Verde Canyon Railroad

We were recommended this by a local resident. It did not disappoint. We had a great time!

There is a cafe type restaurant at the station but honestly, the complimentary charcuterie that comes with your ticket is more than enough to eat! We ordered sandwiches from the cafe and never even ate them. While we did not partake, there is a bar at the platform that has cocktails before you board.

Once onboard you are given champagne (or apple juice) to toast with when the train departs. Such a cute added touch. There is a bar and a restroom in each car. Our bartender was great. She was very welcoming and kept our drinks full.

It's a long ride so we were very thankful for our attendant who kept offering up the history of the train and the canyon. He had tons of stories and helped point out landmarks and wildlife. (Saw 2 bald eagles) The train comes to a stop, the locomotive engine changes ends and you head back to the station.

The canyon itself is very beautiful. We were lucky that it was a sunny, fairly warm day in January so we spent most of the ride outside in the open air car.

Most certainly would recommend this experience. I mean, how often to you get to ride through a canyon in a train car?!?!

**Wish we would have known - not far away is the super cute town of Cottonwood. Lots of shops and restaurants. Small, lively downtown are with plenty of places to see within walking distance. If we would have known we would have planned to visit either before or after the ride.**

Good value for the price! Long, slow scenic ride, with the option to be inside or outside.
The food in the cafe is quite good for "attraction destination" food. I enjoyed the Turkey sandwich and my husband had the hot dog, which was "just enough". The fries are double battered, similar to fresh Burger King fries.
The crowd is mostly the retired age, with only a handful of people younger than 40, mostly kids with young families.
Beer is sold on the patio where we wait.

Listen, this is a really well done, really sleepy tour, up and back the same track. If it's your first day in the desert, and you have never seen anything like this, it is probably incredible.
I was bored about 90 minutes in, and my husband was as well. Unfortunately we still had 2 and 1/2 hours left to go! The train goes 10 mph, painfully slow. I could even forgive the pace of the tour if they did not play the most ridiculous music. The train themed songs were okay, but it got very hokey and almost too easy listening to listen to. Sadly you cannot control whether you hear it or not. That's where the bartenders come in! These skilled Crafters of happy juice know what they're doing. The menu is great and they have some interesting drink selections.

I would not recommend this tour for someone with ADHD or with small children. If you are 65 and up, this is the tour for you! It is organized and clean and safe and not over stimulating. I wouldn't go again, but I know a lot of people who would love it.

4 hours train ride was little long without much to see. Seats were comfortable- couch style for 4 people.
Good snack pack and champagne for all guest and apple cider for kids.

Service- 5 stars
Comfort- 5 stars
Cleanliness- 4 stars
Scenery- 3 stars

Highly recommend! Just a wonderful, scenic experience. You have to experience, words won't give it justice.

I came here with the Things on our second day of vacation in AZ (December 19th, 2023).

Verde Canyon Railroad's Magical Christmas Journey is a special holiday nighttime journey full of brilliant decorations, Arizona wildlife characters, Santa, Mrs. Claus and the train's own all-original storybook tale. This Christmas has cozy living room-style seating and access to adjoining open-air cars, the Magical Christmas Journey itself is a one hour round-trip, an abbreviated journey from the railroad's standard ride. Along the way, illuminated animals beckon the train towards the North Pole, and arrival at Santa's Workshop provides a thrill never to be forgotten. A dozen fun, full-size, brilliantly illuminated buildings, animated with live elves and storybook animals, inspires the imagination and holiday spirit of all passengers. The train slowly cruises past the Polar Post Office, Reindeer Flight School, Mrs. Claus' Bakery,Santa's Workshop, the Ugly Sweater Factor and a few other fun places before a brief stop to pick up one extra special passenger, Santa ("I know him", Elf). Full bar service is available on board the train, including spirits-free options such as hot cocoa.

We enjoyed our time on this train. The staff/elfs were friendly and upbeat because 'tis the season! Mrs. Claus was by far the most talkative of all the holiday crew and brought joy to all passengers. Total for four tickets (three adult and one child $241.67).

SIMPLY AMAZING! The Magical Christmas Journey was great!

The day after Thanksgiving we were looking to take our 1 year old granddaughter somewhere to get us all in the Christmas spirit.

THIS IS THE PLACE! I am writing this with a huge grin on my face.

It was such a simple thing we did and it will be a lasting memory for my entire family.

