Top Fairbanks Rail Services

Wonderful experience enjoying the Gold Star car with our tour group of 30 people. Especially enjoyed meeting Conductor Johnson and the bartenders. Highly recommend!

We took the Wilderness Express Dome train from Fairbanks to Denali. It was wonderful. The master of ceremonies, bar staff and wait staff worked as a finely oiled machine. They were friendly, good with kids and very efficient. The narrative was outstanding and the sound system was excellent ,so you could hear everything in the narrative. The breakfast was excellent. Worth every cent of the cost

We took the train from Anchorage to Fairbanks then 4 days last returned to Anchorage. It was one of the highlights of our time in Alaska. The staff was so friendly and helpful. The one way trip is 12hrs but it didn't feel like it. We could move around free along the length of the train and there were areas to stand. We meet some wonderful fellow travelers and the atmosphere was very enjoyable. It's the best was to see all the mountains in our opinion. Highly recommend.

Long, but nice ride. It was more fun travel than travel from one town to another. Pleasant rail staff, kept us informed with history and what to see along the ride, and a good food too.

Love it definitely worth it. Beautiful views easy instructions. It was amazing. Denali is gorgeous. Down town was pretty cool too see the scenery is breathtaking.

We actually took the Denali Star, with GoldStar service, from Fairbanks to Anchorage. It was scheduled to be a 12 hour ride but we got in about 40 minutes late, at around 8:40. And then you have to wait for your luggage, which was delivered very efficiently but still required about 20 minutes, with the large volume of bags! I would definitely be wary of trying to fly out that same evening... The train trip itself was marvelous!! We loved the meals (there were several choices at each meal time - breakfast, lunch and dinner) and everyone in our party found something tasty that they enjoyed. The meal service was very good, although a bit rushed, since there were two seatings, so that made it a little less enjoyable but it wasn't really a big problem. Our server for two of the meals was Vanya, who was very sweet. The food was delicious! On the southbound train, you'll see more of the river on the left side, and more of Denali (if it's visible) on the right side. So there's really no bad side. Our guides were Johanna and Aracely and they were both excellent!!! They never tired of our many questions and they made the trip much more interesting. Complimentary non-alcoholic beverages were served all day long by Tobias, who had a little drinks station at the back of the car that you could visit anytime, but he also passed through the car many times during the entire trip to check on us-he was awesome! With the GoldStar service, you get two free alcoholic beverages during the trip. You also get to sit in assigned seats upstairs in the dome car (accessed by a small circular staircase), and then you go downstairs to the dining room for your meals. The bathroom is also on the lower level. They have a little open elevator (lift) to move people who need assistance between the two floors of the car. This was one of our favorite train rides - We highly recommend it!!

Great senary. You can see the whole snow covered Denali ridge. It's so beautiful. The staffs are very friendly and helpful too

It’s a long way from Fairbanks to Talkeetna on the train but do it. We did it on a group tour and enjoyed it very much. Staff were young and energetic. Big viewing windows. Decent seats. You can get up and move around from side to side if you get a glimpse of a moose or Denali. Adequate snack bar. Take a meal in the dining car. The pot roast was very good. Tip: diners were called from front of train (car A) to the rear (car D) so lunch for us wasn’t until around 3pm and we were very hungry! Take that into consideration Might have to buy or bring a snack. Recommend!!

This was a fun trip through the hills of Alaska. We booked the "Gold Star" first class cabin which included "free" breakfast as well as a couple of drinks. The left side of the car saw more action as the right side was often hillside... so if you can sit on the left side, you'll likely have better views. Aside from various birds (eagles etc) didn't see much wildlife. The train has an outside area where you could stand and watch the scenery glide past which was really nice. Our car was at about 50% capacity which was nice. There were nice bathrooms and big clean windows to look through. There was a guide who would call out anything of interest to see, but there wasn't much of that on our trip.

The train is awesome; over the last five days we went from Anchorage to Seward and back again and then to Denali. After two days in Denali, we headed on to Fairbanks to catch a plane home. So, we spent some time on the Alaska Rail. When reviewing something you are prone to comparing it to other trains. So, to start, this not an overnight train such as VIA Rail in Canada or Amtrak in the lower 48 states. Its other comparable would be the luxury private trains in Canada and the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. It is truly unique and ignoring its differences from other rail would be to do it a disservice. Alaska Rail is a legacy service operating on tracks that were engineered at the turn of the 20th century and is the only railroad in the world that provides “flag stop” service for quick stops to pick up passengers in the rural areas not served by roads. The Goldstar class of service features trains 18’2” tall, two feet higher than Amtrak’s iconic long distance sleepers on Western routes in the United States. Food on the train is satisfactory, but not outstanding, similar to other rail operators. It is not microwave food. Service was excellent when we rode. The scenery was impressive, but less spectacular than the Seward-Anchorage and Anchorage-Denali sections. The construction of the rail and the rail yards are interesting as well as mining operations and Fairbanks itself as opposed to pure mountain and forest scenery in the aforementioned sections. Narration is provided as well as wildlife spotting. The train appeared to be primarily tourists and only made one very brief stop on the way. Cleanliness of the train was not adequate when we boarded due to many people disembarking at Denali and leaving their trash. An employee quickly came around and picked up the debris. The train was exactly on time at both ends. A bathroom was out-of-order in the “B” car when we rode and this is a constant problem as announced on the PA system. This is an excellent rail system and in addition to passenger service, hauls tons of raw materials across these tracks. Private cruise ship passenger cars are often attached to the train.

We road from Alaska Rail Gold Star from Fairbanks to Denali, from Denali to Anchorage and from Seward to Anchorage. We experienced these rides much more favorably than the Wilderness Express. All Alaska Railway Gold Star services include the dome roof, which was a highlight of our Alaska experience. It provided access to striking views which could not have been experienced in other ways including the landscape, waterfalls, moose, bald eagles, trumpet swans, and glaciers. The food and service were fantastic.

Taking this train was the main reason we wanted to go to Alaska. We actually started in Fairbanks (for 4 hours), got off in Denali for 2 nights, then got back on and went down to Anchorage (8 hours). We did the Adventure Class the first leg of the trip and it was just fine. They have an observation level (no assigned seats up there), where we went up to a few times. The cafe car was great, lots of food options and snacks. Staff was excellent and super nice. We played cards and drank coffee for a few hours. Views were great and they narrate the trip (on and off). Highly recommend this!!!

Very nice, clean and modern feel. They have a gift shop with lots of T-Shirts and some souvenirs for purchase. The staff were all helpful and great! VictorB

Organized, easy to understand process and comfortable travel. Price wise reasonable as well. Clean toilets and food can be purchased in train

The train proved perfect. We expect ed good service, good food, great views and all the rest all there reviews attest. What we did not expect was forest fires that closed the road from Fairbanks to Denali. The train however did not experience even the slightest delay. Had we driven we would have missed everything planned for Denali. One more reason to take the train!

This was a super interesting ride with great information and breathtaking views. Everything was done in such an efficient way that getting from Fairbanks to Anchorage was so smooth. I easily checked in a bag and everyone at the station and working the train were incredibly nice. Again, the views were amazing. I did wish that the lights could have been shut off at times so you didn't have the glare in pictures through the window, but that's probably for safety reasons.