Private cars

[Tumbleweed]

Just curious....has anyone ever ridden a private car? (Well,maybe the Traveler... ) It would be interesting to see if a bunch of AU fans would be interested in splitting the cost.....on the other hand, if one were restricted to only that car it may not be that much fun....but then, if it were a dome/sleeper/diner car......hmmmmm..... hboy:

 

[Gord]

AARPCO and RRPCA private car owner websites list private car trips available to the public. Sometimes they are one-way positioning moves for various events, some trips are fairly reasonably priced.

Gord

 

[Ispolkom]

Just curious....has anyone ever ridden a private car? (Well,maybe the Traveler... ) It would be interesting to see if a bunch of AU fans would be interested in splitting the cost.....on the other hand, if one were restricted to only that car it may not be that much fun....but then, if it were a dome/sleeper/diner car......hmmmmm..... hboy:

Yes, and it was The Best Trip Ever.

 

[Anderson]

A fair follow-on: Where can I find a good listing of such services?

(Yes, I might be interested in such a trip at some point)

 

[Tumbleweed]

Just curious....has anyone ever ridden a private car? (Well,maybe the Traveler... ) It would be interesting to see if a bunch of AU fans would be interested in splitting the cost.....on the other hand, if one were restricted to only that car it may not be that much fun....but then, if it were a dome/sleeper/diner car......hmmmmm..... hboy:

Yes, and it was The Best Trip Ever.

Thanks, very interesting! Looks like no excursions are currently scheduled for the 261 group.....

 

[Ispolkom]

A fair follow-on: Where can I find a good listing of such services?

(Yes, I might be interested in such a trip at some point)

I live in the Twin Cities, and keep track of two local car owners: Friends of 261 and High Iron Travel. My only advice is to find what cars are based in your area. I haven't seen any Web site that is a general information source.

I wouldn't be surprised if Friends of 261 have an excursion from St. Paul to Chicago in May, on some weekend when I have to work. That's been the case the last couple of years.

 

[Acela150]

I was on a trip consisting on PV only! This was back in 2002. I took the Northern Express which was pulled by Bennett Levin's Pennsy E8's the cost was an outstanding $4000 each! But so worth the cost! We rode in a Louisville and Nashville car by the name of Royal Street which is a Observation car similar to the 20th Century Limited. It had sleeping compartments and all! The trip went across the State of PA. It lasted about 5 days and was well worth it! PV trips are expensive but well worth it!

 

[zephyr17]

Back in the 80's I rode an ex-UP Dome Lounge (Native Son)a number of times as a charter with a bunch of railfan friends. Had a friend that worked as a car tonk for the owner and we set up a couple of relatively low cost charters (basically at cost for the owner). Also, a couple of times I got to ride it one way free, as they were deadheading the car from LA to San Diego, and my friend was the keeper of the car for the move, and he invited me along. That was a true private car, because it was just my friend and me.

That was when the San Diegans were all Amfleet, so having a dome meant something.

Another time I took the San Joaquin to Martinez to catch the CZ, and guess what, the Native Son was on the end. Went back to say "Hi" at Sac and they invited me to ride it with their group to Sparks.

Good times.

 

[had8ley]

I've run three PV trips for unnamed owners. I swore each time that I wouldn't do it again but there's something about watching the world go by from the back of an ex-RR biz

car. Most on the AU site here pay and play; I worked and sweat; paper work, ordering supplies, insuring connections etc., etc.~ it ain't easy but if all goes well a good time can be had by all that ride. Don't ask what can go wrong; it would take all night to fill you in.

 

[railiner]

Travel on a private rail car is a truly rare and luxurious experience ot what the 'good life' was (and is) all about. If you can swing it, definitely give it a try at least once, via the public excursions occasionally operated. As great as this is, I can only imagine what it must be like for the owner of the car---to travel to some fantastic locations, and yet be right 'at home'.

The closest I ever experienced, was back in the '80's. The railfan club I belonged to had just taken an excursion on Kyle's former Rock Island trackage between Limon, Co. and Goodland, Ks. After getting back to Limon, we encountered Mr. Clark Johnson, owner at the time of the very well travelled 'Caritas'. His car was deadheading back to Denver on the UPRR former Kansas Pacific line, which crossed The Rock at Limon. He very graciously invited us aboard his beautiful car for the trip back. We were rolling along, right behind the caboose of the freight train. We had our scanners going, and all got a big chuckle when we heard the Conductor commenting to the engineer that he wished the chef of the car would 'throw us a T-Bone, or something...'

 

[Anderson]

What operators are there on the East Coast (in particular, in the DC metro; I know there's probably nothing in southern VA)? The only thing I've ever heard of is Norfolk Southern's restored car, and that went out at nearly $3000 for an evening at a recent auction (and yes, I tried to fight for it, but it got too rich for my blood).

 

[Ispolkom]

I've run three PV trips for unnamed owners. I swore each time that I wouldn't do it again but there's something about watching the world go by from the back of an ex-RR biz

car. Most on the AU site here pay and play; I worked and sweat; paper work, ordering supplies, insuring connections etc., etc.~ it ain't easy but if all goes well a good time can be had by all that ride. Don't ask what can go wrong; it would take all night to fill you in.

I cannot imagine, I really can't. If I owned a car as beautiful as the Cedar Rapids I wouldn't want to leave it outdoors, much less hook it to the back of an Amtrak train, drag it across the country, and leave it, well, down by the railroad tracks. But I'm grateful to those car owners who do.

