First, I'll begin with two quick apologies:
1) If I've put this in the wrong subforum, and mods wish to move, certainly no offense taken
2) I tend to be "of the moment", so my photographs are nothing special, but I've tried to include some of the more interesting ones nonetheless
This past Saturday, October 19th, I took the Alaska Railroad Northbound from Anchorage to Fairbanks, accompanied by my mom. We travelled in "Adventure" class, which is the off seasons, and, ostensibly, the "lower" of the two classes (the other being the peak season "Goldstar"), but I honestly felt it was a great operation from start to end.
I've taken Goldstar myself in both directions from Anchorage to Denali (about 2/3rds the total distance) myself on a few occasions, and the full distance of Adventure class (as this time) once before.
I can say absolutely comfortably they run a great operation, with on time cars, reliable baggage delivery, clean surrounds, kind staff, and tasty food.
On the Northbound end, the train departs at 8:30 am, and the depot opens at 7:30 am. Since boarding is pretty efficient, I suspect most of this gap Is to allow for check in, and baggage handling/tagging/sorting.
One quick note - while there is a fair amount of seating, with my mom, who is on the elderly side, I was glad we got there on the early end. It meant she had no trouble finding a seat in the station, which helped start the day more comfortably.
The station as a basic coffee cart, and small gift shop. If you're looking for a more substantial breakfast I'd recommend either waiting for the train, or having it in town prior to leaving (thumbs up to the Snow City Cafe).
Seats are assigned, and while you're not given choice, they will seat members of your party toghter. It's a single level train, so minimal steps and climbing are required.
Each car has a modest luggage rack downstairs, but I'd really recommend checking anything much larger than a daybag - you're limted by what fits in the overhead racks, or beneath the seats.
The train has a "Bistro" car, which serves bar drinks as well as simple snacks like warm (but premade) sandwiches. Note that in *both* food cars, only cards are accepted, no cash (except as tips)
Theres's also a cafe car. They'll come through and take reservations a few hours ahead, and we never had trouble getting a seat. It seems like dinner was the popular meal, but that was also the one we skipped, having plans for dinner in Fairbanks upon arrival.
The food was fine. It won't win any Michelin Stars, I'm sure, but the menu was varied (https://www.alaskarailroad.com/sites/default/files/Marketing/2024_Winter_Menu.pdf), and had a decent balance of hearty and (kinda) healthy. If you're a vegetarian, or put off by more uncommon meats like reindeer, you may want to come prepared. Seating is communal, at tables for 4. I'll say the tables seemed a good bit more spacious than Amtrak 4 place tables, but the time alotted per meal was perhaps a little tighter.
There are a reasonable number of announcements along the way - railroad history, information on flagstops, and so on. But also a reasonable about of silence to just relax and enjoy. And, on that note, don't forget there are some pretty long stretches with no cell. I had a satellite modem (work obligations), but don't count of "constant contact"
Electricity, also, was in short supply - each passenger car had a USB charging station at the end, but that's about it, so bring your own power bank if you plan on lots of photos or otherwise consuming lots of battery.
The train cars were clean. The seats were adequately comfortable, but did lack basics like outlets and tray tables.Each passenger car has two restrooms - a regular one, and a larger disability-accessible one. I'd say there was a wait more often than not, but typically brief.
Upon arriving in Fairbanks, I'd suggest contacting your accomodation in advance and asking for their advice on transportation. A train of passengers is a lot to "dump on" a small town like Fairbanks, so advance planning helps.
Bags do start coming out immediately, but it did take a solid maybe 20 minutes to get through them all, so despite the hard work put in, there was a lot to do. You'll be waiting inside the heated station.
We were flying home the next day, and I had been tempted to get a generic chain near the airport. Instead, I got cabins at "Pikes Lodge", and was very glad I did. I'll let the pictures below (two cabins, for my mom and I) speak for themselves.
Overall, as always, I really do recommend this trip. Even if everything else were terrible (and it's certainly not), the views and experience alone make it a great experience.
