Zombie Hunting. OK, this is how it works. You get on the train. You get at your station. You blow paint balls like nobodies business!! I dunno how they felt when I hit them in the face, but it was AWESOME!!! There were four of us, and we had a GREAT time. Recommended! Lots of kids on the train, and they were chastising older people about the rules. *inserts laughing imoji* Do try this. It will make you giggle. Or snort. Who cares? read more

Is this train ride worth $80 for a family of three? That's the question I kept asking myself during the trip. Most people probably expect a premium Christmas experience at that price. Instead, what you actually get is a one-hour train ride, a tiny carton of chocolate milk, a small candy cane from Santa that seemed like it had been sitting around for a while, and a cookie... except they had already run out by the time we got ours. There were enough people on the train that they were probably bringing in well over $1,200 for a single one-hour ride, yet two seats were covered with plastic bags because, I'm guessing, some kids couldn't hold their hot cocoa. Little details like that made it feel like corners were being cut. The train staff, however, were fantastic. The conductors were genuinely friendly and treated my daughter wonderfully. Santa was believable, warm, and exactly what you'd hope for. The kids also ended up singing Christmas songs together because none of the staff were really performers, but everyone did their best to keep the atmosphere festive. Here's the funny part: while I spent the whole ride mentally calculating whether we got our money's worth, my daughter couldn't have cared less. She absolutely loved it. To her, it was magical. In the end, that's what matters most to me. I still think the value for the money was pretty questionable--and, honestly, it felt like quite a racket--but seeing my daughter so happy made it hard to stay cynical. It's Christmas, after all, and that joy counts for something. read more

We had a great time last Saturday evening on the Beer Wine & Blues Train! The wine was provided by Reyes Winery; great local winery located in Agua Dulce. What a fun little trip. You start in Filmore and cruise (slowly) to Santa Paula. The train has about 5 total PARTY cars. Wine was at one end, beer at the other. The last car is open (free air) and had a rock'n band! Lot's of Jimi Hendrix and Stevey Ray Von. It was a kick crossing HWY 126 a couple of times with the band jamming, people dancing and everyone raising there glasses to the cars stopped at the train crossing. Definitely a must do. read more

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Honestly, when we signed up for the Sugar Plum Express, we thought we were getting a 45 minute holly jolly train ride experience complete with Santa, hot chocolate and tamales. What we got instead was a VERY SLOW train ride (that lasted 15 minutes) with a landscape of trash, debris and homelessness (which was an interesting conversation with our very young child) that brought us to "Loose Caboose" which could only be described as a major letdown...complete with sad/cold animals in pens, overpriced plastic trinkets and tree bits to paint as ornaments. My advise is just to cut out the middleman: just take $60 and light it on fire...that would be MORE FUN than this. read more

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BAD: Don't go during the summer. That is not the train's fault though. GOOD: Everything. Rode the Pumpkinliner train. It was a hot day so that sucked but otherwise we really enjoyed our trip. The train is fun. Love the old feel of it and the history. Glad they have not modornized it! This train offered a snack cart. Cold water plus cups with ice, candy, chips, beer and wine. Very good prices. They have an opportunity to rob guests on the prices but they don't. I appreciate that. The pumpkin town was fun for the kids. Face painting, hay ride, mary-go-round, bounce houses, haunted house, DJ, and animals. If anyone is looking for a different Pumpkin Patch experience, this is it. read more

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Yelp 100 Challenge 47 This is our second year attending the Rail Fest and let me tell you, our grandkids had a great time. We rode the steam engine for about an hour. Rode in the open car as well as the passenger car. There's something special about riding a 100 year old train, great fun. And an added bonus, they staged a train robbery in an intersection where mock robbers and a sheriff came on the train. Those guys were funny and seemed to enjoy their roles. Loved their costumes, too. The train took us through orange and avocado groves, intersections and back again. Also available were 1/2 hour caboose rides, which we might consider next time. We also toured the old train station where a model train was set up and running. We saw an old office with a typewriter unlike any I've ever seen. The kids were amazed when we explained how a typewriter used back in the day. As for food, we brought a picnic lunch. Noticed there was BBQ and treats available for purchase. Nice way to spend an afternoon and go back in time. read more

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I've gone on 2 different trips. Joined friends for the Booze & Blues train, and secondly the Saturday 4 hour ride. We lucked out on the Saturday ride & were offered tickets to the murder mystery event, which included a very tasty lunch. Looking forward to the Blues & Booze train this summer! read more