 

[Rafi]

For those who live within a reasonable radius of the Roanoke, VA region, the local chapter of the NRHS has been putting on annual excursions using private varnish for the past couple of falls, and as I understand, hopes to continue the tradition this coming fall. These excursions present rare, rare opportunities to ride in private railcars for a fraction of what they can cost you when riding on other trips, mostly because they're day trips. Tickets generally run around $250 or so, but the prices vary depending on the class of service (dome, lounge, etc). The coach cars are standard Amfleet I's provided by Amtrak, except for one car which is an old N&W coach car now owned by the NRHS. It's quite an experience, and there's nothing like walking through private car after private car on a 19 car train winding its way through the Blue Ridge.

Rafi

 

[Ryan]

Every year I say that I'm going to do that, I'd love to roll out through Blacksburg and Giles County by rail.

 

[dlagrua]

Private LD rail car travel must be quite an experience but also very expensive. We are used to purchasing a bedroom with meals on an overnight trip for an additional $255-$325 and to spend $2000-$3,000 for a single overnight doesn't make good financial sense. In the golden days of railroading the big Hollywood celebrities traveled coast to coast on the regular trains usually in a delux bedroom. None that I know of had a private rail car. Those were usually reserved for big business tycoons and the RR CEO's like Joe Boardman who travels in a private "inspection" car. Due to the large disparity in price I doubt if we will be traveling in a private car anytime soon.

 

[railiner]

Private LD rail car travel must be quite an experience but also very expensive. We are used to purchasing a bedroom with meals on an overnight trip for an additional $255-$325 and to spend $2000-$3,000 for a single overnight doesn't make good financial sense. In the golden days of railroading the big Hollywood celebrities traveled coast to coast on the regular trains usually in a delux bedroom. None that I know of had a private rail car. Those were usually reserved for big business tycoons and the RR CEO's like Joe Boardman who travels in a private "inspection" car. Due to the large disparity in price I doubt if we will be traveling in a private car anytime soon.

And of course those 'big business tycoons' wrote all costs off as business expenses....

 

[zephyr17]

Private LD rail car travel must be quite an experience but also very expensive. We are used to purchasing a bedroom with meals on an overnight trip for an additional $255-$325 and to spend $2000-$3,000 for a single overnight doesn't make good financial sense. In the golden days of railroading the big Hollywood celebrities traveled coast to coast on the regular trains usually in a delux bedroom. None that I know of had a private rail car. Those were usually reserved for big business tycoons and the RR CEO's like Joe Boardman who travels in a private "inspection" car. Due to the large disparity in price I doubt if we will be traveling in a private car anytime soon.

Virtually all private cars today are open for group charters. Other than railroad and Amtrak business cars, almost all private car moves are such charters. They are more expensive than Amtrak, but not always completely outrageous. For example, there is an LA - Reno round trip August 4-9 behind the Starlight and Zephyr that is $1450 round trip, and they are also selling individuals segments, such as one-way LA-Oakland for $300. Not cheap, but anyone that really wants to can probably swing something like that. That trip is using 2 Budd short domes.

 

[Anderson]

One way LA-Oakland for $300 isn't that bad compared to some disparities out there (it's about $150 more than the Coast Starlight equivalent run in first class and it's cheaper than First Class on the Acela WAS-BOS).

 

[dlagrua]

If private railcars are open for charter that would mean that you would have to get 6 or so people together to fill the car so that expenses can be shared. IIRC the private rail cars of old had only two or three sleeping facilities (bedrooms) and only one usually had a private bathroom. The chef and the porter usually slept in a section near the kitchen.

It is without question that there are many private railcars available for rental but who sets up the charter? Few can afford the total cost of the private railcar over the entire trip so is there an agency that puts groups of people together to sell the trip? or do you buy the charter at full price and try to get people to split the cost with you?

 

[zephyr17]

If private railcars are open for charter that would mean that you would have to get 6 or so people together to fill the car so that expenses can be shared. IIRC the private rail cars of old had only two or three sleeping facilities (bedrooms) and only one usually had a private bathroom. The chef and the porter usually slept in a section near the kitchen.

It is without question that there are many private railcars available for rental but who sets up the charter? Few can afford the total cost of the private railcar over the entire trip so is there an agency that puts groups of people together to sell the trip? or do you buy the charter at full price and try to get people to split the cost with you?

Usually some agency puts together a trip and markets it. You can also get a group together and contact the car owner directly. Note that putting one of these together is a LOT of work, and requires quite a bit of upfront money. So if you are putting one together, get the money up front...otherwise you could be left holding a big bag.

BTW, here is the link to the August LA-Reno trip if anyone is interested in riding it:

http://www.trainorders.com/trip/trips/trip.php?trip=25

 

[chuljin]

Sleeping and train movement aren't at the same time, but a fairly inexpensive overnight on a PV is through Pullman Adventures, which every couple months or so attaches Pacific Sands (an old UP 10-6) to an early Saturday LAX-SAN PS, overnights at SAN (and passengers sleep onboard), and comes back on an evening Sunday SAN-LAX PS).

Something I've always wanted to do, and am close to getting 'approved' the next time they go.

$169 for a roomette or $338 for a bedroom.

Pullman Adventures (though they've now joined into LA Rail [where also see other longer more expensive trips]).

 

[KayBee]

What operators are there on the East Coast (in particular, in the DC metro; I know there's probably nothing in southern VA)? The only thing I've ever heard of is Norfolk Southern's restored car, and that went out at nearly $3000 for an evening at a recent auction (and yes, I tried to fight for it, but it got too rich for my blood).

The DCNRHS offers trips aboard their Pullman car "Dover Harbor" out of DC. Upcoming are trips to Orlando/Ft Lauderdale/Miami FL., Williamsburg/Newport News, VA., and Tacoma, WA.

They usually have the Dover Harbor out for display at the National Train Day event at Washington Union Station in May. They hitch a ride on Amtrak for their excursions.