The Orient Express

The Orient Express is the name of a long-distance passenger train service originally operated by the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits. It ran from 1883 to 2009.

1876:  A Belgian, Georges Nagelmackers, founds La Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits, to operate luxury sleeping cars and dining cars all over Europe, much as George Mortimer Pullman was doing in the USA...  The various national railway companies provide the track, the stations and the locomotives.  The Wagons-Lits company provides and staffs the sleeping-cars and dining cars.  Passengers pay for a 1st class ticket plus a Wagons-Lits supplement.  The railway companies get the ticket revenue, the Wagons-Lits company get the revenue from the supplement.

1883:  Nagelmackers' flagship, the 'Express d'Orient', starts running, twice a week, Paris (Gare de l'Est) - Strasbourg-Munich-Vienna-Budapest-Bucharest-Giurgiu.  At Giurgiu, passengers cross the Danube by ferry to Ruse in Bulgaria, where a second train would be waiting for the 7-hour journey to Varna on the Black Sea.  An Austrian Lloyd steamer then connects for the 14-hour sea voyage to Constantinople (Istanbul).

1885:  Service increases to daily over the Paris-Munich-Vienna section.  The Orient Express continues to operate on two days a week beyond Vienna to Giurgiu for the ferry to Ruse, the connecting train to Varna and ship to Istanbul, and on a third day each week it runs beyond Vienna to Belgrade and Nis.  As the railway was incomplete in Bulgaria, horse-drawn carriages took passengers from Nis across the mountains to Plovdiv, where the rail journey resumed for Istanbul.

1889:  The line is completed, and direct Paris-Constantinople operation starts in June 1889.  The Orient Express leaves Paris (Gare de Strasbourg, now renamed Gare de l'Est) every night at 18:25.  It has daily sleepers for Vienna, twice-weekly sleepers on Sundays & Wednesdays for Constantinople, and twice-weekly sleepers on Monday & Friday for Bucharest.  Arrival in Constantinople was at 16:00, 3 nights (67.5 hours) from Paris.

1891:  'Express d'Orient' is officially renamed 'Orient Express'.

1909:  The Orient Express trainsets are re-equipped with new sleepers and restaurant cars.  The new sleepers feature softer suspension and an upper berth which folds more completely away for day use.

1914:  The Orient Express is suspended from July 1914, due to the war.  The Germans try to run a Berlin-Constantinople train, the 'Balkanzug', without much success.

1919:  In February 1919 the Orient Express is reinstated, twice a week from Paris to Vienna, Budapest and Bucharest, but via Zurich and the Arlberg Pass into Austria to avoid Germany.  It resumes operation through Germany in 1920, although suspended again 1923-24 with the occupation of the Ruhr.

1919:  On 11 April 1919 the Simplon Orient Express starts running in addition to the Orient Express, using the Southerly route from Paris (Gare de Lyon) to Lausanne, Milan, Venice, Trieste, Belgrade, and (from 1920 onwards) Istanbul.  This route has the advantage of avoiding Germany (which the Allies still didn't trust), and it rapidly becomes the main route from Calais and Paris to Istanbul.  The Treaty of Versailles has a specific clause requiring Austria to accept this train - previously, Austria had insisted that international trains could not pass through their territory (which then included Trieste) unless they ran via Vienna.

1922:  From 1922 onwards, the pre-war wooden R-class sleepers are progressively replaced by new steel S-class sleeping-cars.  The new cars are painted blue with gold lining and lettering, replacing the varnished teak of earlier Wagons-Lits cars.  Blue and gold all-steel dining cars replace the older restaurant cars from 1925 onwards.

1929:  The westbound Orient Express becomes stuck in snow for 5 days at Tcherkesskeuy (spelt Çerkezköy in today's timetables), some 130km from Istanbul.  The incident inspired Agatha Christie's plot in 'Murder on the Orient Express'.

1930s:  By the 1930s, a complete network of through sleeping cars was in operation between Western and Central/Eastern Europe, involving the Orient Express and several sister trains with 'Orient' as part of their name.  The trains inter-connected and swapped sleeping-cars at various points such as Budapest and Belgrade:

Simplon Orient Express:  Daily through sleeping cars from Calais & Paris (Gare de Lyon) to Istanbul, via Dijon - Lausanne - Milan - Venice - Trieste - Zagreb - Belgrade - Sofia.  The Simplon Orient Express also provided daily though sleeping-cars from Calais and Paris to Athens.  The Calais-Trieste sleeper was normally a luxurious LX-class sleeping-car, but the Calais/Paris-Istanbul/Athens sleepers would normally be S-class.

Orient Express:  3 times a week service from Paris (Gare de l'Est) - Strasbourg - Munich - Vienna - Budapest, with through sleeping-cars from Calais & Paris to Bucharest, and from Paris to Istanbul (combined with the Simplon Orient Express between Belgrade and Istanbul).

