Why isn’t this sometime of trend or hobby?
How much does a rail car cost, and what is maintenance, inspection, etc like? This is still something of the very wealthy.
From some searching, they’re also available for charter. Still not something for a person of average means to do on their own, but maybe a group of upper-middle class people. Some Amtrak routes go through some incredibly scenic areas. The one that comes to mind in my neck of the woods is the Empire Builder. It would be a luxury experience for sure.
Yet slower, and far less convenient than air travel. Sight-seeing aside, I honestly don’t know who this is for.
Maybe there’s a train-enthusiast club out there that has a small fleet of rail-ready cars?
Because they love the experience. Trains are really a lot of fun.
I would gladly take the train over flying. You have more leg room, there is a dinning car, and way less security theater to deal with.
My guess is that this is a holdover from when rich people did have train cars (and sometimes even full trains!).
I would bet there are still a couple of rich people living out their train fantasies.
This one of those hobbies that sounds so cool but so impractical to get into. Like it makes getting a boat sound like a cheap and easy hobby.
Probably not too impractical owing to the fact that you probably aren’t allowed to do jack shit yourself. It’s not like you can tow it from the depot to the station with your f150. Much easier than owning a boat :) presumably just as pricey though and with even less utility
Now I just need to know when and where Amtrak still operates. Because it ain’t around here.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Amtrak_routes
Geographic map of Amtrak services as of August 2025
Where else am I supposed to perform my ablutions?
Am I the only person without a personal train car? Am I surrounded by people in top hats and just don’t know?
I started a conversation the other day with some friends about if I ever ran for President and needed to travel the country, what impact would there be if I decided to go super old-school and get a Presidential train car.
Side conversation; Airforce 1 is the Airliner the Pres flies on. Marine 1 is the helicoper. What would be the train designation?
It would be a statement, that’s for sure.
Major problem is that Amtrak has the lowest priority on our rail network. Getting to a campaign rail-stop on time would be almost impossible without greasing some palms. So you’d have to hook up with a cargo rail line or something like that.
Choochoo McTrainFace 1
Awful for security. Your whereabouts would be known at all times, and the USSS can’t protect every mile of track.
US-CAR 1 or uscar 1. We’ve had several before so it’s not particularly an abstract.
They’re all named after great explorers, Marco Polo, Ferdinand Magellan etc.
So theoretically if we got a new president who was into using trains to get around we could have a high speed uscar1 named Neil Armstrong or Yuri Gagarin? Though I assume astronauts wouldn’t be considered explorers and would be reserved for spacecraft the president is on
Correct though it’s unlikely any president will travel by train again given the best security is people simply not knowing where you are going or when. Being trapped in one direction is a big no no.
You KNOW that they’d have a fleet of helicopters, AWACS, fighter jets and vehicle escorts just hanging around the side of the running train.
imagine getting to be late for school because your bus got stuck at a Presidential Train Crossing, and being able to see the copters and jets fly over.
Land Sealion.
I mean Trainforce1 is right there, but Landforce1 sounds good too
Locomotive 1
Depends on which branch manages the railcar:
http://www.railgoat.railfan.net/other_cars/1private/us_military/us_military.htm
Spaceforce 1
Amtrak 1?
Yeah iirc thats an old holdover from when that was how rich people got around
Well, shit. Now I want to be rich
Do it!
No joke, at least back in the 80s some wall-streeters did thIs from my home town in Nj to NYC every day. Complete with full bar.
This is so much more baller than a private jet
“I am rich but I don’t need to rush around the country to keep being rich”
I’m gonna take my time and enjoy the ride. If you need me, come meet me on my train. I’m pulling into Kansas City tomorrow. See you there. Meanwhile I’m gonna have a cocktail and play some video games.
If I had to choose one, it would be the private rail car for sure.
For like 30 seconds I was thinking ‘car’ meant automobile and I was picturing like someone’s SUV hitched to the back of a train.
I should get some coffee.
Amtrak does have the “auto train” which runs from just outside DC to just outside Orlando. You load your car on the train and ride the train rather than driving that distance. It’s apparently really popular with both snowbirds as well as vacationers
Neat!
If anyone else is curious, there’s a lengthy blog post with some photos here: https://www.aboomerslifeafter50.com/travel/is-the-amtrak-auto-train-worth-the-ride-heres-my-take-going-to-florida/
Two adult rail fares $286 + one roomette for two $565 + automobile $269 = Grand total $1120
And a Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auto_Train
There’s also rumblings of potentially setting up a new Auto train route from NYC to LA. I have wonder if they’ll do the obvious thing of making a stop in Chicago as well given most long distance Amtrak services stop in Chicago
That would be incredible.
I live a few hours drive from Chicago and have family in LA, I would love the option to take an autotrain to visit family. The ability to bring my car to visit folks in such a car dependant place would make the cost really make a ton of sense, especially if we opted to only drive one direction and take the train the other direction.
We’re actually planning on driving out this thanksgiving (partly decided by cost and partly by making an added stop to visit family in Arizona which Amtrak and flying would both make extremely expensive in comparison) it also helps that our car was totaled by hail damage this year so since it now has no resale value despite being fairly new and fairly low mileage, there’s just no incentive to avoid putting tons of miles on it anymore. But if we could pay a couple thousand dollars for the experience of riding the rails just one direction, we probably would go that route
This is also how the Channel Tunnel between Folkestone in the UK and Calais in France works, sans any amenities other than a toilet. Drive on, get taken under the strait, and drive off at the other side.
I remember watching a documentary about the chunnel back in the early 00s and the narrators highlighted how it’s enabled day-tripping to the other country for some folks, and spoke with a British couple who went to France to do some shopping that day
Usually to buy a transit van full of duty free.
Mumford and Sons is currently running a tour by rail using Amtrak’s services!
But I’ve also heard of private groups pooling together to buy an old passenger car and keeping it maintained and up to whatever the current Amtrak requirements are so that they can do this regularly. Alternatively there’s several private companies who you can rent and charter a car or several with if you don’t want to commit long term to owning a railcar. I’ve specifically seen this one on private charter before for some model railroad events: https://261.com/cedar-rapids/
I worked with someone that had some Great Aunt or whatever that did this. The lady just didn’t like planes, so she would travel like this. Basically, you get all the amenities of an RV, water tank fill up, power hook up, plus you can walk up to the admittedly gross food car. She said it looked like an RV apartment combo, and that the Aunt was old money, so the Mr. Monopoly vibe is accurate.
I’m with Great Aunt whomever. Flying sucks.
Plus, you could make it an event or party car. Imagine a traveling bachelorette party with a murder mystery dinner, karaoke, no flying, no driving, and you end up somewhere cool and can nap on the way back.
(100% of the pre-wedding parties I’ve been to have had karaoke and a murder mystery dinner. Sample set of one.)
Coworker said that time is the luxury item. Unless your car is following exactly a regular Amtrak route, at some point you get decoupled in a yard and passed off to another train, which can take hours. Basically a layover. So it sounds like it can easily become a multi-day thing to get somewhere you can get in like 5 hours by air.
But yeah, if you have the time and inclination, it seems like a pleasant way to go.
I have an idea…
How many pack tops did that sucker cost?
This feels like a holdover from the Teddy Roosevelt/robber baron era!
