Take the world's most glamorous, historic rail journey: the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express to Venice in Spring |
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Join us for five wonderful, exciting, romantic days, sleep the night aboard the 'King of Trains, and the Train of Kings' as it travels to Venice, be pampered by your personal steward, revel in its history of spies and intrigue, and enjoy gourmet dining, fine wines and spellbinding views of the Alps. |
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Then reach Venice and live the life of a Venetian noble in another celebrated piece of history, the glorious 15th century Ca' Sagredo, the finest private palazzo on the Grand Canal, decorated with original frescoes, gilded mirrors, rich Italian silks and velvets. One of the world's great hotels—and the only hotel in Italy to be declared a National Monument—this will be your home while savouring the pleasures of the world's most romantic city.
Together, the experience is out of this world.
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The dates are Thursday, April 11, to Monday, April 15, 2024, a perfect time of year, when the sights of Venice and the views from the Orient-Express of the snow-capped Swiss Alps and the Italian Dolomites in springtime will be stunning in their beauty.
This exclusive Members-only, tailor-made, five-day trip will be unmissable. And we have secured an exclusive CountryClubuk rate for a limited number of Members, saving well over £1,000 per person.
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Dear Member
Join us on one of the world's most iconic and romantic journeys—the Orient-Express to Venice. On this great train journey from the Golden Age of travel we shall enjoy two days on board the Orient-Express as it travels through the Alps on the famous Gotthard route to Venice, and three nights living as a Venetian noble in a 15th-century private palazzo on the banks of the Grand Canal.
The dates are April 11 to 15, 2024, and we have advantageous rates for this, the most sought-after route of the Orient-Express in high season. It will be an unmissable event. The snag is, we have only seven cabins, and therefore space for just 14 guests.
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Spies used the Orient-Express as a secret weapon. A French President tumbled from it. Hitler wanted it destroyed. The real-life and fictional dramas of the Orient-Express will transport you back in time. Tolstoy and Trotsky, Marlene Dietrich, Lawrence of Arabia and the spy Mata Hari were all passengers. Ferdinand of Bulgaria, scared of assassins, was observed locking himself in the bathroom. Belgium’s King Leopold II rode the train to Istanbul after making elaborate arrangements to infiltrate a Turkish harem. The King of Bulgaria, an amateur engineer, insisted that he be allowed to drive the train through his country, which he did at perilous speeds. Czar Nicholas II demanded that special cars be built for his visit to France, and decades later French President Paul Deschanel tumbled from one of these cars in the dead of night, prompting such ridicule that eventually he resigned. Hitler tried, and failed, to have the Orient-Express destroyed. |
The truths of the Orient-Express are stranger even than the fiction: but Hercule Poirot solved his most famous case on it, Alfred Hitchcock’s lady vanished from it and James Bond's Sean Connery rode it for The Spy Who Loved Me, followed by Kenneth Branagh, Penelope Cruz, Johnny Depp and Judi Dench for the film update of Murder on the Orient Express—not forgetting its role in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. But there has never, despite the fiction and the intrigue, been a murder on the Orient-Express.
The first Orient-Express pulled out of Paris for Istanbul in 1883 for the 1,700-mile trip across Europe and thus began a lifelong love affair which we can still experience. We shall step inside those legendary original rail cars with their inlaid marquetry, polished brass, sumptuous upholstery and antique fixtures, to make our way across Europe in a frisson of excitement—everybody stops to look as the Orient-Express pulls into a station, or steams under a bridge or past a railway crossing. It is simply the most famous, most fascinating train in the world.
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The mystique and glamour of Agatha Christie linger throughout, from the genuine carriages to the crisp linen, the French silverware and heavy crystal glassware, the personal stewards and the white-gloved service, as faultless as one would expect of this grand hotel on wheels. Carriages are meticulously maintained to ensure an authentic experience, from the original sleeping cars of the 1920s and '30s, the three dining cars and elegant bar car with its baby grand piano. Each carriage has a history—if only it could tell! Such as carriage 3309, which became stuck in a snowdrift outside Istanbul and gave rise to the scene in the famous film.
The classic Paris to Venice trip is still the most romantic. The arrival in Venice over the causeway is a fitting climax, and this is the route which gives the finest Alpine scenery by day—as we glide beneath majestic, snow-capped mountains and alongside deep blue lakes, we shall savour every moment.
