A red Cog Railway train climbing toward the Pikes Peak summit station — Photo: Bob Burch: Serious Noticing, CC0

Pikes Peak Cog Railway

The Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway climbs about 9 miles from Manitou Springs (6,320 ft) to the summit. It reopened in 2021 after a rebuild and runs year-round.

What it costs

Ticket	Adult	Child
Reserved seat, booked online	from $67	from $57
Engineer's View (front row), online	from $96	from $86
Walk-up or by phone	from $86	from $76

"From" prices as listed by the railway on November 3, 2026; taxes and fees apply and prices vary by date. Booking online is cheaper than walking up. Every passenger needs a ticket regardless of age. The railway's own pages do not define the child age range; the city visitor bureau lists children as 12 and under.

Check dates and buy on cograilway.com

Cog or drive? What your group pays

The Cog charges every passenger. The Highway charges per person or one carload price for up to five. So the bigger your group, the wider the gap. Enter your group and date; the comparison uses 2026 rates and the Cog's lowest online fares.

Date of your trip

Adults (16 and over)

Teens (13 to 15)

Children (6 to 12)

Children 5 and under

Vehicles if you drive

–

Cog Railway, from: –
Cheapest way to drive: –
Highway shuttle: –

By group size on this date

Group	Cog, from	Drive, cheapest	The Cog costs

How it counts: Cog fares from $67 adult and from $57 child before taxes and fees, every passenger ticketed, toddlers too. We treat children as 12 and under, as the city visitor bureau does; the railway does not define the age range. Depot parking ($20) is not included. Driving uses the cheaper of per-person admission and the carload pass for each vehicle, plus the $2 timed-entry permit per vehicle in season, and assumes your group fits in the vehicles. The full calculator, with seats and the shuttle, is on the Pikes Peak Highway page.

How long it takes

About 3 hours round trip: about 1 hour 10 minutes up and about 40 minutes at the summit, per the railway's FAQ (its home page says 3.5 hours). Arrive 30 minutes before departure; boarding starts 20 minutes before. In summer trains leave about every 40 minutes. There are no restrooms on the train.

Which departure gets you off the summit before the storms

Published advice for summer hikers is to reach the summit around midday at the latest and head down soon after, because of lightning. The same clock works for the train. With about 1 hour 10 minutes up and about 40 minutes at the top, a train leaving Manitou Springs at 10:10 AM or earlier has you leaving the summit by noon. That matters most from June to September.

Times come from the railway's own figures (about 3 hours round trip: 1 hour 10 minutes up, about 40 minutes on top, which leaves about 1 hour 10 minutes down). The railway's home page says 3.5 hours, so allow for a later return. Actual departure times are shown only in the booking calendar; in summer trains leave about every 40 minutes.

Winter and snow

The Cog runs all year on a reduced off-season schedule. Heavy snow or severe weather can stop the train short of the summit, and there is no weather refund if the train does reach the top. See Pikes Peak in winter.

Changes and cancellations

Free refund or reschedule more than 7 days before departure. Within 7 days you can only reschedule or take store credit, for a $20 fee per reservation.

Parking, kids and access

Parking at the depot (515 Ruxton Ave) costs $20 and is for riders only, not for Incline or Barr Trail hikers. Manitou Springs has no free parking; a city shuttle runs from public lots.
No strollers on board. The railway does not recommend the trip for infants under six months or for anyone with a cardiac or respiratory history.
Wheelchair or walker space must be reserved by phone. The summit Visitor Center is ADA accessible.
One-way tickets down are rare and sold only by staff at the summit, so hikers should not count on one.

Sold out?

Summer trains can sell out. Your options: drive the Highway (book the timed-entry permit), or book a tour that includes the Cog ticket.

Sources (17)· checked 2026-11-03

Every figure with its exact source: Cog Railway on the facts page.

Facts on this page last checked 2026-11-03 by the pikespeak.info editor. Rules and prices change; confirm with the operator before you travel. See every figure with its source.