The Eastern & Oriental Express Returns With Two Malaysian Routes
After almost four years off the rails, Belmond's Southeast Asian train restarted in February 2024 from Singapore with restyled carriages and a route into Taman Negara.
The Eastern & Oriental Express, Belmond’s luxury train in Southeast Asia, returned to service in February 2024 after a pause of almost four years. Its first departure left Singapore on 12 February, and the relaunch came with a different idea of the journey: instead of running between Singapore and Bangkok, as it had since 1993, the train now makes round trips from Singapore that stay within Malaysia.
Belmond announced the return in July 2023 with two seasonal itineraries, each lasting three nights and starting and ending at Woodlands station in Singapore. Essence of Malaysia, which runs from November to February, follows the west coast of the peninsula through Kuala Lumpur to Langkawi and Penang, and includes, for the first time on this train, a snorkelling excursion in the Pulau Payar Marine Park. Wild Malaysia, from March to October, takes a line the train had never used: the so-called Jungle Railway through the interior towards the east of the peninsula, with a visit to Taman Negara National Park, one of the oldest tropical rainforests in the world, before continuing to Penang. That route was devised with the conservation organisation Save Wild Tigers.
The train itself was restyled for the relaunch. It runs with 15 carriages, eight of them sleeping cars in three categories, Pullman, State and Presidential, all with air conditioning and private bathrooms and finished with marquetry, Malaysian embroidery and silk. There are two restaurant cars, a Piano Bar Car and the open-air Observation Car at the rear, the place most passengers end up spending their time. The cooking draws on Peranakan cuisine, which blends Chinese, Malay and other Southeast Asian influences.
The change of route is the important point. By concentrating on one country, the train can leave the main line and spend time on excursions rather than covering distance, and the eastern itinerary reaches a part of Malaysia that few international visitors see. Fares at the relaunch started at US$3,410 per person for either journey.
The return also restored one of Asia’s few true luxury sleeper trains, a category that otherwise includes Japan’s cruise trains and the newer luxury trains of Vietnam.