Southwest Chief
Chicago Union Station to Los Angeles. Westbound train 3 and eastbound train 4, daily. The table below lists the named stretches in westbound order with the direction and season each is in daylight.
Duration
43 h 57 m
Westbound end to end, scheduled
Frequency
Daily
A stop is 24 hours or a multiple
Trains
3 westbound, 4 eastbound
32 stations
What you see, in order
Westbound order. Times are the published timetable at the midpoint of each stretch, in Central time unless the station is in another zone. "Dark" means the scheduled time is after sunset or before sunrise in that month; "dawn" and "dusk" are within 30 minutes of them.
| Stretch | Westbound 3 | Eastbound 4 | Stations around it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mississippi River at Fort MadisonThe crossing into Fort Madison is on the last double swing-span bridge on the Mississippi, road above and rail below, completed in 1927.Watch for Mississippi River swing bridge | Afternoon, 4:37 p.m.daylight Feb to Oct; dusk Nov to Jan | Midday, 11:03 a.m.daylight | Galesburg, Fort Madison |
| Missouri RiverThe Missouri, the longest river in the U.S. at 2,500 miles, is crossed near Sugar Creek before Kansas City, which sits where the Missouri and Kansas rivers meet.Watch for Missouri River | Evening, 7:38 p.m.daylight May to Aug; dusk Sep; dark Oct to Feb; dusk Mar to Apr | Morning, 8:08 a.m.daylight | La Plata, Kansas City |
| Raton PassFrom the Purgatoire River at Trinidad the line climbs the east side of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains over Raton Pass, a National Historic Landmark on the Santa Fe Trail, past the Wootton Ranch to Raton.Watch for Raton Pass, Sangre de Cristo Mountains | Morning, 8:38 a.m.daylight | Afternoon, 4:47 p.m.daylight Feb to Oct; dusk Nov to Jan | Trinidad, Raton |
| Apache Canyon and Glorieta PassBeyond Las Vegas the line crosses the Pecos River and Starvation Peak country, then Apache Canyon and Glorieta Pass, site of the 1862 Civil War battle, in the Santa Fe National Forest.Watch for Pecos River, Starvation Peak, Apache Canyon, Glorieta Pass | Midday, 11:53 a.m.daylight | Midday, 1:32 p.m.daylight | Las Vegas, Lamy |
| Ortiz and Sandia MountainsPast the Ortiz Mountains, site of the first gold mines west of the Mississippi, and San Felipe Pueblo to the Sandia Mountains, named for their reddish color at sunset with a thin band of green conifers near the top.Watch for Ortiz Mountains, Sandia Mountains | Midday, 1:38 p.m.daylight | Midday, 12:02 p.m.daylight | Lamy, Albuquerque Alvarado Transportation Center |
| Rio Grande, Continental Divide, and the red cliffsThe Rio Grande is crossed near Isleta; the line then passes the Laguna reservation, crosses the Continental Divide, and runs past Pyramid Rock, Red Rock State Park, and the red cliffs into Gallup.Watch for Rio Grande, Continental Divide, Pyramid Rock, red cliffs | Afternoon, 4:34 p.m.daylight Jan to Nov; dusk Dec | Morning, 9:08 a.m.daylight | Albuquerque Alvarado Transportation Center, Gallup |
| Canyon Diablo and the San Francisco PeaksThe Little Colorado River drains the Painted Desert near Winslow; the line then crosses the Canyon Diablo bridge and Padre Canyon and approaches Flagstaff below the San Francisco Peaks.Watch for Canyon Diablo bridge, Padre Canyon, San Francisco Peaks | Night, 8:16 p.m.dusk Apr to Aug; dark Sep to Mar | Early morning, 5:09 a.m.dark | Winslow, Flagstaff |
| Colorado River at NeedlesThe Colorado River is the Arizona and California line; the pointed rocks on the Arizona side at the south end of the Mojave Valley give Needles its name.Watch for Colorado River, the Needles | Night, 12:19 a.m.dark | Night, 12:54 a.m.dark | Kingman, Needles |
| Mojave DesertThe High Desert between Barstow and Victorville; the Mojave's boundaries are marked by Joshua trees.Watch for Joshua trees | Night, 3:31 a.m.dark | Night, 8:18 p.m.dusk Jun to Jul; dark Aug to May | Barstow, Victorville |
| Cajon PassThe pass at 4,190 feet between the San Bernardino and San Gabriel mountains, formed by the San Andreas Fault, linking the Mojave Desert to the Los Angeles Basin.Watch for Cajon Pass | Night, 4:34 a.m.dark | Evening, 7:17 p.m.daylight Jun to Jul; dusk Aug to Sep; dark Oct to Feb; dusk Mar to May | Victorville, San Bernardino |
Computed from the Amtrak GTFS timetable (feed version 20261015, valid 2026-10-16 to 2026-10-22, fetched 2026-10-15) and sunrise and sunset on the 15th of each month at the midpoint of each stretch. Scheduled times only; a late train moves evening stretches into darkness.How this table is computed.
