PRIDE OF INDIAN RAIL
PALACE
ON WHEEL
The
Palace on Wheels is a luxury tourist train. It was launched by
the Indian Railways to promote tourism in Rajasthan,
and has been highly popular since its launch. The train service was refurbished
and relaunched in August 2009 with a new decor, itinerary and cuisine .
The concept of the Palace on Wheels
was derived from the royal background of the coaches, which were originally
meant to be the personal railway coaches of the erstwhile rulers of the
princely states of Rajputana, Gujarat, the Nizam of Hyderabad
and the Viceroy of British India. Each coach has
four cabins (named chambers or saloons by the company) with twin
beds, wall-to-wall carpeting, air-conditioning, DTH satellite television, channel music,
intercom,
attached toilets, running hot and cold water, with personal attendants.
The Maharaja Express is
a luxury train owned by the Indian Railways Catering and Tourism Corporation
(IRCTC) and operated from early 2010. The reintroduced Maharaja Express train
offers 5 itineraries, all of which either begin or end in Delhi and include a visit
to the Taj Mahal in Agra.
Each morning, the
train arrives at a different station for off-rail excursions, including visits
to monuments, heritage sites, shopping, palaces, forts, and hotels. New
itineraries announced by the operators of Maharajas Express include 3
pan-Indian journeys and 2 golden triangle tour itineraries covering Delhi,
Jaipur and Agra. The Maharaja Express is the most expensive luxury train in
India. It was named to the 2011 list of World's Top 25 Trains by The Society of
International Railway Travelers and was praised for its onboard accommodation
and dining facilities, service, and off-train excursion program after its
review in the Fall of 2010.
ROYAL RAJASTHAN ON
WHEEL
The Royal Rajasthan on Wheels is a luxury
tourist train run by Indian
Railways. It is modeled on the Palace on
Wheels, and follows a similar route through Rajasthan.
Tourists are taken to several important
tourist, wildlife and heritage sites across Rajasthan.
The
train was launched in January 2009 following the success of the Palace on
Wheels, another luxury train that travels through Rajasthan.Some of the tourist
attractions covered are the Hawa Mahal
(Palace of Winds), Moti Mahal, Sheesh Mahal, Ranthambhor National Park, Chittaurgarh
Fort, Jag Niwas (Lake Palace), Keoladeo Ghana National Park, Agra Fort
and finally the Taj Mahal.
THE GOLDEN CHARIOT
The Golden Chariot is a luxury tourist train
that connects the important tourist
spots in the Indian
states of Karnataka
and Goa.
It is named after the Stone Chariot in the Vitthala Temple at hampi. The 19 coaches on the train are coloured purple and gold, and
sport the logo of a mythological animal with the head of an elephant and a body
of a lion. The Golden Chariot operates weekly.
The Golden Chariot
offers accommodation in 44 cabins in 11 coaches that are named after dynasties
that ruled the region:
Hoysala, kadamba, Rashtrakuta, Ganga, Chalukya, Bahamani, Adil Shahi, Sangama, Satavahana, Yadukula and Vijayanagar.
It also has two restaurants, a lounge bar, and
conference, gym and spa facilities. It is the only train in India to have onboard Wi-Fi
connectivity, and satellite antennae providing live television service in
the cabins
DECCAN ODEYSSEY
The Deccan Odyssey is a special luxury train based on the model of Palace on Wheels to
boost tourism on the Maharashtra route of the Indian Railways. The
route starts in Mumbai and travels to Ratnagiri, Sindhudurg, Goa, Kolhapur, Belgaon, Solapur, Nanded, Aurangabad, Ajanta-Ellora Nasik,
Pune
and then back to Mumbai.
From December 2010, The Deccan Odyssey train, taken on
charter from Government of Maharashtra
started with aim to have a journey across four Sikh takhts, with a flight by
devout and sightseers to the fifth takht ( Takht Sri Patna Sahib).
The
duration of the tour is 7 nights, starting every Wednesday from Mumbai.
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