Places worth a stop.
Each guide lists researched places near one station, with how long to allow and where to check opening hours. Open a guide, then plan a train trip that stops there.
Northern California
Find a day out, or a night away, along the Capitol Corridor.
DAVDavis
Gardens, market mornings and a walkable downtown
UC Davis Arboretum east loop · Davis Farmers Market
SACSacramento
Railroad history beside the old waterfront
California State Railroad Museum · Old Sacramento waterfront · Riverfront at Tower Bridge
MTZMartinez
A shoreline walk and a compact Main Street
Radke Martinez Regional Shoreline · Downtown Martinez Main Street
OKJOakland · Jack London Square
Waterfront wandering or a California museum
Jack London Square waterfront · Oakland Museum of California
BKYBerkeley · Fourth Street
West Berkeley shops and lagoon paths
Fourth Street shops and cafés · Aquatic Park lagoon walk
SUISuisun City
A small waterfront break
Suisun waterfront promenade · Cast Iron Grill & Bar
EMYEmeryville
A food hall just across the tracks
Public Market Emeryville · Bay Street shops and food
SCCSanta Clara · University
A mission and an art museum on campus
Mission Santa Clara de Asís · de Saisset Museum
SJCSan José · Diridon
Downtown food and contemporary art
San Pedro Square Market · San José Museum of Art
Texas
Explore Texas stops on the Texas Eagle, Sunset Limited, and Heartland Flyer.
DALDallas · Union Station
West End history and a downtown meal
The Sixth Floor Museum · West End streets and cafés · Reunion Tower GeO-Deck
FTWFort Worth · Central Station
Water gardens and downtown streets
Fort Worth Water Gardens · Sundance Square downtown
AUSAustin
A library visit or a short lakeside walk
Austin Central Library · Butler Trail near Pfluger Bridge · Congress Avenue Bridge bat flight
SASSan Antonio
Hemisfair gardens and the old depot district
Yanaguana Garden at Hemisfair · St. Paul Square · Tower of the Americas observation deck
SMCSan Marcos
Shops and a meal around the courthouse square
San Marcos Downtown Square
TPLTemple
Railroad exhibits beside the depot
Temple Railroad & Heritage Museum · Santa Fe Plaza
TAYTaylor
A small downtown square
Heritage Square
CBRCleburne
Local history in a Carnegie library
Layland Museum of History
HOSHouston
An old downtown square beyond the station approach
Market Square Park · Waugh Drive Bridge bat colony
ELPEl Paso
Downtown art and a historic plaza
El Paso Museum of Art · San Jacinto Plaza
ALPAlpine
Murals around a compact West Texas downtown
Downtown Alpine mural walk
DRTDel Rio
Border-region history south of downtown
Whitehead Memorial Museum
GLEGainesville
A downtown morning on the Heartland Flyer
Downtown square and public art · Morton Museum of Cooke County
Northeast & Pennsylvania
Explore the corridor from Virginia to Boston, with branches into Pennsylvania and the Hudson Valley.