Happy to answer any questions as I can.
1) If I've put this in the wrong subforum, and mods wish to move, certainly no offense taken
2) I tend to be "of the moment", so my photographs are nothing special, but I've tried to include some of the more interesting ones nonetheless
This past Saturday, October 19th, I took the Alaska Railroad Northbound from Anchorage to Fairbanks, accompanied by my mom. We travelled in "Adventure" class, which is the off seasons, and, ostensibly, the "lower" of the two classes (the other being the peak season "Goldstar"), but I honestly felt it was a great operation from start to end.
I've taken Goldstar myself in both directions from Anchorage to Denali (about 2/3rds the total distance) myself on a few occasions, and the full distance of Adventure class (as this time) once before.
I can say absolutely comfortably they run a great operation, with on time cars, reliable baggage delivery, clean surrounds, kind staff, and tasty food.
On the Northbound end, the train departs at 8:30 am, and the depot opens at 7:30 am. Since boarding is pretty efficient, I suspect most of this gap Is to allow for check in, and baggage handling/tagging/sorting.
One quick note - while there is a fair amount of seating, with my mom, who is on the elderly side, I was glad we got there on the early end. It meant she had no trouble finding a seat in the station, which helped start the day more comfortably.
The station as a basic coffee cart, and small gift shop. If you're looking for a more substantial breakfast I'd recommend either waiting for the train, or having it in town prior to leaving (thumbs up to the Snow City Cafe).
Seats are assigned, and while you're not given choice, they will seat members of your party toghter. It's a single level train, so minimal steps and climbing are required.
Each car has a modest luggage rack downstairs, but I'd really recommend checking anything much larger than a daybag - you're limted by what fits in the overhead racks, or beneath the seats.
The train has a "Bistro" car, which serves bar drinks as well as simple snacks like warm (but premade) sandwiches. Note that in *both* food cars, only cards are accepted, no cash (except as tips)
Theres's also a cafe car. They'll come through and take reservations a few hours ahead, and we never had trouble getting a seat. It seems like dinner was the popular meal, but that was also the one we skipped, having plans for dinner in Fairbanks upon arrival.
The food was fine. It won't win any Michelin Stars, I'm sure, but the menu was varied (https://www.alaskarailroad.com/sites/default/files/Marketing/2024_Winter_Menu.pdf), and had a decent balance of hearty and (kinda) healthy. If you're a vegetarian, or put off by more uncommon meats like reindeer, you may want to come prepared. Seating is communal, at tables for 4. I'll say the tables seemed a good bit more spacious than Amtrak 4 place tables, but the time alotted per meal was perhaps a little tighter.
There are a reasonable number of announcements along the way - railroad history, information on flagstops, and so on. But also a reasonable about of silence to just relax and enjoy. And, on that note, don't forget there are some pretty long stretches with no cell. I had a satellite modem (work obligations), but don't count of "constant contact"
Electricity, also, was in short supply - each passenger car had a USB charging station at the end, but that's about it, so bring your own power bank if you plan on lots of photos or otherwise consuming lots of battery.
The train cars were clean. The seats were adequately comfortable, but did lack basics like outlets and tray tables.Each passenger car has two restrooms - a regular one, and a larger disability-accessible one. I'd say there was a wait more often than not, but typically brief.
Upon arriving in Fairbanks, I'd suggest contacting your accomodation in advance and asking for their advice on transportation. A train of passengers is a lot to "dump on" a small town like Fairbanks, so advance planning helps.
Bags do start coming out immediately, but it did take a solid maybe 20 minutes to get through them all, so despite the hard work put in, there was a lot to do. You'll be waiting inside the heated station.
We were flying home the next day, and I had been tempted to get a generic chain near the airport. Instead, I got cabins at "Pikes Lodge", and was very glad I did. I'll let the pictures below (two cabins, for my mom and I) speak for themselves.
Overall, as always, I really do recommend this trip. Even if everything else were terrible (and it's certainly not), the views and experience alone make it a great experience.
Happy to answer any questions as I can.
