Maharaja’s Express Trains

Maharaja’s Express Trains “Because in the end, you won’t remember the time you spent working in the office or mowing the lawn, climb that goddam mountain,” writes the noted American novelist, Jack Kerouac. I reckon we all engage in travelling. The exercise is nothing short of a wanderlust odyssey. We discover and explore new places, savour resplendent and robust historical sites; get connected with the past, absorb breathtaking sites or just revel and luxuriate on a cruise or in an opulent train. These moments provide a quintessential slice of inspiration which is perfect to handle any situation that we may encounter as the mind metamorphoses to become lithesome and is able to take alacritous decisions after a rejuvenating travel experience. A few decades ago India provided an old fashioned and very-much-tried and tested tourism package which attracted foreigners and some propertied Indians to the orbit of the Delhi-Agra-Jaipur triad. This was at a time when profit and luxury were still feculent words. Reagonomics, Thatcherism, globalisation, the fall of the Berlin Wall and virtual collapse of Communism fuelled the imagination of a fossilised bureaucracy, which turned visionary overnight. Then the Indian panorama altered the tourism ecosystem with the railways introducing ingenuous, luxury train services like Palace on Wheels, Fairy Queen and Royal Orient Express in the post-globalised world (in collaboration with State Tourism Departments and private players). Indians began to relish the word ‘profit’. As the planned economy gave way to market forces, there were innumerable choices available to the consumer. The pioneers skilfully tweaked various packages. In that series were launched the Maharajas’ Express which chugged on several routes over different parts of the country. The Maharajas' Express is a luxury tourist train owned and operated by the IRCTC. Deftly tying together the more historically significant cities, the opulent train plies on seven circuits traversing more than a dozen destinations across the axis of North-West- Central and South–Western India. Keeping in mind the climate in several parts of the country, the trips have been sandwiched between the ebbing summers in October and the late springs of April. The estimable train Maharajas' Express was voted as “The World's Leading Luxury Train” five times in a succession from 2012 to 2017, at the World Travel Awards. No mean achievement which skewers the misgivings of the Cassandra’s of doubt prophets of doom prophesised about the tourism marketing prowess of Indians. It is noteworthy to mention that the Maharajas’ Express is the most extortionate and high-priced luxury train operating in the world. For its pre-eminent service Maharajas' Express was the first runner-up in the Specialist Train Operators Category at Conde Nast Travellers’ Reader Choice Travel Award in the year 2011. This estimable train service commenced operations in March 2010. A joint venture of the IRCTC Limited and Cox and Kings India Limited was to establish a company called Royale Indian Rail Tours Ltd (RIRTL), to oversee the functioning and management of the Maharajas’ Express. This joint venture was however terminated in 2011 and currently the train is manoeuvred exclusively by IRCTC. The Maharajas' Express provides a plethora of solutions under a single umbrella of ostentation - pneumatic suspension, live television, Wi-Fi, attached bathroom, dining cars, bar, lounge and a premium souvenir shop. Larger cabins are endowed with roll-top baths and spacious sitting rooms. The train comprises of twenty-three carriages which include accommodation, dining, bar, lounge, generator and store cars. The train gloats of a lounge called the Rajah Club which has a private bar, two dining cars and a dedicated bar car. There is a delectable on-board souvenir boutique which offers tat for the pilgrims of this opulent odyssey. The train is also equipped with a water filtration plant. This luxurious train crows of a Presidential suite offering breathtaking 5-star accommodation. LCD televisions, eco-friendly toilets, direct dial phones, DVD player, internet, individual climate control and electronic safes are available in each guest cabin. It is worthwhile to mention that there are five carriages in the category of Deluxe Cabins, a total of 20 cabins accommodating forty passengers (twelve twin bed cabins and eight double bed cabins); all suitable to haul passengers in plush luxury. There are eighteen cabins in the Junior Suites category that accommodate thirty-six passengers. Additionally, there are four Suites available, which are endowed with large separate sitting and sleeping areas. The Presidential Suite is constructed on an entire rail carriage, incorporating a separate sitting-cum-dining room, a master bedroom and bathroom with shower and bathtub, a twin bedroom and bathroom with shower. The Maharajas' Express Presidential Suite is the first such a rail carriage of its kind in the world meant for commercial usage. The superabundant train has two dining cars which have been designed to provide for expansive dining service, each with a seating capacity of 42 guests at a time so that all the guests dine together. The train has a state-of-the-art kitchen car designed to provide a range of cuisines in the restaurants Rang Mahal and Mayur Mahal. The restaurant menu includes traditional Indian cuisine along with Continental, Chinese and other International fare. A dedicated bar carriage, the Rajah Club, offers the choicest of wines, liqueurs, spirits and beers along with snacks and starters. The lounge cum bar called the Safari Bar is equipped with a multilingual library and board games and offers a casual lounge experience. The tariff includes drinks on board!