News : Answers concerning the Holiday Train

To all of those inquiring about the Holiday Train, here is the latest…..

After countless phone calls last year and several already this year, I wanted to provide a little information on the Holiday Train that once ran roundtrip from Palo to Vinton. I know it was a popular, well attended event but unfortunately, the train will not be returning to Vinton in 2015.

The Holiday Train first debuted in Vinton after the 2008 flood and served as fundraiser for the areas that suffered flood damage. The train continued a year or two after that and then stopped coming to Vinton, for whatever reason. Vinton Unlimited’s Destination Vinton committee has been working for over a year to bring that train back to Vinton but to be honest, we haven’t had much luck. We have had numerous phone calls, emails and visits with various people at the Iowa Northern Railway but it seems they feel comfortable with their arrangement in Waterloo and aren’t looking to change anything at this time. We do plan to continue to talk with them and possibly we can come up with something to appease both groups in the future. In the meantime, if you are looking to ride the Holiday Train, you will have to travel to Waterloo. According to an online article from the Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier, tickets go on sale on Saturday, November 7th. Read the full article here

If you have any ideas that may help bring the train back to Vinton, don’t hesitate to let us know! info@vintonia.org