Prost!

As many of you know, this summer we had our first annual Oktoberfest Express in conjunction with Eagle Sales of the Black Hills. Passengers were served four seasonal beers along with other Oktoberfest fare. Here's what some of our passengers had to say about this event!

"We’ve attended the Wine Train several times so we knew Oktoberfest would be fun. This past weekend was even better than expected. Thanks so much. We’re already planning on attending next year." - Kristi B.

"Gail and I were on the Oreville coach; we had a great time. The weather was beautiful, we saw wonderful scenery including lots of deer and wild turkeys, and enjoyed the tasty food.
The event seemed to be well planned, orderly, and reasonably priced. The ticket window ladies seemed to have everything organized, the line moved quickly, and they easily found our reservations. On the train, all of the 1880 Staff knew their jobs and kept order among the passengers. By this I mean no passengers were allowed to walk around from car to car and the “Beer Ladies’ controlled the beer distribution. One beer at the station before departing (some did get refills), one bottle on the way to Keystone, two bottles on the way back to Hill City. Food accompanied the beer; I think serving food on the train is a good idea. The 1880 Staff were almost like airline flight attendants – Well Done!
One consideration: one glass and 3 bottles of beer may be too much for some folks, causing waste. I did see some folks pour some beer out the coach windows in order to give an empty bottle to the trash collectors.
In comparison with your competitors, we’ve been on several other October BBQ trains and wine trains, including the Virginia & Truckee RR in Virginia City, NV. The V&T serves all the food at the station before boarding. The wine trains are the worst; there is a lot of wine available with passengers moving from car to car in search of more wine when the wine supply finally runs low. Some folks get loud and stupid when they drink too much. I think the 1880 Train’s approach of controlling passenger movement and eating on the train is a good idea.
Thank you again for the enjoyable evening and we are wishing you every success on the 2nd Annual Oktoberfest Train." - Stan and Gail


The Oktoberfest Express will return during our 2011 summer season. Give us a call to find out more information! 605-574-2222.