Our friend, who owns the Skookum, some RR friends, my husband,(who is the chief mechanical engineer for the Skookum, & other locomotives) & I went to the beautiful Niles Canyon Railway to address a couple of mechanical & maintenance issues AND to enjoy a wonderful fun & uncrowded ride (unbelievably- my first!)

A fun way to make the train lovers in your family happy. They run trains on the weekends. Buy your tickets online and enjoy the day! You can bring your own food. They also sell snacks. It's a short ride with some nice scenery. The whole operation is a labor of love run by volunteers. Happy to support this great group!!

Throughly enjoyed the ride and interesting commentary from the conductor. It made for a great day trip. The only thing was hot chocolate would have been nice had it been available.

The long history of the Pacific Locomotive Association's work to preserve CA railroad history reaches its zenith at the NCRy. Rebuilding and relaying almost the entire abandoned SP Niles Canyon mainline after it was pulled up for scrap in the 1980s, they created one of the finest tourist railroad routes in the US in both length and quality. The ride is just the right length to keep you and whomever you dragged along happy. The world class collection of locomotives and rolling stock including lovingly preserved diesels and fully rebuilt steam engines have room to stretch their legs. Hearing their horns and whistles echo off the canyon on a warm summer day is always a treat. Not to mention you can hop off the train and shop or eat in Niles before returning to Sunol. Makes for a splendid day all around.

First time on the Niles train! I think I had more fun than the kids, ha! It was a very peaceful ride with a fun engine switch-a-roo.

Fun adventure. We traveled through areas you can see from the road. All of the volunteer staff were so enthusiastic and informative.

It was a good way to enjoy a little close to home experience. It would have been a little better if they let you get off at the stop and go to the little shops. We were pretty much stuck on the train waiting for them to turn the engine around for us to go back. There was a farmers market set up the day I went but we just had to look at it from the train and not be able to go to it. Definately recommend getting tickets in advance versus the day of because they will most likely be sold out so its not something you can randomly pick to go do one weekend without purchasing ahead of time.

Loved this train ride! The conductor Jorg was awesome with my kiddos and made everything fun! Totally worth the trip and time to come out!

Enjoyable day on the train. I was impressed how clean the whole train was. Snack items are minimal, but not over-priced. The sound of the tracks was almost enough to put me to sleep!

Fun little train trip through the canyon. Water was flowing in the stream and wildflowers were in bloom during our excursion on mother's day.

It's one of the mini bucket list item that we covered. Experience is all right , can be elevated a bit by providing some better food options. Overall a nice little ride and some history lessons. Conductors and most crew members are volunteers and do an awesome job.

We rode the “Niles Canyon Train of Lights” in the Dome Car which is a little more money than the general admission. I wanted to ride this train because my mother rode this train or one just like it in the 50’s from Boston to California when her family moved here. For her it was an amazing trip down memory lane. By boarding at the Sunol station the dome car was the last car of the train which we had to walk quite a distance. Not easy for someone in her 80’s. The dome car holds 32 people which 16 can ride in the dome in one direction and the other 16 ride in the lower section of the car. At the half way point you switch places so everyone gets a turn. At night there is not much to see from the dome so I would have rather picked a car closer to the entrance so my mother would not have had to walk so far. The train is lit up and beautiful on its own but it’s far more impressive from the outside. Santa came by to visit every child and cookies and cider was available in the dome car.

I rode the Christmas Train of Lights at Niles Canyon Railway with my family for the first time this year and it was magical. Full disclosure that the tickets go on sale in October and go immediately - the ticketing site and it’s queuing process is not easy to use. But luckily for me, I got tickets in the Parlor Car. General admission you need to get there early and wait in line to get first come first serve seats in either a traditional car or an open air (read: cold!!) one. For the parlor car we went straight on board our car which has seats arranged along the edges and tables for our hot chocolates. This car was lovely. Next year I want to try the dome car. All the other cars are also beautifully decorated and you can walk through the whole train (except the dome and parlor if you don’t have that wrist band) while the train is going, which is really fun, especially when the rain goes on a slight bend and you can see all the lights down the exterior side from the open air cars. Santa will also come to visit you during your ride and stop for photos. This is an all-volunteer run operation and it just has a very homespun, sweet feel that I appreciated. The price is also totally reasonable, especially compared with “The Polar Express” and other Christmas trains I’ve found in NorCal. I plan on making this one a holiday tradition. Thanks, Niles Canyon!

