A New Overnight Luxury 'Hotel Train' May Soon Run Between Los Angeles and San Francisco
It will be the only night train to serve that route.
Nina Ruggiero/Travel + Leisure
There may soon be a new way to shuttle between Los Angeles and San Francisco: a luxury overnight train.
The passenger train is the brainchild of California-based Dreamstar Lines and is expected to launch as early as late this year. It would take travelers between the two California cities in an “overnight ‘hotel train,’” according to the company.
Dreamstar still needs to secure agreements to make the train a reality. But if all goes as planned, this would be the first night train to serve that route in decades, SFGate reported.
“We’re a different kind of service than high-speed rail,” Dreamstar founder and advisor Tom Eastmond told SFGate. “Halfway between transportation and hotel.”
Passengers would leave at about 10 p.m. and arrive at their destination at around 8:30 a.m. the following morning. The train would be equipped with updated technology, like electronic ticket sales and an app for riders to order food and other services.
The train is slated to have five to six sleeper cars. And while there will not be a standalone dining car, there will be a lounge where passengers could order some food and drinks. Dreamstar told SFGate fares would cost about $300 for a one-person roomette, $600 for a two-person bedroom, and $1,000 for a premium room.
The train would mostly travel along the same route Amtrak’s Coast Starlight uses, which goes from Seattle to Los Angeles in about 35 hours, according to the rail company. (If Dreamline secures permissions, it'll also stop at existing stations along the route like Santa Barbara, San Jose, and San Luis Obispo.)
Beyond the train, the journey between Los Angeles and San Francisco on the Pacific Coast Highway is a popular road trip option with plenty of places to stop along the way. Alternatively, a flight takes about 1.5 hours with several airlines operating the route.
For more Travel & Leisure news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!
Read the original article on Travel & Leisure.
