Some trains you visit for an afternoon. These you ride for days. America's scheduled scenic services — Amtrak's long-distance and regional trains, Alaska Railroad, and Canyon Spirit — cross the Rockies, run the length of the Pacific coast, and climb to Denali. They are listed separately from the railway directory because they are a different kind of trip: the train is the holiday.
Amtrak long-distance trains
The great overnight crossings — the scenery spine of American rail travel, each timed (where Amtrak can) for daylight in its best country.
California Zephyr
Chicago, IL – Emeryville (San Francisco), CA · 51 hours 20 minutes · Amtrak
Amtrak's flagship: two nights and three days from Chicago to the Bay Area, timed for daylight in the Rockies and the Sierra.
Plan the journey →Empire Builder
Chicago, IL – Seattle, WA / Portland, OR (train splits at Spokane, WA) · 46 hours · Amtrak
The northern crossing: Chicago to Seattle and Portland across the plains, along Glacier National Park's southern border and through the Cascades.
Plan the journey →Coast Starlight
Seattle, WA – Los Angeles, CA · 35 hours · Amtrak
Seattle to Los Angeles down the Cascades and along the Pacific — Amtrak's grand west-coast ride.
Plan the journey →Southwest Chief
Chicago, IL – Los Angeles, CA · About 43 hours 50 minutes · Amtrak
The Santa Fe Trail by rail: Chicago to Los Angeles over Raton Pass and through red-rock country.
Plan the journey →Sunset Limited
New Orleans, LA – Los Angeles, CA · 48 hours (Amtrak route page; timetable about 46 hours) · Amtrak
The oldest named train in America: New Orleans to Los Angeles through bayou country, West Texas and the Sonoran Desert.
Plan the journey →Texas Eagle
Chicago, IL – San Antonio, TX, continuing three days a week to Los Angeles, CA · 32 hours 25 minutes (Chicago–San Antonio); 65 hours 20 minutes (Chicago–Los Angeles) · Amtrak
Chicago to San Antonio daily — and three days a week, the longest ride in the country, through to Los Angeles.
Plan the journey →City of New Orleans
Chicago, IL – New Orleans, LA · About 19 hours 30 minutes · Amtrak
The song train: Chicago to New Orleans down the Mississippi corridor — overnight in the middle, daylight at both ends.
Plan the journey →Crescent
New York, NY – New Orleans, LA · About 30 hours (30h47 southbound in timetable data) · Amtrak
New York to New Orleans through the Blue Ridge and Piedmont foothills — daylight where the scenery is.
Plan the journey →Cardinal
New York, NY – Chicago, IL · 26 hours 30 minutes (Amtrak route page) · Amtrak
Three days a week through the New River Gorge — widely rated Amtrak's most underrated scenic route.
Plan the journey →Lake Shore Limited
New York, NY / Boston, MA – Chicago, IL (sections join/split at Albany-Rensselaer, NY) · 19 hours (New York section); about 21 hours 30 minutes–22 hours (Boston section) · Amtrak
New York and Boston to Chicago along Lake Erie, the Mohawk River and the Hudson Valley.
Plan the journey →Floridian
Chicago, IL – Miami, FL via Pittsburgh, PA, Washington, DC, Raleigh, NC, Savannah, GA, Orlando and Tampa, FL · 47 hours · Amtrak
Chicago to Miami in one seat — the temporary union, since November 2024, of the Capitol Limited and Silver Star routes.
Plan the journey →Silver Meteor
New York, NY – Miami, FL · Up to 28+ hours (Amtrak Silver Service/Palmetto page); timetable 27h54–28h29 · Amtrak
New York to Miami down the coast — now the only New York–Florida sleeper train.
Plan the journey →Palmetto
New York, NY – Savannah, GA · About 16 hours · Amtrak
The daylight East Coast run: New York to Savannah via Charleston — no sleeper, all scenery by day.
Plan the journey →Amtrak regional & state scenic services
Day trains with a genuine scenery claim, most of them state-supported.
Adirondack
New York, NY – Montreal, QC, Canada · About 11 hours · Amtrak
New York to Montreal up the Hudson and along Lake Champlain under the Adirondacks — a classic scenic day train.
Plan the journey →Maple Leaf
New York, NY – Toronto, ON, Canada · About 12 hours 30 minutes · Amtrak
New York to Toronto through the Hudson Valley and the Finger Lakes, crossing at Niagara Falls.
Plan the journey →Vermonter
Washington, DC – St. Albans, VT via New York, NY and Springfield, MA · 13 hours 45 minutes · Amtrak
Washington to St. Albans up the Connecticut River valley and through Vermont's Green Mountains.
Plan the journey →Ethan Allen Express
New York, NY – Burlington, VT via Albany, NY, Saratoga Springs and Rutland, VT · About 7 hours 30 minutes · Amtrak
New York to Burlington along the Hudson and Lake Champlain's east shore.
Plan the journey →Downeaster
Boston, MA (North Station) – Brunswick, ME · About 3 hours 20 minutes–3 hours 30 minutes · Amtrak
Boston to Brunswick along the Maine coast — salt marshes, beach towns and Portland.
Plan the journey →Pennsylvanian
New York, NY – Pittsburgh, PA via Philadelphia, Lancaster and Harrisburg, PA · About 9 hours 25 minutes · Amtrak
New York to Pittsburgh in daylight — Amish farmland, the Susquehanna, and the Horseshoe Curve.
Plan the journey →Carolinian
New York, NY – Charlotte, NC via Washington, DC, Richmond, VA and Raleigh, NC · About 13 hours 30 minutes · Amtrak
New York to Charlotte through the Virginia and Carolina Piedmont.
