I have a trip to New Orleans coming up soon. This time in, I’m taking the Amtrak Crescent line.
Have any of you ever done that?
The train depot isn’t exactly in the best part of town.
Do any of you know if there will be taxis or shuttles available at the depot?
The trains share a depot with Greyhound or whatever busline. There is a cabstand out front. If no cabs there, the number for United cabs is 504-522-9771.
Well to be fair, the station is also less than a 15 minute leisurely walk ($5 cab ride) to some of the most upscale, exclusive, expensive hotels, restaurants, bars and clubs in anywhere in the entire Southeastern United States, so it’s not like you will be dropped off in the wastelands of a post-apocalyptic Road Warrior-esque futureworld…
Cabs will be waiting for you, tell them where you are staying and they will be happy to drive you to the front door!!!
Just dropped in to say: “Jeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaalous!”
It’s been too long since I’ve ridden the rails, or been to N’awlins. Have a great time!
I’ve done the Capitol Limited (DC-Chicago) both ways, in coach, and it was a pretty pleasant trip. There are plenty of interesting people to meet, plenty of room to move about, the seats are big, though sleeping might be difficult depending on your temperament. Are you riding in coach or are you getting a sleeper?
I’ve done the Atlanta - New Orleans Crescent route. I had a marvelous time and met a lot of really cool people on the train. Once I arrived into NOLA, I took a cab that was waiting outside the station. No big deal. I didn’t really feel like it was in a sketchy area.
I’ve taken the Crescent from NYC as far as Culpeper, VA. (That’s the first 6ish hours). It’s electric up to DC, then picks up a diesel train during a roughly 1/2 hour DC layover. Just enough time to scamper out for a proper bathroom and a snack, if you’re quick. 
I’m quite fond of train travel. You get plenty of room to stretch out, there are outlets, and you can bring as much luggage and as many snacks as you like.
There’s a song about it, you know:
Amtrak Crescent by Scott Miller & the Commonwealth. A line from this song (“You better say Manassas if you say Bull Run, or in Virginia you can’t get along with anyone”) actually inspired a thread in which I learned something worth knowing.
I haven’t been on Amtrak in ages, but I’ve heard several stories about horrible delays that would make me question traveling cross country that way to actually get somewhere in particular. But if you enjoy the scenic route, and have a way to pass the time, well then, go for it I guess. You’ll end up in the Big Easy anyway. It’s still kind of hot, and wet down there, but I’ve always enjoyed the destination no matter what the trip involved.
(Italics mine.)
It is truly one of the most civilized ways to commute or travel. I wouldn’t go all the way coast-to-coast (as TriPolar mentions, and my sisters can attest to) the delays on the long hauls can be BIG. However, Atlanta to New Orleans is around 500 miles over 12 hours. That is similar to me going Los Angeles to Oakland by rail; that trip I’ve done. Very cool and not nearly the chance for big delays.
Gee, I wonder if anything bad ever happens in air travel?
The Crescent was on time 80% of the time in the last 12 months. The average for North American airlinesis 76%.
I’m not getting into a debate over train vs. airline. My point was that trains get tied up in odd places, and you have to plan on having something to do while you sit out on the rails for hours on end. You’re already spending a lot of hours in transit, so you need to be prepared for even more time. MonkeyMensch points out that it’s something like a 12 hour trip, so that’s not terribly bad.
Come on, don’t you know the cardinal rule of travel delays?
If a car breaks down, or has an accident, or is stuck on the interstate for three hours because of an overturned semi, that’s just a normal part of life. If any kind of mass transit (trains especially) has a problem, that’s horrible news and a reason to never take mass transit.
Airplane weather delays and missed connections are in between, but mostly normal life now.
Atlanta to New Orleans on the Crescent is a nice trip - it’s daylight most of the way, both ways, so you get to actually see things.
I don’t know if you’ve taken Amtrak out of Atlanta before, but the station’s not particularly convenient to MARTA, and I don’t remember if there’s parking (secure or not) nearby. So either take a cab or have someone do a drop off/pickup for you.
It’s been a long time since I’ve been at the New Orleans train station, so I can’t really speak to the security of it - I’d go with what others have said.
I’m kind of jealous - you’ve got me looking at amtrak schedules now, and thinking about whether i could manage a trip down there on the train this fall/winter as a long weekend kind of thing.
I had no doubt that I could get a cab to come to the depot; I just didn’t know if there likely be any waiting. Thx for the phone number. I’ll keep tabs on it as a backup.
Thanks, I’m going the last weekend end September. It will still be somewhat muggy; but oh well… I’ll still have a good time. My wife and I are headed down there with another couple.
The Crescent line from ATL (my origin) to NO is basically 8AM to 8PM; so no sleeper. Plus I’ll be with another couple; so it’ll be enjoyable to spend time with them.
If/when I ever take the Crescent from ATL to DC again; I’ll definitely get a sleeper.
This is what I was hoping to hear. Thanks for allaying a lot of my concerns.
You occasionally get a cow on train track and things like that. (That actually happened on a recent trip from DC to ATL, and I was delayed by a couple of hours.)
The trip is about enjoyment and leisure. I was going to drive with the other couple that we’re going with; but that’s about 8 hours from Atlanta. The tickets were cheap; I don’t adding on 4 hours to a trip that give me the freedom to move around at will. The seats are big and comfy, there’s electrical outlets all over the place; a dining car, what’s not to love?
I’ve taken the ATL to DC run, which is the other half of the crescent run, so it’s a night trip. You’re not kidding about the station not being convenient to MARTA. I live in Roswell/Alpharetta. The last time we went; we took MARTA to downtown; then caught a cab to the depot. And to the best of my knowledge there is not parking (secure or otherwise) nearby. No big deal; we’ll cab in it again.
We’re doing the long weekend thing. Thurs & Sun are Amtrak travel days; Fri & Sat to bounce around in NOLA. Tickets were around $70 if I remember correctly.
You’re certainly entitled to your opinion, but I do find your doom & gloom predictions quite a bit overstated, as have many who are fairly familiar with this specific route, especially considering you have not actually used the service in a long time. Of course you need to bring things to do - I should think anytime one plans a 12 hour trip, whether by car, train, plane, or unicycle, one just naturally realizes you need some things to pass the time.
My experience with this line is that it consistenly arrives on time to slightly early. It’s been decades since I experienced any significant delays on Amtrak on the east coast.