Grand Canyon Railway Review

Just simply amazing. Before we got on the train we had ample opportunity to browse the gift shop and take pictures of the trains and other things in the area.

The train cars are really cool. We got tickets on one of the upgraded cars so it wasnt very crowded. A staffed mini bar with complimentary coffee and ice water really made the trip up and back much more enjoyable.

Being able to sit back and relax during the ride up and back was worth every penny.

The staff was friendly and very knowledgeable. We had plenty of time once we arrived at the Grand Canyon to look around, shop, and take pictures before we had to get on the train to go back.

10/10 would do this again. This is the best way to go, hands down. A perfect fit for your Grand Canyon adventure!

Great experience riding the train to the Grand Canyon. Lots of useful information provided by the caring staff. Musical performances, train robbers on the loose

Great experience with great staff and entertainment. If you stay at the canyon and/or the railway hotel, they make the experience seamless.

This experience was outstanding start to finish. I went last August and everyone was so friendly! The car hosts, the gift shop employees and the hotel staff. Well done. It was truly was the experience of a lifetime!

A must when you visit. A well oiled machine from accommodations, employees to food.

The food was top notch and the entertainment was to die for. We had so much fun in the summer of 2015! We so can t wait to go back for another trip!!

If you have kids a four man train robbery and a sheriff play.the train is the way to go from Williams, AZ

Fun experience. Dome car was fun but the provided snacks were don-ettes and unripe whole fruit and soda. Not really what I thought our upgrade was buying.

Lots of fun and I'm glad to have gone but the trip was long and a little boring. I wouldn't do it again.

Visit the Grand Canyon, to make the steam train, very nice experience.

This was very exciting trip to take the train to the grabd canyon

It was great! Love the first class car. Employees were wonderful..

But the luxury pass was nice but really need to know more about it in advance so you really understand the package. We road in the parlor going to the canyon and in the upgraded seating area coming back. Had a great time in both sections.

The Railway runs between Grand CANYON Village and Williams AZ. It departs every day from Williams. It's an amazing trip up to the canyon no matter the seating option you choose.. It kicks off with a wild west gun show and about mid way bandits ride their horses up to the moving train and board it. It's educational, cheesy, and fun .. young or old, you'll love this trip.

Everyone needs to experience the train ride to Grand Canyon Village! Such a great & enjoyable time. Kuddos to our server Kristina for our train car, the Buckey O'neil, she was the best!

A nice way to travel to the grand canyon especially if there is snow or rain. The upgrade to 1st class was nice because of the extra space and snacks and drinks. Most seat pairs also rotate in 1st class so you can face your own party if desired but you do lose the option for foot rest and tray table if you face others. In coach class the seats are not uncomfortable but it is basic school bus bench type seating. They did serve water and our host Dennis also offered hand wipes which was nice as a refresher. Very friendly service from everyone aboard. We experienced the fiddler twice between our two trips but we figured that had to do with the fact that we changed seat classes each way. We didnt get to experience the guitarist.
Great for small kiddos to be able to look for animals along the route.

Great ride, Amberose was great,entertaining and informative

The sites you see from the train is beautiful, and if your lucky you can see cows and antelope. The only thing is that there isn't any entertainment to pass the time, and the little there is isn't very entertaining. The train ride is quite expensive and if you are doing a one way trip, my train boarded at 9:15 am and left the station at 9:30 am and we arrived at 11:30am, you only get 3 hours and 40 minutes to see the grand canyon before you get back on and leave at 3:30.

A lot of fun. Kids loved the ride. Very relaxing and the staff is very out going and friendly. Cowboy show was entertaining. We went to the Grand canyon in coach and went back first class, which is great since there are free snacks in first class and the seats are a little more cushy. A great experience. Makenzie was awesome on the ride back! Not sure if I spelled her name right, so picture is attached!

Great experience, Staff made it all worthwhile. The cowboys interact with the kids and make it a blast for all. Our car attendant JOY made us all feel welcome and valued. She Shared interesting information and personal experience to make the trip come alive. Both the banjo and guitar player/singers were a treat and connected well with the guests. We would do it again when our grand kids are old enough to enjoy even more.

If you're concerned about COVID - STAY AWAY. The Railway does not enforce any of the COVID promises they make on their website, through their ticket sales or verbally when you board the train. I am concerned about it and called where they very specifically reinforced that masks were "required on the train and enforced". We booked First Class which in total for 1 night hotel and the tickets cost over $700 - this was much more but I was assured it meant many less people in my car and that seats around us would be empty with social distancing on the car. Crazy expensive but it was an extra precaution on our part.

