Short answer
- There is no 2026 schedule. The CTA's page says "Thank you for riding! Check back next holiday season for the 2026 schedule." and repeats it 3 times.
- Riding it is a normal fare: $2.50 a ride or $5.00 for the day. There is no Holiday Train ticket to buy.
- In 2025 the schedule was announced on 18 November 2025 and the train ran from 28 November 2025, so 10 days of notice.
- The day pass only beats single fares past 3 separate rides, because 2 transfers within 2 hours are free.
- A different Holiday Train, run by CPKC, has published its 2026 times. It stops 4 times in Illinois for about 30 minutes each.
01The short version
You cannot plan a trip around the Holiday Train yet, and that is the honest answer rather than a cop-out. The CTA has not published a single 2026 date. What you can plan is the money, because there is no ticket involved: it runs as part of regular service and costs what any other journey costs.
The CTA's own words, read on 24 October 2026: "The Allstate CTA Holiday Train will travel all rail lines beginning in late November through late December as part of regular rail service, making stops at all stations along the respective routes. Schedules for each rail line will vary." And then, in its own line: "Normal CTA fares apply."
If you are in Chicago in late November or December, the practical approach is to check the tracker on the day rather than build an evening around it. The rest of this page is what that costs, when the dates usually appear, and how to improve your odds of actually getting a seat.
02There is no 2026 schedule, and when it usually lands
The CTA's Holiday Fleet page carries the same sentence 3 times, once under the train, once under the bus and once where the schedule itself should be.
"Thank you for riding! Check back next holiday season for the 2026 schedule."
So the useful question is not what the dates are, it is when they turn up. Last season answers that, and the answer is late.
The 2025 season, which is the only one with firm dates
| What | When | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Schedule announced | 18 November 2025 | 10 days before the train ran |
| Holiday Bus started | 25 November 2025 | 19 routes, up from 17 the year before |
| Holiday Train started | 28 November 2025 | 34th year, all 8 lines |
| Full train ran | to 20 December 2025 | 17 days in total, 6 decorated railcars |
| Yellow Line two-car trains | 22 December 2025 | Skokie Swift only, after the main season |
The 2025 dates as announced by the CTA and reported on 18 November 2025. These are last season's dates and are printed here as history, not as a forecast: the CTA has published nothing for 2026, and we are not going to guess at it for you. The highlighted rows are the two that tell you how much notice to expect.
Ten days. That is the gap between knowing and riding. If 2026 follows the same shape, a schedule will not exist until well into November, which is after most people have booked their flights. Nothing is going wrong; this is simply how the CTA runs it.
One figure from that table is worth keeping: the full train ran on 17 days spread across 8 lines. It is not a train that sits in the city every evening for a month. Each line gets a handful of dates, which is precisely why the schedule matters and why its absence is the story.
03What it costs, and why the obvious sum is wrong
There is no Holiday Train ticket. The CTA charges a normal fare, so the only decision is whether to pay per ride or buy a day pass, and the usual arithmetic for that is wrong.
Paying per ride against the day pass
| Separate rides | Paid singly | 1-Day pass | Which wins |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $2.50 | $5.00 | Paying singly |
| 2 | $5.00 | $5.00 | Tie |
| 3 | $7.50 | $5.00 | Pass, by $2.50 |
| 4 | $10.00 | $5.00 | Pass, by $5.00 |
| 5 | $12.50 | $5.00 | Pass, by $7.50 |
Computed from the CTA's published fares read on 19 October 2026, not estimated. "Separate rides" means rides that fall outside the free transfer window, because rides inside it are not charged again. The two highlighted rows are the crossover: a tie at two, and the first row where the pass actually saves you something.
This is where most advice goes wrong. 2 extra rides within 2 hours are free. So riding out to see the train and coming straight back is one fare of $2.50, not two. The full fare chart, and the three different things on the CTA that cost five dollars, are in our guide to Chicago transit passes.
Where the pass does earn its keep is the way the CTA itself tells you to do this. Board near the start of a line, ride it to the end, come back, then try a different line later in the day. That is three or four separate journeys well outside any two-hour window, and at that point the $5.00 pass is ahead by $2.50 or more.
