Grand Canyon Railway Review

So much fun on train. Snacks and even entertainment.

OK here's my problem...my girlfriend and I stayed at the GC Railway Hotel for a night(10-15-16). Before booking, we had read many reviews about this hotel/train package. A few of the reviewers said the beds were too hard, but we figured it must have been seniors who cant take a firm hotel mattress. Those people didn't stress it enough! Our bed was not meant for humans to sleep on. Its been half a week now, and both of us are still popping ibuprofen because of that mattress. We won't be back or recommend this hotel until they replace them all. It was like a sheet on concrete.
It seems to me, and would make sense that a hotel manager would have read the same reviews that we did, and perhaps book him or herself into the hotel for a night to try the beds all night for themselves(or at least that's what I would do if I managed the place). A hotel manager should listen to what more than one reviewer is saying. And for more than $575 for one night, the beds had better be good. GC Railway Hotel failed miserably with the beds.
Other than that, everything ran smoothly. Thank you Lisa the bartender for taking the time to mix me a Golden Cadillac.

This was the best part of the whole Grand Canyon Experience.

The hotel was great and so was the fred harvey diner the train ride was great and the grand bus tour was very knowledgeable had a wonderful time.

Riding this train to + back from the Grand Canyon was an experience my Family will never forget!

The train was beautiful. The PSA's were friendly, helpful, shared lots of information and made sure our trip was memorable. It was a wonderful way to see the Grand Canyon and lots of fun.

Fun Train Ride from Williams AZ to the Grand Canyon & return.

The absolute best way to go up to the Grand Canyon National Park! Starting from Williams, AZ to the south, the relaxing train ride to and from the canyon allows you to really take in the natural beauty and surprisingly varied biomes of Arizona. I'd highly recommend booking your ticket on one of the observation cars for a truly panoramic view of the natural landscape. The railroad staff are some of the nicest and hardworking people I've ever met and do their best to make you comfortable on your trip.

Had a great time! Excellent train ride. Donna was excellent for anyones needs in our car.

The trip was a great way to travel to the Grand Canyon, and the station was informative and fun to experience. If you are a train buff, this is for you!

If you go, try and get Cameron. He was the best guide ever. Great service and lots of fun! The staff is so nice, especially the photographer Sam, and the cowboy Sam! Tater Chip was also a great singer/entertainment.

Awesome experience the only way to get to the grand canyon

Pricey but ok. Felt very rushed while stopping to look at the scenic excursions at the Grand Canyon.

This was a load of fun for the whole family, all the staff was very friendly. If you want to stay overnight there is a hotel and many restaurants close by.

An interesting stop in the village of you have the time.

I loved their racist jokes about white people broadcast throughout the train....which was loaded with white people.

The Ride it's self was smooth. I had the privilege of having a good seat on the train. Which was one the glass roof cars. Good music, although much of the ride was geared towards children. Great, friendly staff and it was interesting...just not not me as an adventurer. It's great for those that want to be shuttled around and are unfamiliar with the area and have kids.

Definitely a great experience regardless which ticket you buy. I saw a decent amount of wild life considering the time of year (dry hot summer) on the ride. Seeing the Grand Canyon is obviously a must if given the opportunity.

This was an amazing experience, especially being able to appreciate the scenery and wildlife while traveling to the Grand Canyon's South Rim. I highly recommend upgrading to the luxury parlors.

So much easier than driving to the Grand Canyon. They take care of everything and even set up your bus tours and hotels (if staying over). Everyone was so nice.

Fun experience. Much nicer than driving and fighting the traffic. We stayed in the Grand Canyon Railway Lodge the first night, dinner and breakfast included. The next day we took the train to the Canyon, a bus tour of the rim and spent the night at the El Tovar. We had until 3pm the next day to explore on our own then took the train back. It was wonderful and less than $1,000 excluding Thanksgiving Dinner and concessions in the park. Our only regret was not being able to spend an extra night in the park.
If you want a vacation at to the Grand Canyon I highly recommend the Grand Canyon Railway Package.

