Ride a train

My wife and I took a 51 hour (not counting the layover in Chicago) train trip from Seattle to Chicago and then on to Indianapolis. The trip from Seattle to Chicago was awesome. We were on a large double decker train. It was very spacious (even in the couch section). We had a small private room on the train with plenty of privacy. Meals were included for those staying in a sleeper car (which almost payed for itself considering the meals were expensive on the train if you had to pay for them), and I ate steak. :)

The coolest part of the trip was just relaxing and watching the scenery. Washington State and Western Montana were the coolest parts visually, but I enjoyed the rest of the trip, as well. I really enjoy going on road trips because I love seeing how the landscape changes as you drive across the country. It was like that, but without the hassle of having to do the driving yourself, stopping for gas, finding places to eat, and hotel rooms to sleep in. Plus you can read, watch movies (if you have a laptop, which I did, or a portable dvd player), play games, nap, drink booze, or whatever while you are traveling.

I would recommend requesting a sleeping car on the lower part of the train if you decide to travel this way, though… the upper level of the train (which is where half the rooms, coach seating, and the dining car is located) sways a lot more. Speaking of swaying, sleeping on the train is a bit hard. The beds aren’t the greatest, and the train is constantly rocking back and forth (more than what you would find relaxing). So I would recommend packing a sleeping aid to assist with getting a good nights rest. To be fair, though, I didn’t really find the train motion or noise (much, much quieter than a plane) to be annoying, at all, except while trying to sleep.

Dinner is a little awkward on the train. The food is pretty good for the most part… but because of space limitations, you never get to sit by yourself. The dinning car is full of booths. They sit four people to a booth reguardless of whether you know each other or not. If you enjoy small talk with strangers, it’s not bad (depending on who you get sat with).

We also got to get out at various stops and and stretch our legs and get some fresh air. I got out at several small towns in Montana, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. The biggest city that I got out at was the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. I also had a layover in Chicago for about four hours (thouch I didn’t leave Union Station).

The only part of the trip that wasn’t cool was taking the much smaller train from Chicago to Indianapolis. It wasn’t nearly as organized and the crew wasn’t anywhere close to being as friendly or helpful. It was also all coach seating (though it’s like ten times more spacious than coach on an airplane). Also, the train was much older and the tracks weren’t in as good shape, so it was a much bumpier ride. Thankfully, this was only a five our trip.

All in all, I really enjoyed train travel, and I will definately consider doing it again. If you have the time, it’s much more enjoyable then traveling by air, and it’s not nearly as tiring as traveling by car.

Wouldn’t it be lovely?

I’m taking a 51 hour train trip back from Seattle (I’ll be there for my anniversary… we’re flying there and taking the train back home) on March 22nd. I’ve never ridden a train before. I think it’s going to be a lot of fun. We have a private room on the train with a big “picture window” to look out of. I love taking road trips, mainly for the scenery, so I’m hoping it is like that (but better because I don’t have wear myself out driving or dealing with trying to find hotels and such). I’ll take some pics and write about it when I get back (leaving on March 18th for Seattle).

I live out in the country far away from any kinds of metro trains. There are industrial trains that pass about 15 miles from here and we can hear the train whistle in the quiet of the early mornings. My son collects trains and I am looking for a train that allows public riders somewhere local. I’ve been in cars, buses, big trucks, tractors, airplanes, motorbikes, and boats – but never on a train. (yet!)

My friend wants to do this too! We are going to look into this. About 30mins from here they do train rides a few times a year. Some of them are Mystery Train Rides. That sounds like a blast.

Living in Tokyo, if I wanted to go anywhere, I had to take a train. Train travel was pretty much a daily occurance for me.

I sold my car and know I ride the train>

i’ve always wanted to do this. it seems so old fashioned lol.

It beats the headaches, hassles, and cost of car ownership.

I rode the subway in DC, the Metro… does that count? I think I meant like an Amtrak train from one state to another. I did go from VA to DC though… Hmmmm I’ll have to think on whether this counts or not but for now I’m leaving it on and thinking no.