Tapping into the railway renaissance that’s sweeping the travel world, Cruise Express has created a new rail package that combines the romance and nostalgia of train travel with the culinary and cultural highlights of New South Wales and Victoria’s border towns.
The southern culinary expedition provides a unique opportunity to discover the food and wine experiences that are putting the borderlands on the map, while travelling in the comfort and elegance of modern and heritage trains, including the thrill of riding in a 1930s train carriage.
Cruise Express_Southern Food & Wine Adventure_train parlour
Departing September 19, 2024, the new six-day Southern Food & Wine Adventure is priced from $3090* per person twin share, or $3690* for solo travellers, and includes:
- return travel in exclusive carriages aboard the NSW TrainLink XPT between Sydney and Albury
- private heritage rail travel aboard the former ‘Spirit of Progress’ from Yarrawonga to Benalla and from Seymour to Albury, as well as travel on the Oaklands Branch, which is usually reserved for freight and not open for passenger trains
- accommodation at Albury, Yarrawonga and Shepparton
- a Lake Mulwala cruise on historic paddle steamer Cumberoona
- sightseeing including silo art at St James and Devenish and a tour and tasting at Corowa Distilling Co
- memorable meals including a lunch of local produce during a farm visit to Walla Park; vineyard lunches with matched wines at De Bortoli Rutherglen Estate and Rye at Tallis Winery; and a fitting final meal at Miss Amelie inside the historic former Wodonga railway station
- Cruise Express tour manager and escorts
Cruise Express Managing Director Meg Hill said the tour combined some of Australia’s finest produce and most beautiful landscapes with the simple pleasures of train travel.
“All around the world rail journeys are on the rise and we are tapping into this desire for slow and sustainable travel with this fantastic new package that offers our group exclusive access to a heritage train. When the ‘Spirit of Progress’ began servicing the Melbourne to Albury route in 1937, it was Australia’s first completely streamlined, air-conditioned, all-steel train. With innovations including a stylish art deco fit out and a stewardess, it was a level of luxury never seen before in Australia. We are privileged and delighted to offer two journeys on this magnificent train, including some scenic Victorian railway that isn’t usually open to passenger trains. Our guests will feel like they have been transported back in time to a golden era of travel when they watch the world go by from the train’s parlour or observation lounge. And they will be transported back to modern Australia when they discover the exceptional quality of the restaurants, wineries and distilleries in the burgeoning border region,” Meg said.
