Wild West Day Trip to Virginia City from Tahoe with Train Ride
Lake Tahoe, USA
- 7 hours (approx.)
- Pickup offered
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Travel back to the old Wild West—and see a side of the region many other visitors miss—on this tour from South Lake Tahoe to Virginia City, Nevada. Start your day trip by minibus, driving part of the old Pony Express route. When you reach Virginia City, a National Historic Landmark District, take a round-trip ride aboard the historic Virginia & Truckee Railroad before enjoying free time in town.
- Round-trip transit from South Lake Tahoe makes getting around seamless
- Take a ride on the Virginia & Truckee Railroad (tickets are included)
- Enjoy guided tour portions plus free time for independent sightseeing
- Explore the sights of historic Virginia City, Nevada at your own pace
What's Included
- Transport by air-conditioned shuttle bus
- Train ride
- Hotel pickup and drop-off (selected hotels only)
- Lunch
- Admission to attractions (optional)
- Gratuities
Meeting and Pickup
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
Pickup details
Hilton Vacation Club, bus stop on Ski Run Blvd., departure time: 8:20am Marriott Resorts, Red Curb pullout on Hwy 50 by Heavenly Gondola 8:30am Golden Nugget Lake Tahoe, main lobby area, departure time: 8:40am
Start time.8:30 am
Itinerary
Your day trip begins as you depart South Lake Tahoe with your driver/guide by minibus, with seats that recline and large windows that provide views of the mountain scenery. Continue on the approximately 90-minute drive across state lines to Virginia City, Nevada.
During the drive, listen to commentary about the area’s history during the days of the Wild West. Travel along a portion of the old Pony Express, the route from the 1860s that transported mail across the United States, before arriving in Virginia City, which was founded when the country’s first major silver deposit was discovered.
Hop off the minibus at the Virginia & Truckee Railroad station for your 6.5-mile (10.5-kilometer) round-trip train ride that takes you to the town of Gold Hill and back. During the journey, learn about the history of the railroad, which dates back to 1869.
After your train ride, you have several hours of free time in Virginia City to spend at your leisure. Explore the historic district, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and admire 19th-century buildings that line Main Street. Perhaps check out a museum or two, or have lunch at a local eatery. (All entrance fees, food and drinks are at your own expense.)
At the end of your trip, re-board the minibus for the return drive to South Lake Tahoe, where your day trip ends.
During the drive, listen to commentary about the area’s history during the days of the Wild West. Travel along a portion of the old Pony Express, the route from the 1860s that transported mail across the United States, before arriving in Virginia City, which was founded when the country’s first major silver deposit was discovered.
Hop off the minibus at the Virginia & Truckee Railroad station for your 6.5-mile (10.5-kilometer) round-trip train ride that takes you to the town of Gold Hill and back. During the journey, learn about the history of the railroad, which dates back to 1869.
After your train ride, you have several hours of free time in Virginia City to spend at your leisure. Explore the historic district, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and admire 19th-century buildings that line Main Street. Perhaps check out a museum or two, or have lunch at a local eatery. (All entrance fees, food and drinks are at your own expense.)
At the end of your trip, re-board the minibus for the return drive to South Lake Tahoe, where your day trip ends.
1
Virginia & Truckee Railroad
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
2
Comstock Lode
3 hours • Admission Ticket Free
3
Virginia City Visitor Center
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
4
The Delta Saloon
1 hour • Admission Ticket Free
5
The Way It Was Museum
30 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
6
St. Mary in the Mountains Catholic Church
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
Genoa Bar (Pass By)
7
Piper's Opera House
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
8
Historic Fourth Ward School Museum
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Not Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- It is recommended to bring comfortable walking shoes, sunscreen and a reusable water bottle
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Infants must sit on laps
- Most travelers can participate
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 26 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Alan_B
First off this is not a train ride to Virginia City. This is a 90-minute narrated bus tour from South Lake Tahoe to Virginia City where you then take a 30 minute train ride. That said, it was a great day! Our guide on the bus, Nevada Smith told us all about the area and its history. We rode through a spectacular mounatin pass, through the historic town of Genoa and on through the desert to Virginia City. There we took a short train ride out and back, learning more about the history of the Comstock Lode and the railroad itself. The conductor, Don was equally informative. After that we had three hours in Virginia City for lunch, shopping and to experience a real "old west" town. There is a great museum, The Way It Was, with artifacts going back to the pioneer and mining days... a lot of cool old stuff and a video. The town has several saloons that serve pizza, burgers and drinks. I recommend the Red Dog Saloon. There's also Hi Me Cafe which serves the most amazing iced coffee! And there's plenty of gift shops, ranging from simple souvenirs to unique clothing, artwork and jewelry. All in all I definitely recommend this excursion for anyone who wants to step back to the 1800's without leaving the present day. A perfect day trip from Tahoe.