It is a show/dinner train. There is live entertainment while you are on the train for few hours and they serve dinner at the same time. The Service: One server has to take care multiple tables. Each table has 4 customers. Service is considered slow..... The Food: Taste like cafeteria food. Food is pre-cooked, not even warm. Under seasoned. Way overpriced for the dinner/show. The Parking: Street Parking Won't recommend family or friends to go. read more

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This is a review of the Murder Mystery: Love Train. This is a REALLY FUN train ride! This is our third family train ride on Fillmore & Western. We loved the actors and taking a ride on a vintage train. The train left promptly at 12 and returned a little after 4pm as scheduled. The food on this event is terrible. The salad was ok, baguette slices and butter were decent (probably from smart and final), the main entree of chicken and pilaf was so bland and the side of vegetables were clearly defrosted. I knocked two stars off of this review because the food is so bad. The vegetarian option did not look much better but I didn't try it. The service, however, is excellent! We had great wait staff the entire time who were friendly and helpful despite how uncomfortably hot the train got. Fillmore is not known for pleasant weather. The actors were engaging and fun! We loved the whole performance. The show moved slowly at times but so did the train so I don't think that was the performers' fault. This most recent ride, the ride seemed extremely long. 4 hours is just a little too long I think. It might have been enjoyable if the AC would have worked a little better. But towards the end, we were all hot, tired and ready to get off of the train. The train does take a small break at the Loose Caboose store. I'm not a fan of the Loose Caboose read more

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Rode on the Fillmore & Western 'Weekend Scenic" train on Saturday from Fillmore to Santa Paula and back. It was a four hour ride, with around an hour and a half layover in Santa Paula, which was enough time to either have lunch in Santa Paula or to look around in Santa Paula. There is also a dining car and a snack car on the train. It was a very interesting ride through the Santa Paula Valley through orange groves and other agriculture and was a very good value for $25.00 ($23.00 for Seniors). read more

Fillmore & Western Railway - Fillmore & Western "Weekend Scenic" train at the Santa Paula CA depot. - Trains Near Me - Fillmore, California

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Had a really fun day with the family on the Flmore Western train from Filmore to Santa Paula. The scenic trip is relaxing and fun with two stops. Only complaint is that there is not enough time in Santa Paula to see the town. Second time to take this train ride and plan to go again. They are requiring masks and practicing social distancing. The Honey Stop has been hit by the pandemic but is still a cool little place (and they are rebuilding). Definately a unique and fun day to spend with family or friends. read more

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The North Polar Express experience is OVERPRICED during COVID. They could do more to make you feel safe like maintaining 6 feet apart and putting anti-Bacterial. The 2 stars are because they cleaning between times and wearing masks. After being in Williams this experience isn't worth$25 x kid to just wave to Santa Claus. They aren't given tickets or trying to make you feel special like given Bells. The elf's aren't funny or trying to sing-a-long. The microphone in our cart wasn't working. If you are going just to ride a train you might do those the rest can be improve in so many ways from having better elves, better costumes, saying all aboard go I g you the story of the train... taking pictures outside the train. From COVID, better 6 ft apart putting hand sanitizer before you board making people wait to get in and out and forcing to keep windows open. Hope this helps... as I believe the train is very attractive all family members but they aren't creating the experience it could be. read more

Fillmore & Western Railway - Trains Near Me - Fillmore, California

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Took the Mystery Train tonight with friends - fun, fun, fun!! Silly acting, audience participation, nice dinner and A MURDER MYSTERY! Loved it! Well worth the price in fun, cannot wait for a second chance to do another mystery. We did The Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy. Actors were funny, great time‼ read more

