Passengers of two trains connecting north Bengal with Calcutta will now have the option to enjoy a journey in a Vistadome coach from next month.

The Northeast Frontier Railway has decided to introduce one such coach each in two pairs of trains — the NJP-Howrah Shatabdi Express and the Radhikapur-Howrah Kulik Express — from July first week.

So far, people travelling in trains in this region could ride a Vistadome coach only on the tourist special train between New Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar Junction on the Dooars route.

“The Vistadome coach will be attached to the Shatabdi Express on a temporary basis with the existing coaches from July 3 to August 31. In the other train, a similar coach would be added on a permanent basis from Howrah on July 3 and from Radhikapur (in North Dinajpur) on July 4,” said an official of NFR.

Thus, from July 3, both trains will run with 15 coaches. There are 44 seats in each Vistadome coach.

“The idea is to provide a better travel experience. The vistadome coach has large glass windows, glass roofs, rotating seats and an observation lounge,” the official added.

The fares, however, will be on the higher side.

After the announcement was made by the railways on Wednesday, sources said that a passenger would have to pay around Rs 2,500 for a journey in the Vistadome coach in Shatabdi between NJP and Howrah, which is higher than the executive class AC chair car.

On the Howrah-Radhikapur route, the fare in the Vistadome coach will be around Rs 1,710, around thrice the price of an AC chair car ticket.