If you need a time you can actually book
The Christmas Tree Crawl, which does have a start time
4.86 · 44 reviews
The honest problem with the Holiday Train is not the money, it is that you cannot put it in a calendar and the CTA admits that "While every effort is made to accommodate riders, space is limited and boarding is not guaranteed." If what you want is a festive couple of hours at a time you can book now, this walking tour of decorated downtown lobbies starts from $35 and rates 4.86 from 44 reviews. It asks for moderate fitness and is not step-free, which the operator states and which rules it out for some people. We compare it against the Walnut Room in our guide to that restaurant.
$35 from
From $35, with a start time you choose, against a train whose 2026 dates do not exist yet.
Check dates and priceThere is one other seasonal option worth naming and not linking. Chicago Fireboat Tours lists a "Santa Claus Sleigh Ride Cruises on the Chicago River" at $20, down from $25, running 14 November to 20 December 2026, Saturdays and Sundays only. It fits the theme far better than a walking tour does. It also has 0 reviews, its own listing gives the length as both 60 and 75 minutes in two different places, and it cancels for bad weather or too few travellers. That is not enough for us to send you to it, so here it is as a name to look up rather than a recommendation. Read on 24 October 2026.
04Two different holiday trains, one of them published
Search for a Chicago holiday train and you will meet two unrelated things with nearly the same name. They answer different questions, and only one of them will tell you when it is coming.
The CTA Holiday Train against the CPKC Holiday Train
| CTA Holiday Train | CPKC Holiday Train | |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 schedule | Not published | Published, to the quarter hour |
| Where | All eight 'L' lines, inside the city | 4 stops in Illinois, all out of town |
| How long it is there | Runs across the whole season | About 30 minutes, once |
| What it costs | A normal fare, $2.50 | Free to watch from the ground |
| What it is | A decorated train you ride | A freight train with a stage on it |
CTA detail from transitchicago.com and CPKC detail from its own published route schedule, both read on 24 October 2026. The highlighted row is the whole difference for anyone trying to plan: one of these can be put in a diary today and the other cannot.
If you want a date in your diary right now, the CPKC train is the one that has them, with the caveat that none of its 4 Illinois stops is in Chicago and each lasts about 30 minutes before it moves on.
Every Illinois stop on the CPKC Holiday Train, 2026
| Place | Date | Time | Where exactly |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin Park | 23 November 2026 | 17:30 to 18:00 | Ruby Street railway crossing, north of Franklin Avenue |
| Pingree Grove | 24 November 2026 | 09:00 to 09:30 | Village Hall, Railroad Street and Reinking Road |
| Byron | 24 November 2026 | 12:00 to 12:30 | Tower Road near the high school |
| Gurnee | 8 December 2026 | 17:15 to 17:40 | 4460 Old Grand Avenue, Viking Middle School Park |
Read from CPKC's own published US route schedule on 24 October 2026, which covers 19 November to 20 December 2026 and 182 stops in total. Times are the operator's and each window is roughly half an hour, so these are appointments rather than opening hours.
05Getting on, which is not guaranteed
The detail that catches people out has nothing to do with tickets. The Holiday Train is a working service train, so it cannot wait around and it cannot hold space for you.
"While every effort is made to accommodate riders, space is limited and boarding is not guaranteed." That is the CTA's own wording, not a disclaimer we have added.
Its advice for improving your odds is specific and worth following. "Board at a station/stop close to the beginning of the route.", because many riders stay on to the end of the line and then ride back, so it only gets fuller. And once aboard, "Railcars toward the front or back of the train will be less crowded compared to those immediately adjacent to Santa's sleigh."
On the days it runs you can find it the same way you find any other train, through the Candy Cane icon on CTA Train Tracker. That is useful on the night and useless for planning, since it only appears while the train is actually out.
Two things worth knowing that are not about logistics. The train has run since 1992, when it started as an out-of-service train delivering food to charities, and the CTA still does that: it says it donates around 400 food baskets a year, assembled by its own staff. The Holiday Bus has been going since 2014.
06Questions people actually ask
When does the CTA Holiday Train run in 2026?
