Put A Little Rail In Your Life By Marty Sarbey de Souto

                                                                                         

Have you considered rail travel for your groups? A trip by train can be as short as a two-hour segment inserted into a day’s program or as long as the seven-day trans-Siberian Express from Vladivostok to Moscow. But whatever segment you select, it can make for a truly innovative travel experience that has appeal to many.Seniors who may recall the glory days of traveling from Chicago to California on the California Zephyr will find
nostalgia of train travel a strong draw. Rail travel is also a perfect kind of offering for family intergenerational trips - an opportunity for parents or grandparents to share the excitement with a child or grandchild. It’s also a wonderful mode of traveling scenic areas like the Canadian Rockies or the
Oregon/California coast. It’s appealing as an alternative to motor coach travel, permitting riders the freedom to move about the train, eat in the diner, and meet and chat with other travelers, not being “glued to your seat” as on a motor coach.

AMTRAK and VIA Rail - Your New Best Friends



If planning rail travel in the U.S., you’ll most likely be working with Amtrak (or a tour operator or travel agent that sells Amtrak). While most railroads in the U.S. are privately owned (as opposed to Europe, for example, wherein they are government owned,) reservations and ticketing are usually handled by Amtrak. That’s the National Railroad Passenger Corporation. In addition to selling rail tickets and rail passes, they also have cooperative arrangements with tour operators who put together package tours that combine rail travel
with hotel stays, sightseeing, meals, and other tour inclusions. And as Amtrak is to the United States, VIA Rail is to Canada. allowing one to visit Calgary, Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper. Its great domed cars make for breathtaking scenic viewing and summer tickets are booked far in advance. Operators like Brewster and others offer a panoply of itinerary possibilities combining rail, motor coach, and hotel/lodge accommodations along the way.While its routes span the country,its most popular train is the Canadian between Toronto and Winnipeg, and through the Rockies .



Rail Europe and More



Well-known rail experiences with a reasonable price tag include the breathtaking (and nearly vertical) Glacier Express in the Swiss Alps and the trans-English channel Eurostar through the “Chunnel” between London and Paris (or Brussels).Both are available through Rail Europe, the convenient
U.S. based marketing arm for rail products of some 17 European countries. They also handle the popular Eurail
passes. Other short and not astronomical rail trips include the Copper Canyon trip between Chihuahua and Los Mochis, Mexico and the famed Bullet Train (Shinkansen) between Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka with views of Mt. Fuji on a clear day.



Short Stints


Short rail trips are available in many parts of the U.S.Green Mountain Railroad in Vermont offers special scenic “Green Mountain Flyer” trips, some featuring special holiday adventures such as the Easter Bunny Express, a Mother’s Day excursion, and a Santa Express. They utilize vintage cars dating back to the ‘30s. Fall excursions to see the autumn leaves are also very popular (and sell out early).

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