Exciting Train Adventures in Chattanooga, Tennessee

Chattanooga, Tennessee is a great place to visit – especially if you enjoy trains like our family does!

The city of Chattanooga is located in southeastern Tennessee on the border with Georgia. It is the perfect city to visit for train enthusiasts. Whether you want to ride a train up the side of a mountain, sleep in a restored sleeper car, or ride the largest steam railroad in the south, you’ll find plenty of fascinating train activities. P.S. I recommend you do all 3!

Here are three great places to visit in Chattanooga, especially if you love trains:

1. CHATTANOOGA CHOO-CHOO RAILROAD MUSEUM & HOTEL

The Chattanooga Choo Choo is actually a historic hotel located in the Historic Southside neighborhood. You can stay here in a standard hotel room, or luxury room, or even spend the night in an authentic Pullman railcar. 

This station is also where the hotel check-in/lobby is located. Right outside the Terminal Station, you can walk along the retired train tracks. Here you can see the different trains. Many of these train cars are also hotel rooms. Others have been converted into restaurants or bars. 

You don’t have to stay at the hotel to visit the hotel and the surrounding complex. The Terminal Station (pictured above) is gorgeous and it is well worth a visit. This station is a Chattanooga, Tennessee ‘must do’ for train lovers!

The Glenn Miller Gardens are also located here. It is a beautiful and peaceful area here at the hotel/museum complex. There are pavilions, rocking chairs, and picnic areas. 

Families will also enjoy playing life-sized checkers, Jenga, corn hole, and bocce ball. In colder months, the hotel has an outside skating rink and even a hot chocolate food truck. It is best to call ahead to see when these are available. The hotel/complex is within walking distance of several restaurants and shopping areas.

Chattanooga Choo Choo  //  1400 Market Street – Chattanooga, TN 37402  //  423.266.5000

WEBSITE

2. LOOKOUT MOUNTAIN INCLINE RAILWAY IN CHATTANOOGA, TENNESSEE

We recently took our train-loving kids to visit Chattanooga and our first stop was the Incline Railway (Okay, their dad and I also love trains. Don’t even get me started on the hubs model train collection!).

It was a really fun day and the Incline Railway was a really unique experience. We had a great time! There are two ways to access the Incline Railway – from the top of Lookout Mountain or at the bottom on St. Elmo Avenue. We started at the bottom train station. You could honestly spend all day at Lookout Mountain.

Besides riding the incline railway, there are many other activities in this area. At the top of the incline is Lookout Mountain. This area includes a souvenir shop, an observation deck, Point Park, Ruby Falls, and Rock City.

At the bottom of the incline, there are several restaurants and shops to visit. There is a souvenir shop and an ice cream shop at the train depot at the bottom of the Incline.

WAITING FOR THE TRAIN

The trains are fun, trolley-style cars. There are windows on the sides and the top of the car which makes for some amazing views. The seats are always facing in the same direction so that you can see the city of Chattanooga whether riding the car up or down.

We rode the train backward, which makes for some amazing views as you ride. The ride goes up the side of the mountain and it is about a mile long. This train ride lasts about 10 minutes and the trains run every 30 minutes or so.

Above photo via

There are two railways – one that rides to the top and one that rides back down to the bottom. The trains synchronize their trips so that they meet and pass each other in the middle of the track. It’s called “The Switch”.  It was fun to meet up with the other train and wave at all of its passengers. 

The climb seemed very gradual for most of the trip. I could really feel the steepness of the incline during the last 1/4 mile.

Above: Our view from the front-row seat of the trolley/train car. We also had a HUGE window on both sides and the roof of the train car.

ON THE WAY BACK DOWN

Photo Above photo via

Above: Loading back onto the train for the ride back down.

Photo Above: From the observation deck.

3. Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum

The Tennessee Valley Railroad (TVR) is one of the largest operating historic railroads in the United States. It is a great place for families to spend a few hours – especially if you love trains!

Admission to the Rail Yard and Train depot is free. The museum only charges an admittance fee on special event weekends. One example of a special event is the RailFest weekend in September. 

