''Belmond Andean Explorer'', launched in May 2017, is

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

's first luxury sleeper train. It replaces the eponymous Pullman day train, between

Cusco Cusco, often spelled Cuzco (; qu, Qusqu ()), is a city in Southeastern Peru near the Urubamba Valley of the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cusco Region and of the Cusco Province. The city is the list of cities in Peru, seventh m ...

and

Puno Puno (Aymara and qu, Punu) is a city in southeastern Peru, located on the shore of Lake Titicaca. It is the capital city of the Puno Region and the Puno Province with a population of approximately 140,839 (2015 estimate). The city was establish ...

, at

Lake Titicaca Lake Titicaca (; es, Lago Titicaca ; qu, Titiqaqa Qucha) is a large freshwater lake in the Andes mountains on the border of Bolivia and Peru. It is often called the highest navigable lake in the world. By volume of water and by surface area, ...

. By the new train this trip is converted to a one-night journey, and extended from Puno for another overnight ride to

Arequipa Arequipa (; Aymara and qu, Ariqipa) is a city and capital of province and the eponymous department of Peru. It is the seat of the Constitutional Court of Peru and often dubbed the "legal capital of Peru". It is the second most populated city ...

. From Cusco the train climbs to on the

Altiplano The Altiplano (Spanish for "high plain"), Collao (Quechua and Aymara: Qullaw, meaning "place of the Qulla") or Andean Plateau, in west-central South America, is the most extensive high plateau on Earth outside Tibet. The plateau is located at the ...

, before arriving at Lake Titicaca to pause for excursions to floating islands. It then continues to

, a city with a UNESCO

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

centre, stopping en route at Sumbay Caves. It is possible to add on a visit to the

Colca Canyon The Colca Canyon is a canyon of the Colca River in southern Peru, located about northwest of Arequipa. With a depth of about 1000 - 2000 m (3300 - 6600 ft) (whereas bottom is at cca 2000 m and edges are at 3000 - 4000 metres above the sea lev ...

, known for its condors. The trainset used to serve as the

Great South Pacific Express The Great South Pacific Express was a luxury Australian train service, run in by Queensland Rail and Belmond (formerly Orient-Express Hotels Ltd), the operator of the Venice-Simplon Orient Express. History In December 1996, Queensland Rail a ...

in Australia between 1999 and 2003. The since-mothballed carriages were shipped to Peru in February 2016, where they were refurbished. The three accommodation levels of the GSPE with double, twin and bunk beds - all of them with en-suite bathroom - has been kept, as well as the two dining and bar cars, and the last car having an open-air observation deck. ''Belmond Andean Explorer'' is owned by

PeruRail PeruRail is a railway operator providing tourist, freight, and charter services in southern Peru. It was founded in 1999 by two Peruvian entrepreneurs and the British company Sea Containers. The main line between the port of Matarani, Arequipa, ...

, and is a 50%/50% joint venture between Belmond and Peruvian investor Lorenzo Sousa, founder and chairman of the board of PeruRail SA. It will be operated by PeruRail, which also has the Hiram Bingham Pullman train from Cusco to

Machu Picchu Machu Picchu is a 15th-century Inca citadel located in the Eastern Cordillera of southern Peru on a mountain range.UNESCO World Heritage Centre. It is located in the Machupicchu District within Urubamba Province above the Sacred Valley, which ...

Belmond Andean Explorer Cars

Hancock, Basil (2019). “The ''Great South Pacific Express'' goes west,�
57 ''Railway Digest'', No. 4 (April 2019), at 52-55Zachario (2019). ''Belmond Andean Explorer arriving to the city of Puno'', YouTube r0JE_tvlYHk
/ref> (''Belmond Andean Explorer'' cars retained their original Australian numbers. However, Southern Peru-related car names were added.)

References

Railway services introduced in 2017 Named passenger trains Passenger rail transport in Peru

External Web Sites

Belmond Andean Explorer
{{SouthAm-rail-transport-stub