The California Zephyr + GrandLuxe Limited has been through!

[SchemerBob]

If everything has gone well, I assume the first San Francisco - Chicago GrandLuxe Limited service has departed on Amtrak #6 this morning. For everyone that hasn't heard, the GrandLuxe Limited is a series of seven luxury cars (I think ex-"American Orient Express"), heading east on the California Zephyr, starting from Emeryville today, and passing through the Rocky Mountains on the 3rd, and heading into Chicago on the 4th. From what I've heard, this is essentially a cruise train in the same consist as the usual Zephyr.

Here's a link to the website:
http://www.grandluxerail.com/html/tours/GrandLuxeLimitedChicago.html

If anyone can be along the Zephyr route and see the train go through, I thought maybe some of the forum members out west could post information here on the train consist, and what it looks like to kind of prepare us people in the midwest who can see it on Sunday. I would hope Amtrak would try to move this train right along, but I guess it's a cruise train anyways...

[Gandy Dancer]

Ah, I wondered what the American Orient Express trains were doing here in Denver the last couple weeks, and where a sub-set of them had gotten off to.  They have been getting the cars split out for this excursion.

[eolafan]

Thanks for the heads up as I had completely forgotten about this.  I will try my best to be track-side on Sunday to watch the CZ come through Eola or perhaps I will go down to Naperville so I can see the cars up close.  One way or the other I will be track-side to see her on her first journey as a "new lady" eastbound. Thanks again.

[ndbprr]

Well The train failed in the east. Now apparently it has failed in the west. Guess they are trying to fail with cross country trips now.  Moral - not enough people want to support this type of travel to make it profitable.

[eolafan]

As much as I love trains, I can't see myself paying the very high price they are asking for this luxury travel by Grand Luxe cars.  Maybe I will defy the odds and win the big lottery and then I can afford the fare.  Actually I would likely buy my own private car if I had that kind of money and simply tack it on the rear of any Amtrak train I wanted to and widen my horizons that way...oh well, I can dream can't I?

[SchemerBob]

Well The train failed in the east. Now apparently it has failed in the west. Guess they are trying to fail with cross country trips now.  Moral - not enough people want to support this type of travel to make it profitable.

By "fail", what exactly does that mean? Are the cars still coming through but not many people signed up, or has it been cancelled? I'll be disappointed if they aren't coming through, but if they aren't, oh well. I'll see them some day.

[SchemerBob]

ALERT: It really is on its way. I read on the Trains news wire that some trips have been cut, but the trips through November are still on for the Zephyr route. In their original paln, GrandLuxe was going to have both sets of their cars on the Zephyr and Chief routes at the same time. Now, it looks like they will have the cars on the Zephyr route in November (this incudes the journey already under way), and the cars will be on the Chief in December. Not sure about the Meteor route, but I think it's still on, too. Don't anybody cancel your plans...apparently it IS on its way.

Link to the wire:
http://www.trains.com/trn/default.aspx?c=a&id=2653

[eolafan]

Well, I was trackside at Eola today at about 3:20 p.m. when the eastbound CZ came blasting through pretty much on time on its way to Chicago and sure enough it had a number (going way too fasts to count the extra cars but I think it was seven extra) of former American Orient Express cars tacked onto the rear end.  I could see quite a few passengers in the luxury cars.  I was a bit disappointed as the cars seemed dirty to me and there was no dome car or observation lounge to be seen.  Excuse me if I say the sight was a bit of an anti-climax.  I was listening to my scanner before the CZ arrived and the East End Dispatcher seemed to be holding some eastbound traffic (including a "Z" train and a U.P. stacker) near River Road in Naperville until the CZ (and the eastbound Chief minutes before the CZ) got through Naperville.  I suspect this was due to the likelihood of some reporters and/or railroad brass being on board (don't know that for sure though, just my speculation).