Then, when we arrived at the hotel - where only the staff were masks (there was no enforcement on property) I again asked at the train depot if we were going to have an issue with non enforcement of masks on the train. The depot ensured me again that masks were enforced on the train. I was getting concerned because during the preshow - people were not wearing masks. As we boarded, I again asked the host for our car and was reassured. As we took our seats, probably 70% of the train had but were not wearing masks so I right away went back to the host of the car and he said as soon as we departed an announcement would be made and they would be required. He did do that and the exception was made that while eating or drinking they could be removed. (I wasn't excited about it but we can live with that as long as they are back on the rest of the time.) Immediately a man in front of us asked the host, "Do we have to wear the masks while we're on the train? The host said "yes" and the guy completely ignored him along with his wife. So it proceeded that by about 15 minutes in, nearly 80% of the train was not wearing a mask. I spoke with the host and shared with him my concerns. He was nice but said they can only tell them a few times and that he can't do much more.

The train ride is over 2 hours each way so I requested that if they were not going to enforce what they told me they would - I wanted to have my family moved away from all of these people not following any rules. He was able to make accommodations for us by having us sit in the cafe car away from most people but in return we missed the entertainment, guide, service and the first class seats. We sat on bench seats and at least had our safety...until the performance staff came in and took all their masks off too. There were cowboys and a musician sitting in the car maskless all talking about how much money people made or didn't in tips ect. right next to us.

If I hadn't had gone WAY out of my way to confirm the mask policy and the railroad wouldn't have sent me communications directly stating that all of these precautions would be enforced, I'd be frustrated at the lack of safety. Since I spent a ton of money to upgrade on their recommendation, asked about 10 times, saw all of their marketing about the enforcement and then was forced to not have the experience due to allowing others to ruin the experience for us - I'm really angry. It's dangerous and they shouldn't be operating and lying about their enforcement. I'll be reporting this and filing complaints with the corporate headquarters along with the consumer agency in AZ.

One of the interesting historic buildings in the Grand Canyon Village is the Railway Depot located just below El Tovar Hotel. This is where passengers arrive when taking the 2hr 15 minute train ride up from Williams, Arizona.

This is a 2-story building constructed out of logs in 1909. It very much appears as it did in old photos that from the turn of the 20th century, when the Grand Canyon was opening up to American tourist and travellers eager to visit the canyon.

The waiting room inside the railway depot has some old pictures that you can see and there is an old steam locomotive from the turn of the 20th century resting just outside the depot. This is also nice to see in addition to the historic railway depot building.

You can comfortably pass by and see the Grand Canyon Railway Depot in 10-15 minutes of your time. Combine with visits to the nearby Hopi House, Verkamp's Store and the El Tovar hotel

I just got back from riding this train as well as one of the competitor trains. The "other" train is almost half the price for similar options, but actually felt like an upgrade when comparing the two trains. For reference purposes, my family rode in the upgraded observation section. I would recommend reviewing your options before booking this expensive and disappointing experience. The train "robbery" was not like it had been in the past, which I was told it was because of legality. The buffet on the train ran out of food, which was a disappointment, especially since some of my family members were hoping to get something since they are diabetics and this was an upgraded offering.

Great experience! If you have the time...do it! If your time is limited do the single day round trip with the bus freedom tour with a meal at one of the local eateries to get it all done. If you can, stay overnight and take your time. The scenery is nice but not breathtaking with very little view of the canyon on approach. But the ride is nice. You add an hour each way as the train is not fast... Running maybe 30-40 mph... But it can be worth not battling the parking at the canyon and getting the nice experience.

Best way to get to the Grand Canyon NP and the staff make the ride interesting and fun.

This is great for people who want a very loud train experience. A peaceful terrain on a very neat train is turned into something out of a nightmare by way of so-called entertainment and constant overhead banter. Would have rather driven ourselves as Williams, Az had nothing value added to the trip. The train personnel announced masking but it was not reinforced once people boarded- a super-spreader in the making.

Fun to ride an historic train. Staff and railroad crew are very friendly and knowledgeable. A must do for adults, however; might be a bit boring for children. Can hear the question now "Are we there yet?"

Great for families... Train doesn't travel to fast... So there is entertainment on the train... Recommend first class seats... Observation seats are a little cramped... Great time for kids.... Have fun!

