Travelers who love the idea of traveling the country by train but crave a little more space, privacy, and polish than a standard Amtrak seat or sleeper car allows will be happy to learn that a new option is gaining steam. In January 2026, a new company called Halloway launched and began offering exclusive-use railcar journeys on some of the most scenic routes in the American West.
Now, months after announcing its debut itineraries, Halloway is expanding. What launched as a two-route concept is quickly evolving into a broader network, with new routes, additional departure options, and longer, more flexible itineraries rolling out through 2026.
Newly expanded routes to Chicago
Halloway’s first departures centered on two marquee Amtrak lines: the Coast Starlight (connecting Los Angeles and Oakland, in the San Francisco Bay area) and the California Zephyr (Oakland to Denver). But the company’s newly added options focus solely on the latter train line connecting Emeryville, in California’s Bay area, and Chicago.
The first departure is scheduled for June 16 and will depart from Chicago to Emeryville, though travelers who want a shorter itinerary can join partway through the trip, in Denver. Additional departures follow later in the month, including a June 24 journey from Denver to Emeryville, a June 27 return trip from Emeryville to Denver, and a final June 30 run that covers the full route between Emeryville and Chicago, with the option to disembark in Denver.
On westbound trips, the train departs Chicago Union Station and soon begins cutting through the agricultural landscapes of Illinois, Iowa, and Nebraska before reaching Denver, where the terrain shifts quickly. From there, the route climbs into the Rockies, tracing river valleys and passing through Glenwood Canyon, a narrow stretch where the tracks run alongside the Colorado River between steep canyon walls.
Amtrak’s California Zephyr route is considered to be one of the most beautiful train rides in the U.S.
Courtesy of Amtrak
West of the mountains, the scenery opens into Utah’s red-rock country, defined by mesas and sandstone formations, before stretching into the high desert of Nevada, where towns are sparse.
The final leg crosses California’s Sierra Nevada, passing a series of mountain passes and forested slopes, before descending into the Bay Area. Taken together, the route links several of the country’s most distinct landscapes in a single, continuous journey—one of the key reasons it’s often called the most scenic train route in the country. All told, it covers roughly 2,400 miles and takes 52 hours.
The private train cars
Each of the itineraries uses the same two-car setup, vintage spaces renovated to function as a self-contained private train experience. The Evelyn Henry, a midcentury Union Pacific sleeper car, houses four double bedrooms and one queen-bed master suite, with en suite bathrooms and a wardrobe, effectively serving as a boutique hotel on rails. Paired with it is the 1955 Union Pacific Warren R. Henry, a classic dome-windowed train car designed for sightseeing, with panoramic views overhead and space for dining, relaxing, and socializing.
The cars are reserved exclusively for one group of up to six people; no other passengers rotate through the lounge, which means there’s no competition for observation seating.
How it works (and how to book)
Rates for Halloway’s private railcar experience on the California Zephyr between Denver and Emeryville (or vice versa) start at $37,375 for exclusive use, with accommodations for up to six guests. The journey from Northern California to Chicago starts at $51,750. All meals are included and will be prepared by a private chef. The pricing also includes laundry and nightly turndown service.
Booking a private railcar does not mean chartering an entire train—or bypassing Amtrak’s system altogether. Instead, Halloway, which bills itself as the first online marketplace dedicated to private railcar travel, is tapping into a long-standing but little-known feature of U.S. passenger rail: Privately owned railcars can be attached to scheduled Amtrak trains and moved along approved routes.
In practice, this means Halloway’s cars are physically coupled to the same trains as Amtrak’s standard coaches and sleepers. The trains depart and arrive at all of Amtrak’s regularly scheduled station stops and on Amtrak’s timetable. Travelers booking through Halloway are not riding in Amtrak’s accommodations, but they are very much part of the same train and operating system.
The first Chicago to Emeryville route is sold out as of press time; however, the other three remain, and Halloway plans to add additional itineraries in the coming weeks. They are bookable on the Halloway website. For those who want to book a custom charter on a private railcar, Halloway also offers three other refurbished historic railcars and can arrange a trip from most major origins and destinations on the U.S. passenger rail network on a case-by-case basis.
This story was originally published in January 2026, and was updated on April 27, 2026, to include current information.
