Thread by @isaacfrench_

My dad bought this 120-yr-old train car for $2,000.

It was a rotting, cat-infested wreck. But after investing $147k and 5 months of work, we redeemed it.

Today, it’s one of the most profitable and exclusive stays in the country.

Here’s what happened…👇

I grew up in Idaho. A few winters ago, my dad got a call from an elderly farmer down the road.

His barn was about to collapse, and he needed help shoveling snow off the roof.

When my dad arrived, his eyes lit up.

Buried in that barn was an ancient, almost unrecognizable…

…combination railcar (passenger, mail & cargo).

Approximately 20 cats had made it their home, and the smell was almost unbearable.

My dad has always loved trains, and this discovery got him really excited. But how had it wound up there of all places?

After some digging…

…we discovered this was WI&M Car 306, built in 1906.

In the 50’s, when the local tracks were pulled-up, the railroad decommissioned it. So a farmer dragged it 10 mi to his farm and used it to store grain and feed hay to his cows.

My dad offered the neighbor $2k.

Deal, but…

Now the tricky part: How to move a 61-ft train car down winding, hilly, backcountry roads?

The wood was almost completely rotten, & the ground was slick with mud & snow.

2 mo later, for $10k, a local trucker hooked it up & towed the car to the hill my dad dreamed it would sit.

And then the *real* work began…

My older brother built a timber-frame shed and platform around the car, with a roofline that mimicked traditional depot architecture.

(This would be crucial for protecting the dedicate car and reinforcing the train vibe).

It was early 2020…

With a pandemic sweeping the globe, it was the perfect time to dive into an adventurous outdoor project.

So that’s exactly what we did.

My brothers and I each took on different parts of the work, tediously restoring every single piece of the car.

We reimagined the space…

The mail compartment became a bedroom, the cargo area a bathroom, & the passenger space a kitchenette & lounge.

All-in, we spent $147k, and 5 mo later we finished the last details.

We listed it on Airbnb, and bookings began pouring in.

But then, something unexpected happened…

Just a few miles away in Deary (pop. 550), the old train depot—the very one this car had stopped at countless times—came up for sale. Wasn’t worth much to most, and we pounced.

You guessed it: we restored it too, turning it into a unique 3-unit stay!

But it gets even better…

While driving one day, my dad spotted an old caboose on the side of the road.

A few weeks later, the caboose was moved to Deary, set up beside the depot, & transformed into another amazing stay.

And just like that, the ID train ecosystem was restored!

Guests are going crazy…

Car 306 has now been open 4 yrs, hitting 90% occupancy north of $350/night. It’s one of the most exclusive stays in the country.

And what a story to share with our guests!

So there you have it—another example of one-of-a-kind stays that create raving fans (in every season;)

This historic train setup will print money for decades to come while drawing visitors from all over the world to our little off-the-beaten-path town.

And it didn’t cost a fortune.

All it took was a vision, belief, and some good old-fashioned loving labor.

This, my friends, is what experiential hospitality is all about!

For more case studies, tips, and tricks on how to capitalize on the next generation of hospitality:

- Follow me @isaacfrench_
- Retweet/comment for reach (would mean a lot!)

Here’s the link to the Airbnb listing:

airbnb.com/rooms/44613554…

Here’s the link to the Airbnb listing:

airbnb.com/rooms/44613554…

I’ve convinced my family to start using Instagram to build an audience there and drive direct bookings (per the @liveoaklake playbook).

Follow here:

Our 1st shoot is scheduled with @natevietz!instagram.com/trainstays?igs…

We’re also adding barrel saunas and cedar soaking tubs: perfect amenities for this PNW climate.

And for the true history buffs, here’s the expanded story of Car 306:

The Weyerhaeuser company bought vast tracts of north central Idaho in the early 1900’s in order to log the Western White Pine so abundant in this area. They formed the Potlatch Timber Company to own and process this timber and Potlatch in turn formed the Washington Idaho & Montana Railway to haul the timber to the mill in Potlatch, ID and as a secondary purpose, to provide mail and passenger service to the newly sprouted towns serving the timber industry.

The train also hauled the finished lumber on to Palouse, WA where several other railheads could haul to connecting lines across the country. The WI&M purchased this car new from the American Car & Foundry Company of St Charles, MO in September, 1909. They purchased another car, passenger only (car 308) shortly after and car 306 served as the smoking car and hauled freight and mail. When passenger volume began to decline, the railroad retired 308 but kept 306. Eventually passenger service declined to the point that a gas powered bus that ran on the tracks (nicknamed the “Bug”) took over all passenger service and 306 sat in the yard as a back up.

Finally, around 1955, car 306 was removed from the tracks and used a crew shelter. At this point the history of 306 goes a little fuzzy. Some of the railroaders remember the car being cut in half and then burnt. This obviously must have been a different car or we wouldn’t have anything to restore. What we do know is that one of our neighbors bought the car sometime in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s and used it to store feed for cattle.

This went on until the early 1970’s when another neighbor pulled the car up near his home and built a barn over it. From that point it housed a few ranch hands and eventually about 10 cats. Despite a “mild” cat odor, not to mention the wheelbarrow loads of high grade fertilizer (aka cat droppings), we jumped at the chance when offered the opportunity to own the car.

After a few dead ends, we found a reliable house mover and in December 2019, we began inching 306 out of the barn that had protected it for 45+ years. We moved it to its present site in February 2020 and began restoration work in earnest in March 2020. Our first guests stayed in the finished home the last weekend of August 2020.

Want to learn more about our little town of Deary, ID? This is where I spent a decade of my childhood.

We have another community in the area, and I’ve got some more fun stories of the transformation there. But here’s a sneak preview:

visitdeary.com

And finally:

A timelapse of hand-painting the original lettering on.

This was too much fun:

My dad just joined X!

Go give him a follow @french4151

@french4151 I forgot to add this earlier:

If you want my exact playbook on creating one-of-a-kind, experiential properties, then go get my free 7-day email course here:

isaacjfrench.com/newsletter/

@french4151 (👆🏻you can also just get the newsletter, which comes out every Monday and is short but packed w gold for anyone interested in experiential hospitality)