Trem das Águas

What Trem das Águas does

Trem das Águas is a heritage tourist train service operated by ABPF Regional Sul de Minas (Associação Brasileira de Preservação Ferroviária), a Brazilian non-profit association (OSCIP) founded in 1977 dedicated to railway preservation. The service runs a 20 km round-trip steam train excursion between São Lourenço and Soledade de Minas stations in Minas Gerais, Brazil, on the historic Estrada de Ferro Minas & Rio line built in 1884. The primary operating locomotive is Locomotiva 1424, a Baldwin Mikado 2-8-2 steam engine manufactured in 1927 (serial 59712) originally operated by Estrada de Ferro Central do Brasil, supplemented by static display of Locomotiva 8 (Krauss, 1892). The company offers two ticket classes (Primeira-Classe with upholstered seats at R$240 and Segunda-Classe with wooden seats at R$190), a partner-operated restaurant car (CLASSE RESTAURANTE), onboard souvenir sales, and a Social Trains (Trens Sociais) charitable program.

The business model is direct-to-consumer tourism, with tickets sold through the AppTicket online platform and the São Lourenço station ticket office. Operations are event-driven, running primarily on weekends and holidays with two daily departures on Saturdays and Sundays, generating roughly 50-60 operating days per year. Marketing relies on the company website, organic social media (Facebook, Instagram), and third-party listings on TripAdvisor and Kayak. All operations are conducted by volunteers, including active and retired railway workers, supported by member contributions and corporate partnerships; the organization discloses no revenue figures and has no parent company, equity investors, or external funding rounds. Customer segments include heritage tourists visiting São Lourenço/MG, families, railway enthusiasts, and local community/charitable institutions participating in the Social Trains program.

Name

Trem das Águas

Legal name

Associação Brasileira de Preservação Ferroviária (ABPF)

Website

https://tremdasaguas.tur.br

Company type

Private

Founded year

1977

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Trem das Águas is a heritage tourist steam train operated by non-profit ABPF in São Lourenço, Minas Gerais, Brazil, running a 20 km round-trip excursion on an 1884 railway line, serving heritage tourists, families, and local community via ticket sales and a charitable Social Trains program.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Heritage Railway Tourism

NAICS

Scenic and Sightseeing Transportation (487), Tour Operators (561520)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYTLAFADAG

Tourist/Scenic/Heritage Passenger Rail Operators

Transportation & Logistics/Passenger Transportation (Air, Rail, Bus, Taxi/Rideshare)/Passenger Rail Operators (Intercity/High-Speed/Regional)

Keywords

• Heritage railway tourism
• Steam locomotive excursions
• Cultural tourism services
• Railway preservation tours
• Scenic train rides

Headquarters

HQ city

São Lourenço

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Tourist Train Tickets: Sale of tourist train tickets for the 20km round trip between São Lourenço and Soledade de Minas. Tickets available in first class (upholstered seats) and second class (wooden seats). Primary revenue stream funding railway preservation activities.
2. Restaurant Car Service: Partnership-operated restaurant car offering traditional Minas Gerais cuisine, open bar and food service during the journey. Operated by separate partner (CLASSE RESTAURANTE).
3. Souvenir and Onboard Sales: Onboard sales of beverages, souvenirs, t-shirts, caps, and films during the journey. Local craft fairs at stations offer regional products.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Trem das Águas operates a heritage tourist train service running on the historic Estrada de Ferro Minas & Rio line between São Lourenço and Soledade de Minas in Minas Gerais, Brazil. The 20 km round-trip journey is pulled by an authentic 1927 Baldwin steam locomotive (Locomotiva 1424) and takes approximately 2 hours 10 minutes, featuring live viola and accordion music and a partner-operated restaurant car serving traditional Minas Gerais cuisine.

Product overview

Trem das Águas operates as a tourist train service offering heritage railway experiences in São Lourenço, Minas Gerais, Brazil. The core product is the Maria-Fumaça (steam locomotive) tourist train ride between São Lourenço and Soledade de Minas. The service is structured with two ticket classes (Primeira-Classe with upholstered seats and Segunda-Classe with wooden benches), supplemented by an optional restaurant car experience operated by a partner. The company also operates a Social Trains program (Trens Sociais) for charitable purposes. The fleet includes Locomotiva 1424 as the main operating steam locomotive and Locomotiva 8 as a static historical exhibit. The ABPF Regional Sul de Minas manages multiple tourist train operations across southeastern Brazil.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Trens Sociais: A social responsibility program where train tickets are provided in exchange for donations to charitable institutions, with 100% of costs subsidized by ABPF.

