Champagne train makes tracks for Edinburgh
Northern Belle is 'Grand Dame' of luxury
Champagne-sipping passengers from Edinburgh will have a rare opportunity to travel on one of the world’s most luxurious trains next month.
The 1930s Pullman-style Northern Belle normally brings visitors to the city from all over the rest of Britain.
But on Friday, July 11, it will set out from Edinburgh on a slap-up champagne lunch trip through the beautiful Scottish countryside.
Passengers will board over a red carpet laid across the platform at Waverley Station before being handed their first glass of champagne.
Then after snacking on caviar and canapes, they will tuck into a sumptuous seven-course meal with wine.
A spokesman for the Northern Belle, once part of the iconic Orient Express set-up, said: “We will be transporting them back to the golden era of rail travel.
“A time when nothing was too good for the pampered passenger.”
Actor Bill Nighy called the train “the Grand Dame of luxury travel” when it featured on a Channel 5 TV programme. And a journalist once described it as being like “Downton Abbey on wheels”. It even has its own resident band, who serenade passengers while they dine.
Meanwhile, a conjuror wanders from table to table to add an extra touch of magic to the day.
The train is scheduled to leave Edinburgh at noon after setting out from Glasgow at 11.10. It is expected back at 17.50.