In May 1979, eighteen people boarded a British Rail train at Victoria Station in London, England, to begin a 40-day, 8,300-mile railway excursion to Hong Kong. Called the Central Kingdom Express, the excursion was created by Voyages Jules Verne, a company founded the previous year for the express purpose of creating spectacular travel experiences. The maiden excursion cost each passenger $3,590.

Voyages Jules Verne still operates its Central Kingdom Express, but passengers now fly from London's Heathrow Airport to Moscow, Russia (the air fare is part of the package cost), and then board a private Trans-Siberian train for the journey to Hong Kong.

For more information, see https://www.vjv.com.

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This page was last updated on April 13, 2017.