Outdoor attractions & tours

Books and taxes for scenic train excursions.

Fare sales for regular runs, premium dining and holiday train tickets, track access fees, and rail cars that need real mechanical upkeep. Gus sorts all of it, an accountant checks every transaction, and you get one number a month.

Book a call What we handle
  • From $197 a month
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever
DecemberExample month
$32,300
what you made

December came in at $32,300. The holiday train sold out most weekends, and the rail car brake overhaul is logged as equipment, not a repair.

  • Holiday train ticket batchHoliday and special train fares
  • Dining car premium faresRegular fare sales
  • Rail car brake overhaulRail car maintenance
  • Track access lease paymentTrack access fees
  • Engineer and conductor payrollCrew wages
Money in$118,500
Money out$86,200
Set aside for taxes$8,900
An example month. Yours will have your numbers.

Why your books are different

Scenic train books go wrong in the same four places.

A generalist sees ticket sales and a train ride. Your business leases track access, keeps rail cars in federally regulated mechanical condition, and sells fares months ahead for holiday and special trains. When the books do not know that, you cannot tell what a single excursion actually cost to run.

  1. 1

    Track access and lease fees get buried in general operating costs

    Payments to a rail line owner for access to the track are a direct, recurring cost of running excursions at all, not a miscellaneous fee.

    What we doKeeps track access and lease payments in their own line, so you can see what it actually costs to run trains on this route.
  2. 2

    A rail car overhaul looks like a routine repair

    Brake system work, a wheel truck rebuild, or a locomotive engine overhaul can run into tens of thousands of dollars and is required maintenance, not optional upkeep. Filed as a repair, it wrecks one month's number and hides what the fleet actually needed.

    What we doFlags major rail car and locomotive work, books it as equipment when it extends the asset's life, and gets the accountant's call on how it gets written off.
  3. 3

    Holiday train tickets get counted the day they sell

    Holiday and special event trains often sell out months in advance. Counting that money the day tickets sell overstates an earlier month and understates December, when the trains actually run.

    What we doHolds prepaid holiday and special train ticket money as deferred income until the excursion actually runs, so the number matches real trips.
  4. 4

    Crew wages do not separate from equipment costs

    Engineer, conductor, and onboard staff wages lumped in with fuel and maintenance make it hard to see what it costs in labor alone to run each excursion.

    What we doKeeps crew wages in their own line, separate from fuel and maintenance, so labor cost per run is visible.

Your categories

The categories Gus keeps for a scenic train excursion.

Set up once for how you get paid and what you spend. You never pick a category. He does, and an accountant checks it.

Money in

  • Regular fare salesStandard excursion tickets, walk-up and online.
  • Holiday and special train faresPremium or seasonal runs, recognized when the trip happens.
  • Private car and charter rentalsFull or partial train buyouts for private events.
  • Dining and concessionsOnboard food and beverage service.

Money out

  • Crew wagesEngineer, conductor, and onboard staff pay.
  • Rail car maintenanceBrake systems, wheel trucks, and body work.
  • FuelDiesel or other fuel for the locomotive.
  • Track access feesLease or access payments to the rail line owner.
  • Federal rail complianceRequired inspections and safety compliance costs.
  • InsuranceLiability coverage for passengers and equipment.
  • Station and boarding area upkeepMaintenance of boarding areas and ticketing facilities.

What we watch for you

  • Track access cost per run

    What each excursion pays in access fees, so pricing accounts for it clearly.

  • Crew cost per run

    Wages against fare income for each excursion, so you know which schedules pay for themselves.

  • Deferred holiday ticket balance

    How much holiday train money is still owed in trips, so early sales do not get spent as if already earned.

  • The set-aside

    What you will owe, tracked every month, so April is a number you already knew.

Ask Gus

Things scenic train owners ask Gus.

Text him like you would text anybody. He answers in plain English, and when a question is above his pay grade, an accountant looks and gets back to you.

We paid the rail line for track access this month. Is that just an operating cost?

I kept it in its own line, track access fees, since it is a direct cost of running excursions at all, separate from fuel or crew pay.

We had a $28,000 brake system overhaul on one of the cars. Repair or equipment?

I logged it as equipment, since it is required maintenance that extends the car's service life. The accountant decides how it gets written off.

Holiday train tickets sold out back in September for December runs. Does that count as September income?

No. I hold that money until the trains actually run in December, so the income lands in the month the trip happened.

The tax side

The tax side of a scenic train excursion.

