A beloved, cross-country holiday train tradition starts up for the 2025 season this week, complete with musical performances by cult favorite bands — and it’s stopping in the Chicago area.
The Canadian Pacific Kansas City 2025 Holiday Train, in its 27th year, will run starting Nov. 19 through Dec. 21, according to a release. That means the free holiday event, which raises money and collects items for community food banks in need, makes its first trip Thursday.
“Every year, our railroaders take great pride in bringing the Holiday Train across our network, this year reaching even more communities for the first time,” Keith Creel, CPKC President and CEO said in the release. “We are thrilled to send this beautiful train filled with lights and music to spread the joy of the season and proud to support the giving spirit of the holidays assisting people experiencing food insecurity. It’s incredible to see communities come together every year to celebrate the holidays while supporting local food banks.”
The train this year will travel to 13 states, with 196 live musical performances, from bands including Barenaked Ladies, Smash Mouth, American Authors, JJ Wilde, Pynk Beard and more. It also will feature a new light display honoring the legacy of ‘Rudy’ and the recently retired Kansas City Southern Holiday Express train that operated across the U.S. South for nearly a quarter century, organizers said.
The train starts its run in Quebec Thursday, with its first U.S. stop set for Hermon, Maine on Nov. 22. After that, it will travel to Illinois, Iowa, New York, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas, Louisiana, Wisconsin, Minnesota and North Dakota.
Below is the full schedule of the train’s stops in Illinois and southeastern Wisconsin, and who’s performing at each. A full list of U.S. stops and dates can be found here.
When is the Canadian Pacific Train coming to the Chicago area?
5:30 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Nov. 23: Franklin Park, Illinois; South side of Ruby Street Railway Crossing, North of Franklin Avenue. Musical performances by Smash Mouth and JJ Wilde
5:15 p.m. to 5:40 p.m. on Dec. 9: Gurnee, Illinois: 4460 Old Grand Avenue. Performances by American Authors and Pynk Beard
7 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Dec. 9: Sturtevant, Wisconsin: 9900 East Exploration. Performances by American Authors and Pynk Beard
8:15 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. on Dec. 9: Caledonia, Wisconsin: 5 1/2 Mile Road railway crossing. Performances by American Authors and Pynk Beard
4:15 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. on Dec. 10: Wauwatosa, Wisconsin: Harwood Avenue railway crossing. Performances by American Authors and Pynk Beard
The train makes a number of other stops in Wisconsin and Minnesota, including in Wisconsin Dells, La Crosse, Oconomowoc, Winona, Minneapolis, St. Paul and more.
Other holiday trains returning to the Chicago area for 2025 include the Metra Holiday Train, CTA holiday train and bus.
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