We visited the railway to do a BBQ & Brew dinner on the train in late January. It was a very unique experience! If you're planning on doing an evening train ride in the winter, you're not going to see anything scenic. The dinner was fantastic though. We ate a very good three course BBQ dinner that came out very quickly and washed it down with some provided domestic beer. Service was awesome, if you're planning a dinner ride, remember to bring cash to tip! After dinner it was a little long until we got back to the station and we were a bit cold. The winter ride wasn't for me! read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

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I took my girls and husband for the train heist trip. $100. There was nothing fun about it. We just stopped and there were a few people on horseback next to the train. A young woman entered the train and handed out candy. They put in zero effort in the "heist". This needs to cost about $50 for us to hop on the train and hop off. Everyone was wondering about the heist and nothing happened. read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

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The staff very nice but that is where the compliment stops. NOT scenic at all. Old run down houses with junk in the back yards old cars and industrial bygone businesses. Would not recommend read more

If you are looking to experience a train ride, this will do the trick. If you are looking to see amazing scenic views... there aren't as many as I hoped. The open cars are nice for the breeze on a hot day however you can't hear a word that comes over the speaker system so if history is being shared... we don't hear it. Also, I felt like I spent more time looking at trees and brush right along the tracks than breathtaking views. There are a couple but I would have hoped for more. I did see the backyards of several houses. read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Engine. - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

The train itself was cool .... But that was it . They could do SO MUCH MORE. The route is anything BUT scenic .... Run down back yards , junk everywhere , a closeup view of the town water treatment plant . A very good Santa visiting the kids was exciting for them , but they were less than thrilled with the teenagers partially dressed up and preoccupied . This could be a really entertaining attraction if some effort was made . read more

Very disappointing.Drove 3 hrs to see the beautiful scenery.Even brought my daughter and son in law..I was embarrassed.All we saw was houses n peoples trash in their backyards.I could of seen that in Akron.Staff was very friendly I will say but there were people I encountered that fell asleep due to lack of scenery read more

The steam excursion on the Hocking Valley Scenic Railway was excellent! A professionally run event. Seating is open and passengers have the option of open or enclosed cars. The excursion was fully narrated, albeit with some audio difficulties. Nevertheless, it was an enjoyable trip along the Hocking River. Fall colors in the Hocking Hills were faded by early November, but still scenic. The narrated story of Nelsonville brick making, Hocking Canal Lock 19 and Haydenville as a company town were very interesting. For railfans, there was even a photo run-by of locomotive number 3! Thank you, Hocking Valley Scenic! Visitors should note that restrooms are not available on the train and restrooms at the Nelsonville station are not overly large. Towards the end of the trip, the steam excursion did go back to the end of track at Nelsonville. While the locomotive took on water, passengers could use portable toilets provided. At this stop, there was also time to explore the Robbins Crossing Historic Village. Railfans will enjoy this preserved line. I would like to suggest that the gift shop provide a bit more in the way of souvenirs. A HVSR magnet and a patch would be great additions and I am sure would sell. read more

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I question the scenic part of the trip, but nice people. I would find another way to spend the afternoon. read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

Really cool experience. Especially in the warm months of the year. The open car was a great idea as it was the perfect temp, you got a nice breeze plus a great view! Stopped at Hocking Valley College historical site for 30 mins to see the frontier style housing of the old times. Was a great experience, will have to be back. Kids would love it. read more

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My friend and I, despite everything, had a great time. She had never been on a train in her life and we only live a little over an hour away so decided to do it. However, the music that plays during the trip is very annoying. There are only certain types of people that enjoy twangy, nasal bluegrass singing. The 50's rock and roll seemed a little inappropriate for an "historic" train ride (and a little loud, too). Not a lot of "scenery" and some of the things they were pointing out were hidden by trees and high weeds. You would think that people that have a tourist excursion that went behind their home wouldn't look like an episode of Hoarders, but quite a few of them had piles of junk and trash in their yards and around the house, but there were several that looked very nice. We got there early and were able to get into the air-conditioned car which was great because it was 90 degrees out, but when the train stopped allowing the engine to pass by and hook up to the other end to go back it wasn't, also during the time it was stopped at the historic village and waiting to go back to the station. My friend uses a walker, and at the village, the gravel pathways between buildings made it impossible to navigate, so we just went back to the train, which I said before had no AC while stopped. One of the passengers had a medical emergency at the village, so it was delayed about 25 more minutes. If you are older (we are both in our 70's) the outside step getting on the train at the station was not too bad, but at the stop at the village they need a double step on the outside. Getting off was precarious, and the attendant and I actually had to boost her up from behind to get up to the first step of the train to get back on. We brought our lunch and beverages and ate and chatted with a very nice younger couple from Michigan across the aisle while we were moving which was very nice! read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Inside passenger car - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

