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2025 Tour code: ATW25
About the tour
Set your sights on amazing scenes of America's West with visits to six national parks on this unforgettable rail tour. The journey begins on Amtrak's Empire Builder, aboard which beautiful vistas of the Northern Prairies create the serene backdrop for the start of our trip. Our first visit is to Whitefish, where Glacier National Park's glaciers, lakes, and wildlife set the tone for our discovery of America's natural wonders. Our immersive journey continues south to the awesomeness of Yellowstone, the vast expanses of meadows and mountains that is Grand Teton National Park, and into Utah where Bryce and Zion National Parks wait to show us their treasures. Our trip culminates in the sheer majesty of the Grand Canyon. From the scenery to the iconic sites and the wildlife, your camera and your heart will overflow with memories from this voyage.
Unforgettable Experiences
What’s included
Itinerary
Arrive at Chicago Union Station early this afternoon and board the legendary Empire Builder. Settle into your onboard accommodations and prepare for your overnight rail journey. Travelers may elect to travel from Seattle or points in-between and meet your tour manager in Whitefish. Overnight train.
Additional information
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Reviews
4.7 / 5 · 97 reviews
Janien Severance
Submitted 1/Aug
We were able to see six national parks in about 12 days. We had a wonderful tour guide and an incredible driver. They went above and beyond to give us a wonderful experience.
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Pat Fetchik
Submitted 31/Jul
It was a very organized trip. Tour guide and bus driver made the trip quite enjoyable
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Nicole Dossett
Submitted 28/Jul
This is a fabulous vacation!!! Has the perfect balance of activities and leisure time! Our Tour Guide Edgar was fantastic and quite knowledgeable about area!
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D. Nockerts
Submitted 27/Jul
We started the trip by flying into Glacier. General consensus was the train was horrible! 4 hrs late, bathrooms never got cleaned and were disgusting, hard to sleep in both sleeper cars and in coach, and food was poor. We were glad we decided to fly, plus we got a good night’s sleep and were ready for the day at Glacier. (Train people only got 3 hrs of sleep at the hotel). Edgar, our amazing guide, kept in touch with us via text to keep us informed, however he did say he didn’t get our cell numbers from VBR, he got them from our friends who were on the train. If not for them, we wouldn’t have known how to meet with our tour that first morning. VBR can do a better job of communicating information we gave them prior to the trip with the guides assigned to the tour. Edgar didn’t have cell numbers, email info, or even flight info for flights home. This all should be provided to the guides so they can start communicating with everyone prior to the start of the trip. They should not have to individually ask people while on the bus as we traveled so he could quickly get a group text going. I would have liked a welcome email or text from our guide to let us know what time to meet the first day (especially when travelers are not on the train to get the info). All parks were stunningly beautiful. Even though the trip is rated “moderate”, I would rate it more on the easy side. It’s as hard as you want it to be. Not as much “hiking” and free time as we would have expected in each park. Most parks had boardwalks and groomed paths, with very little rocks or stumps in the path. Be prepared for A LOT of riding on the bus and very long days in order to fit 6 parks in 9 days, and 1500 miles. Bus stopped every 2 hrs when traveling for bathroom/snack breaks. I was most looking forward to Zion, and our Zion day fell apart. Our bus tour of Zion cancelled so we never really got in to see the canyons. We could only go as far as they would let the tour buses go. In addition, the West Yellowstone hotel, Gray Wolf Inn and Suites was totally pathetic. Our room wasn’t clean, toothpaste in the sink, not vacuumed or dusted, and they were cleaning our room at 10 pm. Mold in the bathroom, tub not cleaned. The other hotels were top notch. VBR, PLEASE reconsider getting a different hotel. Many reviews the past year for that hotel said the same thing. It has gone downhill Our tour guide (Edgar) and bus driver (Kris from Holiday) were amazing! 5/5 Stars for them. They MADE the trip! They worked hard giving us history of parks while we traveled, pointing out points of interest along the route, history of the state, flag, etc. Edgar really did his homework and used technology on the bus flawlessly to put presentations on the bus TV’s for us to learn about what we were to see. They truly were amazing working tag team and sharing info on the area. Kris helped us on and off the bus, had cooler of waters for us (that we also could use for our soda). When our Zion guide cancelled our Zion tour, they tried hard to fill in with things outside the park, but it wasn’t the same. Still they pivoted well and did the best they could and we made the best of the disappointment. Both Edgar and Kris were SOO patient, understanding, and willing to take suggestions from people on the bus and do side stops that were not on the official tour but were on or close to the route. Edgar also knew how much we wanted to hike, and he really tried to give us as much hiking time as possible. On our free day at Jackson, he and Kris took a group of 4 back to the Tetons (Jenny Lake) to hike for the day instead of spending all day in Jackson. They also took another group of people whitewater rafting that day. Spending the evening in the city was enough for us. Bottom line, overall the tour was amazing and we’re glad we went. Food provided was exceptional. VBR could communicate better with guides giving contact info of each guest prior to trip, Yellowstone hotel was a ding, and Zion was a bust. For those reasons, this tour is getting a 4 instead of 5 stars.
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Mela Mathews
Submitted 10/Jul
We enjoyed touring the six western US National Parks, and were excited that we got to see all the highlights of each Park. The Tour Guide was very good at covering the history and natural features, and the Coach Driver was excellent. The Empire Builder roomette was good for viewing out the window, and allowed us privacy. However, the long trip from Chicago to Whitefish was not very scenic, and we suggest a shorter route from the Washington or Oregon would be better scenically and shorter. The upper bunk bed was not very comfortable. Overall we were very satisfied with out tour that was well planned.
Collected by Trustpilot
Richard Poulillo
Submitted 7/Jul
This trip was a wonderful experience. I highly recommend it.
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