Catskill Mountain Railroad

THE POLAR EXPRESS train ride.
First the good stuff. The train was really awesome, decorated and authentic looking. The costumes of the performers were done well from the conductors, to the cooks, the elves. Santa, while not the best looking, he was awesome with the children and very jolly. The golden tickets were cool! Loved the polar express bell that Santa gives out, has The Polar Express is engraved on it.
Now for the not so good. The performers were a little cheesy and seemed burnt out after too many rides and too many childs. Waiting a very long time in the cold to board the train was not fun. The hot cocoa they served was cold, tasted tasted like water and was served in paper cups. The cookies were a bummer. We also did not care for the HoBo, roll player who was busy joking with the cooks instead of inteacting with the children.
All in all, I’m glad we did it, but I wouldn’t spend the money again.

While I thought they left the crowd of cold children in their pajamas, waiting outside too long in front if an empty train, once the ride started, the staff did a very good Job. My young son enjoyed the ride.

Perhaps in another hundred years, the current commuter rail lines made obsolete by unforeseen developments in transportation, will be available for historical rides and romanticized. It’s already done by the MTA in NYC with the historic subway car rides.
The Catskill Mountain Railroad gives the passenger a glimpse into travel from a bygone era, when rails were opening up the continent, people were going west and a spirit of optimism reigned supreme. Without any frontier, modern man is left twiddling his thumbs on a smartphone but in the 1860’s there were fortunes to be made, goods to move and unspoilt nature to harness.
From the Great Train Robbery to Murder on the Orient Express to Shah Rukh Khan’s Chaiyya Chaiyya, a train chugging along through the land has become an iconic setting.
Catskill Mountain Railroad gives you that sense of wonder in a compact 45 minute, ten dollars for adult ticket. With plans to expand throughout the Catskills along the original route, today’s ride is really just a tease of what will hopefully come about. (Through donation and fund raising)
You’ll see the smoke coming out of the engine, hear an «All Aboard!» before departing and dodge the trees whisking about the open air car. Ignore the initial suburban sprawl and strip malls and minutes later you are smack dab in the middle of corn fields and trees. I almost expect to encounter a station with patriotic bunting, a John Philip Sousa-​esque band and a trust busting Teddy Roosevelt announcing his run on the Bull Moose Party. (It’s fascinating how a country can change so much in 100 years culturally and politically)
It’s a healthy, harmless and fun taste of nostalgia. My only complaint is that I wanted more, to go further and farther, to scale the mountains and see much more. From the form of transportation that made pre-​President Lincoln a very wealthy railroad lawyer (log cabin my foot!), this 45 minute ride is a throwback to a different era. All aboard!

Fun and friendly train ride. Great for kids. Went on the Easter train with a friend and they did a great job. 4 different characters for the kids to meet and they even had an Easter egg hunt for the kids. I can’t wait to see what the summer train rides are like.

Drove all the way from Northern Virginia to take my daughter on The Polar Express train. It was done so well from the Hot Chocolate & Cookies to Santa Claus coming through the train. All of the staff was great and kept all the kids very entertained. Worth our many hours of travel to give my daughter an experience she will never forget.