Will be going back this spring one of the wonders of the world you can t see it all in one or two days it will take years to see all of the Grand Canyon go for it start at the railway then go over to the east side.

Charming ride and beautiful scenery. Dee was our guide and she was lovely and so so funny.

This is an entertaining way to experience a train ride and the Grand Canyon at the same time. Train robbers, singing cowboys and more.

Wonderful time with the family!

Only thing I would recommend is to avoid seats 1A, 1B and 1C, 1D (at least on Car "E) as they are only a 1.5 person seats. So an adult and small child, not two adults!

Terrible experience. A train employee threatened my child and continued to harass me and him for 10 minutes and nothing was done. Very unsafe for families and elderly. Just drive to the canyon and pass on the company sponsored harassment.

Excellent entertainment. Ever time we went on a trip it was for a purpose. Like hunting or something very similar. never been on a vacation didn't think I would like it. Jeffery was outstanding.

Train itself was a great experience, pretty pricey though. The entertainment was not what I expected, musicians both way were oretty rough.
And the train robbery which I was so looking forward to was nothing more than a money grab.
Best part on the way back was the gracious bar tender and the Sheriff actor was. engaging.
All in all, It would have been amazing at half the price.
If you ask a lot then you should strive to be meet all expectations.

First time on train to GC. All the staff love what they do...and it shows

Yes the train is fun & the staff is very friendly & helpful, BUT.........if you are in a wheelchair.....they lied yes the train is WC accessible but after spending 45 minutes on the phone w/ a live person & explained I needed WC access through out the trip we were denied our bus trip..........after we on the train we were told this!!!!!! We had our own car but it was too late!!!! BUT......& this is a big BUT " if you want to pay $45 each we can put you on the other tour bus that has room" WHY?????? we paid for a first class train ticket & bus NOW you want more money??? Carl was very nice as was our train hostess. But our lifetime trip of seeing the Grand Canyon didn't happen. I waited a lifetime for this trip spent a LOT of $$$$ & was severely disappointed!!! The train office was VERY RUDE & the supervisor came & said " well we did listen to your phone call" GOOD so now you know I'm not lying YOU people screwed up NOT ME!!! & was insulted I asked for a refund for a trip on a bus we NEVER took. And we went in the off season!!!

A must do for families who don't get a chance to ride trains. The middle schoolers liked it, the 40 something parents liked it and the grands liked it. Coach seemed to be the happening place. Our host was fabulous any questions about the grand canyon village ... she could answer. Plenty of information given to enjoy the scenes on the way there and how to get the most of your time at the canyon. The host we had on the way back was new however, and that wasn't nearly as fun. Most people were tired and resting so it didn't matter so much then. One thing I would change?...I wish we weren't prepped for the robbery. We were told there was one when we bought tickets, which was fine. About 10 min before our host told everyone exactly what was going to happen and even had us get money out. Not so fun - that made it seem even more fake than it really was. I appreciated that robbers rode up next to the train but it kinda killed the mood when our host said they had made it safely on board (they were still outside our window). Aside from the disappointing performance we had a great time :) go for it!!

Carol, was our companion for the trip to and from the Grand Canyon. She made sure all of the passengers had everything they needed; food, drink, information on the Canyon and activities to be enjoyed. Thank you Carol, we had a great trip!

Excellent trip, great entertainment, nice equipment as well. Definitely will do again!

Very disappointed with the lack of communication during COVID. We took the train to stay the weekend and was never informed that the shuttle services were not running and there s only 1 restaurant open at this time until we arrived. Also, their website says nothing about no public transportation and is not up to date with food options. Employees are also not up to date with all the COVID regulations. We ended up having to a walk everywhere (1.5 mile each way to the grocery store). If you are staying longer than a day highly recommend driving in.

Great experience. We did the bus which gave us a few extra points to view the canyon from.

These guys, what can I tell you about the Train.com ,well their wonderful and kind and picture perfect every time! I love trains . And it like a dream to come true to meet and spent time amongst the trains staff their just very nice people

Awesome experience, very convenient - a little pricey. BUT great experience and very convenient. I would absolutely do it again.