Nobody can tell you yet, including the CTA. Its own Holiday Fleet page says "Thank you for riding! Check back next holiday season for the 2026 schedule." and repeats that line 3 times, once for the train, once for the bus and once above the schedule section. What it does commit to is the shape of the season: the train "travels all rail lines beginning in late November through late December as part of regular rail service". Read on 24 October 2026.
How much does the CTA Holiday Train cost?
A normal fare. The CTA states it plainly: "Normal CTA fares apply." That means $2.50 for an 'L' ride or $5.00 for a 1-Day pass, read from the fare chart on 19 October 2026. There is no Holiday Train ticket, no separate admission and nothing to book. It is an ordinary service train with lights on it.
Do I need a special ticket for the Holiday Train?
No, and there is nowhere to buy one. It runs as part of regular service, so you pay the same way you would on any other day: tap a contactless card, a phone, a Ventra card, or use any unlimited pass. The flip side is that nothing is reserved for you either, which the CTA spells out.
Is the day pass worth it for the Holiday Train?
Only past 3 separate rides, and the usual sum is wrong. At $2.50 a ride the pass looks like it pays for itself at 2, but the CTA gives you 2 more rides free within 2 hours, so a short there-and-back inside that window is one fare, not two. The pass wins when your rides are genuinely spread across the day, which is exactly what happens if you follow the CTA's own advice and ride a line end to end.
When will the 2026 schedule be announced?
We cannot promise a date, but last year gives the shape of it: the 2025 schedule was announced on 18 November 2025 and the train first ran on 28 November 2025. That is 10 days of notice. If the same pattern holds, anyone planning a trip now will not be able to pin down a date until well into November, and that is normal rather than an oversight.
How do I know where the Holiday Train is?
On operating days the CTA marks it with the Candy Cane icon on CTA Train Tracker, so it appears on the same tracker as every other train. The Holiday Bus has its own separate tracker. Neither helps you plan in advance, because both only show the vehicle while it is actually in service.
Is the Chicago Holiday Train the same as the CPKC Holiday Train?
No, and this is the mix-up worth avoiding. The CTA Holiday Train is a decorated 'L' train that runs inside the city all season on a normal fare. The CPKC Holiday Train is a freight railway's travelling concert, and for 2026 it stops at 4 places in Illinois, all of them suburbs or small towns, for about 30 minutes each. CPKC has published its 2026 times to the quarter hour. The CTA has published nothing.
Can I get a photo with Santa on the Holiday Train?
On designated dates, yes, and bring your own phone: Photos with Santa are taken by a CTA employee using your own device, first come first served, one set-up per family. The CTA also warns there is a firm cut-off so the vehicle can leave on time. Which dates those are for 2026 is part of the schedule that is not out.
Where should I board to actually get on?
The CTA's own tip is the useful one: "Board at a station/stop close to the beginning of the route." Its reasoning is that many people ride to the end of the line and then back again, so the train fills as it goes. It adds that "Railcars toward the front or back of the train will be less crowded compared to those immediately adjacent to Santa's sleigh." That is advice about crowding, not a guarantee, because the CTA says outright that "While every effort is made to accommodate riders, space is limited and boarding is not guaranteed."
Diego FresnoI went looking for the 2026 schedule expecting to publish it, and the useful finding turned out to be that it does not exist. That is worth saying plainly rather than padding a page around last year's dates, which is what a lot of what you will find online is doing right now. The fare arithmetic is the part I would actually act on: the day pass is not the obvious buy people assume, because the free transfer quietly turns a there-and-back into a single journey. That one line on the fare chart changes the answer.
Everything about the train, including the fare line and the boarding warning, from transitchicago.com on 24 October 2026. The dates in the 2025 table are last season's, not this one's. Fares and the transfer rule from the CTA's official fare chart, 19 October 2026. CPKC stops and times from its published route schedule, 24 October 2026. Tour price and rating from the Viator product record. What nobody can tell you yet, because the CTA has not published it: any 2026 date for the train or the bus, which lines run on which days, and when photos with Santa are offered. And the ten days of notice happened once. It is not a promise.