Disappointing and HOT. We went on December 9, 2023. The temperature outside at 6 PM was 60 degrees, and they had the heat on in the train cars. There was no way to open the windows to cool it down. Visits from Santa and the Grinch were cool, and the boys enjoyed that. It was a 2-hour train ride, and I wondered when it would stop and turn around to head back. It could have been a 30-minute ride, and it would have been more enjoyable. I wore earplugs for half of the ride. read more

While my grandparents used to take us on train rides here as a kid, this review is specific to their New Year's Eve train ride special. Looking for a unique way to bring in 2022, I happened across this event & jumped in hoping for the best. We were not disappointed. We opted for the wine & cheese option which offered your choice of red or white wine & a pre-packaged box containing cheese, crackers, green grapes, assorted meats & chocolates. There was the option of pizza & pop that was family friendly. They really outdid themselves with the holiday spirit as the outside of the bus was decked out with holiday lights & the inside had tinsel with lights & the interior lights were all red & green. They kindly provided a variety of party hats & horns to enhance the NYE vibe. The ride started at 10:30 & ended at 12:30, 1 hour each direction with a 30 minute deboarding period at midnight for an epic fireworks display. read more

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, I usually do not write reviews, but this was the saddest experience. The Hayden railway experience, was nothing but riding past a depressed community. Old deteriorated cars. A sand quarry. A stop at the end for twenty minutes of pioneer cabins. I don't believe they are original settlers buildings. The total ride was two hrs. Just donate 40 bucks and keep the two hours you will never get back. read more

We had a terrible experience with our train ride on October 22, '22 It was there Fall Colors tour. It was advertised on their website as a 2 hour train ride 12-2 Their site strongly recommended we arrive no later than "30 minutes" before start of ride. We boarded the train at 11:25. They finally departed at 12:22 (they waited to board the people that were late). We sat on train for nearly 1 hr before ride started. The train stopped 30 minutes out? We asked a volunteer why we stopped (we figured train would 1 hr out, then go back 1 hr to station) and he said we would go back towards station and beyond to a little village where we would get off for about 20 to use RR and there would be vendors there. That didn't happen- we stopped at station and trip was over after one hour (it was supposed to be 2 hours). Many confused and upset people (400 passengers). We went inside to complain to managers and they were rude and unprofessional. The guy said it's not a 2 hour trip, it's a 90 mile trip. My reply was even at a 90 minute trip we were 30 minutes short of that; I showed him their website on my phone where trip was advertised as a 2 hour ride. He made no comment. We also said they left almost 25 minutes late and the lady's comment was do you want us to leave people in wheelchairs behind. My reply was if I was in a wheelchair I would have been there really early For an established business this was a terrible experience we looked forward to for over a month read more

Wasn't a great tour... honestly wouldn't recommend. There wasn't a lot of scenery to actually see, would not do it again.

I like some history and the Hocking Valley Scenic Railway provides some. If you weren't aware, the coal industry was a big employer in southeastern Ohio. The railroad needed coal for the trains. So now trains aren't as popular as they used to be. That explains the coal employment not being what it used to be either, which is a lesson that can be learned without riding on the train. I was kind of disappointed with the actual train ride. It started in Nelsonville and slowly worked its way to Haydenville. The depot in Nelsonville is a little museum of train history. It's nice for a few minutes before the ride. The town of Haydenville is unique because it was the last company owned town. It was created and owned by a mining company. The train ends the ride at Robbins Crossing, which is one of those historical villages where employees pretend they're from the 1800s. It's interesting for a few minutes. It has recreations of a blacksmith shop and an old schoolhouse, the usual stuff for this kind of thing. The ride is nice to bring children and older relatives. I wouldn't ride this again unless showing others around. It held my interest for some time but there wasn't that much to see. The history of the area is pretty important so I appreciate that though. read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Nelsonville Depot - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

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We attended the Santa Train and will probably make a tradition of it every year. Santa and The Grinch made an appearance. I recommend for anyone who is looking for something fun in southeastern Ohio. read more

