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A passenger train with a dome car curves along a forested mountainside.
The Empire Builder at the edge of Glacier National Park, Montana, June 1974 Photo: Charles O'Rear, for the U.S. EPA DOCUMERICA project (National Archives), Public domain

Scenic train travel in America

See America from the window seat

Notes on scenic train travel: Amtrak's long-distance routes and heritage railroads. This site has an arrival calculator and rail facts. Dated fares, seasonal heritage listings and a Tuesday newsletter are not on this site yet.

Timetable math

Work out when an overnight train gets in, day count included. Open the arrival calculator.

Rail facts

FactSourceChecked
Amtrak counted a record 34.5 million trips in fiscal year 2025, up 5.1% on the year before.Amtrak media: A Year of Records
Amtrak's long-distance trains carried 4.45 million trips in fiscal year 2025. The California Zephyr grew 14.8% and the Texas Eagle 14.3%.Amtrak FY25 ridership fact sheet

All rail facts and this week's quiz

Route stories

No route stories are published yet. Our first ones appear here once they are approved.

Out the window

Two streamlined passenger trains pass beside a river in a steep canyon.
Eastbound and westbound California Zephyrs meet in Glenwood Canyon, Colorado, on a railroad postcard Photo: Burlington, Rio Grande and Western Pacific railroads (postcard), Public domain
Rows of seats face tall curved windows looking out on dry hills.
Inside a Sightseer Lounge car on the westbound Southwest Chief, Ribera, New Mexico, May 2024 Photo: 4300streetcar, CC BY 4.0
A long silver passenger train climbs past a rounded peak.
The southbound Coast Starlight below Bishop Peak, near San Luis Obispo, California, July 2011 Photo: Loco Steve, CC BY 2.0