A series of ‘cruise trains’ are being laid on by Barrhead Travel for Scottish passengers departing on cruises from Southampton.
The first service is to run from Glasgow Central Station early on June 30 taking 400 passengers direct to Southampton Docks to join Royal Caribbean International’s Independence of the Seas for a 14-night Italian Mediterranean cruise.
Another train has been chartered for October together with others for next summer.
Cruise passengers on the chartered trains have baggage transferred from the station platform to their ship as part of the service.
Seating onboard the train is allocated, so groups are seated together. There is a choice of first, premium and standard class accommodation onboard, each with different dining and service options.
The Scottish agency’s cruise marketing director Catriona Parsons said: “With no direct rail service from Scotland to Southampton, getting to the port could be problematic, especially for customers who are unable to fly or who dislike flying.
“We decided early in 2011 to do something to remedy the situation by chartering a train ourselves, and now we’re pleased to say that our first cruise train departure will be setting off this Saturday to take our passengers in style to their cruise ship.”
She added: “The popularity of the direct train service has been amazing – we have sold every seat on this departure.
“Our next charter, on October 13, connects with Celebrity Cruises’ Eclipse and Fred Olsen’s Balmoral departures to the Mediterranean, and is already selling fast.
“Because of the interest we’ve had in 2012, we’ve charted a wider selection of train departures for 2013, with a selection of services from May to October, which are available for pre-registering now.”