Exploring the Andes by train (Andean Express)

Member Name: catsholiday

Product:	Andean Express
Date:	05/01/09 (150 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: You see the countryside, able to move around, great experience

Disadvantages: takes longer than flying

The Andean express from Cusco to Puno

We left Cusco at about 7.15 to catch the 8 am train. The waiting room at the station looked very comfortable with arm chairs but we went straight onto the platform where the train was waiting. The staff check your tickets and passports then direct you to your carriage.

You have allocated seats within the carriage. The carriage is set up with armchairs in pairs on one side of the carriage and singles on the other. You are in a group of four on one side round a table; on the other it is two to a table so most people can see out of a window with ease. There is plenty of space above or under your seat for your hand luggage. The main luggage goes into a separate luggage carriage and is dealt with by porters at each of the stations, Cusco and Puno.

Once everyone is settled and the train on its way the staff come round with a menu for breakfast or coffee and also the lunch menu for you to choose from. There was a choice of two starters - soup or Andean sushi - I had the soup which was very tasty, my husband said his sushi was delicious. The main course choices were lasagne, chicken or beef, all the dishes looked nice and my beef was quite tender and sat in a base of mashed potato. The dessert was rice pudding in a crisp basket with a decoration of red pears in cloves in the corner. The breakfast and coffee was extra but the lunch included. We had only just eaten another enormous breakfast at the hotel so didn't feel the need to order yet more food before the lunch. The food was good, plain rather than exciting but I find that is better when I'm travelling. I'm not keen on too much rich food when all I'm doing is sitting; it tends to sit rather heavily in my tummy.


At the end of the train in the last carriage was the bar and the Back part was open ended with a glass roof so you could enjoy the views. A complimentary pisco sour was offered at 10am in this carriage and then a local group came and performed some Peruvian panpipe music for us. They were very lively and cheerful and soon everyone was clapping along. My husband loves 'Cachapaya' and he went and asked them to play this. Initially they were not sure and then he whistled the tune for them and the panpipe player recognised it and soon the others joined in with drums, guitar and a ukulele type instrument. It was all very surreal but fun.


The views as we went along kept us entertained for quite some time but I was able to read and listen to my mp3 player and watch the passing scenery as we traveled along. I also got out my little laptop and made some notes ready for reviews on returning to the UK (sad isn't it really?)

After about 4 hours we stopped at La Raya, supposedly the highest passenger station in the world. Not certain about this now that the Chinese have opened up the railway from China to Tibet .We stopped for about 20 minutes enabling everyone to get off and stretch their legs and breathe the fresh mountain air.

There was no real station; you climbed down the train steps onto the ground and straight into the local market. This was quite strange - a market in the middle of nowhere with the train stopped beside it and nothing for miles around. The stalls had a number of alpaca items as well as many local children dressed up with the llamas and alpacas - some carrying the alpaca babies all waiting for the chance to have their photo taken for the price of a sole which is about 25p. It was very colourful and a pleasant break from the train. The people offered their wares but didn't hassle you if you were not interested. The group who played on the train also set up and played local music against the backdrop of the mountains which all added to this very unique atmosphere.

Once we were back on board the train they began to serve the lunch. There were about 6 waiters who each carried 3 or 4 plates down the carriage, they then all stopped and on the nod all presented the plates at the tables. They continued this until all carriages had the first course then they collected empties on their return and began presenting the next course. It was extremely efficient, looked very smart and looked more like they were performing a dance rather than merely serving up food. All in all it was a very impressive performance and the meal produced was as I mentioned before not fancy but nicely prepared and perfect for when traveling.


The toilets at the end of each carriage were kept clean and worked well and there was never too long a wait. If there was a queue at one you could try another carriage but it wasn't really necessary.


The chairs were comfortable and there enough room for sitting but you did need to get up and walk around a bit otherwise you could get very seat-weary. We also felt the need to get up and walk around as our traveling companions sharing our table were a German couple who entertained us by telling us how much they were NOT enjoying their travels in South America. They had spent 5 days in the Galapagos but couldn't see the point; one day would have been enough. They had returned to Quito on one day and wait till the next day to fly out - they couldn't understand why they couldn't have just flown straight out to their next destination. They summed up England with, 'quite a nice country but it rains too much!' It was amusing for a while but started to grate on us after an hour or so. South America wasn't their sort of place they decided, they preferred Asia and Australia but they felt they had to see what was there. We both felt that they were very lucky to have so much money that they could 'put up with' such a wonderful trip from the Galapagos through, Peru, Bolivia, Chile and then down as far as the tip for a cruise. How they suffered!

All in all it was a very different way of traveling allowing you to watch interesting scenery and walk around whilst traveling. It isn't as quick as flying but you do get to see the countryside changing as you move along towards you destination.

We got off in Juliaco, the stop just before Puno, as our guide explained, the porters have so many bags to deal with at Puno that it is quicker to sort the bags in Juliaco and then get the bus to the hotel in Puno, that way it saves about 40 minutes. He was quite right because the German group sharing our carriage did not get off in Juliaco and they arrived at least 40 minutes after us. We were in enjoying our dinner as they were arriving and checking in. This is the sort of thing that Kuoni tours have sorted out very cleverly as we have found in our last few trips with them.

If you are interested in finding out more about this journey then this is the official website
http://www.go2peru.com/andean_explorer.htmicial website
There are also further photos on the site.

© catsholiday

Summary: A different way to tavel and seea country