Exclusive Travel Co.

11/01/2026

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DID YOU KNOW? – Interesting facts from remarkable destinations

🇳🇵KATHMANDU🇳🇵

🌊 Legend says the valley was once a vast lotus-filled lake, drained when Manjushri sliced open a gorge with his sword. Geologists agree an ancient lake really was here.

🪵 The Newars are the valley's indigenous people, and their gift for woodcarving fills the city with intricately carved windows, doors and temple struts.

🐄 During G*i Jatra, Kathmandu remembers the departed with parades of cows, music, dance and costumes, a festival that turns grief into celebration.

✌️ In the 1960s and 70s, Kathmandu's Freak Street was the end of the overland Hippie Trail, drawing travellers from across the world.

🏔️ Thamel, Kathmandu's lively traveller district, is the launch pad for Himalayan treks, ringed by the valley's four guardian mountains: Shivapuri, Phulchowki, Nagarjun and Chandragiri.

🥟 Momos, the dumplings that arrived from Tibet, have been so thoroughly adopted by Kathmandu that every street corner serves its own version with fiery tomato achar.

🍩 Sel roti, a sweet, ring-shaped rice bread fried until golden, is the festival treat of Kathmandu homes and street stalls, especially during Tihar.

🌟 After the devastating 2015 earthquake, Kathmandu's people began rebuilding their temples and squares stone by stone. The ancient city is still being restored.

*iJatra

10/31/2026

Final Day Orient Express Sailing Yacht: Itineraries

The itineraries aboard Orient Express Corinthian are not port-to-port transfers. They are journeys in the Orient Express tradition: the route is as important as the destination.

2026 MEDITERRANEAN — Côte d'Azur · Italian Riviera · Adriatic · Greek islands

2026 CARIBBEAN (from October) — Saint-Barthélemy · Moskito Island (BVI) · Tobago Cays · The Exumas. Small, curated, less-frequented destinations accessible because of the Corinthian's size.

TRANSATLANTIC — Lisbon to Barbados. Departed October 12, 2026. 14 nights. In the tradition of the ocean liners that inspired her.

2027 (with Orient Express Olympian joining) —
— Piraeus across the Aegean and the Sporades to Istanbul
— Valletta through the Ionian Sea to Piraeus
— Thames, London → Torquay → Cowes → Saint-Malo → Honfleur
— Scandinavia

The SolidSail system means she actually sails — on wind power — rather than simply motoring between ports. The experience of a 220-metre sailing yacht under full sail in the Mediterranean is something no motor vessel can replicate.

Unhurried time. The journey as the destination.

Available through Exclusive Travel Co. with Virtuoso benefits. Best suites book well ahead.

Source: Orient Express + Virtuoso

10/31/2026

DID YOU KNOW? – Interesting facts from remarkable destinations
🇳🇵KATHMANDU🇳🇵

Kathmandu is a city where you can turn any corner and walk straight into a thousand years of devotion. Temples, stupas and royal courtyards crowd its narrow lanes, a living goddess watches from a palace window, and monkeys, monks and pilgrims share the same sacred hilltops. Set in a valley ringed by Himalayan foothills, Kathmandu is one of the most spiritually layered cities on earth. Here are 8 things you probably didn't know. 👇🙏🏔️

🛖 Kathmandu takes its name from the Kasthamandap, a wooden pavilion in Durbar Square that legend says was built from a single tree. It was destroyed in the 2015 earthquake and rebuilt by the community.

🏛️ Seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites sit within the Kathmandu Valley, an extraordinary concentration of temples, stupas and royal squares in one small area.

👑 Kathmandu's Durbar Square is a palace complex whose current temples and courtyards date back to 1672, carved and built by Newari master craftsmen.

🌸 The Kumari, a young girl chosen from the Newar community and worshipped as a living goddess, lives in a palace on Durbar Square and appears at her window to bless visitors.

☸️ Boudhanath is among the largest stupas in the world, and its great white dome is the spiritual heart of Tibetan Buddhism in Nepal.

🐒 Swayambhunath is known as the Monkey Temple because of the holy monkeys that roam its hilltop. Legend says they sprang from the lice in the hair of the bodhisattva Manjushri.

🔥 Pashupatinath is one of the holiest Hindu temple complexes on earth, where pilgrims gather daily on the banks of the Bagmati River.