Just want to put it about there to all the people complaining about the lack of AC on the coaches. What did you expect these coaches are on average over 100 years old AC wasn't really a thing back then. And for the ones complaining about the mobile homes first off southeast Ohio is extremely poor. Secondly they have no control over what homeowners do. They have taken a few of the extreme properties to court but to no avail. They are doing the vast they can do for a volunteer organization if you'd like things to improve promote volunteering to your likes and friends they need all the help they can get. read more

Nice people but absolutely awful experience. Train cars have no AC and you don't go fast enough to cool off with open windows. No warning to bring water or anything to drink. Spent the first 1.5 hours going about 15 mph in 95 degree heat through a rundown part of town with trailers and junk, with absolutely no scenic views. Train broke down twice and we sat there in the heat with no explanation as to what was going on. The train goes in one direction for 1 hour, then turns around to go back on the same tracks with lackluster views. There is no entertainment, narrators, or anything, until about 1.5 hours into the trip when a group of horseback riding people run along the train and shoot off several blanks. That lasted about 60 seconds. Then the train stops and a "train robber" gets onto your cabin, nicely saying "give me your money" and passes out candy for about 5 minutes. You then can get off and pet the horses. After, you load back onto the train and take a 30 minute ride back to the station. I could not get paid to do this again. read more

As a family meet up, we took the youngins on a train ride. It doesn't seem that midSeptember is the right time to go... Fall would be perfect! The open air portion has the HARDEST seats that I have ever sat on. With the open air, we were attacked by various pollen filled folliage. Can't say that this was my favorite train ride, but I would give it another try in a season that I would find better. read more

We loved this! Me and my two cousins took the 12:00pm trip on a Saturday and we had so much fun! The crew were all very friendly, were nice enough to take photos for us and give us background on some things we passed along the way. We stopped at a mini historic village were we had homemade kettle corn cooked over a fire and cookies baked in an authentic wood burning oven. They were only 50 cents and so yummy! All this for under 15.00? Such a deal for a fun afternoon! read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

Had a great time. Conductor James was cool and the crew were very helpful. I'd definitely recommend as a stop for vacationing families.

Terrible terrible terrible. I wish I could rate it 0 stars. The "scenic view" is of run down houses and construction sites. They do not follow any of the COVID guidelines. The seat was so dusty that I had to dust it myself before sitting. It was booked to max capacity and no one was wearing masks, including the employees. I would have paid money to just get off the train but once your on it, you're stuck. The employees are terribly rude!!!! read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - The view - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

Well this was unexpected on my getaway weekend. It was a blast! We enjoyed the new handicapped car and it was great! Staff member was certainly sweet! Asked us about where we were from and even took our picture. We laughed a lot and made great memories. The cute pioneer village stop was adorable. Enjoyed such yummy cheap (cookie home made 50 cents while kettle corn was only $3). Any questions I asked the staff answered. Really memorable! read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

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What an awesome experience watching all the children's faces light up when Santa walks down the isle to visit each and every one of them....not to mention the Depot has the best hot chocolate ever!! Great job Railway and crew .... read more

Polar Express with daughters and grands. Went well until Santa sidled up to lovely young woman (my daughter) and asks what she wants for Christmas. She is a grown woman, so kinda weird. She says impeachment. Santa says "Dont think I can make that happen." And followed up with "why, he's done nothing wrong". Wow - way to go Santa, don't leave well enough alone. Upside, it was a gorgeous sunny day. read more

I would definitely do this again! We did not get there soon enough to get an open air car seat, but it was still a great view! The place was easy to find and reasonable prices. It ended up being about 2.5 hours instead of 2 hours. We stopped at Hocking College just past the depot for about 30 minutes, though we were confused as to why. There wasn't a good description of the little town itself. The train ride was so much fun! My only complaint was that I couldn't hear the information being said over the intercom at all. Even after they turned the speaker up. It would be nice to receive a transcript or even just some brief notes of the things that were said as I was very interested. We are hoping to come back sometime for the special train rides like New Years Eve. Immensely enjoyable! read more

We went down for the Santa Train. It was nothing like what we were expecting. The staff was not very friendly. First interaction we had with a staff was asking for the lift for someone in our group who had a broken leg and on crutches. (Called days before to ensure that there were accommodations for this person, I was assured.) Staff told me it was too hard to get the lift out and not to worry about it. Then sent us down four cable cars lengths to see if there was room for us. We arrived early as recommended by staff on the phone to ensure accommodations would be made. None of the staff was nice, pretty sure one staff member was drunk, one hit on a member of the group. There was NO Christmas music playing, the cars were barely decorated for Christmas. Kids were bored, nothing for them to do or participate in. Train moved incredibly slow, the just sat at the end of the tracks for 10 minutes, before heading back. read more

