New luxury train will travel some of world's most remote, exotic regions
Reaching back through history to the second century BC and China's Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD), rulers created it as a route between Asia and Europe. Alexander the Great and Marco Polo were among the many who traversed the web of caravan tracks the route comprised. It was used for more than 1500 years before sea trade became the easier option.
With freedom and romance replacing trade and power as the wind beneath their travelling wings, the hippies and footloose backpackers of the 1960s and 1970s revived it, with painters, authors and musicians chronicling their bohemian odysseys for posterity.
Now, you can choose all manner of travel modes to explore the wonders of the route, but few are as alluring as a luxury train, from which you can admire the passing scenery and experience eclectic stops from a capsule of luxury.
To celebrate its new train, the Golden Eagle Silk Road Express, and to mark its 35th anniversary, Golden Eagle Luxury Trains has launched an epic 22-day journey, Grand Silk Road, melding six nights onboard its new train, and 12 nights on the Golden Eagle train.
Set to depart in September 2026, it promises to 'take in some of the world's most remote and historically rich regions in supreme comfort and safety'. On all counts, it sounds like the mother of all understatements.
The Grand Silk Road Express travels a wondrous 6500 kilometres, departing from Beijing and heading across China to Kashgar, one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, before meandering through the 'Stans', of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan with many stunning stops.
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Sydney Morning Herald
11-07-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
Asia is flush with ancient marvels, but nothing matches these caves
Another visitor uses FaceTime to show a loved one the inside of the cave. She also sings a hymn to mark her visit. I had only been to one cave, but already the trip felt worthwhile. The devotion of these visitors shows a journey to Ajanta is more pilgrimage than tourist stop; these structures date back more than millennia but are alive with culture and meaning today. At one point I watched a Thai monk in saffron robes record a video post about Ajanta for his TikTok feed. The caves of Ajanta were excavated from the basalt and granite cliff in two phases, the first in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC and another in the 5th and 6th centuries AD. The site was abandoned for centuries until a British hunting party stumbled on the caves while in pursuit of a tiger in 1819. The variety of structures is striking. My first stop at Cave 26 was a worship hall (called a chaitya) but the majority of Ajanta's structures are austere monasteries (called viharas) with symmetrical square layouts. Some of these ancient monasteries have multiple stories and wide pillared balconies; one had a dozen monk cells each with two stone beds. The cultural spectacle of Ajanta is enhanced by its landscape; the forested valley of the Waghora River which runs below the caves is a spectacular backdrop for visitors as they explore. Near the centre of the Ajanta complex is a prayer hall with a large stupa known as Cave 10; it is one of the three oldest excavations, dating to about 100 BC. Historians have concluded this cave contains the oldest surviving Buddhist paintings, including images from the life of the Buddha. It is also, perhaps, the world's earliest known place of congregational worship. A nearby cluster of caves that date from around 600 AD are adorned with vibrant frescos. These mostly narrate stories of the Buddha's previous incarnations known as the Jataka tales. UNESCO's description of Ajanta caves says its paintings and sculptures have 'had a considerable artistic influence.' These early masterpieces foreshadow centuries of Buddhist art now found in many nations across Asia. In some of the caves, staff wearing masks and white coats undertake preservation work on the paintings. Those with the most extensive murals have canvas shades to reduce sunlight and temperature control systems to help preserve the works inside. As the sun climbs at Ajanta, the crowds grow. Most visitors have come from across India to experience this remarkable part of their national heritage. But Ajanta is not an isolated wonder. Only 100 kilometres south-west are the Ellora caves, another impressive complex of 34 ancient monasteries and temples dug side by side into a basalt cliff. The monuments at Ellora, which are spread over two kilometres, were mostly constructed later than Ajanta's – between about 600AD and 1000AD – but are the product of three religious traditions of ancient India: Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism. Ellora's centrepiece is the astonishing Kailasha temple excavated in the 8th century. Archaeologists believe this enormous structure – over 90 metres long, 53 metres wide and 30 metres high – was sculpted from a single rock and took several generations to complete. Three huge trenches were bored into the cliff face using hammer and chisel before the temple and its surrounds could be shaped. The complex (also known as Cave 16) has all the elements of Hindu temple including a central shrine, a gateway, surrounding cloisters and subsidiary shrines. In the courtyard are life-sized stone elephants and two towering, intricately carved pillars. The rich decorations include giant deities, amorous couples and panels depicting scenes from Hindu epics. Near the Kailasha temple is the Teen Tal, a three-story Buddhist monastery also carved into the rock face in the 8th century. Visitors can climb an internal staircase to its spacious stone verandahs and view impressive sculpture galleries on each level. Day trips by taxi can be taken to both Ajanta and Ellora from the city of Aurangabad, which has a variety of hotels and good transport connections to major Indian cities including Mumbai and Delhi.