Today's "Sugar Plum Express" train ride to Holiday Village was a letdown! Arrived an hour early, as advised when tickets were purchased, to sit in the Santa Paula station which was infested with spiders. Killed 2 overhead spiders because they didn't look too friendly. The bench seats need a bit of work otherwise you end up getting your tush pinched when someone else sits down. The workers behind the counter should have been more interactive with the guests instead of having private conversations. While waiting I had the opportunity to look at some historical pictures the the railway in Santa Paula as well as some of the movies that have been filmed in the area. The whole idea for the train ride was to surprise my daughter with Santa being onboard but instead she watched him check his phone as he also waited for the train to arrive. At one point he peaked out of the office and showed her a magic trick which helped to fill some time. She thought it was quite fun to peak in on Santa to see what he was up to and he kindly smiled each time. The Christmas decor on the outside of the station was cute, with trains in the wreaths. The train was about 15 minutes late arriving, which happens. With the help of an older gentleman, we boarded the train car and sat down at our tables. Being the first outgoing trip of the morning we found dirty/sticky tables, some still having left over cans and chip bags. Our ride from the Santa Paula train station to the Holiday Village at the Loose Caboose which took 8 minutes in total. In that short time, Santa made his way through the train car talking to each child and allowing time for pictures. The train car next to us was selling snacks, drinks and tamales but before we could sit down the train then pulled up to Holiday Village. Upon arrival we encountered confusion. The "Outbreak Bar" and bloody hand print train car next to us was apparently left over from Halloween. Ate our tamales under the tarp, then visited other areas of the Holiday Village such as the ornament decorating station and the elves workshop. The workshop offered carved, wooden gifts and stuffed ornaments/toys at a great cost. The elves were very kind! We found the Winter Wonderland walk-thru, which sent my daughter screaming and running away, to be very misleading. How does a fire breathing dragon or Jack Skeleton moving towards you and speaking have anything to do with a Winter Wonderland? Not cool. The pre-cut Christmas tree selection was varied and had good prices although the trees at the Santa Paula station smelled healthier. The Loose Caboose itself has some local honey, salsas, fresh oranges and tomatoes for sell, but was otherwise a variety of dusty items for sell. We also saw koi, 2 peacocks, a dove and 2 pigs. Due to the rain, the carousel was closed, there was no hayride and the holiday jolly jumpers were not available. There were several safety concerns that I saw, accidents that happened or were waiting to happen...For instance the wet mats rolled up in the middle of the walkway which I watched a man slip on, the crumbling walkways, the nails sticking out of the siding on the train car,etc. I will not return and definitely would not recommend the Sugar Plum Express train ride to anyone, for so many reasons. read more

Fillmore & Western Railway - The train is coming - Trains Near Me - Fillmore, California

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We rode the Sugar Plum train and it was a mixed bag. We arrived at the station about ten minutes before the train left. The old diesel train was a beauty but in desperate need of some major TLC. The train got moving and we rode past huge trash dumps and more homeless encampments than we could count. We arrived about ten minutes later at the holiday village, which is an absolute trip. It's basically a Halloween setup that got half heartedly turned into a Christmas village. If you have a sense of humor it's hilariously bad and quite fun. The haunted house is now the Christmas tunnel. There are presents in the electric chair getting executed and a big dragon in a Santa hat. There's a weird store that has fish-keeping supplies but they haven't been touched in about thirty years so all the bottles of chemicals and stuff are just sort of melting all over the shelves. There's a creepy aviary with some sad birds, tanks containing plastic lizards, very dusty old looking jam and honey and some refrigerators filled with stuffed animals. The other side is a bit more festive sporting a carousel and bounce house and toting a pumpkin eating pig. There was a dude carving wooden trains who was clearly the mvp of the holiday village. Three stars bc I friggin love trains and the Santa Paula station is adorable. Worth it if you're kid is super young. Or if you're looking for a way to talk to your older kids about homelessness, socioeconomic disparities, or want them to be confused about the difference between Halloween or Christmas. We'll be back next year. read more

Fillmore & Western Railway - Trains Near Me - Fillmore, California

Very disappointed with the Santa train changes it seems Hollywood has taken over. Gone are the kitschy elves and Christmas carols, Santa with the real beard who listens to children's Christmas wishes and takes time for pictures. The cheesy snow village is now a facade of one house against a metal frame.no snow. Santa looks so fake the kids who have adored this trip for eleven years still believing we're left wondering where's the real Santa. The looks on there faces told me the magic of the season was lost. Every thing is scripted and the soundtrack is very loud. The train maybe new but it was full of flies. You are paying for a production not old time cheer and believing in Santa. read more