RVMRichmond Main Street
Poe stories and a canal-side wander
The Poe Museum · Canal Walk at the Turning Basin · Libby Hill Park overlook
WBGWilliamsburg
Folk art and historic streets
Art Museums of Colonial Williamsburg · Duke of Gloucester Street
NFKNorfolk
Military history and the Elizabeth River
MacArthur Memorial museum · Town Point Park
CVSCharlottesville
A downtown stroll or the UVA Rotunda
Historic Downtown Mall · University of Virginia Rotunda
RNKRoanoke
Art galleries and railroad history
Taubman Museum of Art · Virginia Museum of Transportation
FBGFredericksburg
Local stories and a riverfront pause
Fredericksburg Area Museum · Riverfront Park
ALXAlexandria
Working artists and Old Town waterfront
Torpedo Factory Art Center · King Street waterfront
WASWashington, DC
Postal history beside Union Station
National Postal Museum · U.S. Capitol grounds · National Mall, looking west
BALBaltimore Penn
Art and gardens in Mount Vernon
The Walters Art Museum · Mount Vernon Place garden parks
WILWilmington
Contemporary art and the Christina River
The Delaware Contemporary · Christina Riverwalk
PHLPhiladelphia
Archaeology or a walk beside the Schuylkill
Penn Museum · Schuylkill Banks at Market Street · Schuylkill Banks Boardwalk
NYPNew York
Fashion exhibitions and a Midtown park
The Museum at FIT · Bryant Park · Hudson River Park, Pier 76- LNC
Lancaster
Market stalls and Lancaster art
Lancaster Central Market · Demuth Museum of Art on King - HAR
Harrisburg
Capitol architecture and the Susquehanna
Pennsylvania Capitol Interactive Welcome Center · Riverfront Park - MJY
Mount Joy
A creekside pause off Main Street
Little Chiques Park - ELT
Elizabethtown
A small-town park stop
Elizabethtown Community Park - POU
Poughkeepsie
A former railroad bridge above the Hudson
Walkway Over the Hudson via Washington Street stairs - HUD
Hudson
Warren Street exhibitions and the waterfront
Hudson Hall galleries · Henry Hudson Riverfront Park - ALB
Albany–Rensselaer
Hudson River views from the Rensselaer shore
Rensselaer Riverfront Park · Crailo grounds and riverside park - NHV
New Haven Union Station
Yale galleries and a walk toward the Green
Yale Center for British Art - NLC
New London Union Station
Maritime history on Bank Street
Custom House Maritime Museum - MYS
Mystic
Shipyard exhibits on the Mystic River
Mystic Seaport Museum daytime visit - PVD
Providence
Art galleries and the riverwalk
RISD Museum · Waterplace Park and Riverwalk - BOS
Boston South Station
Greenway gardens and Fort Point history
Rose Kennedy Greenway from Dewey Square · Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum - RVR
Richmond Staples Mill
A botanical garden by local ride
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden
Southern California
Explore the Pacific Surfliner from San Diego through Los Angeles and Ventura to the Central Coast.
- LAX
Los Angeles Union Station
Mexican American stories across from the station
LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes · Olvera Street marketplace walk - FUL
Fullerton
A downtown wander and a small museum
Fullerton Museum Center · Downtown Fullerton shops and cafés 
SNCSan Juan Capistrano
Mission gardens and the Los Rios neighborhood
Mission San Juan Capistrano · Los Rios historic neighborhood
OSDOceanside
Surf history and a walk beside the Pacific
California Surf Museum · The Strand beachfront walk- SOL
Solana Beach
A small beach and a design district
Fletcher Cove · Cedros Design District - OLT
San Diego Old Town
Historic buildings and colorful courtyard shops
Old Town visitor center and museums · Bazaar del Mundo shops 
SANSan Diego Santa Fe Depot
Naval history, public parks and a bay sunset
USS Midway Museum · Waterfront Park · Sunset at Embarcadero Marina Park North- VEC
Ventura
County history and an oceanfront promenade
Museum of Ventura County · Ventura Promenade - SBA
Santa Barbara
Hands-on science and a waterfront walk
MOXI, The Wolf Museum of Exploration + Innovation · Stearns Wharf waterfront walk - SLO
San Luis Obispo
Railroad history and a downtown café stop
San Luis Obispo Railroad Museum · San Luis Obispo Museum of Art · Scout Coffee on Garden Street · Mission Plaza and downtown walk
North Carolina & Richmond
Follow the Piedmont corridor from Raleigh to Charlotte or take the Carolinian north to Richmond.
