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Kansas Dinner Train Rides (2026): A Complete Guide
Last revised: September 23, 2026
By: Adam Burns
Kansas’s plated dinner train is the Smoky Valley Limited on the Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad. It is a two-hour round trip from the 1887 Rock Island Depot through the Smoky Hill River Valley to Enterprise, with dinner from a Kansas caterer. Remaining listed dates run from September 26 through December 31. Published fares this year are about $72–$110. Midland Railway’s Kansas Belle is closed.
Aboard the Abilene & Smoky Valley's Smoky Valey Limited Dinner train. A&SV photo.
At a glance
| Host | Town | 2026 meal | Page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad | Abilene | Smoky Valley Limited, about two hours. Typically Saturday at 6:00 p.m.; later-season trains at 5:00 p.m. About $72–$110. Dates listed into December 31 | Dining guide |
Saturday dinners often close reservations the day before. Confirm the live calendar. American-Rails.com does not sell tickets. Information compiled September 23, 2026.
Abilene & Smoky Valley Railroad
(Abilene): The all-volunteer nonprofit was founded in 1993. Trains use the old Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific between Abilene and Enterprise, about 10.4 miles one way. Boarding is 200 SE 5th Street, the Rock Island depot of 1887. Two climate-controlled dining cars do the evening work: a 1946 Chicago & North Western luxury car and a 1902 Missouri-Kansas-Texas wooden daycoach rebuilt for tables. Coffee, iced tea, or water is complimentary. Beer, wine, and soft drinks are sold on board. The train stops at the Hoffman Mill and Country Store in Enterprise. Santa Fe 4-6-2 #3415 (Baldwin, 1919) is the steam star on daytime Flint Hills Express trips. A dinner date is steam only when that listing says so. The Eisenhower Presidential Library is in the same museum district.
2026: As of September 23 the railroad still lists September 26 and October 3, 10, and 31 at 6:00 p.m.; November 14 and 21, December 5 and 12, and Tuesday, December 29 at 5:00 p.m.; and December 31 at 6:00 p.m. Theme nights change the caterer. The class notes are the dining guide. Book on asvrr.org.
Mystery nights, and the railroad that closed
These are separate from a regular Smoky Valley Limited dinner.
- Kansas murder-mystery trains cover the show nights on the Limited. A USO show is the other entertainment ticket. Both ride the same two-hour slot with dinner.
- Midland Railway’s Kansas Belle in Baldwin City is closed. The dinner train did not return after the 2020 season.
More About The Railroad From Steven Smethers
The Abilene and Smoky Valley's Smoky Valley Limited dinner train runs throughout the year on a two-hour trip through the Smoky Hill River Valley over rails that were initially laid in 1886 by the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. Area restaurants and caterers provide meals that represent Kansas dining at its best. Kansas grown beef and fried chicken are staples of A&SV dinner train menus, but the railroad also features German, Cajun, and other types of cuisine that give A&SV dinner trains a special flair. And to salute the days when railroad cuisine was at its finest, A&SV staff historians have researched the menus of some of the Midwest’s finest railroad dining experiences, compiling recipes from the Santa Fe, M-K-T, C&NW and the Rock Island, that are recreated and served by area caterers on special “Heritage Dining Car” designated trains. The A&SV does its best to preserve the atmosphere of the classic days of railroad dining. Two antique passenger coaches—a 1946 Chicago North Western luxury car and a 1902 Missouri-Kansas-Texas wooden daycoach–have been remodeled into dining cars, both featuring year-round climate control. Passengers dine as the train glides through the fertile farmlands of the Smoky Hill River Valley to the neighboring community of Enterprise on a two-hour, 10.4 mile excursion. Tickets must be purchased in advance and are available on the A&SV website (listed above).
Related reading
Always verify 2026 dates, menus, and prices on the railroad’s official site. American-Rails.com does not sell tickets.
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