How the jet set rediscovered the joys of unrushed travel.
‘Time-poor’ has become the standard lament of the professional classes. And a counter-movement has re-emerged among the travel elite: the deliberate embrace of slowness. Like gourmets who spurn fast food, today’s sophisticated travellers are oft rejecting the airport sprint for journeys where the getting-there as rewarding as the being-there.
Slow travel isn’t so much about destination as the journey. As rejection of a checklist approach to seeing the world gains momentum, its increasingly characterised by lingering, leisurely journeys on trains and boats, seeking depth over haste.
Training days
A recent renaissance of luxury train travel perfectly embodies this shift. The paradox of wilderness exploration paired with thread counts that would make Egyptian royalty envious is apparently irresistible to the modern explorer. Accor’s Orient Express La Dolce Vita, which commenced operations in April 2025, offers such opulent journeys through Italy’s cities and stunning countryside, blending iconic 1960s Italian design with modern comforts.
And whilst the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express may be the grand dame of luxury rail travel, newcomers like Japan’s Shiki-Shima train – with its futuristic observation cars and two-story suites – elevates the genre to new heights. One imagines Hercule Poirot would approve of the upgrade, if not the prices – these reach £10,000 per person to watch Japan’s countryside drift by at a genteel pace.
The Eastern & Oriental Express transforms the train journey between Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand into an exercise in nostalgia and tropical romance, with stunning cabins that recall bygone eras. The train features polished dark woods, lush velvet furnishing, and a Bar Car where a jazz-club ambience prevails.
South America has also joined the slow luxe movement with the Belmond’s Andean Explorer traversing Peru’s breathtaking highlands. Here, oxygen is pumped into cabins to counter the altitude effects – perhaps the ultimate bonus is the ability to breathe comfortably while admiring Incan ruins from your moving five-star hotel.
Over waters
This renaissance isn’t confined to land. River cruises, such as Belmond’s Coquelicot on the Champagne waterways of France, offer intimate explorations of wonderful regions, while you leisurely savor local cultures, wines and cuisines at pace. The Anantara’s luxury slow boat journeys along the Mekong River also exemplify this trend, immersing travelers in the serene natural beauty and cultures of Southeast Asia.
Luxury expedition cruising has emerged as the thinking person’s alternative to Caribbean island-hopping. Explora Journeys’ new luxury fleet is trying to perfect an unhurried ‘Ocean State of Mind’. Itineraries like the 14-day Aegean Odyssey see you meander through the Greek Islands and Turkish coast, with dawn arrivals at Santorini to avoid the cruise ship hordes, private after-hours access to Ephesus, and enough time in each port to actually learn the difference between your retsina and ouzo.
For adventurous types looking for life goal destinations, Silversea’s purpose-built expedition vessels now penetrate the Northwest Passage, offering up Artic adventures but with butler service. Meanwhile, Ponant’s luxury cruise fleet offers champagne on ice – both literal and metaphorical — in once-in-a-lifetime trips to the seventh continent, Antarctica.
The allure of slow travel lies in its promise of immersion. Travellers are drawn to the idea of engaging deeply with destinations, and making connections that fleeting visits miss. Alongside this is our growing desire for sustainability and mindfulness in leisure. As the world redefines luxury, this way stands out as a compelling choice. It invites people to embrace the journey itself, finding joy in the unfolding of new experiences.
There’s delicious irony that in our hyper-connected, instant-gratification era, the ultimate status symbol may just be the luxury of time itself. Viewing the world glide gracefully by, preferably through the window of a wood-panelled carriage or on deck a fabulous ship, crystal tumbler in hand, is very appealing.
Slowness, it seems, is the new black.