Plan the journey →Piedmont
Raleigh, NC – Charlotte, NC · 3 hours 10 minutes · Amtrak
Raleigh to Charlotte across the North Carolina Piedmont — four round trips a day.
Plan the journey →Heartland Flyer
Oklahoma City, OK – Fort Worth, TX · 4 hours 14 minutes · Amtrak
Oklahoma City to Fort Worth through the Arbuckle Mountains and the Washita River valley.
Plan the journey →Missouri River Runner
St. Louis, MO – Kansas City, MO · 5 hours 40 minutes · Amtrak
St. Louis to Kansas City along the Missouri River's bluffs and wine country.
Plan the journey →Empire Service
New York, NY – Niagara Falls, NY via Albany, Rochester and Buffalo, NY (most trains end at Albany) · 9 hours 15 minutes (New York–Niagara Falls); about 2 hours 30 minutes (New York–Albany) · Amtrak
The Hudson River ride: New York to Albany along the river, continuing to Rochester, Buffalo and Niagara Falls.
Plan the journey →Amtrak Cascades
Eugene, OR – Vancouver, BC, Canada via Portland, OR and Seattle, WA · About 3 hours 25 minutes (Portland–Seattle); about 10–11 hours end-to-end with a Seattle change/through segment depending on departure · Amtrak
Eugene to Vancouver, BC, via Portland and Seattle — Puget Sound shoreline and Cascade volcano views.
Plan the journey →Gold Runner (formerly San Joaquins)
Bakersfield, CA – Oakland, CA / Sacramento, CA via Fresno and Stockton, CA · About 6 hours (Bakersfield–Oakland); about 5 hours (Bakersfield–Sacramento) · Amtrak
Bakersfield to Oakland and Sacramento through the San Joaquin Valley — the service renamed from the San Joaquins in November 2025.
Plan the journey →Pacific Surfliner
San Luis Obispo, CA – San Diego, CA via Santa Barbara and Los Angeles, CA · About 8 hours 52 minutes end-to-end · Amtrak
San Luis Obispo to San Diego with the tracks on the beach — Amtrak's strongest coastal ride outside the Coast Starlight.
Plan the journey →Borealis
Chicago, IL – St. Paul, MN via Milwaukee, WI · About 7 hours 32 minutes · Amtrak
Chicago to St. Paul along the Mississippi River bluffs — the second Twin Cities train, launched in 2024.
Plan the journey →Amtrak Mardi Gras Service
New Orleans, LA – Mobile, AL via Bay St. Louis, Gulfport, Biloxi and Pascagoula, MS · 3 hours 43 minutes (weekdays); 3 hours 48 minutes (weekends) · Amtrak
New Orleans to Mobile along the Gulf shore — Gulf Coast passenger trains returned in August 2025.
Plan the journey →Seasonal services
Scheduled trains that exist only for a season — a ski train and a summer-weekend leisure train.
Winter Park Express
Denver, CO – Winter Park Resort / Fraser, CO · About 2 hours · Amtrak
Denver to the ski lifts: a seasonal winter train through the Moffat Tunnel to Winter Park Resort.
Plan the journey →Berkshire Flyer
New York, NY – Pittsfield, MA via Albany, NY · About 4 hours · Amtrak
A summer-weekend leisure train: New York to Pittsfield in the Berkshires.
Plan the journey →Alaska Railroad
Five scheduled scenic services with no equivalent anywhere else in the country — including America's last flagstop train.
Denali Star
Anchorage, AK – Fairbanks, AK via Wasilla, Talkeetna and Denali National Park · 12 hours · Alaska Railroad
Anchorage to Fairbanks past Denali itself — Alaska Railroad's flagship, daily all summer.
Plan the journey →Coastal Classic
Anchorage, AK – Seward, AK via Girdwood (same-day round trip possible) · About 4 hours 30 minutes each way · Alaska Railroad
Anchorage to Seward along Turnagain Arm and past the glaciers — called by many Alaska Railroad's most scenic route.
Plan the journey →Hurricane Turn
Talkeetna, AK – Hurricane Gulch, AK (summer); Anchorage, AK – Hurricane Gulch (winter) · About 2 hours 30 minutes each way (about 5 hours 45 minutes round trip, summer) · Alaska Railroad
America's last flagstop train: Talkeetna to Hurricane Gulch — wave it down anywhere along the line.
Plan the journey →Glacier Discovery
Anchorage, AK – Grandview, AK via Girdwood, Portage and Whittier (out-and-back, with Spencer Glacier Whistle Stop) · About 10–11 hours 30 minutes for the full Anchorage–Grandview round trip (Anchorage–Whittier segment about 2 hours 30 minutes) · Alaska Railroad
Anchorage to Grandview via Whittier and the Spencer Glacier whistle stop.
Plan the journey →Aurora Winter Train
Anchorage, AK – Fairbanks, AK via Wasilla, Talkeetna, Hurricane, Healy and Nenana · 12 hours · Alaska Railroad
The winter Anchorage–Fairbanks train: snow, frozen rivers and a chance of aurora.
Plan the journey →Canyon Spirit
The luxury sightseeing train of the red-rock country (the US operation formerly run as Rocky Mountaineer USA, rebranded for 2026).
Deliberately not here: the Auto Train (a car-carrying service, not a scenic product), Chicago–Milwaukee Hiawatha (a high-frequency corridor shuttle), the Illinois Zephyr / Carl Sandburg (a transport corridor with no scenery-led claim), and Brightline in Florida (higher-speed intercity transport sold on speed, not sightseeing). Each was examined in the research pass and excluded on the record — the same standard the directory applies to excursions.