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As the Orient-Express pulls away from Paris Gare de l'Est en route to Venice we shall have time in which to relax and let the atmosphere of the train sink in. There’s much to marvel at, even in the cabins’ ingenious design. A washbasin is concealed in a handsome wood cabinet. A plush daytime sofa is transformed into cosy upper and lower berth beds with crisp damask sheets by our cabin steward while we dine in the evening. The beds are then whisked away again after breakfast. This magically discreet service is all part of the experience, as is dressing for dinner—black tie is not compulsory, but oh how it adds to the romance! |
And then there's the famous Orient-Express Bar Car 3674 with its baby grand, which is truly the place to be for the de rigueur pre-dinner drink—perhaps a bottle of the Orient-Express Champagne—and to revel in the ambience of the train as it rolls through the countryside towards Venice—leaving Paris, then up into the Alps, on to Verona and, eventually, to Venice. As the sun dips and the vintage lights begin to glow against the polished wood and brass, the pianist begins to play airs from that older era; all create the mood of romance, mystery and delight.
Through northern France, the train crosses some of the most fought-over country in Europe, though it looks smiling enough in the gathering dusk. And besides feasting our eyes on this magical scene, we’ll feast on the Orient-Express cuisine in the elegant 1920s Restaurant Cars, L'Orientale, Côte d'Azur, Etoile du Nord.
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A delicious four-course dinner is already being prepared by a batterie of chefs under the watchful eye of Michelin Star Chef Jean Imbert, the culinary master who has taken Parisian cuisine by storm. He takes his inspiration from what is seasonal and local—but to the Chef of the Orient-Express 'local' extends to choice ingredients from across the train's far-flung destinations.
There may be lobster with truffles, fillet of sole with caviar, venison with cranberries, salt marsh lamb and ginger, fine cheeses, and scrumptious creations such as coffee bavaroise, Amaretto sorbet, or fantasies of chocolate and fruits. Whatever is on the menu it will be superb, and beautifully served by skilled stewards. Service on the Orient-Express is unmatched—and dinner is a leisured, glamorous delight. It will be followed, at the time of our choosing, by a nightcap or two, before retiring to our cabins—or a suite, if you wish—to be rocked to sleep by the train.
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We awake to views of the Alps in all their snow-capped glory. It's a magical awakening, and from here on the beauty and fascination of the scenery is unparalleled pleasure. We shall travel through the astonishing Gotthard Pass between Basel and Airolo, a masterpiece of railway engineering and breathtaking sights. The route offers stunning visions of the mountains as well as picturesque towns on both sides of the Italian border. We'll pass the three-castled town of Bellinzona, Lake Luzern and Lake Como, and picturesque towns of Lugano and Chiasso before the mountain landscape gives way to vineyards en route to Verona. As these visions soar around us there will be, first, Continental breakfast, and later, a gourmet three-course lunch, followed, later still, by fresh pastries as we travel through the Dolomites. Was it not Robert Louis Stevenson who held that to travel was more important than to arrive? All who have imagination will take the greatest pleasure in this iconic train journey.
Eventually—too soon for some!—we shall arrive. Venice lies before us as we cross the Venice Lagoon and roll in to Santa Lucia station. Here we leave the train, continuing the pleasure by water taxi—or gondola if you prefer—to historic Ca' Sagredo, where we shall live in historic, palatial luxury for three nights. It will give us plenty of time in which to explore this stunningly beautiful city—and April is a glorious time of year to be here, not yet high summer yet already warm, less crowded, and with long evenings in which to soak up the magic of the city, starting with the picture-perfect pink palazzo which is Ca' Sagredo itself.
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The only hotel in Italy to be designated a National Monument, this glorious and historic palace offers us the Venice of nobles, artists and doges. It was the home of the noble Morosini family, and later the Sagredo, one of Venetian aristocracy's most influential families. Now, behind the romantic pink façade lie sumptuous rooms and suites, immersed in their own historic Venetian past. Ca' Sagredo is home to important works of art—paintings by eminent painters of the 18th and 19th centuries, Sebastiano Ricci, Giambattista Tiepolo, Niccoò Bambini and Pietro Longhi. The frescoed ballroom alone is a national treasure.
Ca' Sagredo is indeed what its owners name ‘A Private Palazzo, a Noble Residence, a Museum, a Luxury Hotel and much more … ’ It has won a place in the 500 Best Hotels in the World by Travel+Leisure and Condé Nast Traveler's Gold List, and can truly claim status as one of the world’s great hotels. Together, the Orient-Express and Ca' Sagredo are an unmissable combination. They offer an experience that promises to take us, not just across Europe but to another world entirely, and we are delighted to have secured 14 places at exclusive Members' rates, on this, the Paris to Venice journey—our previous dates having all sold out instantly, and our waiting lists are always long!
