For those of you who read my blog, you know I love to
traveler whenever I can. I drove from
NYC to
Florida back in 2010 (
see post here) and also traveled by bus in
Central America
in 2014 (
see post here). Since it’s been
a while from my last long travel, I decided to trek the mainland US of A…..this
time by train, better know as Amtrak.
About a year ago, a friend of mine posted on facebook a post
by a fellow blogger, Derek Low, regarding his travel title
“Across the USA by train for just $213”. I got intrigued
and saved it on my favorite links.
Last May, I was undecided on where to go for my birthday vacation. I already requested time off without planning
to go anywhere. Then I remembered
Derek’s post and started reading it. I
booked my train and plane ticket (yes, I flew on the way back) on Friday night for a trip on a Monday (yes, 3
days before I leave).
As Derek’s post
mentioned, the travel from coast to coast by train will take 4 days
non-stop. There are two trains that trek
this route: Lake Shore Limited which
travels from NYC to Chicago and the California Zephyr from Chicago
to San Francisco. Between the two routes, I find the Zephyr line to be more scenic especially the Colorado section. Some people might disagree but because I took the Lake Shore line when I went to college, nothing is new to me.
Sleeping
Amtrak have a sleeper section but the cost is too much - more than $1,000. I might as well take a plane business class. I took the coach section which is actually not bad. The chairs are pretty good and the leg space is like you are in an airline business class. They have a foot rest as well so you can lie down if you want. If you get lucky without a seatmate, you are all set.
Having a seatmate can be a hit or miss. The only time I had a seatmate was from NYC to Chicago. She warned me ahead of time that she snores so I can’t be mad at her. But the rest of my trip (which is also the longest), I had the two seats to myself.
Food
You can always bring food before boarding. Saves you money and eat what you like. But if you do not want to add that extra pound in your luggage, there's a food cart section. There is a cafe to buy drinks and sandwiches/snacks. But they also have a formal dining area. Dinner time is by schedule.
A crew member walks every car and takes time reservation. Of course peak hours tend to be between
7-8:30 so that gets filled pretty quick.
The sleeper section gets the first dibs since they pay more.
I suggest taking an earlier dinner since it’s not crowded and if they
have special entrée (which are limited in quantity), you have no problem
getting one. I always took the 6 pm reservation.
Unless you are a group of 4, you are going to be seated with
strangers. Most of the time it’s
uncomfortable so you try to eat as fast as you can.
Food selection is very limited of course. I’m not sure if they ever changed their menu
but they have chicken (which I ate most of my trip), steak, pasta, and a
vegetarian entrée. They also have
burgers if you want to eat that.
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