Winter Park Express Ski Train Returning for Early 2022

After a brief hiatus last season due to COVID-19, Amtrak and Winter Park have announced that the the Winter Park Express train service will be returning this January. The service will run nonstop between Denver’s Union Station and the Winter Park ski resort.

From the weekend of January 14 through April 3, the service will operate once a day on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. As in previous seasons, trips from Denver’s Union Station depart at 7am, arriving at Winter Park at 9am. Trips return from Winter Park at 4:30pm and get back to Denver at 6:30pm. Tickets are $29 one way, with 50% discounted fares for children 12 and under.

The Winter Park Express Amtrak service has a storied history. The service initially began back in 1940, and after a previous suspension from 2009 to 2017, trains started running again in 2018.

Our Take

While chiefly only useful for those living or staying in downtown Denver (most guests coming from the airport will need to stay overnight in the city to make the train), Winter Park’s train service provides a unique, hassle-free way to get to the mountain. Denver has rapidly grown in recent years, and I-70 essentially becomes a parking lot on weekend mornings during the core season now. As the only major resort in the Front Range accessible by train, Winter Park has a huge advantage as the one resort you can get to without seeing massive traffic delays—and reasonable ticket prices for the train service mean it’s not too much pricier than driving anyway.

Considering a trip to Winter Park this season? Check out our comprehensive mountain review here. To see how Winter Park stacks up against other Colorado destinations, check out our Colorado rankings.