Incline Railway with Kids | Chattanooga Family Travel Guide




During our trip to Chattanooga one our stops there was the Incline Railway! It was so fun & such an unique experience! We had such a great time.

You start at the bottom of the train station {on St. Elmo Aveune}. Make sure you buy your tickets ahead of time as they sell out quickly. They make it very easy right on their website. Once you get there you will need to go to the ticket booth to exchange your online tickets for actual tickets. We didn't do this & stood in line for 20 mins & had to get out of line to do that & wait again. Don't do what we did! There are signs saying so if you park in their parking lot but we parked on the road so we had no idea! Whoops!

PRICE:
Prices vary by busy months.
ADULTS: $15
CHILDREN {AGES 3-12}: $7

**A NOTE FOR TOSE READING DURING THE PANDAMIC, MASKS ARE REQUIRED ON THE CARS AS IT IS TSA REGULATED TRANSPORTATION**




WHAT TO EXPECT ON THE INCLINE RAILWAY 


The trains are trolley-style cars. You sit backwards going up so that your view is always in front of you! I really recommend trying to get to the front of the car for on the way up! It is so neat & sorta freaky looking down as you go up more & more! Near the top there is a 72.7% grade, making The Incline one of the steepest passenger railways in the world.The cars are lined with winodws on the sides & ceiling so you always have a great view! The car goes under 10 MPH. You barely can tell how steep you are going until the last 1/4 mile.

A ride on The Incline takes about 15 minutes each direction. Incline trains leave from each station every 20 minutes. In addition to the ride there is an observation deck atop Lookout Mountain, and food service and gift shops available at both stations. It’s best to plan at least an hour for the whole experience.
TIP: There are two cars constantly going they alternate going up & down. Because of this, I suggest getting there early if you want to. They let some on earlier than their scheduled time. This way when everyone is coming at the scheduled time they get full & you have to wait for the next car, making your wait so so much longer.

There is no A/C in the cars. So it is HOT.



AT THE TOP OF THE INCLINE RAILWAY

Once you get to the top, there is  gift shop that has snacks & drinks. They had some yummt fudge! Of course you have to head to observation deck! The views are INCREDIBLE!  From there is actually the highest overlook point on Lookout Mountain! You are able to stay as long as you would like at the top. They have the cars coming and going every 10 or so minutes for you to come back down.





WHEN YOU RETURN TO THE TRAIN STATION
Make sure you grab some ice cream from Crumpies right next to the train station! They are a Chattanooga staple!




MOUNTAIN MEMORIES

On the way up the mountain, you may have noticed the log cabin with a giant QR code on the side. This little shop is owned by the Granddaughter of Leo & Ruby Lambert, the founder of Ruby Falls! Thi is a must stop if you visited Ruby Falls on your trip. They have lots of photos to look & great sovieners. If you re lucky you maybe able to meet the owner yourself & she is the sweetest! They have been open 93 years!!