I have done several rides and I usually enjoy them all, but today's trip on the Sugar Plum Express to the "Christmas Village" left me incredibly disappointed! I took my mom to start off the Christmas season and would have been happier at home with a cheesy Hallmark movie. First of all, the ride was short and... not their fault... but the route there is LITTERED every 100 ft with homeless camps and piles of trash and belongings in the areas they've abandoned. Absolutely appalling to look at all the way there and back. Tried the other side to avoid it..NOPE worse on the other side so you can't avoid lookIng at it all unless you just dont look out the window. But isn't that why you take the train? Then we arrive to, what feels like, a deserted destination. The area was messy with filthy chairs covered in bird droppings and a blow up Santa. I was expecting a Christmas Village with music and vendors and ....Life!! Nope! It was a couple jolly jumpers, some things to buy and a creepy Christmas Maze, 2 (beautiful) Peacocks and 2 fat pigs. Piped in Christmas music and a couple picnic Tables. It was run down and worthless. It could have really benefited from a few carolers , a stand selling cocoa/coffee and at least some baked goods. All they had was Pepsi and packaged chips and candy. I also thought Santa was supposed to be on train. Oh well, save your money on this one!!!! read more

Fillmore & Western Railway - Enjoying the view?? - Trains Near Me - Fillmore, California

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This is such a blast from the past and I loved it. The train that we rode on was from the 1920s. What a cool piece of history that is still running ! I love that they are keeping older traditions alive and showing kids and adults that you can enjoy nature , a slower pace of life , and put the electronics down for a minute. The people who run this organization really have a passion for preserving the railroad and showing families a good time. Please ignore the bad comments in regards to pricing or that they weren't satisfied. Can you imagine how much it costs to keep these fine beasts maintained ?! Definitely more than an oil change on your Honda Civic. So please take a minute to think about that before you post a review complaining about minor details. Look up a train ride ticket through any other company and you will see that this is an awesome deal and you are traveling on an antique. So nostalgic and fun. Show your kids what a real train used to look like. How the cars used to drive on roads that parallel the 126. Etc etc. how the traintracks cross certain points and the lights show the cars a train is coming. So many teaching points and a way to bring families together Special thanks to Josh. You are an awesome and genuine organizer and person in general :) read more

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Good clean family fun. The Fillmore and Western Railway is still open, there was a possibility of them closing this year but have reached an agreement with the Transportation Department to operate for 4 more years. We did the Saturday afternoon ride to the Koi store and honey farm, it is a nice, relaxing way to spend an afternoon. The train has a food car where they sell home made sandwiches (home made as in wonder bread, 3 pieces of turkey, and condiments), wraps, a very simple salad, and an assortment of candy and snacks on board. (no outside food or drink allowed). After picking up your ticket(s), you can check out the little museum/waiting station. The train will then board. Our trip went into Santa Paula for the Koi store where you can also feed the Koi and see some goats and chickens. Then off to the honey farm in the opposite direction, then back. The staff is friendly and have a great number of stories. They also have a Zombie train ride where you get to shoot zombies with paint guns as well as a murder mystery dinner ride. Excellent fun with the family. Parking for the train station is a bit funky, it's a large dirt parking lot on the other side of the tracks of the ticket office. Or you can try to find street parking and walk in. read more

Pumpkinliner review. The train ride is awesome, it's great. The location you are taken to is lacking, which is causing the downgrade. We sat on the open air car on the way out, it was really neat and fun. They had the train cars all decorated in the inside which was fun too. Once at the "pumpkin patch" there we just pumpkins laying around. Food was crazy expensive and there were a few vendors and things for the kids to do. We ended up not leaving with a pumpkin. More vendors and maybe more fall food, cider, corn, caramel apples may make it more fun. 5 stars for the train! read more

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We took the Christmas tree train ride yesterday. Our kids enjoyed the experience. Having this here in socal is a gem. If not for this train, I would not find myself in this little town of Fillmore. The train ride from their office station was greeted by a friendly conductor. Stepping into the train is quite magical. The train itself feels very charming and historic. Much classic feel to it compared to the metrolink trains. Lots of original wood and metal. I am also glad it is equipped with a good number of working toilets. The entire train is well maintained and kept clean for being so old. Oh, we had 2 mystery guests showing up to say hi which we didn't expect; Santa and the grinch. The grinch was friendlier than Santa. Haha.. The train ride to the Christmas tree farm was about 40 minutes. We saw citrus farms, small towns and crossed a few roads and bridges. Once we got there, there is a hut of Pre-cut trees to choose from. The cost of the tree depends on the size of the tree like most places. Behind the hut is an actual Christmas tree farm with the trees still rooted. If you so wish, you can saw the tree down yourself! I see lots of happy kids doing that. I am no expert on different types of fir trees but the ones in the farm is smaller and lighter so it's not that difficult to cut it down yourself. Phew! I think the rooted trees were flat rate pricing. We didn't get any because we already had a tree at home. Maybe next year though. I will make sure we dress for the occasion for tree cutting. We were given about 2 hours at the site to enjoy this scenery of a Christmas tree farm. Lots of photo opportunity. There is a koi and bird shop nearby within walking distance. My kids were drawn to the peacocks and chickens. This shop is nice to be there but my focus was really the Christmas tree farm. On the way back, we decided to go sit on the open air car. Walking from one car to another is fun on itself for my kids. At the open air car, there is a tarp above so you are protected if it's sunny or raining lightly. My eldest enjoyed the open air car more because she could feel the wind, look out without being constricted and wave to the people that we passed by. We enjoyed this experience. All the staff were friendly but most of all, this experience created more interest of trains from my kids. I took one star off because it was a bit expensive. We paid about $85 for a family of four but luckily it was entertainment for all of us for the whole afternoon. read more