Products and services

• Trem das Águas Tourist Train A heritage steam locomotive tourist train ride covering 20 km (round trip) between São Lourenço and Soledade de Minas stations, lasting approximately 2 hours 10 minutes, featuring live viola and accordion musical entertainment. Operated on weekends and holidays by ABPF Regional Sul de Minas for tourists, families, and railway heritage enthusiasts.
• Trens Sociais (Social Trains) A social responsibility program offering subsidized train tickets to local community members in exchange for donations to charitable institutions, with 100% of program costs underwritten by ABPF. Recent beneficiary: Hospital Carmo de Minas, with tickets priced at R$50 per person and children under 5 traveling free on a guardian's lap.
• Primeira-Classe (First Class) Ticket Premium train ticket featuring upholstered seats with higher comfort level. Full price R$240.00 per person; half price R$120.00 per person. Valid until 31/12/2026.
• Segunda-Classe (Second Class) Ticket Standard train ticket class with wooden benches, providing the authentic heritage experience at a lower price point. Full price R$190.00 per person; half price R$95.00 per person. Valid until 31/12/2026.
• Carro Restaurante (Restaurant Car) Partner-operated dining experience onboard the train journey offering traditional Mineira cuisine with open bar and food service including local cheeses, coffee, sweets, cachaças, wines, and other beverages. Operated by CLASSE RESTAURANTE partner with separate booking required.
• Other ABPF Regional Sul de Minas Train Tours Additional ABPF Regional Sul de Minas tourist train operations including Trem da Serra da Mantiqueira (Passa Quatro), Trem de Guararema (Guararema SP), and Expresso Mantiqueira (Cruzeiro SP), coordinated through the same regional chapter.

Quantifiable outcome

• Restoration of Locomotiva 1424 (Baldwin, 1927) to full operational condition after years of intensive work
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• CLASSE RESTAURANTE (Carro Restaurante)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerRestaurant car partner operating onboard dining service during tourist train journeys. Offers traditional Minas Gerais cuisine with open bar and food service. Separate booking required through carrorestaurante.com. Full pricing charged (no half-fare applies).
• AppTicketminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorThird-party ticketing platform used for online ticket sales for Trem das Águas tourist train. Customers purchase tickets through appticket.com.br.
• CODESP (Companhia das Docas do Estado de São Paulo)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCEDED Locomotiva 8 (Mont Serrat, Krauss 1892) to ABPF in partnership arrangement. Locomotive originally operated by Cia. Docas de Santos, predecessor to CODESP.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Trem de Paranapiacaba: Heritage tourist train operated by CPTM between Santo André and the historic English-style village of Paranapiacaba. Comparable as a São Paulo-region heritage railway tourism experience with station-based tourism programming.
• Serra Verde Express: Brazilian heritage tourist train running the historic Serra do Mar route from Curitiba to Morretes in Paraná. Closest commercial peer to Trem das Águas as a longer-distance scenic rail tourism experience in southern Brazil.
• Trem da Serra da Mantiqueira: Sister tourist train operated by ABPF Sul de Minas between Passa Quatro and Manacá, Minas Gerais, using heritage steam traction on a preserved Brazilian rail line. Operates on the same volunteer-led, weekend tourist rail model and even cross-markets from the Trem das Águas website.
• Trem de Guararema: ABPF affiliate tourist train operating heritage rail rides out of Guararema station in São Paulo state. Directly comparable as a Brazilian heritage steam tourist experience sharing the same ABPF volunteer governance, ticketing categories and weekend operating cadence.
• Maria Fumaça de Piratuba: Tourist steam train operated by ABPF Regional Santa Catarina running between Piratuba and Marcelino Ramos on a preserved narrow-gauge line. Direct regional peer within ABPF's nationwide tourist rail portfolio of nine operations across six states.
• Expresso Mantiqueira: ABPF Sul de Minas's Cruzeiro SP tourist train offering scenic Mantiqueira rail experiences. Same operator family, similar heritage/regional positioning and event-driven weekend schedule as Trem das Águas.

Broad incumbents

• Jacobite Steam Train: Iconic heritage steam excursion operated by West Coast Railways across the Scottish Highlands. International benchmark for branded steam tourist rail experiences with strong social-media pull, comparable audience and per-ticket pricing power.
• Ffestiniog & Welsh Highland Railways: Volunteer-led heritage railway society in Wales operating restored narrow-gauge steam services. Closest international analog to ABPF's volunteer-society preservation model and member-funded restoration of vintage equipment.
• Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad: Long-running US heritage steam railroad operating vintage narrow-gauge equipment through Colorado's San Juan Mountains. Comparable as a benchmark operating model for American-built Baldwin-era steam locomotives and premium scenic rail tourism economics.
• Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad: US heritage steam tourist railroad running restored vintage locomotives over a scenic 64-mile mountain route between Colorado and New Mexico. Comparable as a premium-priced, vintage-equipment heritage tourist rail benchmark.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/tremdasaguasoficial
• Instagraminstagram.com/tremdasaguas
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/trem-das-%C3%A1guas

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Trem das Águas