There is a charge for train rides. These rides can last anywhere from 55 minutes to 3 1/2 hours. You can see the train rides/schedules HERE (just click on Chattanooga Grand Junction as your Departure Location). Parking is also free.

Stepping into the Grand Junction Train Depot is like taking a step back in time. From the ticket booth to the seats in the waiting area, the depot makes you feel like you’re immersed in history.

There are some model trains and lots of historical information inside the depot.

The train depot also has a gift shop and a deli. There are drinks, snacks, and sandwiches available for purchase at the Grand Junction Depot Deli. You can eat and drink at the cafeteria or on the train. There are picnic tables located right outside if you want to bring some snacks or buy some at the deli.

THE RAIL YARD

We really enjoyed touring all of the trains in the railyard! It is so fascinating to see all of the work and detail that goes into making and restoring these trains.

Many of the trains at the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum have been featured in documentaries, tv shows, and movies.  Some of these movies include “October Sky” with Jake Gyllenhaal in 1999, “Leatherheads” with George Clooney in 2008, and “Water for Elephants” with Reese Witherspoon in 2011.

Music Videos have also been filmed at this location and with equipment at the museum. These include “Long Black Train” by Josh Turner and “Creepin” by Eric Church, among others.

THE MISSIONARY RIDGE LOCAL

There was an announcement made that the train would be arriving in about 15 minutes. We all headed out to the platform and waited for our train to arrive.

Everyone was so excited to see the 630 Steam Engine coming around the bend! This steam train was built in 1904 and was a working train for decades. It was in great need of restoration, and its repair began in the early 2000s. It took ten years to restore the train’s engine.

The train ride is called “Local” because it is a short line. At one time, these local train rides were how people traveled from one small town to another.

The train is heated in the winter and air-conditioned in the warmer months.

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We took the Missionary Ridge Local which lasts about 55 minutes round-trip.

The 55 minutes include:

• A 10-minute train ride to East Chattanooga
• A historic turntable demonstration
• Tour of the Soule Shop where antique trains undergo maintenance & restoration
• Another 10-minute train ride back to Grand Junction

After boarding the train and finding your seats, you begin the first part of your train ride. The ride to East Chattanooga lasts about 10 minutes. This train ride started at the Grand Junction Station and we rode over four bridges. We also traveled through the pre-Civil War Missionary Ridge Tunnel.

We really enjoyed the conductors’ narrative. They explained what we were seeing as we traveled through the Tennessee countryside. It was very interesting to learn about how the tunnel and railroad were built. We all learned a lot about the pre-Civil War and Civil War era here in Tennessee.

THE TRAIN RIDE

Above: Riding through the Missionary Ridge Tunnel. The Conductor explained that this tunnel was made by men with Pic axes (pre-Civil War). There were two groups of men and each group started working at opposite ends and started working toward each other. There was so much work involved in making the tunnel!

EAST CHATTANOOGA

At East Chattanooga, we got off the train and most of us headed to the antique turntable to watch the turntable demonstration.

The turntable demonstration was really fascinating. It really was a highlight of our visit! I highly recommend it. I can’t believe that, in the past, people had to move these trains on the turntable manually – two men on each side pushing the turntable/train!

Above: The blacksmith shop. My son and I stopped by the Choo Choo Forge. The blacksmith inside gave us a little demonstration. He was creating a new tool from iron. He showed us how to heat up the iron and forge the metal with his hammer.

Above: The East Chattanooga rail yard also has antique trains and vintage equipment.

THE SOULE SHOPS AT EAST CHATTANOOGA

Above: We were able to visit the shop where the trains are maintained. One of the conductors explained all of the work that goes into keeping these historic trains in operation. Since the parts for these trains are no longer available for purchase, they need to be made/created for the trains.

RETURN TRIP TO GRAND JUNCTION DEPOT

Above: The train station at East Chattanooga has a restroom and an area where you can purchase hot chocolate, other drinks, or snacks.

Above: Don’t ask me why, but having the conductor walk around and punch our train ticket was also a highlight. Our particular conductor was hilarious and we really enjoyed our interactions with him.

Read more about our adventures in Chattanooga here: 20 Things to do in Chattanooga, Tennessee with Kids

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