Seasons of New England organiser Tara Toomey said tickets were selling quickly on this year's inaugural New Englander rail experience to Seasons of New England with less than half the available seats left.
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"Lots of people are still gathering groups of friends together, lots of people getting, say, four or six people with a table in between on the train," she said.
"You know, get three girlfriends and all four of us will have a three-day shopping and eating weekend away.
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"We're hearing about people just organising those sorts of details at the moment."
Tara said she loved train travel, and good food.
"Personally, I just enjoy knowing it's a regional experience on a train," she said.
"The fact that we've gathered the lamb and the trout, and the craft beer and the wines, I just think how often can you go somewhere and have a lovely journey with friends and the meals are all there.
"It's just a walk away and you know there is going to something beautiful to enjoy. Just that time to stop and relax and just take things a bit steadier for a few hours."
This year, the New Englander, a heritage rail experience, will bring passengers from Newcastle on Friday, March 27, through to Uralla and nearby Armidale.
The train will run a shuttle service on Saturday, March 28 between Armidale and Uralla, and return to Newcastle on Sunday, March 29.
Tickets are $295 return to Uralla and $315 return to Armidale, which includes a New England sourced main meal and glass of our local wine, beer or apple juice on each leg of the journey. Tickets for the shuttle service will go on sale in early March.
On Saturday, March 28, more than 100 businesses will gather at Uralla for this year's Seasons of New England Expo, which has been running for seven years and has become a key opportunity to discover the makers, creators and producers of the New England.
The Expo runs from 9am to 4pm, but early breakfasts and coffee will be available from 8.30am. From 4pm the food, drinks and live music continue until close at 9.30pm.
Tara said there were about 40 tickets left on the train.
"It's really good value," she said.
"There's two bars with the food service area on the train, as well as the dining car.
"So, there's lots of snacks and treats to have at the bar, as well as the main meal that's included in the cost of the ticket."
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