manage each carriage, serving meals and preparing beds. The train arrives at Paris Gare de l'Est station.