Canadian Luxury Train Launches New US Route

A new train service has arrived in the West but it's definitely not one for ordinary commuters—one-way tickets on the Rocky Mountaineer are $1,250 per person in SilverLeaf class and $1,645 in SilverLeaf Plus. The luxury service from the renowned Canadian company made its maiden voyage between Denver, Colorado, and Moab, Utah, on Sunday, CNN reports. The trip takes two days and one night but as on the company's routes in western Canada, passengers spend the night in a hotel, not on the train. "Our trains only travel during the day and feature oversized windows so guests do not miss a moment of the ever-changing landscapes," says Rocky Mountaineer communications director Nicole Ford. The ticket price includes the hotel stay as well as unlimited food and drinks.

The award-winning company says all of its cars have an outdoor viewing platform. The train makes its overnight stop in Glenwood Springs in western Colorado, where the tourist industry has been suffering since mudslides blocked normal interstate access, CBS Denver reports. "They have been warm, they have been welcoming,” train manager Wendy McMichael says of local businesses that have been working with the company. "We know we are going to have a great partnership with them. And the fact that we get to help support that community that has been going through such rough times, that is just heartwarming to us." The company says the first season of its "Rockies to the Red Rocks" will run until Nov. 19, with next year's seven-month season beginning in the spring. (More train stories.)