The romantic vistas seen through the window of a midcentury American train may seem like a figment of your Agatha Christie–inspired imagination, but in Georgia, they actually exist! Crossing the 35 miles between Georgia Veterans State Park in Cordele and the hometown of President Jimmy Carter in Plains, the historic SAM Shortline Railroad offers day trips through rural southwestern Georgia that give visitors a taste of America’s railroad heyday.
A return to the magic of train travel can be one of the South’s more charming activities. You can climb America’s ‘most amazing mile’ in a Tennessee railway that takes you cloud-high up a mountain, or take an iconic family-friend train ride through the Blue Ridge Mountains to see more of the south. What all of these voyages through yesteryear have in common is their ability to help you see America through new eyes and embrace the slow travel that was once unprecedented.
On the SAM line, passengers will ride in rehabbed rail cars from the 1940s and stop at a number of towns and sites on the rail line’s holiday- or history-themed excursions. A murder mystery dinner train departing from Americus even gives guests the opportunity to step straight into an Agatha Christie novel on a two-hour journey that includes a luxurious meal. Each trip gives guests the opportunity to experience the 19th and 20th centuries’ most luxurious transit option.
Georgia’s charms on the SAM Shortline Stops
The small towns of southern central Georgia are easy to overlook. Located about 150 miles south of Atlanta and 85 miles east of Columbus, Georgia, the SAM Shortline offers a unique day trip through a part of the state you may not otherwise see…