[ndbprr]

By fail I mean that they first tried to offer premier service between New York and Chicago tacking it on to Amtraks version of the Broadway Limited.  Very Few people singed up for it.  Then it sat idle for awhile and loop tours starting in Denver up to Yellowstone and some other scenic areas in the rockies.  Apparently that didnt get enough support to continue it so now on to version three.  My take is that there are some people who can afford the time and money to take a once in a lifetine trip like this but there just isn't a sufficient upper crust clientelle to justify it.  That group now travels by private jet not trains.  personally I will take one trip like this and it will be the Orient Express some day.  I can see more of our country by car stopping where I want and seeing more of the national parks then train travel allows.  A big article in the Chicago tribune magazine yesterday about how train travel should be justifiable based on security and fuel concerns but no real answers.  If you haven't traveled in the east most of the train trip is in inner city slum areas and not scenic.  Ohio to Denver is boring with nothing but farms.  Most of the routes west of the rockies are boring also.  Seen five miles of desert you've seen 300 miles of it.  The Pacific northewest is the exception provided you want to go there. Train travel has gone the same way as ocean liners to Europe.  Its time has come and gone.  Nobody can afford the time and cost including the railroads.  Thats why Amtrak is subsidized.  Coudl train travel succeed?  Only if the costs are recoverable and a profit can be made from it.  high fuel costs could eventually cause that but I doubt it.  This train will fail since it won't make a profit for its owners who by the way put a small fortune into the cars when they were rebuilt.

[SchemerBob]

Well, I was trackside at Eola today at about 3:20 p.m. when the eastbound CZ came blasting through pretty much on time on its way to Chicago and sure enough it had a number (going way too fasts to count the extra cars but I think it was seven extra) of former American Orient Express cars tacked onto the rear end.  I could see quite a few passengers in the luxury cars.  I was a bit disappointed as the cars seemed dirty to me and there was no dome car or observation lounge to be seen.  Excuse me if I say the sight was a bit of an anti-climax.  I was listening to my scanner before the CZ arrived and the East End Dispatcher seemed to be holding some eastbound traffic (including a "Z" train and a U.P. stacker) near River Road in Naperville until the CZ (and the eastbound Chief minutes before the CZ) got through Naperville.  I suspect this was due to the likelihood of some reporters and/or railroad brass being on board (don't know that for sure though, just my speculation).

Yes, I had a somewhat similar experience in Ottumwa, IA where I saw it. There was an eastbound tied up at the IC&E diamond, and when Amtrak came, it passed the freight and then crossed over. I was on the end of the platform so the ex-AOE cars stopepd right in front of me. I was suprised that they marked out "American Orient Express" on the cars because it kind of made the cars look "patchy". You were right, no dome or observation lounge on the train, but there were seven cars, just like they said there would be. It still was neat, though. I was shocked at how fast the train came and went, usually they stay in Ottumwa for a half hour (no kidding)!! There must have been some sort of railroad officials on the train. Once Amtrak was through, two freight trains came shooting through one right after the other, and I think they both stopped on the edges of town to wait for Amtrak to go through.

[SchemerBob]

Is it just me or did GrandLuxe cancel all of the Southwest Chief excursions? Looked on their website and there was no mention of them at all.

[anb740]

Well The train failed in the east. Now apparently it has failed in the west. Guess they are trying to fail with cross country trips now.  Moral - not enough people want to support this type of travel to make it profitable.

Where did you get the info that it had failed here on the east coast?  It was my understanding through contacts that the Antebellum tours through the Southeast were a huge success, and most trips were sellouts.  Every one I ever caught/photographed was loaded with people.  The only problems they had were negotiating with NS to run the train. (the dispatchers depised having to put up with this thing)

[RRCharlie]

The Meteor trips were cancelled. My wife and I had reservations for Dec 27 trip Washington to Miami which I made back in August. Got a call in mid-October that all Meteor trips had been cancelled because of low bookings. Just settled with them and arranged for a full refund yesterday.

Mel Hazen; Jax, FL

[ndbprr]

The original intent was to offer Orient Express type service between New York and Chicago hitching it to the Broadway Limited.  That service failed very quickly - like less than three months. So then they went into the rail tour business which is a very limited clientelle that having ridden it once aren't interested in forking out the kind of money to reride it so they keep moving the location trying to find new people willing to spend an exorbitant amount of money for a once in a lifetime experience.

[SchemerBob]

What I didn't get was the air fare back to the other end. The package said that you ride the train to one end, and then fly back. Why can't you just take the train back?? It'd have to be the regular Amtrak, of course. That may very well be a once in a lifetime experience....

[Mr_Ash]

JEBUS!!!  $3198-$4798 for round trip! I still owe more than that on my car