Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad

This is a must-​do during our visit to Durango. It’s a great way to spend the better part of a day and such a lovely, scenic ride. I love the fact that the train is historic, but much of Durango is anyways.
We did the Snowdown brunch train, and I highly recommend. Yes, it was a bit pricey but worth it. We enjoyed accommodation on a first class car — in this case it was the Knight Sky — a delicious brunch and an attendant. We also got a tote bag and souvenir coffee mugs.
Because it was during their winter season, the train only went to Cascade. I didn’t feel like we were missing out, however, by not going all the way to Silverton. The views were spectacular! The Knight Sky has a glass roof offering great views.
I can’t wait to do it again, this time taking the trip all the way to Silverton during the summer!

We love the railroad. We have done the Polar Express here and the Dinosaur Train last summer. We loved both… The Polar Express is a tight 90 minutes and the Dinosaur Train is a little longer because you get off in the middle to meet Buddy and the other characters, look for fossils, and listen to the band.
What we love even more than the train rides, though, is the train museum that’s behind the depot. It’s free of charge and has a wealth of trains, large and small, including an incredible toy train set-​up that my son has spent hours and hours watching. It’s his favorite place in the world. And it’s free. Makes it a lot easier to open your wallet for the special events, for sure.
Glad we’ve had the opportunity to visit several times. And now that our son is a little older, we are planning the full day ride for the regular railroad adventure. Great views await!

«The thing about trains… it doesn’t matter where they’re going. What matters is deciding to get on.» We decided to get on the Polar Express and are happy we did! Our 2 year old (plus all of the other kids and the rest of us «believers») had a wonderful time! The Chefs were fun and very interactive. The re-​creation of the movie /​book was good. Everyone aboard our train car had a great time, whether it was singing with the Chefs, watching the hobo, or chatting with Santa! We drove 7+ hours to get there and are already planning on making it an annual tradition. I definitely recommend this special event!!!

This is for The Polar Express
It was amazing. We took our 2 kids last night and it was so fun! It’s more like an interactive thing on the train verses somethings going on outside the train. So it doesn’t matter what side of the train you sit on. We had 2 «chefs» in our train car: Chef Fluffy and Chef Jelly Bean. They were awesome and so hilarious! On the way to the North Pole, we get told the story of the Polar Express and the chefs go around showing pictures from the book. Everyone got hot chocolate and cookie. In the car we picked out in the beginning we got souvenir mugs too. We got to see Santa and the elves and on the way back everyone sang Christmas carols. It was a great time. We’re definitely coming back!!!

We did the Charlie Brown Halloween ride. The train ride was cool. Kids overall enjoyed it.
Now for the negatives. Bought the first class which was $ 200 for a family of 5. Definitely overpriced for what you get. No donuts served like advertised. The cider is only offered to kids and there was no coffee. The free mugs advertised were only offered to the adults.
The Halloween area itself is rather small. There is no pumpkin patch rather a big pile of pumpkins the kids choose from. The kids get a total of about 10 pieces of candy and the games are equivalent to a high school carnival at best.
Save your money and find a real pumpkin patch. Much cheaper and a lot more fun.
Not sure if we will be back or not. I have heard the Polar Express is better.

This is a must do for families visiting Durango… And it’s free! Make sure you watch the movie playing in the train car about the history of the museum… Really neat!

This must be one of the coolest scenic train rides in the west. First of all, Durango is a fun place to visit and a great home base for exploring SW Colorado. If you can, opt for the train ride to Silverton and the van ride back to Durango. This will get you back to Durango faster to enjoy other activities and help you beat the crowds at some of the popular restaurants. Also, you’ll be cozier on an enclosed train car.

We were in the Knight Sky car… yes it was a little pricey, but worth it for us. We did the train round trip since it will be a once in a lifetime trip. It was very relaxing & the scenery was beautiful. With the glass ceiling you could see everything. It was a little rainy the day we went & there were no side windows, but it was fine (I didn’t get wet at all). They had blankets we could use if we were chilly, they gave us snacks & non alcoholic drinks in a souvenir cup that we could refill all day & a souvenir bag. Our car steward (Kevin) was very knowledgeable about the train, route & Silverton. He was a pleasure to talk with. I definitely recommend the trip.

An absolute must do experience! The views are incredible and it is a great way to see parts of southwestern CO that you wouldn’t otherwise see! Opt for a first class cabin and make sure your camera is handy at all times… as I promise you’ll get some amazing shots. If you are a little short on time, I would probably have been fine only taking the train to Silverton, exploring the town for lunch and then taking the bus back… but, honestly taking the train back was long, but relaxing and enjoyable too.

