The X Train from Los Angeles to Las Vegas has scheduled its inaugural run for New Year’s Eve 2015-6. Tickets will go on sale on September, with 350 coach seats available on the retro-style Hiawatha Milwaukee Road locomotive for $99, and 150 more first-class and VIP seats for a higher price.
Amtrak used to run a train from Los Angeles to Las Vegas, but that came to a screeching halt in the 1990’s, leaving the only options for travel flying or driving, according to Los Angeles Magazine. After the inaugural ride, from Fullerton Transportation Center to downtown Las Vegas’s Plaza Hotel & Casino, the train will be run as a private charter.
The X Train’s Facebook page compared the fare to other methods of travel, pointing out most airline trips cost over $200, and while Spirit Airlines costs between $99-135, you can’t fly home on Sunday, necessitating a night at a hotel. The page acknowledges that the train would take roughly an hour more than flying, but the hassles would be fewer.
Curbed noted a previous attempt to run an X Train was aborted in 2013.