I think all the tickets are sold out but i could be wrong. IF you can get- you should definitely go!

They have food and drinks for kids as well as alcohol drinks for adults. You can even eat on the train and they have full bars throughout the train.

The best part, stopping at the North Pole and picking up Santa and Mrs. Clause! They walked through each train and greeted each child AND adult.

Just the best time. Thank you to all of the ELF staff who do such a great job.

We rode the Verde Canyon Railroad on Halloween, and the last day of the month, which was the last day of the Ales on Rails for October. I purchased the package online at their website which was very easy to navigate.

We arrived at the depot about 11 am, checked in and were given our tickets for the Arizona beer tasting on the patio, our lunch, and train ride. You can pick up the lunch just before you board and take it with you. We chose to eat our lunch with the beer tasting, and I am glad we did as onboard you are given a meat and cheese tray.

The beer tasting was good. We each had 4 tastings, all beers were local Arizona beers along with one Arizona mango cider which was refreshing and delicious. Surprisingly, one of our favorite beers was the Milk Shake beer from Phoenix Brewing. It was an IPA, but it wasn't hoppy, it was more creamy with hints of vanilla. Really nice.

After a delicious lunch and the beer tasting it was time to board the train. We were in the Flagstaff car with Jacob as our bartender and Byron talking the entire time in the outdoor car. He was awesome and we learned so much Arizona history and history of mining that was done in Verde Canyon. We were really impressed by both attendants, great job!

Once seated before the train pulled out, we found two meat and cheese trays on our table. Jacob came by to pour a small cup of champagne for a toast as the train pulled out.

The train ride is about 4 hours round trip, and the scenery is gorgeous, the narration in the outdoor cars is fantastic, and the bartenders are friendly, talkative and also offer some history along the way if you are sitting in your seats.

Parking is easy in the lot for the railroad, and the museum on property is fascinating. The store had lots of fun items and the food from the depot was very good.

Well worth the money spent and such a fun experience, I highly recommend it.

Hubby and I have been wanting to do this since moving to AZ almost four years ago.

Decided to do it as a birthday celebration for the hubs and it did NOT disappoint!

Buying tickets online was easy but we did have to call to get a 10% AAA discount. That almost covered the pre-ordered lunches we also purchased.

Parking is free across the street and the entire process is very organized.

When you check in, they give you your tickets and lunch vouchers. From there, you pick up your lunch and find an outdoor table. You can also eat your packaged lunch on board.

They had a handful of $15 lunch options, but we chose the BBQ pork sandwich. It was delicious and very substantial when including the drink, slaw and chips served with it.

They ask you to arrive an hour before which allowed us time to visit the museum and the wildlife specialist who was there showing off a beautiful rehabilitated bald eagle.

We boarded the train about 15 minutes prior to our departure and once inside, it was noticeably cooler with the AC running. The assigned couch we were sat at was so comfortable and the charcuterie board (individually packaged for each passenger) they had for each of us was huge!

If you're a light lunch eater, this might be enough. Each tray came with a bottle of water, in addition to the champagne or sparkling cider toast we all made before departure. What a deal!

The ride itself was beautiful and so relaxing. So much to learn about and see. We spent the first part outside and the return inside, visiting with the nice couple we were paired with.

The service was great, the gentleman on board sharing stories and the history of the train and area was also a nice touch! Wish he had a microphone (both for us to hear better but also to save his voice) but overall, it was very cool.

Whether you're in state or just visiting, you don't want to miss out on this adventure!

Renting the caboose is the way to go but book in advance ... way in advance. What a fun way to spend time with friends and celebrate a special occasion.
The Verde Canyon Railroad team, Dawn, Jessica, Pearl and Hayden were amazing! And what a beautiful journey. We loved every minute of it.

Give this experience all the stars - our group had such a great time. We were a group of 3, so unfortunately we were split up between a table of 2 and then 1 joining another group of 3 on the couch seating, but we were at least next to each other (they do mention this possibility as you buy tickets and suggest buying and extra to make yourself a group of 4 to guarantee seating together, but we didn't think that was worth it). It didn't matter too much as we spent the majority of the time in the open air car, which was plenty spacious. Scenery is quite nice; not the magnificent red rock formations of nearby Sedona but beautiful mesa grasslands, canyon , and river area. It is an in-and-out journey, so it may feel a bit repetitive and long on the ride back to the depot, but I found it easy to enjoy the natural beauty and great weather.