National Geographic called this NYC-to-Montreal train one of the 10 most beautiful trips on earth

The Adirondack’s route is a moving window seat

You don’t drive it. You don’t fly it.

You sit back and let 381 miles of river, mountain, and lakeshore roll past your window for 11 hours.

The Adirondack train runs daily between New York City and Montreal, and National Geographic Traveler put it on the list of the 10 most beautiful train trips in the world back in 2000. That ranking still holds up.

What you see out that window is the reason why.

Coach class, free Wi-Fi, and no middle seat

The whole train runs coach class, so there are no reserved seats. Get there early if you want a specific spot.

Once you’re settled, the ride has more going for it than most flights: free Wi-Fi, power outlets at your seat, a cafe car, and enough room to actually stretch out.

The car is wide, the seats don’t crowd you, and you’re not stuck in the middle of a three-seat row. For an 11-hour trip, that matters more than you’d think.

The train that replaced two classics in 1974

The Adirondack first rolled on Aug. 6, 1974, stepping in for two earlier trains on the Delaware and Hudson Railway corridor: the Montreal Limited and the Laurentian.

It started at Grand Central Terminal, moved to Penn Station in 1991 when the Empire Connection tunnel opened, and has been running the same general corridor ever since.

New York State’s Department of Transportation and VIA Rail Canada both help keep it going. Before the pandemic, more than 117,000 passengers rode it in a single fiscal year.

The Hudson River runs right beside you for hours

North of Manhattan, the tracks press tight against the east bank of the Hudson.

Sit on the left side heading north and you’ll have river views for much of the first half of the trip. The Palisades cliffs rise across the water.

The Catskills line the horizon in the distance. At one point, the ruins of Bannerman Castle come into view on a small island mid-river.

Near Poughkeepsie, a massive old railroad bridge stretches overhead, now converted to a pedestrian walkway.

Gilded Age estates and river towns slide past your window

The Hudson Valley stops give you a sense of how wealthy this corridor once was.

Near Hyde Park, you can see the bluffs where Gilded Age estates were built, including the area around the Vanderbilt Mansion.

A little further north, Rhinecliff sits quiet on the riverbank with Catskill views across the water. Hudson, once a whaling port, rises on a bluff above the river.

Each stop is small, and the train doesn’t linger. You catch them, and then the river pulls you north again.

Saratoga Springs sits at the edge of two worlds

After the train crosses the Hudson at Albany-Rensselaer and rolls through Schenectady, it swings northeast toward Saratoga Springs.

The town has drawn visitors since the 1800s, pulled by mineral springs that bubble up from the ground. Every summer, the Saratoga Race Course fills with crowds.

It’s one of the oldest thoroughbred tracks in the country.

Outside race season, the downtown is tree-lined and walkable, with 19th-century architecture and enough galleries and shops to fill a long afternoon.

Dense forest closes in north of Saratoga

Once you clear Saratoga Springs, the towns get smaller and the trees get thicker. Pine, maple, and spruce close in on both sides of the tracks.

Small lakes appear between forested ridges. You might catch a white-tailed deer at the tree line or a migratory bird cutting across an open wetland.

This is the Adirondack Park, about 6 million acres of publicly protected land, the largest such area in the contiguous United States.

The mountains themselves rank among the oldest in North America, shaped by glaciers over millions of years.

Lake Champlain fills your window for miles

Near Whitehall, the train swings east and picks up the western shore of Lake Champlain.

The lake runs about 120 miles between New York and Vermont, and for a long stretch, the tracks run just feet from the water’s edge. On a clear day, the Green Mountains of Vermont show up across the lake.

This is the section most people talk about when they describe the ride.

The water is right there, close enough that it feels less like passing scenery and more like traveling on the lake itself.

The fort that started the Revolutionary War’s first big win

The Ticonderoga stop puts you close to Fort Ticonderoga, where Ethan Allen and the Green Mountain Boys took the British garrison on May 10, 1775.

That raid was the first offensive American victory in the Revolution. The cannons captured there didn’t stay in the Adirondacks.

Colonel Henry Knox hauled them all the way to Boston, where they helped force the British out of the city.

The fort still stands and runs living history programs, with events tied to the Revolution’s 250th anniversary running through 2025 and 2026.

Plattsburgh is the last American stop before Canada

Plattsburgh sits on the western shore of Lake Champlain, close enough to the border that Canada feels just around the corner.

The city has a walkable downtown with local cafes and quiet beaches, and the Kent-Delord House Museum covers the region’s colonial history and the War of 1812.

North of Plattsburgh, the train makes one more stop at Rouses Point before the landscape changes and the border crossing begins. Pack your passport.

You’ll need it, and immigration checks can add up to two hours to the trip.

Before you book, read the service alerts

The northbound train leaves New York in the morning and pulls into Montreal in the evening. Along the Hudson, the best water views sit on the left side of the train.

Along Lake Champlain, switch to the right. The summer of 2023 and 2024 both saw service disruptions from track maintenance on the Canadian side of the route, so check Amtrak’s service alerts before you commit to dates.

The old Great Dome Car, which once gave panoramic views on fall foliage runs, was retired in 2018 and won’t be coming back.

Fall turns the whole route into something else

The Adirondack is popular year-round, but autumn is when it draws real crowds. Peak foliage along this corridor typically hits between mid and late October.

Sugar maples, oaks, and aspens go red, orange, and gold across the mountains. Along Lake Champlain, the color reflects off the water.

Amtrak has run seasonal fall foliage tour packages tied to the route. If you go in October, book early.

The combination of the lake stretch, the mountain forest, and the Hudson Valley all turning color at once is a lot to take in from one seat.

Book the Adirondack route through Amtrak

You can board the Adirondack at Moynihan Train Hall at Penn Station in Manhattan, or at any of the 17 other stops along the route. The train runs once daily in each direction.

If you’re coming from farther south, connecting Amtrak trains link New York to Philadelphia, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C. At Montreal’s Gare Centrale, VIA Rail connections open up destinations across Canada.

A valid passport is required for the border crossing.

Check the official website for current schedules and any service alerts before you travel, especially in summer.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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