Aboard the Alpine Express

Christmas in the Alps is what fairytales are made of, and now the journey is as much a part of that as the destination. Ahead of the ski season, the Venice Simplon Orient Express train has launched a new route between Paris and the alpine towns of Albertville, Moûtiers and Bourg-Saint-Maurice - the gateways to ski hotspots Megève, Courchevel and the Three Valleys. 

Disembarking in Paris, to clinking glasses in the iconic Bar Car ‘3674,’ the evening is a black tie affair, dining under French Chef Jean Imbert before retiring to cabins or one of eight new suites inspired by the passing landscapes - ‘La Campagne,’ ‘Les Montagnes,’ ‘Les Lacs’ and ‘La Forêt. Reimagined by French designers and artisans, the vivid colours and textures channel the work of famed Art Deco designers including Majorelle, Dufrene, Leleu, Rousseau, Prou and Lalique. 

Waking to sunrise and the snow-capped mountains of the Savoie, this has to be slow travel at its finest.