MS: Taking Amtrak to New Orleans or Mobile? Walkable downtowns are not far away

Amtrak’s new Mardi Gras Service rolls Aug. 18 between New Orleans and Mobile, bringing passengers to the attractions, shops and restaurants in cities along Mississippi’s Gulf Coast.

The return of passenger trains also brings an opportunity for South Mississippi residents to experience riding the rails to adventure in New Orleans and Mobile.

Passengers will be able to hop aboard the train at Pascagoula, Biloxi, Gulfport and Bay St. Louis and ride to a Saints’ football game in New Orleans instead of fighting traffic on I-10 and paying for parking. Or they can take the kids to Mobile to explore old Fort Conde and the USS Alabama battleship, and oldest US submarine on public display.

“We’ve been working on this for years and years, and we’re so excited,” said Kelly Schulz, senior vice president of communications and PR for New Orleans & Company and Visit New Orleans. The return of Amtrak coincides with the 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast in 2005. “So to be able to say we’ve had this for the first time since then is pretty powerful,” she said.

The name Mardi Gras Line automatically connects Mobile, New Orleans and the four stops in South Mississippi — Pascagoula, Biloxi, Gulfport and Bay St. Louis — where the traditions of Carnival are a beloved custom.

“Our goal is to have some of that festive Mardi Gras feeling on every trip, sharing the culture of the Gulf Coast region while connecting with the rest of the Amtrak network,” said Amtrak President Roger Harris. All aboard to Mobile

Residents of South Mississippi may be more familiar with the fun that awaits in New Orleans than all the reasons to visit Mobile.

The new train platform is at 101 South Water Street, between the Mobile Convention Center and the National Maritime Museum of the Gulf, in the walkable downtown entertainment district.

“There is so much to do within walking distance,” said Ashley Rains, senior public relations and communications manager for Visit Mobile.

The district has more than 50 restaurants, “all of which are locally owned, a lot of them are chef-owned,” she said. She ticks off more things passengers can walk to: Multiple art galleries and shops, the hands-on Exploreum Science Center, the history museum, Mobile Carnival Museum and the National Maritime Museum of the Gulf.

The USS Alabama and submarines on the causeway are a 10 minute Uber ride away and MOB City Rides have friendly golf cart shuttles throughout the downtown for $5 per person, per ride.

The Amtrak platform is only about 400 yards from the cruise terminal, Rains said, so Coast residents will have the option of riding the train to Mobile and leaving their vehicle at home while they are on a cruise.

Hotels and bed and breakfast inns are within walking distance for those who want an overnight getaway during Mardi Gras or stroll beneath the lights lights across Dauphin Street.

Visit Mobile already promotes a VIP Attractions Pass that lets visitors get a discount on several attractions. Rains said Mobile is planning for Amtrak excursions, “We have several partners that are working on doing promotions, just like we do when we have our cruise ship in town,” she said.

Among the favorite activities for adults in Mobile, according to Trip Advisor, are down food tours, ghost tours and scavenger hunts. Go west to NOLA

Amtrak’s New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal is at 1001 Loyola Ave., north of U.S. 90, in the heart of downtown.

It’s very close to the Caesar Superdome for Saints’ games and the Smoothie King Center for concerts and events, said Schulz. She has ideas for families who ride over on Amtrak, along with older and adventurous passengers who can beat the traffic on the interstate and get a safe ride back to the Coast.

At the station, passengers can connect to Amtrak trains heading nationwide, to buses or the local streetcar line. The streetcar picks up at Loyola/Union Passenger Terminal and provides an air-conditioned ride from the terminal to Canal Street and the French Quarter.

“Everything in New Orleans is pretty compact,” Shulz said. “The French Quarter is nearby, the hotels, the restaurants. The train will let you out in the middle of the central business district, so it’s a short walk to most places,” she said, or a quicker Uber or taxi ride.

The National World War II Museum is a 10-minute walk she estimates. The station is at the foot of the Garden District, not far from St Charles Avenue and all the beautiful homes.

For families, the city’s Audubon Zoo is a world class experience. “Our aquarium underwent millions of dollars of renovations and that reopened recently,” she said.

Audubon Park is beautiful, she said, as is City Park, which is not downtown but just a 10-minute Uber or streetcar ride to its sculpture garden and Celebration in the Oaks Christmas light display.

Trip Advisor lists Preservation Hall music venue, ghost tours, cemetery tours and shopping on Magazine Street among the favorite activities in New Orleans.

The return of Amtrak is a real opportunity for New Orleans and all the cities along the Mardi Gras Line, she said.

“It’s great for leisure, for business, for meetings and conventions, for sports fans, and also for those international travelers who are really interested in seeing this part of the country, and this gives them an easy way to do that,” she said.

“There’s a lot of interest from the international audience. We were just at a trade show, meeting with international journalists and with international tour operators,,” she said. “When they come to the US, they typically stay longer and spend more money. So we’re actually actively working with Amtrak and the other cities along the Coast to make sure that we can bring in the international customers and media and have them start or stop in New Orleans and then make stops along the way.”

How to book a ride

The first day trains were quickly booked. Amtrak will run two trains a day both east and west with the schedule and map posted here.

New Orleans has in-person ticket sales at the station, but many of the other cities have boarding platforms and no ticket windows.

Amtrak provides these guidelines for buying tickets:

• Purchase tickets: Online at amtrak.com, by phone at 1-800- USA-RAIL or on the Amtrak App. Amtrak accepts credit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, Pay Pal, rewards points and gift cards.
• Amtrak announces schedule, fares for Gulf Coast service
• Prices: Adult coach fares end-to-end from New Orleans to Mobile start at $15 each way, with lower fares for shorter distances. Discounts: Everyday discounts are offered for children ages 2-12, students, seniors, veterans, military personnel and families, and groups. Children ages 2-12 ride half-price every day and infants under age 2 are free.
• Food and seating: Coach and business class seating is available and there are no middle seats. Food service is available with local cuisine. Free WiFi is available.

© 2025 The Sun Herald (Biloxi, Miss.).
Visit www.sunherald.com.
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.