Reviews
4.2
based on 158 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Daniel_B, Jul 2026
The pickup location was hard to find through the app. The tour company needs to have better communication. We missed the bus because of lack of communication and did not get any money back. Very disappointed
Vaughn_E, Jul 2026
Shuttle was comfortable. The drive to Virginia City traveled thru several towns including Carson City. Driver was very knowledgeable and talked constantly ( could be good or bad depending on your expectations) . We arrived at the train station with about 20 min to spare before the train ride. It was enough time for a bathroom break and grab something from the little store. Train ride was scenic and informative about the mining. After the train ride we boarded the shuttle were dropped off on Main St. Virginia City. We had 3 hours going thru the shops and enjoying the old saloons and the many stores. We ate at a BBQ place at the end of the street. Very reasonable and delicious BBQ. Evidently there was a reenactment of a gun fight we missed because we were enjoying our BBQ at the far end of town. We knew it was happening because we heard the gun shots. There are many interesting shops including (if you are into sweets) a fudge shop and a candy store with barrels of candy. The sidewalks are wooden and you need to be careful not to trip. The people in town are friendly and welcoming. The ride back to Tahoe was quicker, taking the highway, avoiding the little towns. The only thing that was annoying is we picked the hottest day of the season. All in all my wife and I enjoyed the tour and would recommend it.
Sharon_P, Jul 2026
It was a very informative history lesson about Virginia City. Our tour guide did a fine job sharing interesting facts about Lake Tahoe as well as Carson City.
KAETEE_H, Jul 2026
Bus ride was great and very informational. Loved the train ride as well, we had so much fun. Wish the museums in town were a little better but we had fun over all!
Michelle_M, Jul 2026
Great history and fun facts along the way. Driver was very knowledgeable and told good stories. Train ride was full of history and entertaining. Well worth the cost not to have to think about driving, traffic and parking.
Howard_F, Jul 2026
A tale from the old west. Looked for gold and found silver. Amazing on how it resulted in the growth of Virginia City.
Jennifer_N, Jul 2026
Bus ride there was great! Full of information and history but ride home was dead silent and we came back a different way, could have told us more about things along the way! Train was 30 minutes late taking off. Virginia City was ok, very expensive stores that seem more just like a tourist trap. The church was beautiful though!!!
Tamy_W, Jun 2026
It was amazing. Driver was a very good tour guide. He pointed out interesting sights and highlights of the tour. The only thing I recommend is taking a Dramamine before your tour. Elevation and winding roads are not a good combination.
Steven_S, Jun 2026
Very informative and well run. The train ride was fun and the museum was interesting. Highly recommend this tour.
Charles_Y, May 2026
The driver is very knowledgeable in local history, making this trip filled with joy and learning experience.
Alan_B, Oct 2025
First off this is not a train ride to Virginia City. This is a 90-minute narrated bus tour from South Lake Tahoe to Virginia City where you then take a 30 minute train ride. That said, it was a great day! Our guide on the bus, Nevada Smith told us all about the area and its history. We rode through a spectacular mounatin pass, through the historic town of Genoa and on through the desert to Virginia City. There we took a short train ride out and back, learning more about the history of the Comstock Lode and the railroad itself. The conductor, Don was equally informative. After that we had three hours in Virginia City for lunch, shopping and to experience a real "old west" town. There is a great museum, The Way It Was, with artifacts going back to the pioneer and mining days... a lot of cool old stuff and a video. The town has several saloons that serve pizza, burgers and drinks. I recommend the Red Dog Saloon. There's also Hi Me Cafe which serves the most amazing iced coffee! And there's plenty of gift shops, ranging from simple souvenirs to unique clothing, artwork and jewelry. All in all I definitely recommend this excursion for anyone who wants to step back to the 1800's without leaving the present day. A perfect day trip from Tahoe.
