I spent a night on the ultimate luxury train and saw that high-end travel doesn't have to harm the planet

In the past two years, I've spent 155 hours traveling by train in the US, Canada, and Europe as a travel reporter.

I've found that no matter where I'm going, trains can offer unparalleled views of the world and make any journey feel like an adventure.

Perhaps no train does both better than the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, a Belmond train made up of restored cars from historic Orient Express train services of the 1920s and 1930s.

Operating since 1982, the train line has 67 routes between 17 European cities, including Rome and Amsterdam, according to Belmond's website.

I jumped at the chance to take the train on a recent trip from Paris to Venice.

For about $9,000, I spent one night on the train's Paris-to-Venice route in a historic cabin with a couch that converted into a bed and a vanity with a sink.

This was my first luxury train experience and the most amazing trip of my life.

In 2021, Belmond partnered with EarthCheck, a company that says it monitors and certifies sustainability efforts in more than 550 hotels around the world.

During my trip, I had lunch with the train's manager, Pascal Deyrolle. He told me about all the sustainability efforts on the train — from preserving history to sourcing food.

Some of the train's sustainable elements have been in place since the beginning.

For example, the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express is made out of restored Orient Express carriages — some of which are nearly 100 years old, Deyrolle said.

Wandering through the train cars felt like traveling back in time. Each was filled with furniture and decor reminiscent of early-20th-century luxury, like gold light fixtures and plush seating.

From scrambled eggs and caviar to scallops that nearly melted in my mouth, each extravagant meal on the luxury train felt carefully designed to produce impeccable textures and flavors.

And the ingredients tasted so fresh to me.

Deyrolle said that before each trip, the train loads food in Venice and refills in Paris. "Everything that we picked up yesterday we are going eat on the way to Venice," he said.

Because trains have limited space to store food, Deyrolle said, the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express uses fresh meat and produce out of necessity.

Deyrolle said the ingredients are sourced locally in Paris and Venice; the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express chooses suppliers that allow it to trace where the products come from, even down to the fishermen who catch the seafood that's served to guests.

The Venice Simplon-Orient-Express stops along the route to refill the water tank, Deyrolle said.

But the tank isn't that big, he added, so conserving water is a necessity. He said all the taps on the train have reduced flow.

In my cabin, I noticed the minimal flow from my faucet. The water ran only when I was holding the handle down.

Deyrolle said the luxury train has no single-use plastics.

In my cabin, I noticed water in cans rather than plastic bottles. Deyrolle said water on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express is served only in cans and glasses.

Deyrolle said the train also works to minimize waste from packaging, adding that all the food suppliers use recyclable boxes and reusable containers.

"We exchange containers when they bring fish, meat, and veggies," Deyrolle said. "For us, it's less packaging, less trash, and less space used on the train."

The train has a limited capacity for electricity. So Deyrolle said it conserves energy with custom LED lighting.

During the trip, I noticed the lighting intensity changed depending on whether it was sunny or cloudy, day or night. Deyrolle said the train uses different lighting settings to match the ambiance.

Deyrolle said that for each sustainability effort, from waste management to energy use, there's a committee of staff members who are passionate about the issue.

"If you're passionate about something, then you're going to focus on it," he said.

Deyrolle said his passion is planting trees, so he has a goal to plant a tree for each of the train's staff members in a park in Venice over the next five years. He added that the company made an agreement with the city council to do so.

"When I bike along the canal, it's super hot. As soon as I go into the park, we lose four or five degrees just because of the shade from the trees," Deyrolle said. "It's incredible. So trees will help us to bring the actual temperature down and create oxygen."

Some of the most memorable moments of my train journey came from looking out the window at dramatic landscapes of mountains, trees, and meadows.

Being so close to nature made me feel more passionate about protecting the planet, too.