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Rhode Island Train Rides and Excursion Trains

You might think that being so tiny the state would have nothing to offer in terms of tourist railroads. However, surprisingly, there are a few Rhode Island train rides to choose from. And, even better, the popular Newport Dinner Train offers guests a wide range of excursions to choose from all while enjoying a fine meal during their trip. Close by is the Old Colony & Newport Scenic Railway, which although it does not offer quite the level of services of the Newport Dinner Train features beautiful views of the Atlantic shoreline and the state's rocky beaches. If you are interested in riding the train while enjoying the views of New England's coastline both tourist trains offer such and are definitely worth the ticket price. If you might be interested in visiting Rhode Island's only railroad museum please click here to visit their website.

Because of the state's tiny size and lack of large cities and/or online traffic sources, Rhode Island's railroad history has been rather short in comparison to most other states. During the industry's peak years it was home to just a few hundred miles of track, nearly all of which was operated by the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad (the New Haven). Its lines were mostly used for commuter service although the state did provide some freight traffic. Then, as now, Rhode Island's greatest asset by train was the immense beauty of it provided, defining New England as we often think of it, particularly along the coast. Today, the state's two tourist railroads do a very nice job of capturing this. To learn more about them please read on below.

Rhode Island Train Rides and Excursion Trains

Newport Dinner Train

The Newport Dinner Train is one of New England's more popular such venues. Its trademark, of course, is operating full service meals aboard its trains but also offers other trains such as luncheons, murder mysteries, their "Rail 'N Sail" package, as well as even being able to ride aboard a helicopter. Other special trains include the Polar Express, which operates during November and December, and they host the incredibly popular Day Out With Thomas event during the summer months (be sure to bring the kids for that one!). For more information about riding the train please click here.

Old Colony & Newport Scenic Railway

The Old Colony & Newport Scenic Railway is based in Newport, Rhode Island and features a 10-mile train trip (using tracks once owned by the New Haven railroad) along the east shore of Narragansett Bay. They operate just about every weekend year-round (somewhat surprising consider the nasty winter weather the region sometimes receives) and while they do not offer a lot of different excursion options like the Newport Dinner Train they are very reasonably priced. For more information about riding the train please click here.

Please Click Here To Return To The Main Tourist Railroads Section

To learn more about the history of Rhode Island's railroads please click here. Also, for more information about Rhode Island 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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