Pamela_B, Oct 2025
Great tour guide! Learned lots of info.
A little too long in Virginia city .
Great little church to see.
Ronald_C, Oct 2025
It was interesting and informative, the driver/tour guide was extremely knowledgeable. Well worth the money.
Lionna_S, Oct 2025
Overall, the experience was very “informational”. The driver was very knowledgeable about the tour as well as keeping people on the bus entertained with the trivia questions he was giving us. But I must say, I thought the tour would be different than what we envisioned. I thought the train ride was going to be several hours as we overlooked Lake Tahoe and other significant landmarks. Instead, we has roughly a 1.5 hour tour by bus (both ways) and a roughly 30 minute train ride. We got dropped off to visit “old school” markets and stores which was kinda refreshing. We made some homemade candles which was pretty fun and we also had a good time speaking to the locals.
catherine_G, Oct 2025
Our driver was so informed about the area and made the bus ride so much fun . We even sang !
Our adventure in Carson city allowed plenty of time to see everything and shop and have lunch
Misty_P, Sep 2025
The tour had too much down time and people were sitting on benches waiting for the bus to load and leave.
We waited at a the Golden Nugget for a gentleman who was in line at Starbucks for a bottle of water.
The tour guide dropped us off across the street as he didn’t want to turn the bus around.
Never again.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
We're bummed that your experience wasn't what you had expected, thank you for your input, we'll work on improving this experience.
Faith_F, Sep 2025
Excellent tour guide, careful driver over mountain roads, good suggestions for sights in Virginia City. Nice, new bus. Prompt pickup and return.
Alice_M, Sep 2025
Beautiful views and friendly people but train ride says 7 miles, 1 hour. From the start to finish it was 35 minutes total. Was expecting longer.
Michael_J, Sep 2025
Our guide gave us a lot of information and history . Virginia City has lots of shops and restaurants and a gun shoot out play . All were good and we had a full day
Susan_R, Sep 2025
Awesome experience. Would recommend this tour to anyone. Loved the train ride. Keep up the good work
Richard_B, Aug 2025
Bring water or other beverages during the bus and train ride. Eat at one of the local restaurants for lunch, great bargains and delicious food. Very friendly people. The bus driver was very knowledgeable and answered all questions. Overall, a very good experience.
Alba_S, Aug 2025
It was nice but wish the train was longer than 30 min round trip.
Our tour guide was great, and scenery awesome.
Greg_H, Aug 2025
We opted out of the shuttle bus thinking that the majority of the tour was via train so we drove straight to the train depot in Virginia City. The cost to ride the train there is $18 per person. We were wrong. The train ride seemed about a half hour and literally went down a track and then backwards. Conductor was enjoyable but wish we didn’t purchase this through Viator. Spent way too much for what we experienced.
Response from Host, Oct 2025
The write up on this experience is pretty straight forward but obviously needs improvement so guests in the future aren't confused on what to expect.
Patricia_B, Aug 2025
Both conductor and van driver were excellent and entertaining! The town was charming and my friends really enjoyed ALL the saloons. Great watering holes.
Ruth_G, Jul 2025
We had a great and very knowledgeable bus driver! We had a lot of fun walking the streets, checking out the old saloons, and lunch at the Palace Saloon!
Heidi_S, Jul 2025
There was not much to see on the way to Virginia City although our guide shared information about the area. Train ride was ok, but we had too much time in Virginia City. After lunch we walked around, but we needed something to do..maybe a mine tour?
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Thank you for you input, we'll work on improving this experience.
Melissa_S, Jul 2025
The bus ride there is very scenic and informative. Once you get ON the train, it’s a very short ride. Little disappointed in that. The tour guides are very nice and knowledgeable. My highlight of the trip was seeing the wild mustangs. Virgina City was nice to dine and shop in. It’s a pricey tour but I’d recommend it.
Crystal_P, Jun 2025
Guide was so experienced and knowledgeable about the area. Had a blast in Virginia City and learning about the surrounding area.
Mario_M, Jun 2025
The bus ride from Tahoe to Virginia City is nice, the driver was on time, very personable and gave a good accounting of area history along the route. The train ride however was short and could benefit from a longer route.
Ilene_G, Jun 2025
In addition to Virginia City we got to see the area between Lake Tahoe and Virginia City. Virginia City is like an old western town. Our bus driver was super friendly and full of information on the area.
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