The train trip was fantastic but cold and snowywhich made it all the more enjoyable! The singing cowboys and train robbery performers was outstanding! It is definitely worth a return trip!

Took the train to the grand canyon to and from Williams and it was a very enjoyable experience! We took the luxury car and they gave us snack boxes, champagne toast on the return trip and the McKenzie our bartender was very sweet and helpful.

The gun fight and train robbers were a cute touch.

Great advantures await on the train to the Grand Canyon. Well worth the price and inexpensive for what you get.

It was a fun ride! The food was good and our hostess in our car was amazing. She told jokes and gave us helpful information along the way. We had the dome car and had an excellent view.

Great experience. Great staff. Fun ride to and from the grand canyon.

A fun experience. Well worth using the railroad to get to the Grand Canyon and back.

Best way to arrive at the South rim of the Grand Canyon. Great customer service and fantastic views. Definitely worth the time and money.

Nice train that goes up to the Grand Canyon. With little surprises during the trip. Once arrived at the top there are bus rides that can be bought with the train. Either take the free shuttles. To do a minimum of walking you must take the one of 0930 and return to 1630. Class without air conditioning to avoid.

Everything was perfect and accommodations were great

This was an amazing experience, especially for the kiddos. I enjoyed it as a kid myself and it was so much fun to see the same look and amazement in our son s eyes. A very unique, one of a kind experiences!

Just road the train from William's to grand canyon. Had so much fun. Music was great thank you Jake. And little Kyle was a great porter made even better.

The train ride was wonderful. Great service, train had a cafe car. We were kept informed of the local sights and we will be back soon, thank you.

Great train ride to the Grand Canyon. Relaxing way to arrive. Always fun to have a train robbery reenactment.

Kids had a great time. Service was good, scenery great

Had a really great experience with the Grand Canyon Railway tour. We took package that included bus tour as well. The bus stopped at some key attraction places, halted for 15 mins to take any photos and dropped back at the train departure station. Overall I would definitely recommend taking the grand canyon rail tour

Add this to your bucket list. An excellent trip for honeymoon, anniversary, retirees and families (my opinion better for kids 10 and older to appreciate the grandness). I highly recommend the train trip with the overnight stay inside the Grand Caynon park. Boom the two hour tour upon arrival and then a bike ride with drop off at Hopi Point and pick up at Hermits Rest.

Beautiful! The elk come up close in town and the cap grounds but it can be confusing when trying to get around

The staff on the train was very attentive. They handled my handicap status superbly, using a hand crank lift to get me on the train. The seats where I sat had lots if leg room. There was entertain ment, men singing with their guitars. They were accepting tips, but passed us by, even though we had money in view in our hand. The entertainment on the way back was even less entertaining, the supposed train robbers only walked through the train cars, no holdups, though I saw that they took tips as they were walking through. I didn't see that they earned those tips. The Sheriff came later, and he was a little better. At least stopping and talking to people at least.

I liked the ride. It saved me from driving into the park and not knowing where to go or where to park. The activities were greared for kids which i didn't really expect. Since we were both adults, no kids, the activities were a bit juvenile but ok.

As locals, it took us a while to take the train to the canyon, but we're glad we did! Each car has an attendant to impress you with local knowledge and make sure you enjoy your trip. The live performers were really fun, and the warden kept the teens and pre-teens off their electronic devices so they could enjoy the family time. We recommend taking the train up and staying at least one night at the canyon for a family adventure or romantic getaway. You'll love it!

Highly recommended! A enjoyable way to spend a day at the Grand Canyon.

Fun excursion particularly for younger kids or if you want a led tour. You don't have a lot of free time to explore on your own if that's what you're looking to do.

Was better than driving. Got to look at lots of scenery and wild life. There is entertainment on board too!

The hotel is comfortable and easy access to downtown William's. The Harvey restaurant is cafeteria style and the food is delicious. There are several train engines that someone can take a photo in front of.