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This is great way to spend an afternoon with your family. This slow train ride to Santa Paula and back takes about 3 hours and has an open car where you can take in the breeze and scenic views. Just a warning for those allergic or scared of bees. About 10 mins into the journey the train passes some bee hives with thousands of bees. Most people didn't go inside to the covered cars and no one got stung. The staff were really friendly and there is a snack car that has reasonably priced snacks, souvenirs, sodas, water, beer, and wine. The total cost of the experience is a bit pricey but worth trying at least once. Just a tip: bring cards or a board game if you are bringing restless kids. read more

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Had a great night at the Beer, Wine & Blues event. The food available was not overly priced, which was nice. It was between $10-15 tops. A glass of wine or beer was $7. It's the same as happy hour anywhere you go. Listening to music in the open air dancing and socializing turned into a great Saturday night. I recommend this for a great date night or even a girls night out. We will go again. read more

I am reviewing the polar express experience. First off, they did a great job with the platform area where you wait for the trains. I loved watching the merry go round with Christmas music playing. Once we were on board, I realized how tight our space was. We had one side of the four person seating area since it was myself, my husband and our small toddler. Later on we were joined by two big gentlemen so we were all squished in with our legs angled as to not hit each other. My son enjoyed his chocolate milk but I really did expect better cookies than the sugar cookies we received. Our eleven did a great job with getting the crowd to sing. I just wished there was more leg room so we weren't uncomfortable the whole time. read more

Fillmore & Western Railway - Trains Near Me - Fillmore, California

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OK beautiful train ride, we went for the Sunday excursion from 12 o'clock to 3 o'clock, our first stop was a little park for the kids but the slides were boiling hot so nobody could use it so we sat there for 30 minutes staring at the park. Since the excursion was from 12 o'clock to 3 o'clock and they said they had a concession train where we could purchase food and drink , we didn't worry about it. As far as the conductor on the train, he is a very nice polite gentleman. As far as the elderly gentleman selling the food items which seems to be a different entity, he is a sarcastic, arrogant, dickwad and really need to know how to handle complaints in a professional manner FYI. The Honeyfarm is not a farm, it's just a little gift shop to sells honey related items read more

I had such high hopes for this train ride. My son and I decided to do the train ride as a little mother son day date. We arrived and went straight to the ticket booth which was a complete mess. There were so many people just standing in front of the ticket station that you didn't know if you were in line to buy tickets or if you were in line to get on the train. We boarded and decided to sit in the open car since it was a really nice day and it happened to be the first nice day to sit outside in a while. The people around us were so rude. The lady that sat next to us was on her cellphone talking extremely loud for the first 10 minutes. My son decided he wanted to move so we went to an inside car. The ride is extremely slow. You go through town and then some orchards and then you come to the first stop after about an hour and a half. Its a little town in which you have very limited time. Since my son and I were starving (theres a little snack shop with popcorn and candy on the train but nothing filling) we ran to little cafe ordered ate and then ran back to the station. I would've loved more time at this little town to explore but its not an option. We boarded again and went to this rinky dinky little gift shop that honestly I would've have rather skipped and used that time at the previous town. It smelled funny and it was really dirty. And by this point I was wishing I would've called an uber to come get my son and I and take us back to our car. He was bored and I was bored and we still had a little over an hour back to the station. We did it and won't do it again. read more

Can't say anything about the quality or service or anything since we don't get a chance to try!!! Paid online a week ahead, and booked a hotel room in the area so we can explorer more about Ventura County. Got a call 17 hours before the Saturday excursion train departure, that the train was cancelled!!!!! My hotel room cannot be refunded and I only get a couple hours to re-plan my whole weekend in that area!!! read more