Arlberg Orient Express:  On 3 out of the 4 days of the week when the Orient Express wasn't running, its departure slot from Paris Est was taken up with the three-times-a-week Arlberg Orient Express from Paris to Basel, Zurich, Innsbruck, Vienna, Budapest, with through sleepers Calais & Paris - Bucharest and Paris-Athens.  This train was created in 1932 out of the Suisse Arlberg Vienna Express.

The trains also conveyed an Istanbul-Berlin sleeping car 4 times a week, alternating with an Istanbul-Prague car 3 times a week.

1939-42:  Most of the great trains are suspended for world war 2.  The Wagons-Lits Company's arch rival, the German Mitropa company, tried running its own Orient Express into the Balkans reserved for military and diplomatic personnel, but this was not a success as partisans kept blowing it up...

1945-7:  The Simplon Orient resumes running in November 1945, three times a week Calais - Paris - Milan -Venice - Belgrade - Sofia, finally extended to Istanbul again in 1947.  However, ordinary railway company seating cars and couchette cars are now conveyed for various parts of the journey, in addition to the Wagon-Lits company sleepers and restaurant.  Although service to Istanbul restarted, the through sleeping cars to Athens were unable to resume because the Greek / Yugoslav border was closed.  At this period, a Z-class sleeper was normally used Paris-Belgrade, a luxurious LX-class sleeper Paris-Brig, and S-class sleepers Paris-Istanbul.  Later, Z-class sleepers would also end up on the Paris-Istanbul & Athens run.

1947 onwards:  With communists firmly in control in eastern Europe, the Wagons-Lits Company's sleeping-car and dining car operations in Eastern Bloc countries are gradually taken over by the eastern European railway companies' own sleeping-car and dining car subsidiaries.  Although the 'Orient Express' through sleeping-cars from western to eastern Europe remain operated by the Wagons-Lits Company, Wagons-Lits sleepers and diners operating on these trains wholly within Eastern Bloc borders are progressively replaced by non-Wagons-Lits cars.

1951: The Greek border reopens and the Athens portion of the Simplon Orient Express resumes running.  Unfortunately, the Bulgarian / Turkish border then closed, temporarily halting the Istanbul portion until 1952.

1960:  The through sleeping cars to / from Calais are withdrawn and all cars of the Simplon Orient Express now start / terminate in Paris (Gare de Lyon).  The Pullman cars of the Calais - Paris 'Golden Arrow' / 'Fleche d'Or' are extended to run around Paris from the Gare du Nord to the Gare de Lyon to maintain a connection (the Gare du Nord to Gare de Lyon trip was necessary anyway to convey the through sleeping-car from Calais to San Remo bound for the 'Train Bleu' and the Calais to Rome through sleeping-car bound for the 'Rome Express').

1962:  The Simplon Orient Express is withdrawn and replaced by a slower train called the Direct Orient Express.  The Direct Orient Express conveys a daily sleeping car and seats cars Calais-Paris-Milan, a daily sleeping car and seats cars Paris (Gare de Lyon) - Milan - Venice - Trieste - Belgrade, a twice-weekly sleeping car and seats car Paris - Belgrade - Istanbul (initially a Z-class, later a YU-class sleeping-car), and a three-times-a-week (later twice weekly) sleeping car Paris - Belgrade - Athens (also a Z-class or YU-class car).

1962:  In addition, the Arlberg Orient Express loses its Paris-Budapest and Paris-Bucharest sleepers, and becomes plain 'Arlberg Express' running Paris-Zurich-Innsbruck-Vienna.  It continues in the timetables as the 'Arlberg Express' until the mid-1990s, when it loses it's Vienna and Innsbruck cars and becomes just an overnight train Paris-Zurich-Chur, still with a sleeper staffed by the Wagons-Lits company, but without any name.  This Paris-Zurich-Chur sleeper train was finally withdrawn in June 2007, when the new TGV-Est high-speed line reduced Paris-Zurich journey time to 4 hours 45 minutes. 

1967:  The Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits drops the suffix 'et des grands express Européens' from its title and adds 'et du tourisme' instead.

1971:  The Wagons-Lits company decides that it can no longer maintain and renew the ageing sleeping car fleet based on receiving revenue from sleeper supplements alone (passengers travelling on the Orient express paid for a normal ticket plus a sleeper supplement - the supplement went to the Wagons-Lits Company, the ticket revenue went to the relevant national railway operators).  The Wagons-Lits Company therefore either sells or leases its sleeping cars to the national railway operators all over Europe.  Although now owned or leased by the various state railway companies themselves, most sleeping-cars in Western Europe are still staffed by the Wagons-Lits company who provide the sleeper attendant, the bed linen and the on-board catering.  Until 1995, sleeping cars were marketed jointly by most western European railways as "Trans Euro Night / Nuit / Nacht / Notte / Nat" and painted in a mid-blue livery with a white line under the windows and a big white 'TEN' on the side.

