The Holiday Train Will Be Making Stops in Dubuque, Bellevue

Every year, all around the country, a Canadian Pacific Kansas City train, decked out in Christmas lights and other festive décor, traverses the United States, making stops in various cities. The train puts a smile on faces old and young, and also works to raise money and food for local food banks across the country.

It's known as the CPKC "Holiday Train," and the 2025 schedule has just been announced. There's good news for us in Iowa. The train will be making multiple stops in the Hawkeye State, including right here in Dubuque!

What is the CPKC Holiday Train?:

Annually, the Holiday Train travels around Canada and the United States from November 19th through December 21st. Beyond bringing joy to dozens of communities, it raises money, food, and awareness to support food banks across their network. In addition, popular musicians travel along to play free concerts from the train's stage.

CPKC makes a donation to the local food bank at each stop, and also encourages those who attend to make a monetary or "heart-healthy food donation:"

Since its inaugural journey in 1999, the CPKC Holiday Train has raised more than $26 million and collected approximately 5.4 million pounds of food for community food banks in Canada and the U.S. - per the CPKC's website

Musicians Scheduled to Be a Part of the 2025 Holiday Train:

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Here are just some of the artists set to perform on the 2025 Holiday Train:

American Authors
Barenaked Ladies
Dylan Marlowe
JJ Wilde
LANCO
Smash Mouth
Tyler Shaw

When Will the Holiday Train Be in Iowa?:

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The 2025 Holiday Train will be making prolific stops in Iowa from November 24th - November 26th, just in time for Thanksgiving. Below are a list of the dates the Holiday Train will be in select Iowa towns:

New Albin - 11/24
Lansing - 11/24
Marquette - 11/24
Guttenberg - 11/24
Dubuque - 11/24
Bellevue - 11/25
Clinton - 11/25
Davenport - 11/25
Muscatine - 11/25
Ottumwa - 11/26

Specifically for our region, Dubuque and Bellevue, the train will be in town at 9:45pm on November 24th in Dubuque and at 12:45pm on November 25th in Bellevue. Specific times for other towns can be found on the Holiday Train's website.

What Artist(s) Will Perform in Dubuque?:

Good news for us in Dubuque and Bellevue! Smash Mouth will be one of the bands performing at the respective spots. Smash Mouth's lead singer Steve Harwell unfortunately passed away in 2023, but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say people will still be singing along passionately to "All Star."

Also performing in Dubuque and Bellevue is JJ Wilde, a Canadian singer who has been making ways up north for her fresh and invigorating rock stylings.

Find out more about the 2025 Holiday Train and its stops all around the country on CPKC's official website.