Do you still think that traveling by trian is boring? Well, I am sure that you simply didn't have good experiences in the past...
In many corners of the globe, rail is the standard means of transportation. In the United States, and to a lesser degree Canada and Mexico, this has never been the case (at least not since the frontier days). Blame it on an expensive, inefficient train system or a lack of government funding, North American train travel might seem like more trouble than it's worth.
But with gas prices so unpredictable and airlines so inhospitable, the old-fashioned locomotive is making a comeback. Amtrak, the United States' primary train service, reported a 12.3 percent increase in ridership in May 2008 over the previous year—even more notable as May is traditionally a weak travel month. Amtrak's routes currently encompass 46 states and have served more than 19 million passengers in the first half of this year alone.
Scenic tours like Canada's Rocky Mountaineer have begun to flourish, as Americans step outside the box (and the car). Rocky Mountaineer Vacations, which offers various routes through British Columbia and Alberta, has recorded a rise in passengers from Vancouver to Whistler who used to drive their cars between the two locations.
