Yay, a question I can answer! On preview: Gosh, this is a monster post. Hope it helps.
I haven’t taken the train for about…wow, a year and a half. But I did take it multiple times a year when I was in college. There’s a red-eye that goes between Rochester, NY and Chicago, and I took it between Rochester (college) and Toledo (home) for breaks and trips. In the past 6 years, I’ve probably gone on that route, round trip…10 times or more. So my experiences may not compare exactly to yours, but I’ve got some consistency.
Between flying and taking the train, I prefer to fly, but that’s just me. It’s faster, cleaner, and seems more organized. (Yes, I’d say Amtrak is less “put-together” than the airlines. It’s amazing, but it is possible.) But it’s also more cramped, more expensive, and more hassle to prepare for. I never took a sleeper car; always the coach seats. If I bought round trip tickets far enough in advance (say, three months) I occasionally got them for $100 or so. A few weeks in advance, I remember them being something like a bit less than $200. This is for about a 400 mile trip. Don’t take my word on this, but that’s what I recall. (Just to give you an idea of my experience.) I’d recommend it, but with some warnings:
My BAD experiences:
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[li]They are often late. REALLY late. From my experiences, I recall them being really late (as in, due to leave at 12:00, didn’t leave until 3:00, due to arrive at 7:00, didn’t arrive until 12:00. Both of these happened to me.) I would make sure to arrive WELL before any time-sensitive plans, because really, you never know. I recall overhearing something from a conductor about freight trains having priority, but I’m not sure why. Maybe someone else has more info on this.[/li][li]Some cars smell. This odd, clingy…Amtrak smell. Vaguely like unwashed clothes and a dirty toilet. But I only had the stink-car two, maybe three times, one way, so that’s about a 10% or 15% chance. Still, beware. Some of the cars are old, and the maintenance, especially for overnight travel, really isn’t stellar. [/li][li]The bathrooms were hit or miss. They were never freshly cleaned, but sometimes they were ok, and others they were damp and out of toilet paper. Take a pack of tissues. This could be due to scheduling.[/li][li]The food is overpriced, but that didn’t really bother me that much. If you’re going to be on the train during a mealtime, maybe bring on some portable snacks to tide you over if you’re on a budget.[/li][li]In the winter, the cars are a bit cold. That’s subjective, though. [/li][li]This isn’t bad but it’s not really good either: the rocking of the train is something that you may have to get used to. It’s gentle once it’s up to speed, but it’s in the background. I get really motion sick, and I think once I got dizzy when I stood up, but other than that, I was fine and enjoyed the feeling. YMMV. Same goes for the background train noise when you’re trying to sleep.[/li][li]Sometimes your seatmate is an asshole. But since you’re traveling with someone, that shouldn’t be an issue for you.[/li][li]If you need something, in coach, it’s kind of hard to find any employee to answer your questions. They’re understaffed in MANY areas. Catch-22, though. They can’t afford more staff because no one will ride, and no one will ride because they don’t have enough people or mony to offer a quality product.[/li][li]It can be boring. Bring a book, a laptop, a portable DVD player, a sketchbook, something. [/li][/ul]
My GOOD experiences:
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[li]I’ve never run into rude staff, but I have run into harried, overworked, tired, distracted people who have to deal with frustrated people who are late because they’re riding Amtrak. Be gentle with the employees. They’re on this thing every day. Ew.[/li][li]Never ONCE lost my luggage. (Pretty hard to when it sits on the same train, though.) Plenty of room for carry-ons. [/li][li]This is good and bad, but I’m putting it under good since nothing bad ever happened to me: Security is pretty lax, and it’s very informal. In the two small stations I’ve been in, this has been the procedure: You go up, get your tickets, give them your checked luggage, and wait. When the train comes, you go out onto the platform with a mob and follow the general directions of an employee. (The conductor? Do they call people that anymore?) You get on the train, sit in your seat, and settle in. Once you’re settled, someone comes to take your ticket and put a little label over your seat that shows where you’re getting off. They’ll generally tell you/wake you when they get there. Then you’re left to your own devices. I imagine, though, that New Orleans and Chicago will have bigger stations and maybe different procedures. Still, it will probably be easier than flying.[/li][li]If you’re not having a bad trip (4 hours late, stinky car, neck ache, too cold, person next to you keeps trying to TALK at 2:00am when you want to sleep) it’s actually kind of neat to look out the window and drink coffee and write or read or sketch. [/li][li]It can be very easy to get off the train, get your luggage, and be on your way. This was the case on my route, but again, I only went to small stations.[/li][li]The coach seats aren’t bad, actually. Much roomier than planes. They recline and have footrests and tray tables. The cushions are pretty thick. [/li][li]Unlike planes, you can use your cell phone, which is handy when you’re going to be late. Which is often.[/li][/ul]
General Tips:
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[li]Take a small pillow, a blanket, small toiletry bag (even if it’s just overnight)[/li][li]Take a few bottles of water[/li][li]Take something to occupy yourself[/li][li]It may look a little silly, but you may want a sleeping mask to keep the light out.[/li][li]Eat before you go so you don’t have to buy food on the train, or take snacks with you. You really never know how late they’ll be.[/li][li]Check the train status on the Amtrak website. [/li][/ul]
Have you, or someone you know well, traveled recently by train? I am especially interested in anyone who’s traveled the route we were planning on taking that runs from New Orleans to Chicago, but any experience will do. Do you recommend we find a different way to travel? Do you have any tips? As I said earlier, we aren’t terribly picky about having luxurious transportation; several of the stories I read compared the trip to backpacking (in a negative way) but this isn’t really the type of thing that bothers us. But I don’t want to be signing myself up for some sort of awful experience, obviously.