If you're passionate about luxury rail travel, Japan is the ideal destination. Visit Shiki-Shimathe Twilight Express Mizukaze and the Seven Stars Nanatsuboshi offer you a unique experience of the Land of the Rising Sun, in exceptional comfort and refinement. Thierry Joly gives details of these exceptional trains on the website singulars.fr
There are not enough words to describe these two luxury trains, Shiki-Shima and Twilight Express Mizukaze, launched two years ago by the Japanese rail companies JR East and JR West. Comfort worthy of the finest hotels, breathtaking design, refined décor using noble materials such as precious woods, lacquer and washi (paper made from the bark of the mulberry tree), menus prepared by Michelin-starred chefs, and personalised service. These trains, made up of ten carriages for just thirty-four passengers, offer an intimate, well-kept atmosphere, where every detail exudes luxury. Along the way, there are stops to discover remarkable tourist and cultural sites that are not often visited.
We should also mention the Seven Stars Nanatsuboshia luxury train operated by JR Kyushu, which since 2013 has been exploring the seven prefectures of the island of Kyushu on 2-day/1-night and 4-day/3-night round trips departing from Fukuoka. This seven-car, fourteen-suite train, which seats twenty-eight passengers, offers similar services to the Shiki-Shima and Twilight Express Mizukaze. However, its design, although refined, is more retro, strongly reminiscent of the Orient Express with its furniture, wood panelling and subdued lighting. Each carriage has three suites, with the exception of two carriages which have more spacious suites. At the rear of the train, the most sumptuous suite has bay windows not only on its sides, but also at the end of the carriage, offering unparalleled panoramic views of the surrounding countryside.
Read the full report written by Thierry Joly on the singulars.fr website https://singulars.fr/trains-japonais-veritables-palaces-roulants/
Opening photo : Mount Fuji seen from the north-west. Photo taken at Arakurayama Sengen Park © Denis Lintner/Commons.
