Great Trains of the American West is not being offered this year. A similar tour, Colorado Rail Adventure is running. Other spectacular tours to see the American West by rail are currently available.

President Theodore Roosevelt, after traveling over the Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad Durango & Silverton route, famously commented that the train journey through Colorado was "the trip that bankrupts the English language." The storied passage over the Rio Grande is only one of the visual treats that await you on this spectacular 11-day vacation incorporating Colorado's most famous train routes. Fine hotels, comprehensive sightseeing, and a series of spellbinding rail trips make this rail vacation extra-special.

Highlights of your tour include visits to Rocky Mountain National Park, Pikes Peak and the Garden of the Gods, the Air Force Academy, the Royal Gorge Bridge, and Old Sacramento. Featured trains include the Manitou Cog Railroad, the Royal Gorge Route Railroad, the Cumbres & Toltec Railroad, the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, and the Heber Valley Railroad.

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• Hotel accommodations
• Select meals
• Five remarkable train excursions: the Manitou Cog Railroad, the Royal Gorge Route Railroad, the Durango & Silverton Railroad, and the Heber Valley Railroad
• Sightseeing including Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado Springs, San Juan National Forest, and Provo Canyon. Admission fees included.
• Private train travel from Utah to Sacramento aboard the Great Western Limited
• Motorcoach transportation
• Services of a professional tour manager

Day 1: Denver, the Mile-High City
Arrive in Denver and transfer to your hotel. The remainder of the day is at your leisure to explore this exciting city. Your hotel is centrally-located in the city's popular LODO neighborhood, brimming with art galleries and restaurants. Overnight at the Oxford Hotel (R)

Day 2: Overnight Denver
Today's sightseeing takes you to Rocky Mountain National Park where you will witness stunning scenery from several viewpoints. Enjoy lunch on your own, shopping, and sightseeing in the beautiful town of Estes Park before returning to your hotel in Denver. Tonight enjoy a casual welcome dinner with the group at the acclaimed Wynkoop Brewery. Overnight at the Oxford Hotel. (B, D)

Day 3: Colorado Springs
This morning travel to Colorado Springs for a visit to the Air Force Academy. Following your visit to the Academy, travel to the lovely Garden of the Gods for a light lunch and sightseeing in this beautiful state park. You'll want to keep your camera handy! Overnight Embassy Suites (L, R, D)

Day 4: Pikes Peak
Board the coach this morning and travel to Manitou Springs for a spectacular ride onboard the Manitou Cog Railroad to the top of Pikes Peak. Following the train ride, there will be time for lunch and shopping in Manitou Springs. After lunch, enjoy a visit the U.S. Olympic Training facility in Colorado Springs. This evening enjoy a group dinner and cowboy show at the Flying "W" Ranch. Overnight Embassy Suites. (B, R, D)

Day 5: Royal Gorge/Alamosa
This morning travel to Canon City where you'll board the Royal Gorge Route Railroad for a trip into the Royal Gorge. This awe-inspiring trip, considered one of the most spectacular scenic railway trips in the world, offers a 24-mile round-trip ride through this magnificent chasm. We will disembark the train at the bottom of the gorge and ride up the incline railway to the top of the gorge, where there will be time for lunch on your own as well as a visit to the Royal Gorge Park. The park includes an aerial tram, a zoo, shopping, shows and the Royal Gorge Bridge. Conclude your day by traveling to Alamosa for a group dinner and overnight stay in this quaint mining town. (B, D)

Day 6: Cumbres Pass / Durango
Today's excursion takes you over the beautiful Cumbres Pass aboard the legendary Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad. The train will make a stop at the top of the mountain before continuing down to Chama, New Mexico. Upon arrival in Chama, board your coach for the ride to Durango, Colorado. Overnight Doubletree Durango.

Day 7: Durango & Silverton
Today's excursion takes you for a ride by narrow-gauge train through the beautiful San Juan Mountains and San Juan National Forest en route to Silverton, Colorado, aboard the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, a stunning 45-mile, three ½-hour ride. There will be time for lunch and shopping on your own before boarding the coach for a ride over the Million Dollar Highway to the town of Ouray, Colorado, the "Switzerland of America." This quaint Swiss village offers shopping, food, waterfalls and fantastic scenery set in a beautiful valley on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. From Ouray travel to Grand Junction for an overnight stay at the Doubletree Hotel in this charming town. (B)

Day 8: Heber Valley Railroad / Great Western Limited
Start your day with a scenic drive west to Provo, Utah and the renowned Heber Valley Railroad for a train ride through lovely Provo Canyon. As a special treat, enjoy a spa visit with hot mineral pools later today as well as a very special dinner tonight. Later this evening, board the Great Western Limited, a special 1940's era streamliner, for the overnight passage west to Sacramento over the storied Overland Route of the Union Pacific Railroad. Onboard, all guests enjoy comfortable Pullman sleeping car accommodations as well as a swank dining-lounge car. There is a grand champagne and fine chocolate reception to welcome guests aboard tonight. (B, L, D)

Day 9: Sierras / Sacramento
Today is a magical day as you travel over the original Transcontinental Railroad, passing Reno at breakfast before traversing the majestic Sierra Nevada Mountains. The names today read like the pages of an American history book: Stanford Curve, Donner Lake, Gold Run, and Cape Horn. There is a special farewell lunch today before your arrival in Sacramento. Your hotel is just a few minutes walk from all that this historic and fascinating area has to offer and is simply the best location in town. Overnight Holiday Inn. (B, D)

Day 10: Sacramento
This morning embark on a trip to the spectacular and highly acclaimed California State Railroad Museum in Old Sacramento, without question the best railroad museum in the country, if not the world. There is a massive Southern Pacific cab-forward steam locomotive, a diorama of the passage over the Sierra Mountains which you traveled just yesterday, an original Super Chief dining car to tour and much more. This afternoon, there is a ride on the Sacramento Southern Railroad along the Sacramento River and tonight a special treat: a farewell dinner aboard the fabled Delta King Riverboat, now docked permanently in Old Sacramento. Overnight Holiday Inn (B, D)

Day 11: Journey Home
Guests may depart for home today by train or air or you may wish to extend your stay in California with a visit to nearby San Francisco. (B)