Ride to the Grand Canyon like they did in the past. On board PSA approve entertainment. Great experience through beautiful scenery.

The staff is excellent & very knowledgeable & makes the ride worth it. The only real downfall is you don't get enough time at the Grand Canyon to really enjoy the sights. We have teenage kids & kinda wish we'd driven to the canyon & had more time. But for people with smaller kids this is a good option. Can't say enough good things about the staff they really did a great job!!!!

First time to the Grand Canyon. Kids had a blast. This is a great way to visit.

Loved traveling on GCR train, good onboard experience

It s a Bouquet List item to at least ride the train once up and back from the Grand Canyon. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.

Awesome ride! Mark was the best storyteller and we loved getting robbed! The Grand Canyon is glorious!

Perfect way to get to canyon. No driving, refreshments and entertainment. A win win.

What a treat to be able to drive a quick two and a half hours out of the city to this gem. My husband and I decided on the spur of the moment to book a quick trip and found this option was the most feasible given it was the last minute - last minute or not it was fantastic!. We booked on a Friday night and found ourselves in the cozy mountain town of Williams on a Saturday morning. Despite being a holiday weekend driving into Williams and checking into the attraction then the hotel later on that evening was an absolute breeze. Luckily we were able to reserve first class Dome seats for both the ride up to the Grand Canyon as well as the ride back to Williams... great idea for sure! Being on the upper deck of the train car with full 360 views let us soak in every site along the two-and-a-half-hour ride up to the canyon. I love the fact that both of us were able to sit back, relax, and enjoy the view the entire way. Usually, one of us would have to sacrifice sightseeing being the driver. That was not the case this time. Added plus, first class and dome car reservations include complimentary snack and soft drink service as well as adult beverages from the fully stocked in-car bar (it was nice not having to cross the cars over) for purchase. Nice touches, there was also a musician that came through for entertainment and the champagne toast on the southbound return trip.

A couple of tips, if you can, book the 4:30 southbound return train to catch the sunset. Also, the 9:30 northbound to the rim train on the first Saturday of the month is run by a steam engine. We booked the 10:30 Northbound but enjoyed being able to watch the 9:30 steam train roll out from the station, horns whistles blowing.

Expensive but worth it you are going to make the grand canyon a focal point of your stay.

A fun experience the whole family and everyone should experience at least once.

Take a ride on the Grand Canyon Railway! Your family will enjoy this comfortable stress free trip up to the Grand Canyon.

Wonderful, beautiful, and tons of fun. Whether you sit in the "dome" area or in the main area of the cart, you are in for some beautiful country. Nice and easygoing speeds help to enjoy the view.

Great Experience here with Brian as the host in the luxery car on the train. If you go, pick this option with plenty of windows for viewing! And, you get the lower level with comfortable couches and chairs if you desire. Can you ride the train cheaper than the luxery car? Yes, but don't! There are also bars and restaurants in Williams that you should check out as well.

I've not been, but just read a beautiful story of what your railroad did for a special needs older child with autism. Thank you for your humanity in that situation. I also have a son 10 with autism, people don't understand. Again what a great job y'all did for that family. Prayers too your company for going beyond and above. Merry Christmas. Hope one day we can visit your train.

Loved the train to the Grand Canyon. Relaxing ride with great guides.

Sooooo much fun!!! The train is awesome staff are nice and friendly!! And the shows are fun and cute!!

Really nice ride to the Grand Canyon, It might be a little pricey but go first class. You get all you can drink, non alcoholic of course. And they give you some decent snacks and the seats are really comfortable. I fell asleep on the way over and back.

Fun experience, very relaxed, great service, pretty ride exceptional staff. Great way to see the Grand Canyon. We opted to stay one night, our luggage was taken care of to our room and back to the train. The Grand Canyon was easy to get around because of the optional tours and buses.

Best service and best thing for doing the grand canyon. Lunch bed it.

Superb experience! Nice return and return trips. Welcoming staff. 4 hours to visit the grand canyon on site sufficient

Great way to get to the Canyon.
Clean and comfortable.
But If you are disabled, drive.
They give you a placard and code to drive everywhere the shuttles go.

We took the train to grand canyon and had a great time. Nice relaxing ride with great goodies along the way. Very friendly, helpful staff.

THIS is the way to go to the Grand Canyon! Fun, great service and immensely entertaining. Corina makes a killer bloody mary and Conductor Ed is a hunk!

