Leprechauns on board! Irish eyes will be smiling when the Saint Paddy’s Day Express pulls up to the depot. And the lilt of Irish laughter will rise as Danny Boys and Irish Roses climb aboard. All the station masters, conductors, and engineers will be wearin’ the green and you’d better too, because everybody’s Irish when Erin’s patron party saint is on track!
This year’s parade of Saint Patrick’s Day train rides promises something for everybody. Whiskey jars will pour and green pints will flow as your Emerald Express roves from glen to glen. Gaelic-style bands will pound out heart-thumping ballads and steaming heaps of corned beef and cabbage will be common fare.
For Saint Patrick’s Day, many trains will morph into Irish pubs on wheels. All are likely to be awash in Guiness and local craft brews gone green, with Irish Spirits and Irish Coffee generally on hand. Catch the fun aboard the Grapevine Railroad in Texas, California’s River Fox Happy Hour Express, and Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad in Colorado.
Looking for heartier fare? The luck of the Irish is with you aboard several popular dinner trains! You can catch a live performance of a murder mystery combined with a full course dinner aboard Florida’s Murder Mystery Dinner Train. Alternatively, classic Irish-inspired feasts will served aboard the Colebrookdale Railroad, in Pennsylvania and the North Carolina Transportation Museum‘s St. Patrick’s Day Train Ride
Finally, because Leprechauns aren’t the only little people who love a Saint Paddy party, Utah’s Heber Valley Railroad plans a great day for Irish of all ages with kid-friendly family fun trains!
This year, because March 17th falls on a Thursday, many railroads will be extending the celebration… with shillelaghs tapping and Guinness flowing on the weekend before and after St. Patrick’s Day. Be sure to check with individual railroads for the latest schedules. St. Patrick’s trains are scheduled to run across the country. For info on these and other Shamrock Specials, check out the complete Train Traveling guide to Train Rides.
