Photo courtesy of CTA
One of the things that make the holidays in Chicago extra special is the CTA Holiday Train. For 33 years, a festive train carrying Santa and his reindeer runs through all of the CTA lines carrying joy and food baskets to Chicago community organizations.
The train runs from November 29, 2024, through December 23, 2024. See below for the schedule.
The CTA Holiday Train will feature Santa and his sleigh in an open-air, flat car carrying his reindeer and twinkling Christmas trees. The outside of the six-car train is adorned with holiday seasonal images, thousands of twinkling lights with even more lights running across the tops of the cars.
Photo courtesy of Verbs & Vision Media
The interiors are decked out with multi-colored lights, red bows, garlands, and red and green overhead lighting. Santa’s helpers walk through the train handing out candy canes and good cheer.
As the train pulls into each station, Santa waves to the boarding passengers from his sleigh and passengers can take photos with him as they exit the train.
Here is the Holiday Train schedule:
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
If you don’t ride the train, there’s also a CTA Holiday Bus. Santa perches on the roof hatch of the bus and waves. Holiday music plays and the bus exterior is decorated with Santa and his reindeer on a roof. Here is the CTA Holiday Bus schedule:
📷 = Photos with Santa days | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Both the train and bus are in-service vehicles that operate as part of regular service; therefore, they cannot dwell at stations/stops for long periods of time. While every effort is made to accommodate riders, space is limited and boarding is not guaranteed. To ensure everyone has an opportunity to see and take part in this annual tradition, here are a few suggested tips to make the most of your experience:
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
You can also use the Holiday Bus tracker to keep track of the bus schedule. Normal CTA fares of $2.50 for the train and $2.25 for the bus apply, which is a real bargain when you consider that it’s transportation and entertainment.
CTA Holiday Train and Bus
Through December 23, 2024
See train and bus schedules
$2.50 for the train and $2.25 for the bus
