Around India In 80 Trains

When it comes to luxury trains in India, it's easy to assume that there's only one: the infamous Palace on Wheels which runs through Rajasthan up to Delhi. But in the last couple of years the old ruler of the railways has been dethroned by its younger siblings. The Golden Chariot is one such beauty that unlike its Rajasthani counterparts, crosses the southern state of Karnataka - a different but no less fascinating part of India.

Leaving every Monday evening from Bangalore, the Golden Chariot spends seven days passing through Kabini wildlife sanctuary, Mysore, Hassan, Hampi and Badami, eventually arriving at Vasco da Gama in Goa where you're free to hop off and nose around the markets and flop out on the beaches, unless you fancy doing an overnight loop back to Bangalore.

This stretch of India was once home to the Vijayanagara Kings who ruled across south India, and the remains of their palaces and estates are rarely visited and relatively tourist-free. If you think you've seen India and haven't visited this part of the country, then think again as the temples at Halebid, the vast boulders strewn for miles in Hampi and the intricate carvings at Badami are a world apart from the typical temple tours that tire. Best of all, when you're feeling just that little bit templed out, you can head back to the train for lunch which isn't the speediest, but then it's not like anyone's in a rush. All meals start with a salad or two which was a welcome relief after the distinct lack of fresh fruit and veg on our trips, and mains ranged from spaghetti and chicken supreme to steaming biriyani and channa baturas. Once well-fed you have a bit of time to slip into your cabin and doze before heading out for the afternoon's adventures. But don't feel pressured to do everything - if you want to stay on the train and go to the gym or just stay in bed and watch a DVD then you're very welcome to - after all, it is your holiday.

As far as interiors go, each twin cabin has two deep and incredibly comfortable beds that thankfully take the jolts of the night journeys pretty well and a flat screen TV with more than enough channels. The attached bathroom has constant hot water, a remarkably powerful shower with fluffy dressing gowns and rapidly reappearing fresh towels and flannels.

Above all the attention from staff is one of the most noticeable parts of the trip. They're always visible, incredibly polite, efficient people with a genuine friendly interest in each of their passengers. Attention to detail is also quite noticeable, as one evening the managers organised for a sitar player and for onboard henna tattooing for ladies.

Passepartout covered this route by traditional trains which were naturally cheaper, but the connections between stations much more awkward in terms of timings and distance taken to commute between areas that had no railways. If you're thinking of doing a luxury train in India and want to do something a little bit different, this is definitely worth the trip especially as a new route has just been introduced that starts in Bangalore and passes through Chennai, the beach at Mahamallipuram, the French colony of Pondicherry, the Tamil Nadu temple stretch through Tanjavur and Madurai and ends in Kerala with a jaunt across the backwaters, which frankly, sounds idyllic.

Kuoni (01306 747008 or www.kuoni.co.uk) offers 9 nights on the Golden Chariot train journey on mainly full board basis, staying for 2 nights in Bangalore and 7 nights aboard the Golden Chariot, visiting: Mysore, Kabini, Hassan, Hospet, Badami and Goa, including flights with British Airways from Heathrow with transfers, the services of a tour manager, and off-train excursions which will be guided by English speaking local guides. Prices for September 2010 from £2965 per person based on two sharing.