The Winter Park Express ski train is starting service for another season of taking skiers from Denver to Winter Park.
Winter Park is located a little more than an hour’s drive from Denver, but that’s only the case if there’s no traffic. During the busy ski season, the drive can take hours -- often making the train a faster option.
After years of not having the train, Winter Park and Amtrak started service back up three years ago. Amtrak representative Marc Magliari says the most frequent request from riders was that they offer up a lounge car with food and drinks.
“It was our biggest request,” Magliari said.
That’s why this season, the train will have a lounge car that not only serves coffee, soft drinks, beer and snacks, but has floor to ceiling windows for people to sit back and enjoy the scenery.
Winter Park public relations director Steve Hurlbert says the lounge car will add to the appeal of the only train in North America that carries skiers from a major metropolitan center right to the slopes.
Tickets for the ski train start at about $29 one-way for adults and go up from there. Tickets for children are usually half the price of an adult ticket.