This is an old time western railroad that you ride through the orange groves in a beautiful lush valley. I don't know exactly how long the track goes for but I would estimated no farther than 20-miles, you're going between towns. It's has nice appointments and is pretty comfortable all of the staff is wonderful and very accommodating. In theory this sounds really neat, a train ride in a nice place, sounds like fun, it was don't get me wrong it was nice to go , I don't think that it was really worth the price that we paid for a standard "Weekend scenic" trip. They were offering wine tasting on Sundays with lunch, which was reasonably priced but we did not partake in this. I envisioned shuttling between cute senic downtown village setting (ie. Solvang/Santa Barbara). But it was more of going from a slightly revamped downtown Fillmore full of antique shops and "people" hanging out in the park at the train station, mind you they were kind enough to wave as the train departed. The next stop was a dilapidated antiquities/flea market/fruit stand called the loose caboose, (somebody must have a loose caboose if they think this is worth it) halfway through littered with half-filled ponds and nick-nacks. The fruit was amazingly good and fresh, but I didn't need to pay a train faire to get here, it's just off the road. Continuing onto Santa Paula, the name conjures images of a rustic cute town, we were greeted with a nice station off the main road, a few museums, and a working downtown district catered to a primarily Latino clientele base. You're only there for about an hour so you've got to be quick about it, we elected to go to have Mexican food at Tlaquepaque Restaurant just over the main road, about two blocks. Amazingly good and cheap. The trip back was uneventful and exhausting for some reason, maybe I'm not as young as before but still, the lull of the railroad will make you sleepy. All in all I suppose its something to do if you've got a free day, you've got kids that like trains, or you yourself are a train enthusiast do it! It's a nice thing to get out of town and do, but not worthy of more than 3-stars. read more

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Let me start with the people who work for the Western Train. They are very polite and very genuine folk. No complaints on their attitudes. They are good and honest people. But it's time to return to the actual train ride review. We purchased the Saturday afternoon ride to the Honey Farm and the Loose Caboose. First thing is, you have know idea where to get in line for your train. No signage either. There were two trains going out. Everyone was scrambling to stand in the proper line. The engineer on the train pointed out where I should stand from his seat on the train. First thing they mention to you on the train is where the food car is. It's first come, first served. They said if you want to have lunch, you better get in line as soon as the train starts moving, we always run out of food. Did I just hear this guy right?!?" Geez Louise! So, I'm third in line now as the train starts moving. Soda's and water are served warm, no ice. Really? The train goes maybe 5 to 10mph. We're off to the Bee and Honey Farm gift shop. On our train was a tour group of more than 50. They all ran and crammed into this tiny gift shop. We had to wait 30 minutes to finally get in to take a look. Again, no one is in charge, no organization anywhere. Back to our train ride. Good to note...the dining car has A/C. We saw so many kids with their feet on the chairs and tables. No respect shown while in public. We are not here to watch your kids table dance. Go back to Chuckey Cheese people. The train is going slower now as we reach the final stop, the Loose Caboose. Sadly, it's just the back side to one of the fruit stands on the Highway 126. Terrible is an understatement. The property is not maintained for a tour group. What a waste of time to go there. That was the end of the ride for us. We walked to the side of HWY 126 and opened our Uber app. In 4 minutes we were gone and headed back to Filmore. The staff means well, they really do. My reccomandation is for the staff to tell us stories on the history of the train and the territory. They have Pioneer car speakers in the train cars. Personalize this train ride a bit. Talk to us, share the history. Otherwise, it's a quiet trip minus the rowdy little kids on board. I guess I just expected more. I wanted a train ride and wanted to here some stories. Take a note, no outside food is allowed. Beers are $7 and $8 each. The dining car is a joke too. Food is marginal at best. Sandwiches and wraps. Hot Dogs are sold too. And there is train loads of candy to purchase. Kids? Sugar them up some more. I've wanted to ride this train since they opened. I felt more than a little let down. If you listened closely, so were the rest of the passengers. Underwhelming is an understatement. This attraction needs an overhaul, top to bottom. read more

