Photos| Aboard Turkey’s Eastern Express: Insta-worthy all through Anatolia

Until a few years ago taking the 24-hour train ride aboard Turkey’s Doğu Ekspresi or Eastern Express from Ankara to Kars for a 1,365 km trip - instead of a plane journey of little over an hour - would have been considered madness, despite the ridiculously cheap price of 45 lira (11 dollars). Things changed when a group of Turkish tourists decided to do away with speed and booked sleeping car reservations on the train. Naturally, they shared the experience on social media. From that point onwards, the train became a venue for fun, adventure, socialising and new experiences.

Updated on: Apr 30, 2018 5:03 PM IST

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Until a few years ago taking ‘Eastern Express’, the 24-hour train ride for a 1,365 km trip - instead of a plane journey of little over an hour - would have been considered madness, despite the ridiculously cheap price of 45 lira ($11). Things changed when a group of young Turkish tourists booked sleeping car reservations on the train. Naturally, they shared the experience on social media. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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Huseyin Emre Sen proposed to Mine Nur in a candle-lit wagon on the Eastern Express, a thousand kilometre train ride across eastern Turkey which he says formed the perfect start to their voyage through life. “We love travelling, so this suits us perfectly. This is a short demo of a lifelong journey together,” said Emre, who popped the question this month after a two-year relationship. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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Passengers chat onboard the Eastern Express travelling through Sivas province en route from Ankara to Kars. From that point onwards, the train became a venue for fun, adventure, socializing and new experiences. Nowadays tickets for the train run out a day after they go on sale, even though the number of cars has more than doubled from five to 11. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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Breakfast prepared by Vasfiye Filiz, 43, and Nurcan Guner, 40, is placed on a table. “Of course this trend has caught our attention on Instagram, some posts encouraged us to hit the road,” said Guner. What hasn’t changed is the leisurely pace of the train through Turkey’s remote eastern hinterland. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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Busra Korkmaz (L), Ozlem Ozderya (R), and Berfin Abadan (R top), chat onboard the Eastern Express travelling through Kayseri province. The train sets off from Ankara every day for Kars, near the Armenian border. It travels through Anatolian provinces such as Kayseri, Sivas, Erzincan and Erzurum and reaches its destination some 24 hours and 30 minutes later. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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On the way it passes through farmland, hills and woods, crossing rivers swollen by snow melting in the spring sunshine and passing through long dark tunnels carved through mountains. In 2017 alone, some 300,000 people made the trip, a 40% increase from the previous year. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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The Eastern Express features seated and sleeping coaches with toilets, a mini refrigerator and a table. Apart from some locals attracted by the cheap fares, who take the train for a short distance between stations, most passengers now are people from far corners of Turkey making the full trip between Ankara and Kars. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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As the references on social media to the train journey proliferated, must-do rituals emerged for all travellers. It’s now customary to take snaps holding the signs in the carriages showing the route. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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Passengers listen to music on board the Eastern Express travelling through Sivas province. Tourists decorate compartment with Christmas lights, candles and balloons, holding big parties in spaces designed for four only, taking group photos. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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Another social media must is alighting from the train at minor stops to dance on the platform. Burcu Yilmaz, a 37-year-old medical technician, decided to take the trip seeing pictures shared on social media. Finding tickets was hard but she managed to get on with three of her friends. “A most nostalgic experience” she says. “You can’t do any of this when travelling any other way.” (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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Passengers eat and chat on board the Eastern Express travelling through Erzincan province. For most people on board, the 24-hour ride is a sure-shot to meeting new people, travelling with parties in every compartment and with fellow passengers on a journey that is the destination itself. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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Not everyone, however, is making their dream journey. University student Sinan Usta, who decorated his cabin with candles and rainbow-coloured flashing lights for his girlfriend, spent the journey sitting alone in his little room. (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)

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One for ‘gram, as Sinan stands on the steps of an open door as the Eastern Express travels through Erzincan province. “We had this journey planned months ago. But my girlfriend’s family didn’t allow her,” he said. “I don’t like leaving things unfinished, so I took the train anyway.” (Umit Bektas / REUTERS)