Not as advertised, or should I say technically correct. Save your money. The 2:30 train on the website lists the things you pass through and maybe see along the way. But there is no engagement during the ride to narrate and call out the areas noted and to give you some background. Also a little about the cars we were riding In would have been interesting. Only reason I didn't rate it a one star is because the lady in the gift shop was friendly and let us get back in our car with a grin read more

The trains are old, interesting and well-preserved. The depot is quaint and the staff is very helpful, positive and engaging. The ride itself isn't the greatest. You don't go very far, and the views are not that great. Think abandoned industry and messy yards. There are some nice views of the river. The whole time, there is someone explaining the area over a speaker system, but because the train is so loud, you can't hear a thing. They need more speakers, but I understand this is easier said than done. The train is huge, yet largely empty. You stop in a cute log village with engaging volunteers, but that's a small part, and you can drive there yourself for free instead of taking the train. I'd recommend this if you are a train enthusiast, or you have a child who loves trains and would get a kick out of this. If you are seeking a fun way to view the Hocking Hills, this won't really do it for you. read more

NOT A GOOD PLACE FOR THOSE WITH COVID CONCERNS. I took the Hocking Valley Steam Special. People were just packed onto the platform. Signs were too small and inadequate, and there was zero crowd control. Obviously the employees/volunteers have not been trained. The woman behind the ticket counter kept referring to it as "clomid" (the fertility drug??), and the people "cleaning" the train between trips were just spraying the outside?? Before we started boarding, an employee said "it's been sprayed for germs." I should have turned around and left right then. Some of it was just the kind of people who came to ride the train, so many of whom had zero social distancing or mask concerns. The windows in the enclosed car do not open, and they closed the doors at either end when we were moving, so there was no air circulation (it made it almost unbearably hot, too! and the employee was like, "Well I turned the air conditioning on," which I would argue is counter-productive if it's just blowing hot air into the car, my compass/whistle/thermometer read 96 degrees...it was only 76 outside!). I took their website saying things like "space is VERY limited" and "we will continue to follow Governor Mike DeWine's Covid-19 guidelines" and "passengers are asked to wear a mask unless medical conditions prevent their use" and "we ask passengers to maintain social distancing when boarding the train and in your seat selection" to mean that Hocking Valley Scenic Railway is taking the pandemic and the safety of their guests seriously. THEY ARE NOT. No verbal instructions. No signs on the train. No signs on the seats. The train was PACKED. I have no idea how people could have kept their distance unless they meant for people to sit on the roof. They obviously care more about selling tickets than following Covid-19 guidelines. I should not have taken this train ride, and I regret it immensely. Aside from Covid-related concerns, the trip was just generally uncomfortable. The benches in the open-air car do not have cushions, and the seats in the enclosed car were ratty and seemed...dusty? Sticky? Just poorly taken care of. Everything was grimy and dingy. The employees keep their area of the train very sloppy. Everything was shabby, from the train to the employees to the depot. I guess if you go, don't wear anything you wouldn't want to have get dirty? It was also not a very pretty trip, certainly not scenic. If you come in on 278, you basically saw it all. You get a really good closeup on the backside of some industrial sites and lumber yards. Then you backtrack the whole thing, go past the depot, and stop at Robbins Crossing for 30 minutes. I really, really just wanted to walk back to the car at this point instead of climbing back into the hot, miserable train car, but my mom wasn't up for it. This whole trip was just the worst part of an otherwise lovely weekend. read more

Awesome. Mrs Claus was great! Santa and the grinch were active with the kids. Worth the trip and money. The bad reviews should be ignored. It is a historical train, it's a non profit! So yea it's an old train! It was so awesome we are coming back for the dinner train ! read more

The staff was very friendly. You can't see through many of the permanently fogged windows. Cars smelled musty which is a factor on the two hour ride. If you're taking the train ride, get there early to sit in an open car. read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Windows - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

A nice 90 minute ride. Comfortable seats in air conditioned train car. More about history of a couple local towns then "scenic". read more