The Train ride was fantastic! In total it was about 1.5 hours from start to finish (round-trip). The experience is very family friendly and the customer service was great. Just a reminder that the current train in use is a diesel engine. Make sure if you are sensitive to smell sit in the back of the train otherwise it's a historically fun ride. The Sunol station has the actual museum and gift shop. Prices are good and the information is fascinating. The town has some other great attractions, so I would definitely make an afternoon of it.

Nice 1 hour trip, I thought the weather being hot might be an issue but the breeze was cool and nice. We opted for an open air cabin. The people on board were awesome. Loved the trip and kids had fun

My daughter and I went on the Christmas train for her birthday... it was an amazing experience. I wish I'd known about this years ago when both of my children were still young. The snacks and hot coco were reasonably priced (cash only) Keep in mind it does get cold aboard the train (not a complaint) just a warning to dress warmly and if possible bring a blanket. Overall a great family holiday outing.

Enjoyed the train ride and museum!! Be sure you check online about availability. Good food at Bocas (across the street).

We had fun here. The train ride was good. Parking was also available for everyone. I will recommend not to take a ride in the nighttime as you can hardly see anything outside if you choose to sit open area. Please try food items inside the train as they are very tasty and also very affordable. Overall, it was a fun ride for the family and friends. Price was flat 35$ for everyone, and it seems ok as it was a 90-minute train ride.

I had three friends out of town. I took them on the 4:30 PM train trip on Friday, December 10th, 2021. What a memorable experience. The all volunteer staff was very helpful and friendly from the parking lot attendant, ticket agent to the staff aboard the train. The views of Niles Canyon from the open-car at sunset was wonderful. The cars were very festive and each one had it's own unique Christmas Decor. Everybody aboard the train was in a festive mood. Santa made an appearance which thrilled the kids.The homemade cookies and hot chocolate really hit the spot on that cool night ride. Thanks to all the Niles Railroad Staff for making it such a wonderful night... Happy Holidays!

I did not visit the museum but went on the Christmas train ride. The train is very quaint and decorated beautifully inside and outside. The ride is just over an hour long and since it was dark, there were no sights to see. The staff are super friendly and despite the crowds everything was organized well.

Went for the train of lights Christmas trainride, Such a fun family experience! This is been a family tradition and we always look forward to going!

Awesome Yrail from pleasant Hill to Sunol. I really love the deep countryside and the Hills. Round-trip 48+ miles. On a Giant TCR Advanced Dic 1 +pro Compact.

The holiday light train is absolutely worth the ticket!! Affordable and great for family. Parking wasn't an issue and the people there were so friendly

We took the last steam train ride for the 2023 season on 10/29/2023 with our grandson and his family. Even with a light rain the trip through the canyon was enjoyable and we stayed dry even on an open car. We packed a lunch for the ride although there was a snack bar on the train with reasonably priced food, drink, and snack items. All 7 of us were able to sit together on two bench seats facing each other. The railroad staff and volunteers were very helpful to all of us, but especially to my 86 year old husband and me as we both have slight mobility issues. Their hand-cranked lift allowed us to easily board the train and their assistance in carrying our soft-sided cooler to our selected seats was generous and thoughtful. We can hardly wait to ride again in 2024!

It was a very relaxing ride if you can try to take one atleast once we you and your partner or you and your children! My children enjoyed the scenery and so did I! They need young people to come down to volunteer to work on the trains, if you love trains, please volunteer some of your time to keep this experience going for years to come!