# Red Caboose Motel



## Hellgate (Nov 9, 2011)

I have recently reconnected with a part of my childhood and thought maybe someone on here might have an appreciation for it.
Has anyone ever stayed at the Red Caboose Motel in Strasburg PA in the late seventies to mid eighties?


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## Locodub (Nov 18, 2013)

Maybe we can get this thread back on track. My wife and I stayed at the Red Caboose Motel for a weekend, can't remember exactly when though. I'd say more than 5 and less than 10 years ago. I enjoyed it, but it was a weekend full of trains of all sizes. There are other fun things to do in that area of Pennsylvania as well, but if you like trains, it should be on your list of places to visit.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Thread all cleaned up.


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## raleets (Jan 2, 2011)

gunrunnerjohn said:


> Thread all cleaned up.


grjohn,
The thread was "all cleaned up" last night when I sent a PM to Hellgate with a sincere apology, which he graciously and sincerely accepted.
There was NO smut intended or inferred with my comment about the "No Tell Motel". MUCH worse has been allowed on this forum during the three + years I've been a member.
I'll certainly be sure to curb my adult sense of humor in the future.
Bob


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Bob, there was no problem, I just removed the entries. No train nuts were injured in the process.


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## DavefromMD (Jul 25, 2013)

We stayed there in the 90s. THe first time it was still owned by the original owner and it was a great stay. Then it was sold and went through a couple of owners who didn't appreciate what it was and let it go downhill. Sometime in the 2000s it was closed down by the state for health reasons - the septic system didn't work. Then in the mid 2000s someone else who had an appreciation for what it was bought it from foreclosure. It reopened and he has been working on it ever since. It can be hit or miss depending on whether you get a caboose that has been rehabbed or not. We stayed there a couple years ago with our teenage boys and it was a decent stay. You have to realize what you are staying in to enjoy it. No they are not always the most airtight in the cold or the coolest in the summer and the AC/heating units can be noisy. But at least the staff now is accomodating and has an appreciation for what it is and try.


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## Hellgate (Nov 9, 2011)

John, thanks for the help! 
We all have distinct memories of our childhood. My family used to go to Strasburg every year. We always stayed in the Red Caboose Motel. It is my "Happy" Place that brings back a lot of memories. I remember vividly the curtains that was used throughout the establishment. They were newspaper print with trains on them. Anyways, I was browsing Ebay and out of nowhere I see the curtains that I haven't see in at least 25 years. Needless to say I bought the fabric and plan on making curtains for my basement windows. I thought that there might be someone else on this forum that could appreciate or relate to connecting again with something from your childhood.

I still go back to Strasburg several times a year. Like I said it is my Happy place and is a great place to de-stress from life. Although I agree with Dave. I stayed there with my wife a couple of years ago for one night. I even got the Honeymoon Caboose........ It was Awful. In much need of updating. It had a "Jacuzzi Tub" but when I tried to fill it up, I ran out of hot water about a quarter of the way full, so by the time it filled up with water it was ice cold. 










If you look closely, you can see them in this brochure from the late 70's


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

FWIW, I've heard from multiple sources that the Red Caboose is not the place it used to be, and I was advised to look elsewhere for lodging.


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## santafe158 (Jul 14, 2010)

Somewhere there was a website where you could see the room interiors before you selected one. We picked one of the nicer more recent renovated ones when we stayed a couple years ago and it wasn't too bad. Obviously it's not going to be a luxury hotel by nature, but we knew that going in. I'm more of a historical accuracy kind of guy, so I would have rather have been staying in an unmodified caboose, but I doubt most people would agree


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## Gansett (Apr 8, 2011)

I guess discussing the Humpity Hump Hotel is out..


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## Locodub (Nov 18, 2013)

It was a neat experience to stay there, and it is close to the train-related activities in the area. One year we stayed at the Fulton Steamboat Inn, the room was very nice and it is still close to everything. Where else can you go and sleep in a hotel that looks like a boat, or sleep in an actual caboose, wake up and go for a train ride pulled by steam power, walk across the street and enjoy some railroad history, visit a fantastic O scale layout with lots of action and check out some model railroading history as well? Plus some outlet shops and a few specialty theaters to boot!


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## Old_Hobo (Feb 20, 2014)

Locodub said:


> Where else can you go and sleep...........in an actual caboose


Izaak Walton Inn, in Montana..........


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