I first encountered the word funicular on a hillside in Sedona. Known as the “Hillevator” (hill + elevator), the small railway gave tourists a shortcut between Uptown Sedona and L’Auberge Resort and Oak Creek at the bottom of the hill.

While I’m a bit fuzzy on the exact definition (I think it involves cables and pulleys), a funicular is basically a passenger vehicle that goes up and down a hill on a track.

By nature, they’re very localized and customized to the spot they’re in. Maybe that’s why I find them intriguing.

Angels Flight Railway, Los Angeles, California

While Sedona’s Hillevator is now out of commission, another quirky old funicular has recently come back to life. After its brief appearance in the movie La La Land, the push to restore the Angels Flight Railway in Downtown Los Angeles may have gained steam, and it reopened in August of 2017.

• Called “The Shortest Railroad in the World,” it travels a single block.
• At the bottom: Grand Central Market
• At the top: California Plaza – Los Angeles Musuem of Contemporary Art, Grand Performances amphitheater, and restaurants
• Virtual 3D tour
• In 1901, Colonel James Ward Eddy built the Angels Flight funicular. More recently, his great-great-grandson built the Angels Flight app.
• One way: $1

Penang Hill Railway, Penang, Malaysia

• Longest Funicular Track in Asia
• Located on the Malaysian island of Penang
• At the bottom: Jalan Bukit Bendera base station near George Town.
• At the top: former British hill station Penang Hill. The resort town’s attractions include the three-storey Astaka Cliff Cafe, which houses food courts, souvenir stands, an owl museum, and Love Lock Penang Hill.
• Round trip: RM 30 (standard), RM 80 (fast lane)

Love Unlocked

Gelmer Funicular, Innertkirchen, Switzerland

• Known as the steepest in Europe – with 106% grades!
• One of six different modes of sightseeing transportation in the alpine Grimsel Pass. Depending on the season and your level of adventurousness, you can also take a gondola lift, train, or the not-so-steep Reichenbach Funicular (replica of an 1899 wagon. Round trip: CHF 12).
• At the bottom: Suspension bridge over the Handeck gorge and waterfall
• At the top: Gelmer Lake
• Grimselwelt lake and mountainside webcams
• Round trip: CHF 32

100 Street Funicular, Edmonton, Alberta

• Opened this past December to provide wheelchair and stroller access to river valley trail system.
• Has already been out of service repeatedly, partly because of cold weather. (Not sure why that was a surprise in Canada!)
• At the bottom: River Valley Promenade
• At the top: Promontory viewpoint, Hotel Macdonald
• Free

Ascensores e Elevador, Lisbon, Portugal

• Part of Lisbon’s transit system
• Ascensores Lavra, Bica, and Glória are 3 historic funicular lines, dating back to the late 1800s (€3.70/two rides)
• The Santa Justa Lift, a 13-storey elevator that opened in 1902 (€5.15/two rides)

Wellington Cable Car, Wellington, New Zealand

• At the bottom: Wellington city center, Wellington Museum, City Gallery Wellington, Museum of New Zealand / Te Papa Tongarewa
• At the top: Wellington Botanic Garden, Cable Car Museum, Kelburn observation platform (virtual tour)
• Makes 3 stops and goes through two tunnels with flashing LED light displays.
• There are walking paths through the Wellington Botanic Garden (free), in case you decide to purchase a one-way cable car ticket ($4).
• Round trip: $7.50

Have you ever ridden in this type of vehicle? Where were you?

Photo sources:

Angels Flight by Channone Arif (CCL)

Sedona –

• From a print of a photo I took in the early 2000s. Our friend Ozan was joking around with his hands on the window. (He’s not trapped in there or anything.)
• Tiffany Joyce (CCL). She actually got married in Sedona when the Hillavator was still in operation!

Los Angeles –

• 1901 photo via Metro Library Archive (CCL)
• 2017 photo by Woolennium (CCL)

Penang Hill –

• Cliff Cafe via Penang Hill
• Penang Hill Funicular by Hzh (CCL)

Switzerland –

• Gelmerbahn. Picture: KWO / Photo: Rolf Neeser
• Wildflowers. Picture: KWO / Photo: David Birri

Edmonton –

• Funicular via City of Edmonton
• Walkway via City of Edmonton

Lisbon –

• Glória Funicular by Ex13 (CCL)
• Santa Justa Elevador via Lisbon-Tourism.com

Wellington –

• View of Wellington image via WellingtonNZ.com
• Tunnel via Wellington Cable Car Limited