Sheesh The palace, golden theme, has silver and brass work in the walls. This is not a five star hotel, but the Royal Train of Rajasthan, 'Palace on Wheels'. Which has started running again from today i.e. 25th September. This time many changes have been made in this train. Maharaja Restaurant has undergone the biggest change. It is designed in the form of Sheesh Mahal. What is special is that it was prepared by the same artisans whose forefathers built the Sheesh Mahal of Amer.
Also the Maharani restaurant has been decorated on a golden theme. The gym has been converted into a presidential suite. Its 7 days rent is 39 lakh rupees. Smoke detectors were installed in each compartment.
The first trip of the train from Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation (RTDC) will be started from Safdarganj station in Delhi.
This time around 30 foreign tourists will be able to see the different heritage of Rajasthan by Royal Train. On Friday, the trial of the train took place on the track after five months.
The journey will start from Delhi on September 25 Tourism Corporation Managing Director, IAS Sushma Arora said – 'Palace on Wheels' will be flagged off from Delhi on September 25. The train will run till Agra covering major heritage cities of Rajasthan for a week.
The train is renovated every year. The train has undergone many important changes to give it more grandeur to its royal style and appearance.
Keeping in view the fire safety in the train, the entire kitchen has been electrified instead of gas. Now food will be prepared on electric stove instead of gas stove.
This season will make 32 trips The train will depart from Delhi and reach Jaipur. Next day, leave from Jaipur and proceed to Sawai Madhopur in the morning. After staying here for a day, the train will leave for Chittorgarh on the same day. From here, the journey will conclude by going to Taj Mahal in Agra via Udaipur, Ajmer, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Bharatpur. This train will make 32 trips this season.
Sushma Arora said- 5 star facility will be available for the guests in this train. These rooms are designed like a royal family. There are 39 rooms of deluxe category. Whereas, 2 rooms are super deluxe.
There is a presidential suite. In the tour, guests will also get a guide with a Volvo coach to visit various cities of Rajasthan.
6 crore rupees was spent on the renovation of the train last year. 2.5 crore has been spent this year.
The cheapest package is Rs. 12 lakhs Bhagat Singh, director of the private company operating the train, said that 30 foreign guests will also come with us on the first trip. The cheapest room (cabin) package in the train is 12 lakh rupees. Its specialty is that we will cover eight cities in seven days with this train. Full cost of outside visit is also included in the package.
20 days journey completed in 7 days If Taj Mahal is traveled by road across Rajasthan and Agra, it will take 20 days. The entire journey is completed in seven days by this train. Such tourist places where there is more crowd. At those places too we offer a special series of visits to 'Palace on Wheels' guests.
He said that RTDC used to earn 1.5 to 2 crore rupees from this train. The government claims that the private company has been generating an income of around Rs.5 crore since its inception. Bhagat Singh said that if the revenue increases further, we will give 18.5 percent more to the government.
Read on for complete information about the changes in the train…
Marble inlay has been used to give the train a royal look.
Silver and brass work on the walls Bhagat Singh said- Our competition is with other luxury trains of the world. Many train accidents happen. Fire incidents happen in trains. Keeping this in mind, those elements have been used as safety, which are not fire friendly. We have installed marble inlay in the floor.
We used metal in the walls, including brass and German silver work. We have done beautiful glass work in some of the rooms. We have used all these to beat the world's luxury trains in competition. This work is not only for safety but also gives a royal feel.
Maharaja Restaurant has been prepared on the lines of Amer's Sheesh Mahal Bhagat Singh said- Last time we renovated the train. But it had some rooms and Maharaja Restaurant. They could not be renovated.
This time Maharaja Restaurant has been completely renovated. We have designed it on the lines of Amer's Sheeshmahal to give it a royal look.
Its specialty is that it has been crafted by the same artisans whose forefathers once built the famous Sheesh Mahal of Amer. This restaurant is well done throughout. It took more than two months to prepare.
The cabins were designed on royal houses and city art He said that the train has worked on the theme of each city related to tourism in Rajasthan. Jaipur-based architect and interior designer Saurabh Yadav and I have researched the art of different cities of Rajasthan together and given a royal look on the same lines. The 14 coaches of the train are named after 14 royal families.
Which are named as Alwar States, Bharatpur States, Bikaner States, Dholpur States, Dungarpur States, Bundi States, Kota States, Jaipur States, Jodhpur States, Jaisalmer States, Jhalawad States, Kishangarh States, Sirohi States, Udaipur States. The salon is decorated according to his art.
Its coachwork is designed to reflect the art of royal families and cities. Bundi cabins are designed on the art of Bundi city, Bharatpur cabins are designed on the art of Bharatpur.
Similarly, themed rooms have been prepared on the arts of each district. Its purpose is that foreign guests can get acquainted with our culture as well as the art of famous cities.
Plastic material was removed and carpet sheet was also installed in the washroom Two bars, two restaurants and a spa have also been provided in the train for the guests. Each room has a butler. We have provided 10 star facility in this train room. To give the train a more luxurious feel than before, woodwork has been done.
Also Mexican and Bombay dyed fabric has been used on corridors, cupboards and bed work. With these two changes, passengers will not hear any kind of noise from inside or outside.
In this, the headboard area has been increased in the bed work area. So that the resting person gets full space. The PVC plastic material has been removed and a carpet sheet has been laid in the washroom area. Large mirrors are installed to make the washroom area look bigger.
The gym was removed and made into a presidential suite
Coaches with gym area in the train have also been modified. A presidential suite has been made by removing the gym from here. It has two beds.
There will be one master bed and one sofa come bed. The bathroom has a bathtub. It also has a dining area. Its seven days rent is approximately 39 lakh rupees.
A carpet has also been laid in the corridor outside the train room.
No tip policy is implemented in the train this time Director Bhagat Singh said – this time we have made another important change in the journey of this train. Earlier the 'Palace on Wheels' was so famous that its guests were taken to the showroom.
Money is taken as a tip from the guest. This time we have kept the concept of no tip policy. Also we will not take the guest to any showroom.
Bouncers will be in Rajasthani attire This time we have made two teams for guests. A team takes the guest for a site visit. There will be bouncers in Rajasthani attire for their security. Which will give a royal feel to the guest.
Another team of five people will already be deployed at the place where the guests will go. Like the City Palace in Jaipur, Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur or Kaila Devi in Bharatpur, we will ensure that guests do not spread any kind of dirt there.
Cooking in the train kitchen will be done on electric induction instead of gas stoves.
86 types of delicious dishes will be served The chef will serve many famous dishes in the train restaurant. Along with this, pilgrims will be served around 86 types of delicious Indian, European and Chinese dishes along with Dal Bati Churmen.
This time the restaurant has added many dishes including Mutton Korma, Red Meat, Grilled Morlo Potato, Shahi Litchi Sabzi, Vegetable Chow, Bread Surprise, Roasted Lemon Barbeque Sauce, Palak Chupa Rustam. Along with this, there will also be a spa and a restaurant for royal food.
Image Credit: (Divya-Bhaskar): Images/graphics belong to (Divya-Bhaskar).
