Amtrak doesn’t go to Hawaii. Not now, not ever. And no, there’s no secret rail line being built under the Pacific Ocean. If you’re imagining a scenic train ride from Los Angeles to Waikiki, with palm trees waving outside the window and the sound of ocean waves mixing with the clatter of wheels, you’re dreaming of something that simply doesn’t exist. Amtrak operates on land-on tracks that connect cities across the continental United States. Hawaii, being an island chain 2,500 miles from the nearest mainland port, is out of reach for any train, no matter how luxurious.
Why People Think Amtrak Might Reach Hawaii
The confusion isn’t hard to understand. Amtrak runs some of the most beautiful train routes in North America. The Coast Starlight glides along the Pacific coast. The California Zephyr crosses the Rockies and the Sierra Nevada. The Empire Builder rolls through snow-dusted plains and forests. These journeys are marketed as immersive, slow-travel experiences-perfect for travelers who want to see the country without flying. It’s easy to imagine extending that magic to Hawaii, especially when you’re scrolling through photos of tropical beaches and luxury rail cars side by side.
But trains need rails. Rails need land. And Hawaii? It’s volcanic islands rising from the middle of the Pacific. There are no bridges long enough, no tunnels deep enough, and no engineering solution that makes sense for a train to reach them. Even if you could build a 2,500-mile underwater rail line-which would cost more than $1 trillion and take decades-the ocean currents, seismic activity, and corrosion would make it impossible to maintain.
What Amtrak Actually Offers
Amtrak serves 500 destinations across 46 states. Its routes are designed for land travel: from Chicago to New Orleans on the City of New Orleans, from Seattle to Portland on the Cascades, from Washington D.C. to Boston on the Northeast Regional. These trains offer reclining seats, dining cars, observation lounges, and sleeper cabins with private bathrooms. Some routes, like the California Zephyr, even include dome cars for panoramic views.
But none of these routes go beyond the coastline. The closest Amtrak gets to Hawaii is the Southern California ports-Long Beach, San Diego, or Los Angeles-where passengers can board a ferry or fly to the islands. There’s no train station on Oahu, Maui, or Kauai. No platform. No ticket counter. No baggage check.
Why Hawaii Can’t Have a Train System
Hawaii has tried. In the early 1900s, sugar plantations built narrow-gauge rail lines to move crops from fields to ports. The Oahu Railway and Land Company operated for nearly 60 years, carrying passengers and freight across the island. But by the 1940s, cars and trucks replaced trains. Today, the only remnants are a few old stations turned into museums.
Modern Hawaii doesn’t have a public rail system because of geography and cost. Building a full-scale rail network across multiple islands would require bridges, tunnels, and massive infrastructure investments. The population is too small to justify the expense. Traffic is light. Roads are narrow. And the terrain-steep mountains, active volcanoes, and protected natural areas-makes large-scale construction politically and environmentally difficult.
There’s one exception: Honolulu’s Skyline, a 20-mile automated light rail that opened in 2023. It connects key areas of Oahu, including the airport and downtown. But it’s not a long-distance train. It’s a city transit line, no different from a metro in Atlanta or Dallas. It doesn’t connect to other islands. And it certainly doesn’t link to Amtrak.
How to Get to Hawaii the Right Way
If you want to travel to Hawaii in style, you don’t need a train. You need a flight-and a smart approach to booking it. Airlines like Hawaiian Airlines, Alaska Airlines, and United offer premium economy and first-class cabins with lie-flat seats, gourmet meals, and priority boarding. Some travelers book multi-city itineraries: fly into Honolulu, spend a few days there, then take a short 30-minute flight to Maui or Kauai.
For luxury travelers, private jet charters are an option. So are high-end resorts with private transfers, helicopter tours, and yacht charters. But none of these involve rails. If you’re drawn to the romance of slow travel, consider flying to the mainland and taking an Amtrak journey first. Ride the Coast Starlight from Seattle to Los Angeles, then hop on a flight to Honolulu. You’ll get the best of both worlds: the rhythm of the train and the beauty of the islands.
