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Tennessee Train Rides And Excursion Trains

If you are interested in riding a train through Appalachia, Tennessee is a great state to do so as all offer stunning scenery of either rolling green hills, steep mountains, bucolic farmland, or winding rivers. You also have your choice of seeing live steam locomotives in action (such as at the Tennessee Central Railway Museum and on the Three Rivers Rambler) or enjoying fine dining during your trip. Most Tennessee train rides offer numerous special events throughout the year such as hosting "A Day Out With Thomas" (the tank engine so popular with kids) or featuring holiday specials (especially during Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas). In any event, if you may like to know what railroad museums are located in Tennessee please click here.

Like most other Appalachian states (notably West Virginia and Kentucky), Tennessee was important to railroads for its rich seams of bituminous coal. However, the state also offered railroads important cities like Memphis and Chattanooga and as such, several famous passenger trains passed through the state operated by railroads like the Louisville & Nashville and Southern Railway. Today, Tennessee train rides try to capture this bygone era by offering several different types of excursions like those mentioned above. If you truly want to experience the splendor of a rail excursion in the state plan your ride during the fall foliage peak of late October, as it's tough to beat the incredible beauty and vibrant colors afforded during such trips. In any event, to learn more about the state's tourist railroads please read on below.

Tennessee Train Rides And Excursion Trains

New River Railway

A newer tourist railroad, the New River Railway was based in Devonia, Tennessee and operated on ex-Southern Railway trackage in the east-central region of the state. Unfortunately, a new owner of the line it operates forbids excursions so they are currently in the process of finding a new home as of 2010. For more information on planning a visit to the railroad please click here.

Secret City Scenic Excursion Train

Part of the Southern Appalachia Railway Museum, the Secret City Scenic Excursion Train, based in Oakridge, operates a 14-mile round trip journey through the rolling hills of north-central Tennessee. For power the train using historic Alco diesel locomotives using climate-controlled passenger train cars. Along with its regularly scheduled excursions the railroad also hosts caboose rides, dinner trains, and offers available charters. For more information on planning a visit to the railroad please click here.

Tennessee Central Railway Museum

The Tennessee Central Railway Museum based in Nashville is focused primarily on preserving the state's railroad history. However, it also operates excursion trains throughout the year offering trips that travel as far as 180 miles, round trip! Specials during the year including murder mystery dinner trains, train robberies, fall foliage specials, and hosting "A Day Out With Thomas" the tank engine. For more information on planning a visit to the railroad please click here.

Tennessee Valley Railroad

The Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum is mainly a tourist railroad operating on ex-Southern Railway trackage which it originally purchased in 1969. Today, the railroad operates a six-mile round trip near Chattanooga and hosts numerous specials throughout the year including dinner trains, Halloween trains, fall foliage trips, and much more. For more information on planning a visit to the railroad please click here.

Three Rivers Rambler

The Three Rivers Rambler is based in Knoxville and offers an 11-mile round trip using both steam and diesel locomotives. The railroad also hosts numerous special and seasonal trains throughout the operating season between June and December. For more information on planning a visit to the railroad please click here.

Please Click Here To Return To The Main Tourist Railroads Section

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