Luxury Train Travel Transports Travelers Back In Time
The thought might be triggered by seeing an old movie with scenes on a train
. Or maybe you'll hear an old person recount a long ago train trip remembered many decades later for it's luxurious dining car with fine china and white linen table cloth. It could be the reading of a novel set in the nineteen twenties that makes the reader yearn for the glamor, romance and adventure of luxury train travel.
Fortunately there a few opportunities left in the world for train lovers to experience those thrilling days of yester year. Quite possibly the best is in South Africa. Since it was founded in 1989 Rohan Vos has made Rovos Rail world renowned for world class luxury travel. Rovos Rail has recreated the glamor and elegance that once upon a time made train travel a memorable experience.
On a Rovos train passengers travel, not in "compartments" but in private suites. The most expensive of these suites are the size of half a train car. They have private bathrooms complete with claw foot bathtubs.
All of the private suites on Rovos Rail are spacious, and fully equipped with all the modern conveniences. What makes them special however is that the cars are original Golden Age rolling stock. Some date back to 1911. They have been meticulously restored and finished with wood panels that are polished until they shine.
Rohan Vos was in the used auto parts business until 1986 when he came in contact with a group dedicated to the preservation of historic steam engines. Bitten by the railroading bug, Vos bought and restored a steam locomotive and four passenger cars. Once he realized that the cost of running his train as a private toy was prohibitive he started selling tickets.
Since then Vos has dedicated much of his time to flying his private plane over the countryside looking for old coaches and locomotives. He rescues them from scrap yards, and purchases them rail roads who have put them out to pasture. He has even bought rail cars from individuals who had turned them into restaurants and other business venues.
The beautifully restored cars with their magnificent suites are just the beginning of the Rhovos journey into railroading's luxurious past. The illusion of a traveling in a earlier, more elegant era is completed by the attentive service, the gourmet food and the endless flow of fine beverages. Every sense is delighted as passengers gaze out the windows at miles and miles of the world's most spectacular scenery.