When Suntan Special service began, trains operated from San Jose along the over-the-mountain South Pacific Coast Railroad (SPCR) route through Los Gatos until that line was destroyed by storm damage in February 1940.

In 1932, approximately 3,500 passengers[5] from the San Francisco Bay Area each paid $1.25 (equivalent to $29 in 2024 adjusted for inflation) for a round trip visit to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.

"[2] Postwar improvements to freeways and automobiles shortened trip times to Santa Cruz and hastened the end of Suntan Special service, but California State Route 17 (SR-17), the highway on the direct over-the-mountain route from San Jose to Santa Cruz, became congested, prompting the California Department of Transportation to propose widening and straightening the freeway in 1971, expanding it to six lanes of traffic, with enough room to expand it to eight plus two shoulders and a median.

Santa Cruz County residents successfully lobbied Caltrans to de-list SR-17 from the state freeway system in 1974, removing the threat to widen that road.

[13] Scenic Railways, Inc. evaluated the feasibility of bringing the route back as a seasonal weekend excursion, but County Supervisor Dan Forbus said it was unlikely to alleviate much of the traffic over SR-17.

As an alternative, an overnight deluxe package was offered for $149 per person, including an unlimited ride pass at the Beach Boardwalk, hotel stay at the Dream Inn, and a round-trip ticket on the Santa Cruz, Big Trees and Pacific Railway, with the return trip being operated on Sunday by Amtrak using a diesel multiple unit train from Denmark.