Hocking Valley Scenic Railway - Museums Near Me - Nelsonville, Ohio

So some family members and myself all met up to go on a ride on the railway as it is something we have never done and lived in the area for quite some time. The scenery was nice, it was very relaxing and probably will be something I do again in the future with just my wife. As we are on the railway, there was this conductor? stage coach? idk what his position was but the man has some compassion! He carried himself with confidence and there was a special needs child that he spent extra time with to make sure they enjoyed it! Whoever this man is, you better pay him what he is worth! Will definitely be back read more

We took the Christmas ride and it was pathetic. There is so much they could do to make this more engaging for kids!! Over three hours on a train with NO SCENIC VIEW (unless you count gravel pits and rusty mobile homes as scenic!) to see Santa for 2 minutes. I was expecting elves and cookies and Christmas carols. I also thought we'd stop somewhere interesting halfway - like a little village or something. Nope. At the turnaround point, we just sat on the tracks for 20 minutes while they moved the engine from the front to the back to pull us back to Nelsonville. While my two five year olds continued to be bored out of their minds. Needless to say, we won't be doing this again. read more

We took the Fall Foliage train ride. There was a morning option and an afternoon. We rode the afternoon train. All the staff/volunteers were extremely nice, helpful, and knowledgeable. We had the option of riding in the enclosed train cars or in the open train cars. Since it was such a beautiful day, we chose the open car. The bench seats faced the scenery which was nice. They are also covered so the sun wasn't beating down on us. The ride was about 1 1/2 hours not including a 30 minute stop at a log cabin village. They had kettle corn for a donation. We walked through the cabins and watched the ducks and chickens walk around. Then got back on the train for the ride back. It was great for the price. One thing I would add is that parking seemed very limited but we drove around directly behind the train depot and since it was Saturday parking was available at the Rocky employee parking lot. read more

In a world with true horrors its tough to call the Hocking Valley Scenic Railway the worst, but man is it close. We drove down to Nelsonville from Columbus, about an hour and fifteen minutes, and had as good or better scenic views from the highway then on the train. While on the train the P.A. system was worse that the NYC subway P.A.s that i remember from the 1980's so what every useful or interesting informational they may have tried to share was clearly lost on 85% of the passengers because no one could hear it. But what really clinched it as one of my worst experiences with any service ever was that they decided to extend the ride by an hour with out any advanced notice. I had bought a ticket for a ride from 11am to 12:30pm and needed to be back in Columbus by 2pm. this shouldn't have been any problem. But as the train reached the station it just kept....on.....going.... As soon as i realized that they didnt intend to stop i asked a conductor what was going on. He answer was unclear as to how long this extension would take. asked for them to stop the train and let my group off we where still within sight of the station but that wasn't an option. We where taken to some log cabin village about 2 miles away and let off the train to "explore for about 30 mins" those 30 minutes would mean i would miss my appointment. When i again explained my problem i got no empathy and was told I could walk the 2 miles back to the station but they would probably pass me on their way back. Well long story short, I flagged a local down and begged them to give me a ride back to the station. I was able to get to the station and back to my family and we all got back to Columbus before anything bad happened but really my leisurely trip to look at fall color shouldn't have been that stressful. read more

This was an awful experience. It is over 80 degrees outside and we were stuck in a car with NO air Conditioning and NO windows that opened! When they realized the air wouldn't work, they should have emptied our car and moved us to a car with windows instead of selling the train to full capacity! The train car has to be pushing 90-100 degrees with NO air movement. We have felt sick from the heat and lack of fresh air. Also, when we stopped, the refreshment booth ran out of drinks! Do not waste your money on this train ride when Hocking Hills offer so many other activities! read more

Went for the holiday train. The train was decorated enough for kids (don't expect a winter wonderland, but there are lights and Garland). Seating is comfortable enough - it was a full train but not jam-packed. Boarding was easy enough. Grinch came through first - quite nice, stopped for pics and to chat with the kids. The route goes down a couple miles, stops, then the engine switches ends to turn around. This was where the problem started. Santa and his elves entered our car at the halfway point, which was a bad sign, since there were 4 cars he had to visit. Santa was nice but not aware of timing at all - spent too much time with each family. So, in order to allow time for him to visit with each family, they stopped the train for 45 minutes. This meant that we (and all the other families with little kids) had to entertain our kids for an unplanned 45 minutes. We suggested they go to the station, let us get off, and tell families that still want to meet Santa to stay on. We were just told "we can't do that" without explanation. Don't do this train if you are on any type of schedule. If Santa and the Grinch weren't as nice as they were, would give lower read more