If there’s one thing we’ve learned from Australia’s growing fascination with Rocky Mountaineer, it’s that Aussies love a luxury rail trip around mountain ranges.
Travelling via train means they don’t need to hop from one hotel to another, worry about transportation or even concern themselves with dining. It’s all taken care of in a high class sleeper.
And now they can hop fly over to South America for a similar experience in the region’s first luxury sleeper train called the Belmond Andean Explorer.
Departing on its inaugural journey today, the Belmond Andean Explorer takes a maximum of 48 passengers on a two-night journey from Cusco to Arequipa.
Along the way, passengers will receive uninterrupted views of Peru’s snow-capped mountains, majestic lakes and herds of alpacas and llamas.
They’ll also receive a private tour of the floating islands on Lake Titicaca and enjoy lunch on a private beach with views across to the glacial peaks of La Paz, Bolivia.
But it’s on board where they’ll receive first class experience as the train was designed to bring a new level of luxury to rail travel with its elegant interior designs and four high-end cabin styles described as ‘personal sanctuaries’.
Guests can choose to stay in either the Deluxe Double Bed Cabin, Junior Double Bed Cabin, Twin Bed Cabin, or Bunk Bed Cabin.
But either way, they’ll have access to their own bathroom and shower.
As well as interior designs reflecting Peruvian culture and inspired by hand-woven fabrics and the soft tones of Alpaca wool.
On board, guests will also find five social cars including the observatory car, which has an outdoor terrace and turns into a social hub at night with pisco sour and live Latin music.
There’s the lounge car where travellers can relax in comfortable seating and enjoy a drink from the bar.
Plus, there’s two dining cars serving seasonal dishes made with locally-sources ingredients from the Peruvian Andes.
The menus are designed by chefs from the Belmond Hotel Monasterio in Cusco and feature drool-worthy dishes such as this…
And this…
Watch the clip below for more on the Belmond Andean Explorer: