The Orient Express had departed. The golden age of luxury train travel seemed relegated to museum pieces and distant memories. Then something extraordinary happened - a vision so audacious, so quintessentially French, that it defied modern travel logic.

Le Grand Tour France was born.

Not from a traditional railway company, but from storytellers. Puy du Fou, the masters of bringing history to life, asked a simple question: What if we could resurrect the Belle Époque not as performance, but as lived experience? What if we could create 'The Greatest Show on the Tracks'?

Where Legends Pick Up the Torch

From the same Gare de l'Est where the Orient Express once carried European aristocracy into adventure, Le Grand Tour luxury train now departs carrying a new generation of travellers into France's most guarded secrets. This isn't coincidence—it's poetry written in iron and steam.

Every detail of this French luxury train whispers of that golden age when French railways ruled the world: maroon-and-gold livery that catches light like vintage wine, cabins named after Belle Époque luminaries, costumed staff who aren't just serving—they're performing a 6-day show where you're both audience and protagonist in France's greatest cultural theatre.

The French Luxury Train That Became Legend Before It Launched

Originally planned for 2022, delays only intensified the anticipation for Le Grand Tour France. When bookings finally opened for 2023, the entire season vanished in hours. Not because of marketing campaigns, but because discerning travellers had been yearning for something that didn't exist: the romance of French luxury train travel, returned.

This is France's first true luxury train experience in decades, built using cutting-edge 3D modelling to recreate Belle Époque elegance with modern engineering excellence. Each Le Grand Tour journey becomes what its creators call "the world's longest show"—where surprise guests appear at Reims Cathedral, where actors animate history at Hospices de Beaune, where the very French landscape becomes your stage.

The18th-century French nobility pioneered the "Grand Tour" across Europe for cultural enlightenment. Le Grand Tour France turns that vision inward—a grand tour of France itself, revealing why this nation has captivated hearts for centuries through the romance of luxury train travel.

Now, for the first time, as a Luxury Train Club Member, you can access this limited-availability French luxury train experience—available only through our partnership.

Since launching our Travel Beyond Series of luxury train experiences, the newest addition launching in April 2026—Le Grand Tour France—has intrigued our discerning clients. With only 21 cabins aboard this French luxury train, we're receiving extraordinary interest in this Belle Époque-inspired experience.

Le Grand Tour is your 'Greatest Show on the Tracks'—here's why it has become our most coveted French luxury train experience:

The Luxury Train Journey We've Crafted for You:

‍Day One: Champagne's Golden Dawn In Reims, the City of Kings, you'll descend into cellars where Dom Pérignon first whispered "I am drinking stars." Master vintners aboard your French luxury train share secrets passed through generations—why certain bubbles dance differently, how chalk soil creates liquid silk. Your Belle Époque carriage becomes a private salon as you glide toward Burgundy, whilst Alexandre's culinary team prepares dishes that marry perfectly with each precious bottle.

Day Two: Burgundy's Hidden Sanctuaries Philippe unlocks doors in Beaune that have remained closed for decades during your luxury train tour. In these sacred cellars, beneath the famous Hospices, you'll taste wines that tell stories of medieval monks and volcanic terroir. Alexandre sources ingredients directly from the vineyards you'll visit—imagine dining on coq au vin prepared with wine made from grapes you watched being harvested that afternoon aboard Le Grand Tour France.

Day Three: Provence's Painted Light As morning light paints Avignon's Palace of the Popes, you'll walk through hidden passages where papal secrets still echo during your French luxury train experience. Later, in Carcassonne's medieval heart, Alexandre creates culinary magic using the morning's market discoveries—sun-warmed tomatoes, herbs that smell of Mediterranean breezes, olive oil pressed from trees planted by Roman hands.

Day Four: The Atlantic's Artisan Heart Here lies the real magic of luxury train travel France: Arcachon's historic shipyards where master craftsmen still build pinnaces by hand, using techniques unchanged for centuries. You'll board one of these wooden treasures for a private cruise around the Bay, whilst Alexandre prepares your onboard feast using oysters harvested that morning from the same waters that carry your traditional boat.

Day Five: La Rochelle's Medieval Whispers Medieval towers guard secrets in La Rochelle's cobblestone streets during your Le Grand Tour experience. That evening, at Château de Chenonceau, the Ladies' Castle, you'll witness why this is called France's most romantic château. Built over water, it seems to float like a fairy tale, whilst local artisans demonstrate crafts that have survived since Renaissance queens walked these halls.

Day Six: Le Puy du Fou's Time Portal Your final evening aboard this French luxury train transcends ordinary entertainment. LePuy du Fou doesn't just show history—it resurrects it. Vikings storm shores, knights clash in tournaments, and Joan of Arc's passion ignites the night sky. Alexandre's farewell dinner becomes your personal celebration of a France few ever witness through such intimate luxury train travel.

France's Art de Voyager Reimagined

This luxury train experience represents more than travel through France—it's France welcoming you into her most intimate stories, aboard Le Grand Tour that embodies her Art de Voyager—the elegant art of travel itself. Every moment reflects the French mastery of transforming journey into poetry, where the Belle Époque spirit lives through contemporary luxury train excellence.

The culinary artistry of Alexandre Couillon (2-Michelin-starred chef) transforms each meal into a celebration of French terroir, whilst the theatrical elements created by Puy du Fou's master storytellers ensure that your French luxury train journey becomes an immersive cultural performance worthy of France's greatest artistic traditions.

Your Gateway to French Cultural Excellence

Le Grand Tour France represents the renaissance of French luxury train travel, where Belle Époque romance meets contemporary sophistication in experiences designed for the most discerning travellers. This isn't merely transportation—it's cultural immersion at its finest, where every mile reveals another layer of French civilization's extraordinary depth.

Through The Luxury Train Club's partnership with Puy du Fou, we offer you access to this remarkable French luxury train experience that combines historical authenticity with modern comfort, creating journeys that satisfy both the intellect and the soul.

Ready to become part of this living legend? Your Le Grand Tour France experience awaits—where French cultural mastery meets the romance of luxury train travel in an adventure worthy of the Belle Époque's golden age.

Experience Le Grand Tour France with The Luxury Train Club, where Belle Époque elegance meets contemporary luxury in the finest French train travel experience available. Discover why this French luxury train has become Europe's most coveted cultural journey.