Take Coast Starlight to San Francisco

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ATK-13-018
February 13, 2013 Contact: Vernaé Graham

510 238.4360

TAKE AMTRAK’S COAST STARLIGHT TO ENJOY ARTS AND
CULTURE IN SAN FRANCISCO THIS SPRING

Amtrak Coast Starlight car transformed into a San Francisco Cable Car

LOS ANGELES – Amtrak passengers traveling between Los Angeles and Seattle can
ride Amtrak’s Coast Starlight to the San Francisco bay area this spring to experience the city’s
vibrant cultural scene.

Amtrak is part of a promotion with the San Francisco Travel Association titled “49
Hours of SF: Arts & Culture” which encourages visitors to plan a 49 hour getaway with a special
package offer. Through the end of April, stay three or more nights at participating hotels booked
at www.49hoursofsf.com and receive 25 percent off the entire stay.

For this partnership, San Francisco Travel Association has decorated an entire Amtrak
car as one of the city’s famous people-movers. This is the first time that Amtrak’s Coast
Starlight route has featured a wrapped car. The “cable car” wrapped car will travel the route
(Los Angeles – Seattle) through Ventura, San Luis Obispo, Oakland and other destinations
through April 30.

Throughout the 1,377-mile, 36-hour route, passengers on board the Coast Starlight enjoy
stunningly beautiful vistas — some of which can only be seen via rail — breathtaking shorelines
of the Pacific, dense Northern forests and spectacular peaks of the Cascades, to name a few. The
train also connects the West Coast’s most popular destination cities, including Los Angeles,
Santa Barbara, San Francisco, Portland and Seattle. More than 35,000 passengers rode the Coast
Starlight in January 2013, an increase of 19 percent over the same period last year.

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Four San Francisco arts and culture events featured this spring:
 The Walt Disney Family Museum in the Presidio of San Francisco displays more than
200 works of art in their exhibit “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs: The Creation of
a Classic.” Through April 14, learn how this tale of the girl who bit the most decidedly
non-sustainable apple changed animation forever.
 “Cinderella” will be coming to San Francisco in Christopher Wheeldon’s darkly magical
ballet, set to the music of Prokofiev with wildly imaginative sets and costumes. The San
Francisco Ballet is the first company in the United States to welcome this very special
production of “Cinderella.”
 The Asian Art Museum’s exhibit, “China’s Terracotta Warriors: The First Emperor’s
Legacy,” displays ten of more than 8,000 life size figures February 22 through May 27.
 Vermeer’s enigmatic “Girl with the Pearl Earring” offers her intriguing gaze at the de
Young Museum in Golden Gate Park through June 2 as part of “Dutch Paintings from the
Mauritshuis.” She’s in good company with “Rembrandt’s Century,” an exhibit of 200
rarely seen prints and drawing from her era.
San Francisco Travel suggests nine different itineraries built around these and other arts

and cultural attractions at www.49hoursofsf.com and visitors can build their own using the
itinerary builder feature. They can even share their plans via Facebook, Twitter and email.

San Francisco Travel’s Arts and Culture Explorer Maps invite visitors to go deeper in the
neighborhoods of Civic Center, Golden Gate Park, the Mission and Yerba Buena, with online
and printable maps and points of interest, available at http://www.sanfrancisco.travel/arts-
culture/arts-culture-explorer.

The number 49 has long had special significance for San Francisco. The city’s
population exploded with the Gold Rush of 1849. The city itself measures 49 square miles (or
“49 square miles surrounded by reality,” as one luminary once said). Motorists can tour the city
on the 49 Mile Scenic Drive. And don’t forget that famous football team with 49 in the name
that returned to the Super Bowl this year.

“49 Hours of SF” is supported by American Express, Amtrak, the Asian Art Museum, the
de Young Museum, the San Francisco Ballet and the Walt Disney Family Museum.

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About Amtrak®:
Amtrak is America’s Railroad®, the nation’s intercity passenger rail service and its high-speed rail operator. A
record 31.2 million passengers traveled on Amtrak in FY 2012 on more than 300 daily trains – at speeds up to 150
mph (241 kph) – that connect 46 states, the District of Columbia and three Canadian Provinces. Amtrak operates
intercity trains in partnership with 15 states and contracts with 13 commuter rail agencies to provide a variety of
services. Enjoy the journey® at Amtrak.com or call 800-USA-RAIL for schedules, fares and more information. Join
us on facebook.com/Amtrak and follow us at twitter.com/Amtrak.

About The San Francisco Travel Association:
The San Francisco Travel Association is the official tourism marketing organization for the City and County of San
Francisco. For information on reservations, packages, activities and more, visit www.sanfrancisco.travel or call 415-
391-2000. The Visitor Information Center is located at 900 Market St. in Hallidie Plaza, lower level, near the
Powell Street cable car turnaround. For an insider’s perspective, join more than 500,000 people who follow San
Francisco Travel on Facebook at www.facebook.com/onlyinsf and more than 100,000 who follow “OnlyinSF” on
Twitter at http://twitter.com/onlyinsf.

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