27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- South Wales Argus
Northern Belle luxury train to visit Newport station
The 1930s Pullman-style Northern Belle will arrive at the city's station on Friday, May 30, for a champagne lunch trip.
On Saturday, it will take 200 passengers to the seaside resort of Llandudno, with an opportunity to visit the 13th-century Conwy Castle.
A spokesman for the Northern Belle said: "As well as tickets selling fast, we do like people to dress up for the occasion.
"Most men wear a suit and tie, while women choose an elegant dress. And why not?
"For we like to think we are transporting them back to the golden days of rail travel, an era when nothing was too good for the pampered passenger."
The train, once part of the iconic Orient Express set-up, was described by actor Bill Nighy as "the Grand Dame of luxury travel" on a Channel 5 TV programme last year.
A newspaper critic also praised it as "Downton Abbey on wheels."
A red carpet will be laid across the station platform before the train pulls in at 12.40pm on Friday.
Passengers will be handed their first glass of champagne as they are shown to their seats by a liveried steward.
A seven-course lunch with wine will be served during the journey, while passengers are serenaded by the train's onboard musicians.
Saturday's train will set out from Cardiff Central at 7.40am before calling at Newport at 8.10am.
The train will do another lunch trip from Newport on July 3 before taking passengers to the Hampton Court Garden Festival and Windsor Castle on July 4.