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This promises to be a scintillating, romantic and unforgettable journey, a blissful, five-day holiday in the lovely month of April—all at exceptional CountryClubuk rates. It will make a special, never-to-be-forgotten anniversary or birthday celebration, or simply one of those iconic trips to experience in every lifetime!
This is an exclusive CountryClubuk arrangement with Belmond, owners and operators of the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, and the Paris to Venice journey in this, the perfect season, is the most coveted of the Orient-Express routes—so we urge you to book immediately, as we have only seven cabins on the great train and they will soon sell out.
For full details, and to book your places, please read on (or see facing panel), or call Member Services on 020 7399 2960.
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LUXURIOUS NIGHTS AT THE HISTORIC CA'SAGREDO ON THE GRAND CANAL |
Our Members not only enjoy admiring works of art, they like to stay in them. First, the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, a Belmond train which is a masterpiece in itself; followed by the breathtakingly romantic 15th-century Venetian palazzo on the Grand Canal—Ca' Sagredo. |
The beauty of Ca’ Sagredo, which lies between Ca’ D’Oro and the Rialto Bridge, is, as they describe it, 'weep-with-joy wondrous'. The palazzo still preserves the untouched beauty of an ancient noble residence.
Behind its timeless façade in shades of Venetian pink, it oozes romance in every detail, while the opulently frescoed public rooms echo with epic events of the past. Just gliding up the marble staircase feels positively regal. And to lunch, dine or enjoy a drink in the canal-side restaurant, in your suite or rooftop bar, is a pleasure all its own.
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Ca’ Sagredo’s views of the canal life and the historic Rialto Market opposite are storybook scenes of old—and its location is peaceful, just a walk away from the hubbub of busy St Mark's Square. |
Ca' Sagredo's 42 rooms and suites are exquisite, with classic Venetian styling, art and antiques. All are beautiful, and original—this is, after all, a National Monument. |
SAGREDO VENETIAN DOUBLE ROOM |
Overlooking the inner courtyard, with views of the rooftops or the charming square Campo Santa Sofia, these rooms are elegantly furnished in classic Venetian style. They are from 25-30 sq m (215-269 sq ft) in size. |
The Grand Canal rooms naturally overlook the Grand Canal and the passing gondolas will make your stay truly Venetian. These spacious rooms (30-35 sq m (223-376 sq ft) are stylishly accented by elegant artwork and silks. |
For sunrise over the Grand Canal, this is a delightful suite to book! Grand Canal Junior Suites are a celebration of Venetian style, decorated in shades of brown, cream and gold, with floor-to-ceiling windows opening on to views over the Grand Canal. They are 35-45 sq m (376-484 sq ft). |
This is the way to live like a noble Venetian! The exceptional Library Suite is a masterpiece of history, luxury and design, giving breathtaking views over the Grand Canal, gilded furniture including the 18th century library bookshelves, and everything a noble Venetian could wish. These bookshelves once held Zaccaria Sagredo’s massive collection of volumes and printings. This unique suite combines a magnificent historic ambience with sleek and contemporary touches. It is 55 sq m (591,80 sq ft.) |
Included in this sumptuous five-day, four-night trip:
Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, a Belmond train, from Paris to Venice in a twin cabin, including full board;
Water taxi from Venice station to palazzo Ca' Sagredo;
Three nights' stay in Ca' Sagredo on a bed-and-breakfast basis;
Road transfer to the airport;
Venice to London economy flight.
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BOOK NOW TO JOIN THIS UNMISSABLE EVENT! |
We know that this event will be extremely popular, as our previous dates have all sold out immediately. We do not want you to miss out, so please book now by clicking your choice of the options below:
Venice Simplon-Orient-Express in a Cabin for two sharing, with a Sagredo Venetian Double. CCUK £4,497 per person (two sharing), instead of £5,760 per person or more. Click to book.
Venice Simplon-Orient-Express in a Cabin for two sharing, with Grand Canal Double. CCUK £4,927 per person (two sharing), instead of £6,192 per person or more. Click to book.
Venice Simplon-Orient-Express in a Cabin for two sharing, with Grand Canal Junior Suite. CCUK £5,397 per person (two sharing), instead of £6,736 per person or more. Click to book. `
To begin this special event in suitably fine style we are happy to organise your flight or train to Paris, with transfers, and, if you wish, a night or two at our Parisian club (or hotel) at special rates. You are also welcome to upgrade your Orient-Express twin cabin, extend your stay in Venice, upgrade your flight, or book the Orient-Express back to Paris rather than fly. Just call the Member Services team on 020 7399 2960 to arrange.
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DON'T MISS ALL THE NEW ARRIVALS AT THE CLUB! |
Or call the Member Services team on 020 7399 2960.
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