A Historic Return
The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express will call at Monaco-Monte-Carlo station on 10 May 2027, according to Belmond. The new overnight service between Paris and Monte Carlo will run annually before continuing onwards to Venice, marking the train's first passenger service to the principality in nearly half a century.
The timing carries symbolic weight. In 1977, James B. Sherwood bought two original Art Deco sleeping cars at a Sotheby's auction held in Monte Carlo. Those carriages became the foundation of a restoration project that brought the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express back into service in 1982. The 2027 launch arrives 50 years after that auction.
Monaco's station sits beneath the rock face, carved into the mountainside above the harbour. The line follows the Mediterranean coast through Saint-Raphaël, Cannes, and Nice, skirting the red cliffs of the Massif de l'Estérel before ducking underground to reach the principality. It is a landscape-driven journey, one that trades the train's more familiar Alpine crossings for a slower route along the Riviera.
What Passengers Will Find Onboard
The overnight departure from Paris uses the train's midnight-blue carriages, restored with interiors that reference the Art Deco period. Accommodation options range from Historic Cabins through to Suites and Grand Suites. At the top tier is L'Observatoire, a private carriage designed with French artist JR that includes a bedroom, en-suite bathroom with freestanding bath, living room, library, and a concealed tearoom.
Dinner is served in one of two restaurant cars, Étoile du Nord or L'Oriental, followed by cocktails and live piano in the bar car. Breakfast arrives in the cabins the following morning as the train traces the coastline towards Monaco.
Fares for the Paris-Monte Carlo leg start at €4,870 per person when two passengers share a Historic Cabin, according to Belmond. The price covers the overnight journey, 24-hour steward service, meals with wines selected by the sommelier, unlimited soft drinks, and transfers.
Fitting Monaco Into the Network
Pascal Deyrolle, Belmond's Area Managing Director for Trains in Continental Europe, described Monaco as having a longstanding role in European travel and said adding it was a natural continuation for the train. The new route will operate alongside the second season of Villeggiatura by Train, Belmond's collection that links rail journeys with stays at its Italian hotels.
The addition of Monaco broadens the train's European footprint, though it remains a once-a-year offering rather than a regular service. That scarcity is deliberate. The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express has always positioned itself as an occasional experience rather than a practical mode of transport, and the Monte Carlo route follows that model.
Whether the principality can sustain interest beyond the novelty of a first season is an open question. Monaco already attracts visitors for the Grand Prix, the casino, and the harbour, but rail travel to the principality has long been overshadowed by air and road links. The train offers a slower, more visible arrival, one that aligns with the ceremonial aesthetic Belmond has cultivated. Whether that is enough to justify the fare will depend on how many passengers value the journey over the destination.
For now, the route represents a closing of the circle. The train returns to the place where its modern incarnation began, half a century after two sleeping cars changed hands at auction and set a restoration in motion.
