A First-Class Overnight Train Service Between Los Angeles and San Francisco May Soon Be a Reality

Picture this: instead of waking up at dawn to navigate Los Angeles traffic on the 405 and rush to LAX for an early flight to San Francisco, you board a classic 1950s Pullman train the night before your meetings. Perhaps you enjoy a nightcap before settling in for a restful eight hours of sleep. Ten hours later, after enjoying coffee and breakfast on board, you arrive in San Francisco, refreshed and ready to seize the day.

This is the vision that Newport Beach-based Dreamstar Lines has for reviving an overnight rail link between two of California’s most iconic cities—an experience unavailable since the 1960s—allowing travelers to arrive in Los Angeles or San Francisco well-rested, while stepping back into a simpler, more elegant travel era, free from the long lines, delays, cancellations, and frustrations of flying.

"The airport is efficient once you’re on the plane," says Dreamstar CEO Jake Vollebregt. However, he adds, "You have to concentrate entirely on navigating the airport and then traveling from there to your meeting. That kind of stress and chaotic experience is worlds apart from rail travel, where you can focus on other things—whether it’s relaxing, working, or enjoying a nice meal. Rail travel is far superior in that regard."

Dreamstar plans to acquire or lease vintage Pullman train cars that would operate along Union Pacific’s scenic coastline route from Los Angeles, passing through Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo, and continuing to San Francisco—and vice versa. Two trains would depart nightly, one heading north and the other south, at 10 p.m., reaching their destinations ten hours later.

Accommodations will feature a single-occupancy roomette priced at $300 each way, a double-occupancy room available for $600 each way, and a first-class double-occupancy suite with a private bathroom and a queen bed costing $1,000 each way.

At launch, the trains will comprise 5 to 6 cars, accommodating up to 80 passengers each way, with potential expansion to 10 or 12 cars, allowing for a total capacity of 150 passengers. The trains will include a bar car offering desserts, "tavern-style" food, and continental breakfast. Initially, there will not be a dedicated dining car, partly due to cost and also because the trains will depart at 10 p.m.

"There are 40 million trips annually between Los Angeles and San Francisco; we really only need to capture a small fraction of that" to be considered successful, states Vollebregt.

The goal is to launch the new overnight train service by summer 2024.

The last overnight train service between Los Angeles and San Francisco ended in 1968 when the Southern Pacific Company discontinued the Lark. Currently, Amtrak’s Coast Starlight operates from Oakland (not San Francisco) to Los Angeles with additional stops, running during the day rather than overnight.

Regarding the high-speed rail project currently being developed in California, which aims to link San Francisco and Los Angeles in under three hours (expected to be completed between 2030 and 2033), Vollebregt believes that there will be ample opportunity for both services to thrive. "We think there’s more than enough space for both of us," he states.