1977:  The Direct-Orient Express is withdrawn completely, ending all direct service from Paris to Istanbul or Athens.  The last run left Paris Gare de Lyon at 23:56 on 19 May 1977 (actually, a few minutes late, on 20th May!), it's solitary Paris-Istanbul sleeping-car a Y-class car built in 1939, now in the modern blue and white livery.  A rump of this train remains until the early 1990s, running from Paris (and in summer, from Calais) to Milan and Venice with sleepers, seats and couchettes.  The (plain) Orient Express from Paris to Vienna, Budapest and Bucharest continues to run as before.

1977 onwards:  The Orient Express itself continues to run, as the main overnight train between Paris and Vienna, also providing direct through cars between Paris, Budapest & Bucharest.  It conveys ÖBB (Austrian Federal Railways) or SNCF (French Railways) couchettes and seats between Paris & Vienna, a MAV (Hungarian Railways) air-conditioned couchette car & seats car between Paris & Budapest, a Hungarian dining-car and more air-conditioned seats cars over the Salzburg-Vienna-Budapest section.  It also conveys a sleeping car, owned by ÖBB but staffed  by the Compagnie Internationale des Wagons-Lits, running daily between Paris & Vienna and (until 1991) extended to Bucharest  3 times a week full of Caucesceau's diplomats.  This sleeping-car was a standard MU type in mid-blue 'Trans Euro Night' colours, built 1964-1974, with 12 compartments each usable as 1, 2 or 3 bed.

1980s:  In the 80s, a faster and better-timed train ran between Paris & Vienna during the summer months ('the Paris-Vienna rapide'), in addition to the Orient Express.  The Orient Express's Paris-Vienna seat cars, couchette cars & sleeping-car were transferred to this train when it ran.  The Paris-Vienna rapide left Paris earlier than the Orient Express, around 17:15 whereas the Orient Express left the Gare de l'Est at 23:15, and it arrived in Vienna the next morning, as opposed to mid-afternoon.  On the days of the week when the Paris-Vienna sleeping-car was extended to Bucharest, it would have a long layover at Vienna waiting to be attached to the Orient Express for its onward journey to Romania.

1982:  James Sherwood, rail enthusiast and head of Sea Containers Inc., starts up a regular service from London and Paris to Venice called the 'Venice Simplon Orient Express' (VSOE for short).  The service uses vintage 1920s and 1930s Pullmans from London to the Channel port, and 1929-vintage Wagons-Lits sleepers from Boulogne to Venice.  This train should not be confused with the (real, plain) Orient Express.  The Venice Simplon Orient Express continues to run today, once a week from March until November every year - see the section below and also the VSOE's official website, www.orient-expresstrains.com.

1991: The thrice-weekly extension of the Orient Express's sleeping-car to Bucharest is withdrawn.  The train now only runs between Paris, Vienna & Budapest, with sleeping-car, couchettes & seats Paris-Vienna, couchettes & seats cars Paris-Budapest, seats car & restaurant car Vienna-Budapest.  It no longer extends to Romania.

1998:  Surprisingly perhaps, the Orient Express regains a Paris-Bucharest sleeping car, running twice a week, this time a separate one provided by CFR (Romanian Railways).  This was a modern German-built sleeper in a smart red and cream colour scheme, with ten compartments each useable as 1, 2 or 3 berth.

2001:  On 10 June 2001, the Orient Express's through couchettes and seats cars from Paris to Budapest are withdrawn, as is the twice-weekly Romanian sleeping-car from Paris to Bucharest.  The Orient Express now only runs between Paris & Vienna, a normal scheduled EuroNight train with seats, couchettes and a sleeping-car.  The Paris-Vienna couchette cars & sleeping-car are attached to a French domestic train between Paris and Strasbourg.  On departure from Paris, the majority of the train consist of domestic French air-conditioned 'Corail' cars only going as far as Strasbourg, with the sleeping-car, two couchette cars and two seats cars for Vienna attached a long way down the platform right at the front of the train.

June 2007:  The new TGV-Est high speed line from Paris to Strasbourg opened on 10 June 2007, and the domestic French Paris-Strasbourg train to which the Orient Express was attached over this section has been replaced by a 200 mph TGV.  As a result, the Orient Express is cut back to run only between Strasbourg and Vienna, with TGV connection to/from Paris.  However, it still retains its famous name, 'Orient Express'.  It's now a purely Austrian Railways (ÖBB) EuroNight sleeper train.

12 December 2009, the Orient Express makes its last run:  The much-truncated Strasbourg-Vienna 'Orient Express' made its last run on 12 December 2009.  From the Europe-wide timetable change on 13 December, the name 'Orient Express' finally disappears.  In a way it's hardly surprising since being cut back to Strasbourg.  Strasbourg itself is unable to support a sleeper train to Vienna and little effort seems to have been made to integrate fares, ticketing & marketing between the sleeper and it's Strasbourg-Paris TGV connection to offer an integrated Paris-Vienna service.  You can still travel from Paris to Vienna by train of course, using the City Night Line sleeper 'Cassiopeia' between Paris & Munich and a connecting RailJet train from Munich to Vienna.