🤝 In Kathmandu, Hindu and Buddhist shrines often stand side by side, and worshippers of both faiths share festivals, rituals and even temples.

10/30/2026

What if an Atlantic crossing was the wellness retreat?

Orient Express Sailing Yachts and Guerlain have teamed up on Ocean Rebirth — a 14-night wellness retreat aboard Orient Express Corinthian, built around the long, unhurried days at sea that make a transatlantic crossing so special. The first sailing wrapped up on October 26th, and it returns March 13–27, 2027, sailing west to east from Bridgetown to Lisbon with a two-day stop in Ponta Delgada in the Azores.

It begins with an individual assessment, then builds a programme around four pillars — nutrition, movement, mindfulness and sleep — with five specialists on board for treatments, breathing sessions and nutritional guidance. The Guerlain Spa is the maison's first at sea, with four treatment rooms, including a double for couples, and the LongeviSkin device, which brings together seven advanced aesthetic technologies. Add Technogym check-ups, pressotherapy, LED masks and Theragun recovery.

Guests can sail the full crossing, or choose a shorter segment: Bridgetown to Ponta Delgada, or Ponta Delgada to Lisbon.

If a restorative reset at sea appeals, March will be here sooner than you think. Reach out to ETC and we'd love to help you plan it.

https://www.virtuoso.com/advisor/melivanl43830/travel/luxury-cruises/sailings/18361771/ocean-rebirth-a-transatlantic-wellness-retreat-with-guerlain-13mar2027-27mar2027

https://robbreport.com/motors/marine/orient-express-guerlain-wellness-retreat-corinthian-1238058385

Source: Robb Report

Orient Express and Guerlain unveil a 14-day wellness retreat aboard "Corinthian" to help you unwind on a transatlantic trip from Portugal to Barbados.

10/30/2026

Day 5 Orient Express Sailing Yacht: Wellness + Amenities

Guerlain was asked to design a wellness programme shaped by the specific experience of being at sea. Not a branded spa. A philosophy.

500 square metres. Architecture by Maxime d'Angeac. Four treatment suites, including a VIP double suite. Gentle sauna, infrared sauna, steam room. Professional barber studio. Beauty salon. An Infinity Lap Pool with open-sky views — usable while the yacht sails at up to 17 knots.

The Four Ceremonies: Wave Serenity, Aqua Odyssey, Soleil Plein Sud, Ocean Awakening. Each opens with olfactory immersion. Each closes with personalised mindfulness guidance.

Beyond the spa: a library of 1,500 rare books. A cinema. A musical salon. A cabaret theatre. A recording studio. Dining by Yannick Alléno.

A ship that understands the best time at sea is not scheduled. It is simply made possible.

Image Source: Orient Express

10/29/2026

New Year's Eve in Saint-Barth. Aboard the world's largest sailing yacht.

Orient Express Corinthian's Caribbean Radiance sailing departs Marigot, Saint-Martin on December 27th for eight nights through some of the most beautiful islands in the Lesser Antilles. Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands. Falmouth Bay in Antigua. A Marina Day in Saint Kitts & Nevis. Then the highlight — two days anchored off Gustavia, Saint-Barth, so you ring in 2027 in the most glamorous harbour in the Caribbean without ever having to leave your suite and go anywhere.

The new year then carries on to Saint-Pierre in Martinique, Sugar Bay in Saint Lucia, and a final morning arrival in Bridgetown, Barbados on January 4th.

Aboard, 54 suites for just 110 guests. Five restaurants overseen by Michelin-starred Chef Yannick Alléno. Art Deco interiors by Studio Maxime d'Angeac. A Guerlain spa. And three soaring sails above it all.

Holiday suites at this level go early, and this sailing is only weeks away. Reach out to me and I'd love to help you see in the new year this way.

https://www.virtuoso.com/advisor/melivanl43830/travel/luxury-cruises/sailings/18460148/caribbean-radiance-a-new-years-sailing-odyssey-27dec2026-04jan2027

Source: Virtuoso Travel

10/29/2026

Day 4 Orient Express Sailing Yacht: SolidSail and the Future of Luxury at Sea

The most beautiful sailing yacht in the world. Also one of the most advanced vessels in maritime history.

