Article about an amazing trip on the former GrandLuxe luxury rail tour of southwest national parks. Trip began in San Francisco and concluded in Denver.

1. GrandLuxe Luxury Rail - July/August 2008
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It’s Not Just a Vacation.
It’s an ADVENTURE
Story and Photos by Sally Moe
> The Colorado Railcar Plant Tour
> About the Rooms
GrandLuxe Luxury Rail Slide ShowGrandLuxe
Luxury Rail Slide Show
Fancy-Free Florida
Arches National Park.
Have you ever lain in bed late at night and heard
AAA—The Value of
Membership the lonesome whistle of a distant train? I hope so—because that means you know how haunting
that sound is. It can ignite your imagination. It can cradle you to sleep.
GrandLuxe Rail Journey
Close your eyes for a moment and hear it in your mind. Notice the feelings it evokes...like
AAA Escapes—Who nostalgia and longing, adventure and familiarity all rolled into one. That richness gives train travel
Wants to Play? something extra, something no other form of travel can quite match: a romantic mystique. It’s not
just about the destination, it’s about the getting there. And when someone else does the driving,
Awakening the Dragon
what’s not to love?
Erie Canal
In this case, GrandLuxe Rail Journeys is doing the driving. Determined to keep the Gilded Age of
Rail alive, their fully restored vintage train—along with its posh décor, white linen dining and crack
service staff—transports around 150 passengers into some of the most ravishing landscapes in
North America. You know the kind of places I’m talking about. They taunt you in full, glorious color
from the pages of expensive coffee table books. We’re told that many of these magnificent spaces
aren’t seen by human eyes for weeks or months at a time—except for the eyes on this train.
GrandLuxe takes us on a tour of technicolor postcard moments, one on top of another. We travel
past mango-colored canyons; under moonlit skies saturated with stars; alongside twisty, glittery
rivers slicing through stepped gorges. It’s irresistible to stand in one of the open areas between the
cars and poke my head out for a look. Here I get the full impact of the train’s impressive length—
Your Car Battery about a third of a mile—as I see its nether regions unwind from around a rocky mountainside, set
against a backdrop of shimmering golden aspen, cobalt blue sky and lavender-hued mountains.
On the Money
Without a doubt, this is the way to see America the beautiful.
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Motorcoaches take you in for a closer look throughout the trip. Multiple excursion options are
Be Prepared this available. Pick up the Napa Valley Wine Train, which ambles through the manicured vineyards of
Hurricane Season California wine country, and serves up a swanky lunch and wine tasting. Tour Domaine Chandon’s
gorgeous property and sample sparkling wines al fresco in the charming, shaded grotto. Explore
Salt Lake City’s immaculate downtown, or artist-friendly Park City, host to numerous Sundance
events. Fill your eyes with the rich coral reds and otherworldly wind-and-water-carved rock
formations of Canyonlands and Arches national parks.
The Colorado Railcar Plant Tour
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2. GrandLuxe Luxury Rail - July/August 2008
If this tour is available on your departure, find a
way to attend. Available only on select departures of
this itinerary, the tour is a popular favorite. Travel
Living Healthy Manager Sandy Snyder, of the Pembroke Pines
branch of Auto Club South, attended the tour and
Dining Out was beyond impressed. As she described, “It is
amazing to see this 100,000-square-foot structure
What's Happening that houses everything going into building and
refurbishing these beautiful cars! Everything is done
Here & There
at this plant, and everything is manufactured in the
News & Notes U.S.
“The cars start out in a type of scaffolding where
the body is built. The top is made in a different area.
Canyonlands National Park.
When the two parts are ready to be joined, they
Editor's Note
wheel them together, put the top on using a crane,
Double Take and weld them. Then they are moved to the next area of specialized workmanship.
Letters to the Editor “Each step is a process handled with the greatest care and quality assurance. Everything is done
on site, with some of the interior work subcontracted locally. It takes between nine months to a
year to produce each car; they complete about 20 cars per year.
“The plant has 200 employees, all specialists in
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their trade (engineer, electrician, welder, cabinetry,
Branch Offices upholstery, etc.). The business is growing at such a
degree that they soon expect to produce 50 cars per
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“The most expensive car was purchased by the
Florida DOT, South Florida Regional Transit
Authority operating between West Palm Beach and
Miami. At $4.5 million, the doubledecker train—with
four engines underneath and a crew of two—is fuel
efficient and runs cleaner. On a route from West
Palm to Miami, it will save 600,000 gallons of fuel
per day. South Florida will have a total of six cars,
four of which are running today. The Colorado Railcar Manufacturing Plant, where
GrandLuxe’s vintage cars are refurbished. Photo
by Colorado Railcar Manufacturing Plant
“They use only the finest materials, such as Core
10 Steel—it doesn’t rust, due to high copper content. This is the kind of steel used to make cruise
ships and bridges.”
Concluded Sandy, “The tour is a must see.”
To be sure, this kind of travel will challenge you. It is no small feat to shower in a tight steel
space while you see the tracks hurtling by through the drain between your feet. And during happy
hours in the Seattle Club Car, you’ll need to be quick to take a seat with your wine or—OOF!—the
train might find one for you. As for the rollicking potty breaks at 50 mph...I’ll spare you the details.
(Just remember that elastic and Velcro are your friends.) The good news? That third of a mile
distance you traverse multiple times throughout the week makes it possible to enjoy the gourmet
dining without worry. It’s a built-in calorie burner, and hallelujah and amen for that—because the
gourmet meals are in a dead heat with the wondrous scenery for favorite aspect of this trip.
A few words about the dining experience. The Zurich and
Chicago dining cars are softly lit and elegantly decorated—dark
woods, gleaming brass, rich textured brocades. Yet the vibe is
relaxed: some dress for dinner, some don’t. Seating is open—
yet singles seldom, if ever, dine alone because of the easy
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3. GrandLuxe Luxury Rail - July/August 2008
camaraderie. Petite lamps accent white-linen-topped tables,
complementing the deep blue- and gold-rimmed signature
china. Portions are modest, enabling you to enjoy every course
without getting overfull. The food is delicious and creative, the
presentation artful, and the service skilled and responsive.
House wines are complimentary, nothing is rushed, and dinner
always feels—and tastes—like an event.
Which is only fitting. This sort of vacation is in itself an event,
and one that will become a part of you. You’ll meet all kinds of
people on this trip...retirees, CEOs, creatives, the incurably
curious, the incurably young. This experience draws people
together and helps everybody take a step or two out of their
comfort zone...because they know they’ll be safe. And maybe Fine dining is a nightly event onboard.
that is the best thing of all.
About the Rooms
The size and layout of the rooms make use of every inch of available space, much in the mode of
yacht decor. All come with a toilet and sink (some have a shower); convertible storage spaces; a
shallow closet; and seating that transforms into a bed with additional storage underneath. If you
stay in one of the larger rooms with a plusher bathroom, which is closer in spirit to a hotel
bathroom, your bathing ritual will be easier, but you’ll miss out on the unique charm of the
drainless metal sink that smoothly clips back into the wall after use and handily drains its contents.
That sink was quite the object of interest.
Some might have trouble sleeping when the train is in motion due to intermittent track noise. A
white noise unit or recording can help with this. And a final “heads up”: bring a hairdryer.
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