This place was incredible. They have beautiful trains and train cars, to boot. They have diesel engines and one steam locomotive, and the diesels usually pull the train unless it's a designated "steam" weekend. They have a variety of cars and engines because a majority of the money this place earns is through Hollywood movie productions. Most of the trains you have to look at from the sidewalk since the train yard isn't open most of the time, but it's still wonderful to view their collection. As an amateur train enthusiast I've seen many train rides in my day. I rode a weekend trip and it left Fillmore at 11:30am and I got back at 3:30pm. You ride the train for the first hour through simply AMAZING orange, lemon and avocado groves that I wish so badly were in my backyard! haha. The scenery with the mountains as the backdrop was just lovely. We stopped at this gift emporium called the Loose Caboose which was....interesting. I don't really understand why the train stops there. Maybe to stretch the passengers legs? To give the conductors and engineers a break? Regardless, it is a very strange store full of fish, garden statues, furniture, birds, plants and 80s vhs tapes and romance novels. It felt like being in someone's old garage for a sale, haha. It gave my friends and I a laugh. The train then takes a short 15 min trip into Santa Paula, so to keep things on track (get it?) we arrived there by 1pm. It was a interesting little town that still had some very interesting Victorian houses and architecture on the main street. We used yelp to find a place to have a good lunch and we relaxed a bit before going back to the train for the 2:30 pm sharp departure. They have many different kinds of cars on the train, so you can sit indoor with fans, first class seats, outdoor benches, or outdoor with a shaded covering. The train has a gorgeous 1930s dining car, bathrooms, and concession/gift car too. I really had a good time. It's no frills but I still really enjoyed it. I plan to go back for their dinner and event trains. read more

Fillmore & Western Railway - The dinner train locomotive. - Trains Near Me - Fillmore, California

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Stay away from their wine tasting event. Spent $35 a person and the pours were less than 1/2 oz. Very weak. The ticket says beer, wine, and appetizers. As I said the wine tastings were weak. Very disappointing. Charge me more and give me an experience that doesn't irritate me. read more

Fillmore & Western Railway - This was the size of the pour. - Trains Near Me - Fillmore, California

Pumpkin Liner!!! Woohoo!!! We made the pilgrimage to ride the Pumpkin Liner (Prancers Patch visit too) and it didn't disappoint. This train station is so rich in history and we were lucky enough to run into a volunteer historian who opened up for us and provided us with a mini tour. Lots to see and learn. We boarded the train and it left the station at 0900 sharp! We rode through the towns and the people are very friendly and wave. The train has snacks and a restroom and the kids loved it. We got to go visit prancers which was the icing on the cake! read more

The most adult fun since my childhood!! Did the Beer, Wine and Jazz train this past weekend. What a fantastic time we had. Highly recommend. Took one star off because of the lacking, over-priced apps. Save your money and go to dinner before. Music was great. Service was impeccable. Do it! You won't regret it. read more

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A group of 7 of us went zombie shooting last night. It was pretty cool. The staff was nice and accommodating to our large group. You get on the train and the guns are attached to the rails on the very last car. They take you back and forth 6 times across a field and you get to shoot paintballs at padded up "zombies" in the field. It would be cooler if the train went a little further and you didn't shoot at the same thing 6 times, but nonetheless we had a great time and it was fun. read more

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Good ride, great experience, friendly staffs and best fresh honey. The only downside is they let people smoke on the train. read more

On the weekends, they have a train that travels from Fillmore to Santa Paula and back. Round trip, it's four hours, and there are stops at Santa Paula (1 hour and 20 minutes), and the Loose Caboose (30 minutes), a tourist trap about 10 minutes from Santa Paula. The train is clean and well-kept. There is running water, working toilets, and two bathrooms on the train for customers to use. There is indoor and outdoor seating. The indoor seating is comfy, but the air conditioning is running at full-blast, and can get rather cold. We opted to sit outdoors, which provided a nice breeze (the train travels about 15 mph) while you watch the scenery go by. It is equal parts industrial scenes and orchards; warehouses and orange groves. Santa Paula isn't much to write home about. Stop by Rabelais, a cafe and bakery that serves up tasty cookies and brownies. I believe there is a Museum of Agriculture that actually looked pretty cool from the train (we didn't have enough time to explore it given the limited time there). The conductor told us that the railway was "in between" ownership, so let's hope they continue these weekend rides, as it was a nice way to spend the afternoon. read more