The centrepiece: SolidSail. A patented technology from Chantiers de l'Atlantique. Not fabric — carbon fibre-reinforced glass panels, rigid, capable of withstanding forces that caused most sailmakers to abandon the project when approached.

Three masts. Three SolidSails. 48,500 sq ft of total sail surface — the equivalent of more than half a football field. The AeolDrive system rotates and tilts the masts to capture wind from virtually any direction.

Up to 100% wind propulsion under optimal conditions.

Best Energy Efficiency Design Index (EEDI) of any vessel in her class — far ahead of comparable ships.

Hybrid LNG propulsion for when wind isn't enough. Hydrogen-ready engineering — designed to accept hydrogen propulsion as the technology matures.

Every itinerary planned around prevailing winds, reducing fuel consumption through navigation intelligence as well as engineering.

"A concrete, technical response to the decarbonisation challenges facing maritime transport."

And simultaneously: the most glamorous new entry in luxury travel this year.

The combination is not a compromise. It is the point.

Source: Orient Express

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10/29/2026

We have been talking a lot about the design of Orient Express Corinthian this week. But the food? Just as extraordinary.

Food & W**e has the story of how Yannick Alléno — one of France’s most celebrated chefs with 18 Michelin stars across 21 restaurants globally, including three at Ledoyen in Paris — is bringing his vision of cuisine to the world’s largest sailing yacht.

Five distinct restaurants. No buffets. Everything served à la carte. And Alléno’s philosophy is exactly right for a ship that visits a different port every day — menus crafted around the terroir and local produce of each destination, restocking at every stop as the great ocean liners once did. In the Caribbean right now, that means the freshest seafood, local ingredients and Alléno’s French technique applied to the flavours of each island.

La Table de l’Orient Express is the signature fine dining experience — just 20 seats, double-height ceilings with hand-carved panelling, and the most exclusive table at sea.

This is cuisine with a philosophy. And it is exactly what the Orient Express has always done.

https://www.foodandwine.com/orient-express-corinthian-12000651

Source: Food & W**e

Known for luxury train travel, Orient Express has diversified with two recent hotel openings in Italy and is now at sea with the largest sailing yacht in the world. Here's what one of the first sailings, from Cannes to Cannes, revealed about the restaurants and bars on board in May.

10/28/2026

Day 3 Orient Express Sailing Yacht: Culinary Program

The culinary programme aboard Orient Express Corinthian is overseen by Yannick Alléno. 28 restaurants worldwide. 18 Michelin stars.

5 restaurants and 8 bars on the Corinthian — all under Alléno's direction.

LA TABLE DE L'ORIENT EXPRESS — The vessel's fine dining signature. 20 seats. Six-course tasting menus at €400 per person. Dishes from Alléno's Michelin-starred Paris kitchens, adapted to each voyage. The one venue carrying a supplement — everything else is all-inclusive.

Four additional restaurants span casual poolside dining to formal table service. Eight bars including the Art Deco speakeasy and velvet-lined wagon bar with DJ decks.

What makes the culinary programme distinctive: menus respond to each itinerary. Mediterranean dishes differ from Caribbean ones. Greek Isles bring different ingredients from the Adriatic. The cuisine travels with the ship.

Alléno: "An experience where elegance, precision and emotion engage in dialogue with the landscapes and cultures encountered throughout the voyage."

A journey within a journey.

Photo Credit: Orient Express + Virtuoso

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10/27/2026

Dezeen doesn't cover cruise ships. Which makes this worth paying attention to.

When the world's most widely read architecture and design publication dedicates editorial to a yacht interior, it's because something genuinely significant has happened in maritime design — not just for the category, but for the discipline at large.

Orient Express Corinthian is that something.

Studio Maxime d'Angeac — 30 years in design, first marine project — has translated the brand's golden-age heritage into a 220-metre sailing yacht carrying 110 guests across 54 suites. The references are the SS Normandie and the Île de France.

The result, according to Dezeen, is something quite different from either.

https://www.dezeen.com/2026/05/11/orient-express-corinthian-sailing-yacht-interiors/

Source: Dezeen

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Marble and marquetry bring a sense of old-school glamour to suites designed by architect Maxime d'Angeac for the 220-metre Orient Express Corinthian yacht, which has set sail for the first time from a dock in Saint-Nazaire, France.