Stations, in westbound order
| Station | Arrives | Departs | Zone |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Union Station | 1:30 p.m. | Central time | |
| Naperville | 2:00 p.m. | 2:03 p.m. | Central time |
| Mendota | 2:53 p.m. | 2:54 p.m. | Central time |
| Princeton | 3:14 p.m. | 3:16 p.m. | Central time |
| Galesburg | 4:06 p.m. | 4:09 p.m. | Central time |
| Fort Madison | 5:05 p.m. | 5:10 p.m. | Central time |
| La Plata | 6:22 p.m. | 6:24 p.m. | Central time |
| Kansas City | 8:53 p.m. | 9:37 p.m. | Central time |
| Lawrence | 10:45 p.m. | 10:47 p.m. | Central time |
| Topeka | 11:21 p.m. | 11:24 p.m. | Central time |
| Newton | 1:36 a.m. +1d | 1:40 a.m. +1d | Central time |
| Hutchinson | 2:13 a.m. +1d | 2:15 a.m. +1d | Central time |
| Dodge City | 4:08 a.m. +1d | 4:14 a.m. +1d | Central time |
| Garden City | 5:03 a.m. +1d | 5:05 a.m. +1d | Central time |
| Lamar | 5:31 a.m. +1d | 5:33 a.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| La Junta | 6:35 a.m. +1d | 6:50 a.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Trinidad | 8:10 a.m. +1d | 8:10 a.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Raton | 9:07 a.m. +1d | 9:12 a.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Las Vegas | 10:57 a.m. +1d | 10:57 a.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Lamy | 12:49 p.m. +1d | 12:53 p.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Albuquerque Alvarado Transportation Center | 2:24 p.m. +1d | 3:14 p.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Gallup | 5:54 p.m. +1d | 5:54 p.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Winslow | 7:41 p.m. +1d | 7:43 p.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Flagstaff | 8:49 p.m. +1d | 8:55 p.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Kingman | 11:42 p.m. +1d | 11:49 p.m. +1d | Mountain time |
| Needles | 11:49 p.m. +1d | 11:54 p.m. +1d | Pacific time |
| Barstow | 3:08 a.m. +2d | 3:13 a.m. +2d | Pacific time |
| Victorville | 3:50 a.m. +2d | 3:52 a.m. +2d | Pacific time |
| San Bernardino | 5:16 a.m. +2d | 5:21 a.m. +2d | Pacific time |
| Riverside | 5:40 a.m. +2d | 5:40 a.m. +2d | Pacific time |
| Fullerton | 6:39 a.m. +2d | 6:39 a.m. +2d | Pacific time |
| Los Angeles | 7:27 a.m. +2d | Pacific time |
Local time at each station; "+1d" is the day after departure from Chicago Union Station.
Connects with
Routes that stop at a station this train stops at, from the same timetable. Transfer times are not checked.