A fun trip on an old fashioned steam locomotive. The views are spectacular!
It’s a bit rickety but worth it. We only went one way and took a van out of Silverton.
I was glad I didn’t have to go back on the train. They do have a bar car though.
Silverton wasn’t too exciting; dirt streets, restaurants and gift shops…

Like other people have stated (yet still giving it 5-​stars?) don’t do the return trip. It is just too much. The views are incredible (as long as you’re sitting on the correct side)! Everyone should do this once in their lifetime.
Here are the issues that really knock down the experience.
People don’t follow the rules and the rules are not enforced by the staff. They stand in the aisle so that you can’t get through (walking on the train is more challenging than walking on a boat on rolling seas). They also crowd into the corners and crowd you to get that one shot. Some are very polite about it but some are not. Both could be helped by enforcing the posted rules.
The seating works out in such a way that you are either in the sun all day or in the shade all day. We were in the sun all morning then in the sun all afternoon. I know this is to spread the wealth of views around but it really screws half of the customers physically. It was absolute torture. One of the people on the shade side even said «I can’t imagine doing this in both directions, this is rough» and I sat there cooking in the hot sun wondering how it could be rough even on the shade side.
I understand that being a coal engine is «part of the experience» but like killing and gutting a cow to get a steak; I can do without it and would rather just get the steak. Even though I had wrap-​around sunglasses tight to my face I was constantly getting soot in my eyes. It stinks, it is hard to breathe and because you put on sunscreen because you’re sitting in the sun that is as intense as a laser, you get covered by soot that sticks to you. My eyes hurt for 2 days and my throat was sore for 3 days. Put the engine in a museum (after a good scrubbing) and replace it with something that doesn’t ruin the experience. I know they probably want people to opt for the more expensive tickets, I can’t imagine having that sun coming in through the windows and not having the benefit of a lot of moving air. The covered cars were still oppressively hot.
DO NOT BRING YOUR KIDS. I can’t stress this enough. If you get stuck on the sun side, your kid is going to suffer and you will spend your time trying to keep them alive. The last 2 hours my son ended up on the floor (in the soot) to get away from the sun while I fanned him and poured water on him. He was black from head to toe by the time we arrived back at the station.
(this in no way affected the rating, just FYI) We got the added benefit of seeing the results of the EPA screwing up majorly and turning the Animas river into something that looked like butterscotch pudding. We actually out-​ran the flow on the way back and got to see the beautiful green/​blue river one last time before it turned into sludge. It was interesting at least until the realization that the EPA just poisoned millions of gallons of water. We watched all of these people kayaking, tubing, rafting, swimming, etc. and can’t imagine what they experienced a couple of hours after we drove by them.

This is a cool experience. Views are lovely. I wish we had a bit more time in Silverton. 3.5 hours going, plus 2 hours there, and 3.5 hours back makes a very long day. I might recommend people spend the night to break up all the training.

ABsolutely amazing!
Such a lovely, picturesque ride. It is not cheap, but if you can afford, do it!
We had so much fun and were lucky to get tickets in the presidential Pullman wagon. Those train cars back in a day, so much style and attention to detail!
The views are gorgeous, forest, old mines, river, waterfalls, mountains, all in one ride! Plus, extremely good service.
We enjoyed every minute. The soft drinks and coffee was complimentary in our car, as were the sweet rolls, which was really useful on the cold morning. We were also grateful for the souvenir cups and a tote bag :)
Some advice: when possible, take seats on the right side when going up to Silverton. Much better views! If you have time, take the train there and back. We were in a hurry and took the bus back, which is much faster, but not even nearly as pleasant! When on a train, check the small viewing deck, it gives you nice photo ops.
Unforgettable experience!

We took the trip today. Views are amazing and so is the service. We had Presidential tickets on Cinco Animas. Tickets were pricey and yes the train is 3 ½ hours each way. Worth every penny. Great way to unplug, meet some great people, and have an unique experience.

Rode in one of the first class cars, and while not cheap, we felt it turned out to be a fantastic value. Had a great trip with a great host in our car. Incredible views all along the route. Was still on the winter schedule so the trip did not go all the way to Silverton, so a round trip ride was long, but just right. Shot tons of great pics. Would love to come back and do the ride down from Silverton next time.

