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Maine Train Rides and Excursion Trains

Historically, Maine railroads thrived on the state's natural resources, mainly timber and agriculture (particularly potatoes). At one time the state was home to numerous narrow-gauge railroads looking to transport its vast acres of woodland and today Maine train rides feature three such excursions (one of which has been rebuilt, the Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington Railway). You can also find the Maine Eastern Railroad down along the state's coastal regions. It is one of the more popular tourist lines in the country offering guests wonderful accommodations and several excursion options as well as featuring breathtaking scenery of northern New England. On a similar note, if you may be interested in learning about the state's railroad museums please click here.

Maine train rides offer the best (and most) narrow-gauge excursions anywhere east of the Mississippi River. Perhaps what is best about the state's tourist railroads, however, is that they provide visitors a chance to see several different types of operable motive power from narrow-gauge steam on the Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington and Maine Narrow-Gauge Railroad & Museum as well as the more modern diesels featured on the Downeast Scenic and Maine Eastern railroads. You can even catch a trolley ride on restored trolley cars at the Seashore Trolley Museum. Many of the state's tourist lines offer holiday specials and other similar events throughout the year so be sure and check out their websites (listed below) if you may be interested in attending.

Maine Train Rides and Excursion Trains

Boothbay Railway Village

The Boothbay Railway Village based in Boothbay, Maine operates a narrow-gauge stretch of railroad between May and late October using a restored Baldwin Locomotive Works 0-4-0 steam locomotive. For more information about visiting the railroad please click here.

Downeast Scenic Railroad

The Downeast Scenic Railroad is located in Ellsworth, Maine using trackage originally owned by the Maine Central Railroad. It began operations in July, 2010 and offers a ten-mile round-trip ride traveling along the Bar Harbor. For more information about visiting the railroad please click here.

Maine Eastern Railroad

The Maine Eastern Railroad, also an operating freight line, is one of the Northeast's most popular excursion train operations. Train trips skirt the Maine coastline between Rockland and Brunswick in climate-controlled cars. The railroad operates numerous special trains and events throughout the year as well. For more information about visiting the railroad please click here.

Maine Narrow-Gauge Railroad & Museum

Much like the Boothbay Railway Village the Maine Narrow-Gauge Railroad & Museum operates a two-foot narrow-gauge railroad using restored steam locomotives. The railroad operates a number of special events and trains throughout the year such as the Polar Express during the Christmas season. For more information about visiting the railroad please click here.

Seashore Trolley Museum

The Seashore Trolley Museum's main objective is to preserve the region's interurban history. As the world's largest and oldest such museum the organization has hundreds of preserved trolley cars, some of which are in operation and used to ferry visitors on its 1 1/2-mile restored rail line. For more information about visiting the museum please click here.

Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington Railway Museum

Yet another two-foot narrow-gauge railroad is the Wiscasset, Waterville & Farmington Railway, which is a relatively new tourist railroad using a very old right-of-way. The original Wiscasset, Waterville, and Farmington Railway stopped operating in the early 1930s but a group of preservationists is slowly bringing the originally railroad back to life. The WW&F uses a 0-4-0 steam locomotive to pull its trains during the summer months. For more information about visiting the museum please click here.

Please Click Here To Return To The Main Tourist Railroads Section

If you might be interested in reading more about the history of Maine's railroads please click here. Also, for more information about Maine train rides you might want to consider the book Tourist Trains Guidebook, which is put together by the editors of Kalmbach Publishing's Trains magazine. The guide below is the latest, released in just April, 2011 that now includes more than 470 museums and tourist trains (it also lists all of Alabama's rail museums). In any event, if you're interested in perhaps purchasing this book please visit the link below which will take you to ordering information through Amazon.com, the trusted online shopping network.

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