Frequently Asked Questions

The sooner the better! We recommend booking your trip at first opportunity for availability as seats are filling up fast and we anticipate strong demand for this new and exciting experience! We release our schedule three months at a time, so if the date you are looking for doesn’t show up as available, just know that it will become available in the following months!

Yes, prepaid reservations are required for all our trains. We accept Visa, MasterCard, or Discover. Reservations can only be made online or via our customer support line, 434-391-9772.

Yes, restrooms are available in each passenger car.

During the ticket booking process, guests are given the option of choosing their seating from our seating map, or choosing which description best fits their party needs. When viewing the seating map, tables are labeled 1 through 11, with the number of passengers able to sit at the table shown as red squares around the table. We offer tables of two or four, and suggest those with larger parties to book on days where multiple tables of four are available side by side. Any table shown with a red X in their surrounding squares have been booked by other passengers.

Yes, the passenger cars are air-conditioned in the summer and heated in the winter.

All rides are round-trip excursions, and passengers do not deboard until the ride is complete.

The train will be traveling on average 25-30 mph. These speeds may fluctuate as our train is on an active rail line handling other train traffic including Amtrak commuter trains and freight trains. Our train crews will do their best to ensure you get the full length of experience and may need to adjust as needed.

Our excursion experiences are approximately three hours. Train speed and duration may fluctuate during your adventure as our train operates on an active rail line handling other train traffic including Amtrak trains and freight trains. While we cannot guarantee an exact three-hour ride on an active rail line, our train crews will do their best to ensure you get the full duration of experience. All trains are round-trips – you will end up where you started.

All trains are round-trips, so your ride will both start and end at the Staunton Amtrak Station.

Yes, seating is based off of table reservations, meaning that while you may sit at any seat at your reserved table, you are not able to move to another table at any time. We offer seating options for parties of one or two at our tables for two, and offer options for parties of two, three, or four at our tables of four. Parties that are larger than four are encouraged to book on a day with multiple tables of four available side by side.

At this time, no storage is available for these items.

No smoking is permitted on the train.

Infants aged two and younger do not require a purchased ticket, but the child must remain seated in an adult’s lap during the excursion. All other ages require a seat purchase.

There is no dress code, but please dress in a way that will not make others uncomfortable. This is a chance to sit back, relax, and unwind.

Ticket processing fee is 1.5% and subject to a 5.3% Virginia Sales tax fee.

Due to the age and history of our passenger cars, stairs, narrow hallways, and other limitations make them inaccessible to persons utilizing walkers, wheelchairs, motorized scooters, etc. We apologize for this inconvenience, and we are making strides to improve our accessibility options.

Neither alcohol nor any other food/beverage may be brought on board the train.

Any changes or cancellations must be made a minimum of seven (7) business days prior to the day of your departure. Cancellations may be processed through the confirmation email by simply clicking on the blue hyperlink located under the passenger car photo “Cancel Booking.”

Our trains operate rain, snow, or shine. The decision to run is based on weather conditions at the railroad. If the train runs, no refunds will be made. If a train is cancelled, a gift card will be issued – no cash refunds will be made.

The train departs from the Staunton Amtrak Station located at 12 Middlebrook Ave., Staunton, Virginia 24401. Plan to arrive at the Staunton platform 30 minutes before your selected train schedule. Boarding begins 10 minutes prior to departure time. parking is often challenging in the downtown area so leave plenty of time to walk to the loading platform from a parking lot or parking structure. Our train cannot be held for late passengers.

Our train excursions are three-hour round trips, and street parking in downtown Staunton is provided free of charge for only two hours. The City of Staunton offers several reasonably-priced downtown parking locations; we recommend parking in nearby parking garages or parking lots.

After you have completed the purchase on the reservation software, you will immediately receive a confirmation email from Virginia Scenic Railway that identifies the date and time of your experience and the passenger car name in which you are booked. Prior to your ride, click on the “Go to your ticket” button in the confirmation email to open up your unique QR code. This code must be scanned at the time of boarding.

While there is a Buckingham Branch railyard located in Staunton, Virginia, we ask that you do not visit here as it is where we primarily do maintenance and preform critical duties for our freight division. Keep an eye out though, we will more news on this coming later in the year!

Pets (including emotional support animals) are not allowed. Documented service animals are allowed on the train; we recommend booking in the Arvonia passenger car (specifically tables 2, 3, 8, or 9) as it allows a close location for a service dog to rest. A formal “Service Animal” identification card must be presented at the time of boarding.

• The use of drone photography/video filming is strictly prohibited aboard the Virginia Scenic Railway.
• There is no access allowed to the train tracks.  Train tracks are for trains. Please stay off!
• Photography for commercial use, or financial gain, requires prior authorization. Contact _____PRIOR to arriving at train depot.  This includes engagements for commercial gain or profit such as movie films, commercial television productions, photography for commercial advertisements and wedding or group staging.

Train Passenger Photography Consent and Disclaimer

If a Train Passenger (PAX) creates, uploads, posts or sends any photography or video footage depicting or relating to Virginia Scenic Railway (VSR), PAX grants VSR and its affiliates the irrevocable, unrestricted, worldwide, perpetual, royalty-free, sublicensable and transferable right and license to use, display, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish and distribute for any purpose in any media, collateral or promotional effort. PAX also agrees to not exploit any photographs or video footage of VSR for any commercial purpose without VSR’s prior written consent.

Our booking agents phone lines are open from 9:00am to 5:00pm Monday through Friday and can be reached by calling 434-391-9772.