When we bought our tickets, I was slightly annoyed at the $ 99/​seat pricing for the first class cars. By the end of our trip, however, I felt that we got a good deal. Not only was the view from the vintage train spectacular, but the attendant Dakotah provided excellent service. Hot drinks, sodas, and baked goods were included in the car, and snacks were available in the concessions car. (Be warned: the bean burrito is a gas station variety.)
It’s not quite spring at altitude, so our round trip ended half-​way to Silverton at Cascade Canyon. I don’t feel shorted, however, and I’d be tempted to take the full ride in the future.
Downsides: You’ll pay for parking, but the lot is just across the street from the station. Screaming kids aren’t allowed in first class, but they do fill up the too-​small station while waiting for the train. And the website was build by somebody’s 14 year-​old brother who wants to be a web developer one day, but hasn’t got any skills yet.

Had a really good time enjoying the ride from Silverton down to Durango. The changing scenery next to the San Animas was just awesome and spectacular and I have felt that the tour guides had done their jobs real well.
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Need to start out with we had a great time! Great experience and fantastic views. I think we did the best way to do it. We took the bus up (sit on right side) and the train back. The bus ride was a bout an hour and a half and very informative. It takes the high route over two small passes to Silverton and the area is explained the whole way.
In Silverton, not much to do but eat lunch, buy t-​shirts and trinkets and walk around. The time allotted between bus getting there and train leaving is more than enough.
Now for the fun part… The train ride down was great. The views are spectacular and you don’t get as much soot from the train as it is going down hill and does not have to work. We sat in the second gondola back (get seats on left side for views). They look a little rickety, but this is the way to see it. You can stick your head out and take pictures. The other cars (with the exception of the glass top) all are regular old style passenger cars and you just can’t get the views.
Fun ride down until about the last hour where you are getting into town. Not much to see and the kids were out of energy. I cannot imagine taking the train both ways, you would be spent and sick of being on the train.
Bus up train back is the way to go.

We were advised that Silverton was a must-​see while visiting Durango. I took the advice of other tourists and road the bus on the way to Silverton and road the train on the way back. I am sooo glad we did. Otherwise it would have been a long day. If you can, ride on the right side of the train or bus on the way to Silverton and ride on the left side on the way back. I felt sorry for the people on the wrong side of the vehicle.
My only regret is that we didn’t have time to visit the jail/​mine museum. May try to drive up tomorrow to see that. Silverton is cool with interesting history.

What a great experience taking this train excursion to Silverton. After reading several of the reviews we decided to purchase tickets on the Prospector.
NOTE: The Durango Silverton Railroad website is horrible. They were having issues with certain cars, dates and times being sold out and that wasn’t the case. We rode on 6÷13÷14 and it was not full at all. So, instead of purchasing via website we took a chance and waited until we got to Durango and actually go to the station to see what was available and discounts like (kids ride free etc.) The girls at the station were not much help regarding the website. Anyhow, we end up purchasing at the station.
So, the Prospector car is absolutely beautiful we reserved seats on the right side going up but when we arrived we were 1 of 2 families in the car so our awesome attendant said because the Silver Vista, the next car with open windows and a glass top roof was also wide open she let us go into both cars. If the weather is beautiful I would recommend the Silver Vista you get the same perks… souvenir, everything non alcoholic was complimentary and in the morning included sticky buns from a local bakery. The Silver Vista is a smoother ride since the car is so heavy. The prices for beer, wine and champagne were very reasonable.
After reading the reviews and everyone telling us to take the bus back that is what we booked. But, after the train ride up and the day was just gorgeous and plus we have been on that rode many times we decided we wanted to ride the train back to Durango. Not a problem. The views are so spectacular and it was so enjoyable we made few new friends visiting from all over the US.
Irene was our attendant and she was awesome! She pointed out all the history points of interest… she made sure we had our camera’s ready for a great waterfall shot or getting a perfect angle of the train on the cliff… or the steam engine getting ready to blow steam, the service she provided drinks, snacks anything to make this excursion more comfortable and interesting, Irene did it.
Now, for the grand finale if you are lucky to see Linda, heading back to Durango that is your bonus. It was fun seeing her with her Welcome to Durango sign, her Native talking stick with ribbons and she was all dolled up in her Native outfit which was awesome. After Irene letting us know her name after spotting her the 3^rd time off to the side of the road our entire car and most of the train waved back and shouted Hi Linda whoohoo… Priceless!