Kentish Gazette Canterbury & District
The daily grind suddenly got a whole lot more comfortable
Surprised commuters got the chance to swap their daily journey for a trip to work in style when a vintage travel company laid on a free oneoff service.
The Belmond British Pullman train greeted Londonbound passengers at Ashford International with 1920s carriages, famous for being in service on the current Orient Express trains to Venice.
Around 100 passengers embarked and were able to enjoy a three-course Bellini breakfast which included Danish pastries, Scottish smoked salmon and crumpets on their journey.
Marion Barber was among those on board as she made her way to work at a law firm in the City of London.
She said: “I would love to start my day like this every day, it would really make things easy. I haven’t had to put my elbows out to get a seat this morning.”
Elizabeth Austin was also among the passengers as she travelled to work at Marks & Spencer’s head office.
She said: “It’s an amazing train, it’s absolutely stunning and really is one of a kind. I don’t think you can get this anywhere else in the world, so it’s a special day.”
The decision to put on the service was made by Belmond Trains and Cruises managing director Gary Franklin, who said the company was aiming to spread a bit of early Christmas cheer.
He said: “There has been a lot of negative stories about the railways in recent months, and we found ourselves in the position to talk about the railways positively. We wanted to do something fun in the run-up to Christmas.
“So it was a lovely experience to show everyone how great the railways are. The reaction we have had has been overwhelmingly positive. A lot of people have said they wanted this to happen every morning.
“Unfortunately we can’t do that, but this experience has set them up nicely for the day. We are looking to see if this is something we can do again in the future.”
To find out more about the company visit www.belmond. com