The Age
11-07-2025
- The Age
Asia is flush with ancient marvels, but nothing matches these caves
Another visitor uses FaceTime to show a loved one the inside of the cave. She also sings a hymn to mark her visit. I had only been to one cave, but already the trip felt worthwhile. The devotion of these visitors shows a journey to Ajanta is more pilgrimage than tourist stop; these structures date back more than millennia but are alive with culture and meaning today. At one point I watched a Thai monk in saffron robes record a video post about Ajanta for his TikTok feed. The caves of Ajanta were excavated from the basalt and granite cliff in two phases, the first in the 2nd and 1st centuries BC and another in the 5th and 6th centuries AD. The site was abandoned for centuries until a British hunting party stumbled on the caves while in pursuit of a tiger in 1819. The variety of structures is striking. My first stop at Cave 26 was a worship hall (called a chaitya) but the majority of Ajanta's structures are austere monasteries (called viharas) with symmetrical square layouts. Some of these ancient monasteries have multiple stories and wide pillared balconies; one had a dozen monk cells each with two stone beds. The cultural spectacle of Ajanta is enhanced by its landscape; the forested valley of the Waghora River which runs below the caves is a spectacular backdrop for visitors as they explore. Near the centre of the Ajanta complex is a prayer hall with a large stupa known as Cave 10; it is one of the three oldest excavations, dating to about 100 BC. Historians have concluded this cave contains the oldest surviving Buddhist paintings, including images from the life of the Buddha. It is also, perhaps, the world's earliest known place of congregational worship. A nearby cluster of caves that date from around 600 AD are adorned with vibrant frescos. These mostly narrate stories of the Buddha's previous incarnations known as the Jataka tales. UNESCO's description of Ajanta caves says its paintings and sculptures have 'had a considerable artistic influence.' These early masterpieces foreshadow centuries of Buddhist art now found in many nations across Asia. In some of the caves, staff wearing masks and white coats undertake preservation work on the paintings. Those with the most extensive murals have canvas shades to reduce sunlight and temperature control systems to help preserve the works inside. As the sun climbs at Ajanta, the crowds grow. Most visitors have come from across India to experience this remarkable part of their national heritage. But Ajanta is not an isolated wonder. Only 100 kilometres south-west are the Ellora caves, another impressive complex of 34 ancient monasteries and temples dug side by side into a basalt cliff. The monuments at Ellora, which are spread over two kilometres, were mostly constructed later than Ajanta's – between about 600AD and 1000AD – but are the product of three religious traditions of ancient India: Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism. Ellora's centrepiece is the astonishing Kailasha temple excavated in the 8th century. Archaeologists believe this enormous structure – over 90 metres long, 53 metres wide and 30 metres high – was sculpted from a single rock and took several generations to complete. Three huge trenches were bored into the cliff face using hammer and chisel before the temple and its surrounds could be shaped. The complex (also known as Cave 16) has all the elements of Hindu temple including a central shrine, a gateway, surrounding cloisters and subsidiary shrines. In the courtyard are life-sized stone elephants and two towering, intricately carved pillars. The rich decorations include giant deities, amorous couples and panels depicting scenes from Hindu epics. Near the Kailasha temple is the Teen Tal, a three-story Buddhist monastery also carved into the rock face in the 8th century. Visitors can climb an internal staircase to its spacious stone verandahs and view impressive sculpture galleries on each level. Day trips by taxi can be taken to both Ajanta and Ellora from the city of Aurangabad, which has a variety of hotels and good transport connections to major Indian cities including Mumbai and Delhi.
Sydney Morning Herald
10-07-2025
- Sydney Morning Herald
The incredible abandoned Greek island you're not allowed to stay on
In the ruins of Delos, scores of cats roam freely. The tiny handful of people that live on the island don't mind. Greek law doesn't allow them to kill the snakes that also inhabit the island, but it says nothing about letting the cats do it. Census stats say 14 people live on Delos, all working to preserve it, and there are no hotels to accommodate visitors. Yet for long stretches of history, this World Heritage site was one of the most important places in the Greek world. Pilgrims, traders and monument builders flocked to the island that has been regarded as the centre of the Cyclades group for centuries. To my shame, I had never heard of Delos before browsing through the excursions list aboard the Majestic Princess. The ship was calling at Delos' much better-known – and far more crowded – neighbour, Mykonos. A 40-minute side trip by ferry to the mythical birthplace of Apollo sounded intriguing. In legend, the god of light, archery, music, healing and about a million other things is the extramarital offspring of Zeus – king of the gods – and the Titaness Leto. Zeus' furiously jealous wife, Hera, forbade any lands from giving the pregnant Leto shelter, so she ended up on the supposedly floating island of Delos. After Apollo's birth, Delos was finally attached to the ocean floor with Zeus' diamond chains, and it's fair to say that Leto wouldn't be the first visitor. As it turns out, the story of humans on the island is far more fascinating than the one of the gods. It is most comprehensively told in the island's museum, but more atmospherically understood by walking through the extensive ruins. The remains of a giant statue give an idea of what Delos once was. Only the hips, torso and base of Colossus of the Naxians are still present – although the left foot has been predictably snaffled by the British Museum. In around 600 BC, however, it was a nine-metre-tall statue, with copper hair so that the sunlight would bounce off it and swathe its surrounds. It was built by the people of Naxos, ostensibly as a tribute to Apollo, but realistically to show off to the other Greek city states.