What Luxury Train Travel Really Means
Luxury train journeys aren’t about the destination. They’re about the journey itself. The Silver Service trains in Florida, the Royal Canadian Pacific in the Rockies, the Belmond Andean Explorer in Peru-all of them are designed for the experience, not the endpoint. You don’t ride them to get somewhere fast. You ride them to feel the landscape change outside your window, to sip wine in a dining car at sunset, to sleep in a cabin that feels like a boutique hotel on wheels.
Hawaii doesn’t need a train to offer luxury. Its luxury comes from quiet beaches, private luaus, sunset cocktails on a cliffside deck, and the sound of waves outside your bungalow. Trying to force a train into that experience misses the point. The islands don’t need rails. They need space. Stillness. Time.
Alternatives to Amtrak for Island Travel
If you’re looking for a train-like experience in Hawaii, you’ll find it in other forms. Rent a convertible and drive the Road to Hana on Maui. Take a guided tour in a vintage 1950s convertible through Waikiki. Book a sunset cruise from Lahaina. Ride a horse along the black sand beaches of Punalu’u. These are the slow, immersive ways to explore the islands-not by train, but by car, boat, or foot.
For those who crave the structure of a multi-day itinerary, companies like Abercrombie & Kent and Tauck offer curated Hawaii tours that include stays at luxury resorts, private cultural experiences, and guided hikes. These aren’t trains, but they’re designed with the same intention: to slow you down and make you notice the details.
Final Reality Check
Amtrak to Hawaii? It’s a myth. A beautiful one, maybe. A wishful fantasy that blends the romance of rail travel with the allure of tropical paradise. But it’s not real. And pretending it is only leads to disappointment.
The truth? You can’t ride a train to Hawaii. But you can ride a train to the West Coast, then fly to the islands-and still feel like you’ve taken a journey, not just a trip. The train gets you there in spirit. The plane gets you there in fact. And once you’re on the beach, with the salt in the air and the sun warm on your skin, you’ll realize: you didn’t need rails to get here. You just needed time.
Can you take a train from California to Hawaii?
No. There is no train route from California to Hawaii. Amtrak operates only on land within the continental United States. Hawaii is an island chain over 2,500 miles from the mainland, and no rail connection exists-or is possible-between the two. To reach Hawaii from California, you must fly or take a cruise ship.
Does Amtrak have any routes that go to the ocean?
Yes. Several Amtrak routes run along the Pacific and Atlantic coasts. The Coast Starlight travels from Seattle to Los Angeles, offering views of the Pacific Ocean. The California Zephyr runs from Chicago to Emeryville (near San Francisco), passing close to the coast in Northern California. The Silver Star and Silver Meteor run along the Atlantic coast from New York to Miami. But none of these routes cross water to reach islands.
Is there a train system in Hawaii at all?
Hawaii has one modern rail line: Honolulu’s Skyline, which opened in 2023. It’s a 20-mile automated light rail serving Oahu, connecting the airport, downtown, and major neighborhoods. It’s not a long-distance train, doesn’t connect to other islands, and has no link to Amtrak. Before this, Hawaii’s only rail systems were narrow-gauge lines built for sugar plantations in the 1800s and early 1900s-none of which still operate.
Why can’t they build a bridge or tunnel to Hawaii?
Building a bridge or tunnel from California to Hawaii is physically and economically impossible. The distance is over 2,500 miles. The Pacific Ocean averages 13,000 feet deep in that region. Seismic activity, ocean currents, corrosion, and extreme weather would destroy any structure. The cost would exceed $1 trillion. No country in the world has ever attempted such a project, and no engineering firm has proposed a viable design.
What’s the closest Amtrak station to Hawaii?
The closest Amtrak stations to Hawaii are in Southern California: Los Angeles Union Station, San Diego Santa Fe Depot, and Long Beach Station. From any of these, you can catch a flight to Honolulu, Maui, or other Hawaiian islands. There is no train station, ferry terminal, or rail connection from these cities to Hawaii.