The Southwest Chief is a long-distance passenger train operated by Amtrak on a 2,265-mile (3,645 km) route between Chicago and Los Angeles through the Midwest and Southwest via Kansas City, Albuquerque, and Flagstaff. Amtrak bills the route as one of its most scenic, with views of the Painted Desert and the Red Cliffs of Sedona, as well as the plains of Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, and Colorado.
Southwest Chief in February 2020.
Southwest Limited dome car, 1974. Photo by Charles O'Rear.
Boy Scouts unload their equipment at Raton in 2011.
Southwest Chief #4 arriving at Trinidad, CO
Long-distance Amtrak routes
The Long Distance Service Line is the division of Amtrak responsible for operating all intercity passenger train services in the United States longer than 750 miles (1,210 km). There are fifteen such routes as of 2023, serving over 300 stations in 39 states.
The Capitol Limited arriving at Harpers Ferry en route from Washington, D.C., to Chicago
The Superliner Sightseer Lounge aboard the Southwest Chief
Dining car breakfast served aboard the California Zephyr
The North Coast Hiawatha (1971–1979) at Bozeman Pass en route to Billings