Agatha Christi and Hercule Poirot would be jealous of China’s contemporary and very luxurious version of the Orient Express. Starting in Beijing, the Tangula high-speed train travels more than 2,400 miles north and to increasingly higher terrain to Lhasa in Tibet.

The Tangula consists of 12 sleeping, two dining and tail-end observation cars. Accommodations are for a total of less than 100 passengers in roomy, double-bed suites. Of course, each suite comes with a personal butler, and as the train races upward in the Tibetan mountains, personal oxygen equipment is provided for those who may need it in the rarefied three-mile-high altitude.

Basic rates range upward for a one-way trip from Beijing to Lhasa from $3,300 per person for the four-night trip. There are many extra charges, including wines, interpreters, souvenirs and legal documents. Hercule could never afford it on his detective’s salary.
For more information, check with your favorite hometown or online travel agency, or go to www.mircorp.com/tour_tangula.asp