Pardon Me, Boy, Is That the Chattanooga Choo Choo?'

Without a doubt, Chattanooga, Tenn., is an incredible destination with plenty to offer. You can visit the Tennessee Aquarium, cruise down the Tennessee River aboard the Southern Belle riverboat, travel up and down the Incline Railway, see Ruby Falls and, of course, visit Rock City Gardens.

Yeah, all of those "Visit Rock City” signs on barns and birdhouses – one of the most clever ongoing ad campaigns ever – are actually advertising a real place.

But there is no way you can take this trip without the song, Chattanooga Choo Choo, running through your mind, so you might as well acquiesce and immerse yourself into the train culture and iron horse history that put Chattanooga on the map. 

Here’s a great way to start: arrive in Chattanooga on a Friday afternoon and check into the Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel, one of the Historic Hotels of America destinations listed in the National Register of Historic Places. 

Yes, you’ll need to make a reservation in advance.

Once known as Terminal Station, the Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel blends the historic charm and palatial architecture of this 1909 train station – owned by Southern Railway – with the elegant grace and southern hospitality Tennessee is known for, creating a special “getaway” experience right in the heart of Chattanooga. But the best is yet to come.

You’ll want to book one of the historic Victorian Train Cars for your accommodations.

These private railcars were the epitome of luxury in the early part of the 1900s. Restored to their former grandeur and furnsihed with queen-size beds and small, but opulent bathrooms, these Pullman cars-turned-hotel suites have all of the modern conveniences – including high speed wireless Internet access.

You’ll likely have time before dinner to take a spin around the complex aboard the Chattanooga Choo Choo Trolley – a 1924 street trolley that regularly made the Canal Street run in New Orleans between the 1920s and the 1960s - complete with those hard, derrière-numbing reversible benches for the return trip. 

For dinner, you can enjoy the by-gone era romance of dining aboard a Victorian-era dining car. Dinner In The Diner is a very special affair each Friday and Saturday evening on board an elegantly renovated dining car. The maitre d' will seat you at a special table and the on-board chef will prepare your perfect meal as you gaze out on the lush gardens of the hotel.

The next morning, you can dine in one of the main terminal restaurants, such as the Gardens Restaurant. You’ll want to allow plenty of time to enjoy a leisurely breakfast and that second cup of coffee before you have to head out for your train ride back to Georgia via the Tennessee Valley Railroad's Chickamauga Turn.

The Chickamauga Turn excursion leaves the Grand Junction station each Saturday morning at precisely 10 and ambles down to the historic town of Chickamauga, Ga., – site of one of the key battles of the Civil War. This relaxing six-hour round trip travels through beautiful country with layovers in Chickamauga as well as the Wilder Tower in Chickamauga-Chattanooga National Military Park.  You can even have lunch in the dining car as you watch the Tennessee countryside pass by or talk with a uniformed Civil War-era docent who is on board to share interesting historical information.

Back in Chattanooga by late afternoon, you can stroll through the shops and boutiques in and around the Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel or retire to your “private car,” freshen up, put on your jeans and get ready to just hang loose and have a great meal next door at The Terminal Brewhouse.

Locals and visitors alike rave about this place – and with good reason.  Whether it’s the pizzas, burgers, BBQ or the home brew, you’re not going to be disappointed. And it makes for a great ending to a day of history on the rails – especially since it’s located in the century-old Stong Building.

The Stong Building was originally built in 1910 as a rather nice hotel and café that served the passengers coming through Terminal Station next door. However, the building later had a checkered history, housing a prohibition-era “speakeasy” that harbored sinister characters looking for a good time in its illegal casino and “house of ill repute.”  But it has managed to come virtually full circle, back to its roots as a great place for good food and a cold beer.

Chattanooga is about two hours from Peachtree Corners; just get over to I-75 and head north. Once you’ve crossed into Tennessee, take Exit #2 onto I-24 for about six miles until you reach Exit #178, the Downtown Chattanooga/Market Street exit.  The Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel is at 1400 Market St.. 

The Grand Junction station, location of the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum and the Chickamauga Turn train excursion, is about 20 minutes from the hotel. You’ll travel back out to I-24 and head back to I-75, continuing on I-75 for a few miles until you exit onto TN-153 north at Exit #4, the Chickamauga Dam/Airport exit. 

After about three miles – past all of the car dealerships – take Exit #3, the Jersey Pike exit. Turn left on Jersey Pike and then go under the overpass. Just past the overpass, take the first right onto Cromwell Road and follow it for not quite half a mile to 4119 Cromwell Road where you will see the Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum sign on the right.  Cross the railroad tracks and park in the lower parking lot.

Finally, you know it's been bugging you, so here it is - the words to Chattanooga Choo Choo, written by Mack Gordon, with music by Harry Warren and made famous by none other than Glenn Miller.

CHATTANOOGA CHOO CHOO

Pardon me, boy
Is that the Chattanooga choo choo?
Track twenty-nine
Boy, you can gimme a shine
I can afford
To board a Chattanooga choo choo
I've got my fare
And just a trifle to spare

You leave the Pennsylvania Station 'bout a quarter to four
Read a magazine and then you're in Baltimore
Dinner in the diner
Nothing could be finer
Than to have your ham an' eggs in Carolina

When you hear the whistle blowin' eight to the bar
Then you know that Tennessee is not very far
Shovel all the coal in
Gotta keep it rollin'
Woo, woo, Chattanooga there you are

There's gonna be
A certain party at the station
Satin and lace
I used to call "funny face"
She's gonna cry
Until I tell her that I'll never roam
So Chattanooga choo choo
Won't you choo-choo me home?
Chattanooga choo choo
Won't you choo-choo me home?