Big womp womp! We were sooooo excited for tonight and left wishing we had saved our money. Almost $90 for 2 adults and 1 child to ride a train in the dark... Only to get to the saddest display of lights. The conductor was awesome but the elves????? Where do they find these kids? No real interaction with the kids other than screaming holiday songs. Chocolate milk and a small sugar cookie is what we received. I honestly expected hot cocoa and warm chocolate chip cookies for the amount of money we paid. Santa comes through each car and passes out itsy bitsy candy canes. He was nice but really young and actually slender. We didn't wait to take a picture with him. We were ready to take our disappointment home. Needless to say first and last time visiting the North Pole on this train. read more

So glad we had elf Jingles for our second year attending the northpole Express. ( last weekend ) This elf has got to be a actual actor. He is Amazing he works the train car and got everyone singing, I had to ask his real name one so I can write this review and two so I can look him up online to see if he was a independent actor. His name is Wesley. Request him as your elf you'll be glad you did. My kids had a blast. A few down falls. 1. Still no hot coco ( serve it off the train) 2. Old decorations 3. The santa looked very fake. Please buy a better beard Santa. 4. Try offering diffrent cookies and water 5. The carousel is always broken (((why))) read more

We went on the train ride to Piru. Our tickets included lunch. The ride itself was fine. The lunch, and especially the service, definitely were not. Although we were the first to board and register our lunch reservations, other parties were called and seated before us. Then, we were seated at a small table and my seat was scrunched right next to a smelly trash can. No space between my seat and that horrid, filthy trash can. There were plenty of other tables where we could have been seated. Then, though other parties were seated after us, we were the last people approached for our lunch requests. We ordered a cheeseburger with chips, a bacon/lettuce/tomato sandwich and drinks. We watched while all the other tables were served. We watched as the people at one table denied ordering a wrap sandwich. We watched as the young waiter approached other diners, asking them whether they had ordered that wrap sandwich. Everyone he approached denied doing so. We waited patiently for our order. When it became obvious that the waiter was not going to bring us our lunch, I had to stop him (not so easy) and ask when we would be served. He was not even apologetic about having ignored us. I had to remind him what we had ordered. He disappeared into the kitchen and shortly afterwards returned with my son's cheeseburger. No chips. No drinks. Instead of my BLT, he brought out the wrap sandwich previously rejected by other diners. He told me they had no bacon, and that the wrap sandwich was the only food they had left. I told him I preferred my BLT. He went back to the kitchen, and came out a few minutes later with a BLT. No apologies. Still no drinks. Still no chips. I had to stop the waiter again (again, no mean feat), and remind him that he had failed to bring us our drinks and chips. He reluctantly brought us our drinks. Still no chips. I ultimately had to go get the chips myself. It ruined our trip. read more

My Mother had wanted to take a weekend tour for several years. We decided to go for her 60th birthday. I, my Mother, my brother and his family all went. When getting there, we almost didn't find the ticket office and way onto the train. The address they have listed is on the other side of the tracks from the ticket office and the side you board on. Once we were on, we were looking forward to the trip and stopping off in Santa Paula for a while. There were plenty of food options on the train, and our group split up after eating. Some of us sat in the open air car, and some in a closed car. When the Santa Paula train depot came up, we waited for the train to stop and started moving forward. Before we could get back to the car we had boarded on, the train was moving again. We thought they may need to adjust where the train was due to blocking intersections, as the train sort of stopped and started coming into town. Nope, that was the stop. Neither of our two groups on either car were notified to be ready for the brief stop. We asked why no one announced it, and were told we should have told the conductor we planned to get off. So, instead of an hour in Santa Paula, we got to sit on a train as it sat still in the middle of nowhere for 45 minutes. I guess the conductor felt bad or realized the stop was far shorter than it should have been, because he came to us wish free shirts for my brother's kids. Adult size shirts, far too big for 3 year olds. We made sure we got off the train at the second stop, the Loose Caboose. As other reviewers have described, it is an odd place. The upside down gardens were not growing, so it was a collection of stick frames. There was water spraying out all over one of the walkways, making it unsafe to walk through. They have some koi fish, some small livestock, and a gift shop. The day we went, a group had chartered a mystery train ride, so our cars were hooked up behind them. It could be the reason our stop in Santa Paula was too short to get off the train, blocking traffic. There was also a group filming scenes for a small production. This meant threading our way between them as they took up the entire car where the bathrooms were. It would be nice to have people announcing things ahead of time. It would have really helped if someone had let us know how long the train would stop, to be ready to jump off so we wouldn't miss it. Also, know that you may not be their only priority on the weekend trip. Charters and filming could take precedent. read more