- RGH
Raleigh · Union Station
City stories, science and a shaded square
City of Raleigh Museum · Nash Square · North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences - CYN
Cary
A downtown park and a former railroad hotel
Downtown Cary Park · Page-Walker Arts and History Center 
DNCDurham, NC
Brick courtyards, a city park and a food hall
American Tobacco Campus · Durham Central Park · Durham Food Hall- BNC
Burlington
A railroad-town stroll and downtown cafés
Historic Depot exterior and downtown blocks · Downtown Burlington cafés and restaurants 
GROGreensboro
Civil rights history and downtown gardens
International Civil Rights Center & Museum · LeBauer Park- HPT
High Point
A food hall and a family museum
Stock + Grain Assembly · Nido & Mariana Qubein Children's Museum - SAL
Salisbury
A courthouse museum and Bell Tower Green
Bell Tower Green · Rowan Museum at the 1857 Courthouse - KAN
Kannapolis
Racing history and a ballpark walk
Dale Earnhardt Plaza · Atrium Health Ballpark public walk - CLT
Charlotte · North Tryon station
A food-hall visit with extra travel time
Optimist Hall - WLN
Wilson
Whirligigs in downtown Wilson
Vollis Simpson Whirligig Park - RMT
Rocky Mount
Art in a former industrial complex
Maria V. Howard Arts Center
Boston → Brunswick
Ride from Boston North Station to walkable New Hampshire towns and the Maine coast.
- BON
Boston North Station
A market lunch and Revolutionary Boston
Boston Public Market · Rose Kennedy Greenway at the North End · Old State House - EXR
Exeter
A riverfront walk and local history
Swasey Parkway · Exeter Historical Society · American Independence Center · seasonal - DOV
Dover
A trail from the platform and a cabinet of curiosities
Dover Community Trail · downtown section · Woodman Museum · seasonal - SAO
Saco · Saco Island
River falls, mill buildings and local art
Biddeford–Saco RiverWalk · Saco Museum - ORB
Old Orchard Beach
A beach walk near the platform
Old Orchard Beach shoreline - POR
Portland, ME
Thompson's Point trails, food and family play
Thompson's Point Trail · Bissell Brothers Kitchen · Children's Museum & Theatre of Maine · Fore River overlook near Hobart Street 
FREFreeport
Main Street, local history and a woodland loop
L.L.Bean flagship store · Harrington House · Leon Gorman Park
BRKBrunswick
Bowdoin art, Arctic stories and a campus stroll
Bowdoin College Museum of Art · Peary-MacMillan Arctic Museum · Bowdoin College campus grounds
Seattle → Portland
Explore Tacoma’s museum district, downtown Centralia, or Portland on the Amtrak Cascades.
- SEA
Seattle King Street Station
Neighborhood stories and a hidden waterfall
Wing Luke Museum · Waterfall Garden Park 
TACTacoma Dome Station
Classic cars and glass art by the water
LeMay – America's Car Museum · Chihuly Bridge of Glass · Dusk at the Bridge of Glass
CTLCentralia
Antique shops and a historic pub beside the depot
Historic downtown Centralia · Olympic Club Pub · Central Park pocket garden- KEL
Kelso–Longview
A small local-history museum near the station
Cowlitz County Historical Museum 
PDXPortland, OR
A Chinese garden and a long browse through books
Lan Su Chinese Garden · Powell's City of Books
Chicago, Milwaukee & the Mississippi
Ride to Milwaukee for the day or follow the Borealis west for an overnight in Wisconsin or Minnesota.
- CHI
Chicago Union Station
River architecture and a free cultural landmark
Chicago Riverwalk · Chicago Cultural Center - MKE
Milwaukee Intermodal
Market food and motorcycle history
Milwaukee Public Market · Harley-Davidson Museum - WDL
Wisconsin Dells
A short river walk above the sandstone bluffs
Scenic River Walk - LSE
La Crosse
Mississippi views with time for the walk
Riverside Park and Friendship Gardens - WIN
Winona
Local history and a Mississippi riverfront
Winona County History Center · Levee Park - RDW
Red Wing
Art at the depot and a riverfront pause
Red Wing Arts Depot Gallery · Levee Park - MSP
St. Paul Union Depot
Lowertown art and a quiet neighborhood park
Minnesota Museum of American Art · Mears Park