Most of what goes wrong here is timing and labels: track access buried in general costs, holiday tickets counted too early, and required maintenance treated as a plain repair.

What your return has to get right

Your accountant signs it, so it gets done right the first time.

  • Depreciation on rail cars and locomotivesRail cars, locomotives, and major mechanical rebuilds are business equipment. Bonus depreciation is 100 percent for property acquired after January 19, 2025, and Section 179 can often write off qualifying work in the year it is done.
  • Deferred revenue on prepaid ticketsMoney collected for holiday or special trains months in advance is not fully earned the day it is collected. It gets recognized as income when the excursion actually runs.
  • Worker classification for crewEngineers, conductors, and onboard staff who follow your schedule and safety procedures are employees, and federal rail crew requirements make this clear in most cases.
  • The pass-through deductionMost owner-operators can take up to 20 percent of business profit off their taxable income. It comes out right when the books are right all year.

Deductions scenic train excursion operators miss

Your bookkeeper knows what to look for in your statements. You never have to.

  • Rail car and brake maintenance
  • Locomotive fuel
  • Track access and lease payments
  • Federal rail compliance inspections
  • Crew uniforms
  • Station and boarding area upkeep
  • Liability insurance
  • Dining car food costs
  • Ticketing app fees
  • Signage and boarding area wayfinding
  • Onboard narration equipment
  • Holiday decorations for special trains

General information about 2026 federal rules, not advice for your business. Your accountant looks at your actual numbers before anything gets filed.

All year, not just April

A scenic train year, kept every month.

Your busiest runs follow foliage season and the holidays. Your taxes come on a schedule regardless. Your team keeps you ahead of both. Every month in between, your bookkeeper closes the books and speaks up the moment something looks off.

  1. January

    Plan the year

    Last year's return gets started, the 1099 list is ready, and you get a monthly set-aside so the quieter months do not catch you short.

  2. April

    Filed. Done.

    Your return is filed and signed ahead of the spring and summer excursion season.

  3. July

    Halfway check

    Where you stand before fall foliage and holiday train season, and what to plan for.

  4. October

    Peak season live

    A look at holiday train sales as they come in and rail car work worth finishing before the season's biggest runs.

What you get

Starts at$197a month

What you pay depends on what your business needs, and it does not move after that, busy season or slow. No hourly bills, no surprise invoices, no setup fee.

Book a call
  • Monthly bookkeeping

    Every transaction sorted into categories set up for scenic train excursion operators. You never categorize a thing.

  • An accountant checks every transaction

    Real review, every month, before your books close. Not a spot check.

  • Your business tax return, filed

    Prepared, reviewed, and signed by that same accountant every year.

  • The monthly number

    What you made, what you spent, what to set aside for taxes.

  • Your own bookkeeper

    A real person assigned to your business, in the app whenever you need them. No hold music.

  • On your books all year

    Every month, not just in April. Your team speaks up whenever something is worth your attention.

  • Cancel any time

    No contract. No cancellation call. Your books are yours.

Straight answers

Questions scenic train owners ask first.

Can Gus separate track access fees from other operating costs?

Yes. Track access and lease payments get their own line, so you can see what it actually costs to run excursions on this route.

We had a major brake system overhaul this year. Is that fully deductible right away?

Often it can be. Required rail car maintenance that extends the car's service life gets logged as equipment, and the accountant decides how much comes off this year.

Holiday train tickets sell out months before the trains run. When does that count as income?

The month the trains actually run. Gus holds that money as prepaid until the excursion happens, so income matches real trips.

Our crew includes an engineer, a conductor, and dining car staff. Do their wages get tracked separately?

Yes. Crew wages stay in their own line, separate from fuel and maintenance, so you can see labor cost per run.

Our books are behind after a busy holiday season. Is that a problem?

No. Send the bank statements you have. Gus sorts them, the accountant checks them, and most owners know where they stand within a week.

Is a real accountant checking my books?

Yes. You get your own bookkeeper, Gus does the first pass on every transaction, and an accountant checks every one before your month closes. That same accountant prepares, signs, and files your business return. Goatkeeper is not a CPA firm, and we never pretend a person looked when they did not.

What does it cost, and can I cancel?

It starts at $197 a month, depending on what your business needs. No setup fee, no hourly bills, no contract. Cancel any time from the app, and your books go with you.

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Book a call

Pick a time. That's the whole signup.

Fifteen minutes with a real person on our team. They look at where your books are, tell you straight what it takes to get caught up, and get you set up on the spot if it fits.

  • $197 a month to start
  • An accountant on every transaction
  • Cancel whenever