Document and Entity Information	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2012	Nov. 01, 2012 Class A common shares at par value	Nov. 01, 2012 Class B common shares at par value
Entity Registrant Name	ORIENT EXPRESS HOTELS LTD
Entity Central Index Key	0001115836
Document Type	10-Q
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2012
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		102,897,311	18,044,478
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2012
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3