Orient Express axes UK section of train journey after 41 years due to Brexit

Due to the Brexit border controls, the UK section of the Orient Express has been discarded after 41 years. The Orient Express, featured in Agatha Christie's novelMurder on the Orient Express,originally ran from Paris to Istanbul. However, the London-to-Folkestone leg of the route has come to a halt because it has become tough to cross the border to Calais.

Currently, Belmond operates the service for the Orient Express. They stated that enhanced border and passport controls indicate the company would have to adjust operations in the upcoming year. Belmond told The Observer, "We want to avoid any risk of travel disruption for our guests – delays and missing train connections – and provide the highest level of service, as seamless and relaxed as possible."

Add WION as a Preferred Source

ALSO READ |Putin critic Vladimir Kara-Murza charged with treason by Russian court

Previously, Belmond would allow the Orient Express passengers to ride the luxury art deco carriages from Victories station to Folkestone. Then, they could board a coach to cross France, where they could board the Belmond train in Calais. After Brexit, security checks have caused delays at Dover for up to 14 hours in recent weeks. On Good Friday, cars faced a 90-minute wait at the Port of Dover.

Furthermore, passengers must have their passports checked before crossing the channel. Travellers will also have to go through biometric scans of fingerprints and faces. Instead of getting their passports stamped, people who do not have EU residency will have to provide fingerprints and facial recognition data when they cross the border.

WATCH |Nearly 100 killed, 1000 injured as violence takes over Sudan | Decoded

In the 19th century, the only paperwork required by British travellers to board the Orient Express was a copy of the Thomas Cook Continental Timetable. A passport was optional. However, Brexit and 21st-century biometric checks have ruined the fantasy of crossing borders for modern passengers seeking nostalgia for the luxury train journey.

Passengers dress for dinner in the evening. Each compartment on a vintage 1929 Orient Express train costs between $4,379 to $12,406 per passenger.

Brexit, the United Kingdom's departure from the European Union, has impacted trade, customs, immigration checks, local economies, services and more. Soon, the European Union and the United Kingdom will ask travellers on the Orient Express to submit pre-travel authorisation forms. British passengers will pay $7.96 to give EU authorities personal information not mentioned on their passports.

(With inputs from agencies)

WATCH WION LIVE HERE