Great way to visit the Grand Canyon. The entertainment was a little cheesy. I recommend that you arrange to take the trip out one day, spend a night at a lodge, then take the trip back the next day. You can pick a different car to ride back in. The dome car was a nice experience.

It's a good way to get to the Grand Canyon. A train ride can be fun. I would have liked the ride better without being "entertained" all the way there and back. I don't mind someone pointing out landmarks and things of interest or giving advice on what to do at the canyon. I didn't like the host or musicians passing through telling corny jokes and they all want tips. I could do without that but some people enjoyed it.

Great views, added bonus with thew show. Relaxing ride. Loved it!

Had a great time on the Desert View dome car. Entertainment was fun and Christina was awesome.

Great place to see the beauty our country has to offer

Without a doubt the single worst booking experience I've ever had. I was planning a trip on the Polar Express Experience. The website claims discounts for AAA Members and military veterans--I spent 2 hours trying to apply these discounts to no avail. We called 4 different numbers before we were informed that discounts do no apply to the Polar Express (this exception is not listed anywhere on the website), so we booked over the phone without a discount. We asked for the 7:30 train, with seats near another party. Less than a week before the event date, we missed an early morning call from an unknown number; no message was left. Over 24 hours later, our friends in the other party received a phone call from the same number notifying them that we had requested to sit with them, but our reservation was for a different time (5:30). No options were provided. Again, we called 4 different numbers to straighten out the situation before leaving a message with the train station. We still have not had our call returned.

The train was an excellent way to get into the Canyon. Good entertainment and we saw Deer, antelope, and elk. (And some cows). The time at the Canyon was short (about 3 hours) so I would suggest taking the Freedom Tour. It takes you away from the crowds and you are not packed standing on the shuttle buses.

Really warm welcome.
A completely atypical hotel, sleeping on a train is rather rare !!
Very clean, visiting the village is also a good time to spend

Great experience on the train. A little pricey but blifil u dont like to drive and want to spend 5 hours at the canyon than it's great. Train is slow so takes a cpl of hours, but the staff was amazing and the shows were cute. It's a pleasant family train. Liqour pours in luxury dome really suck but they give u 1 free champagne and you can move around in 3 sections.

Really had a great time. Good experience and well worth it

Very enjoyable way to get to the canyon; beautiful views, informative and knowledgeable guide to make it interesting and educational, and Western style entertainment, music, etc. --- and all on a train!

Call ahead and ask for the train with Cameron as the host, avoid the old guy who just goes through the motions.

Beware, this train does NOT actually give you views of the Grand Canyon, just transportation to and from with some mild history and entertainment.

During the pandemic there is no transportation at Grand Canyon Village. If you're planning on doing any activities farther than a mile from the South Rim train station, you might be better off driving. We missed being able to the Pink Jeep.

The cowboys who rib the train are fun, but could use a visit to Knott's Berry Farm during Calico Alive, or to the Wild West Stunt Show (I suppose there are videos on YouTube). Sam was the best cowboy of the all.

Over all, fun trip and worth the money. Will definitely do again.

A very nice and different way to visit the Grand Canyon

The best way to see the Grand Canyon !
Take the Grand Tour ! It's Great !

Your train trip was one of the best parts of our trip that day! Nick our car host was awesome ....deserves a raise and kudos for being everything to everyone in that car . The rest of the staff were outstanding as well Your musical entertainment was outstanding which includes Nick
Please make sure those mentioned in this comment receive recognition for their excellent service
Jianni family

We stayed in Williams for 2 nights and did the Grand Canyon Railway to get to the South Rim. Journey started with an outside show demonstration of cowboys and Indians which was fun. The train journey itself was fun being held up by Cowboys stopping the train and taking cash tips like bandits. I was hoping for a Steam Loco but had to settle for an old Diesel. At the Canyon Village looking over that small wall for the first time is incredible. We have been to the Canyon three times and I think the south rim has the best view with a super visitor centre and hotels with good food.

We had a great time. We had seats in the Parlor car at the end of the train. It had a breakfast buffet, beverages, an observation deck out the back door, comfortable seating, entertainment, great views, good history lessons, and a great hostess. And because no one else wanted to spend the money, we had the entire car to ourselves. We would do it again in a heartbeat.

Happy day for a ride. Both up and back different days in different cars. Had a very nice time makes a wonderful ride. I did the adult ride

Great scenic ride from Williams to Grand Canyon. Entertainment on board, knowledgeable staff on board.