This is what we'd like to have known before booking.

The whole thing was fantastic, definitely worth doing. The train doesn't go very fast. It was 1 hour going up, we stayed stopped for 5-10 minutes and 1 hour back. It doesn't turn around. It goes forward out and backwards on the return trip. There was ample parking close to the station for our mid week trip. The gift shop was nice, there were clean bathrooms and they even gave you water before you boarded.

We booked online and saw the different options for seating/cars. We chose "Deluxe Class". It was very nice. The only real difference between Coach and Deluxe is the tables. The windows look to be the same size on each car but Deluxe has a fixed table with chairs that are not bolted down and Coach has fixed chairs (pairs that face each other front to back) with no tables. If you are planning on eating, that will make a difference. You will be sharing the table with 2 strangers if you only buy 2 tickets. Vista Dome seemed nice and has tables too but it looked a little more cramped than Deluxe. It is in one of those cars that, inside, you take a couple of steps up to get to it because there is a kitchen below. You do get more of an upward view because of the domed windows but looking up the canyon walls is the same after a while. You do get to see the suspension bridge, the zipline and the gondola lines that cross the top of the canyon about half way through the trip.

We saw the option online to buy food ahead of time and chose not to. I'm glad we waited. We boarded early as they suggest and were offered a menu as we sat down at our table. We ordered a drink while others boarded. The people who had ordered meals online were asked for their food tickets as soon as they were seated. Their food was brought to them pretty quickly so they sat on the parked train and ate. While they dined, we got our drinks and went to the outdoor viewing car. Other than a staff member or two, we were the only ones there. I think everyone assumes you have to be seated in your car when the train pulls out but we were enjoying the outside scenery when it did. It filled up quickly once the train started moving. We spent most of the trip on this car. You can see so much more and enjoy the fresh air. After finishing our first drink, I only had to walk to the bar car to get us another then back to the open air car (I just gave the bartender my table number and they added it to our bill). We eventually went back to our seats and ordered a salad from the menu. It was very good, restaurant quality. Not cheap but not too expensive either. Because we ordered drinks and food from onboard and not online, they brought us a check toward the end of the ride and we paid just like in a restaurant. If you order online, they bring you a check with a suggested tip on it.

We sat on the wrong side of the car. All of the better views are from the windows facing south, that is the side the river is on and the train does not cross it. In our car, the tables on the north side were even numbers and the ones facing south were odd. It is still pretty on the north side but it's mostly just rocks and the tall gorge siding.

Every staff member was very friendly and very helpful. The ones that hung out on the open air car answered questions and gave us information on the history of the train and the line. We enjoyed our trip very much and would recommend it to anyone who was thinking about going. I think the Christmas rides would be amazing, especially if there was snow. Kids would love it.