Anyone ever ride Amtrak to Florida?

[Loritlc3]

We are looking at Pittsburgh to Florida which is quite long(30 hours). Pricing the bedroom brought it up to almost the same cost as the week in Disney. Would appreciate any advice

 

[RMAMom]

It is much more expensive to take the train than it is to fly or drive. There is a very long post on the transportation board about taking the train.

 

[persimmondeb]

Fiddling with dates (or even just train times) can sometimes help, especially with bedroom prices. Two regular roomettes are often cheaper than a family bedroom, as well.

 

[chrismass]

I'm taking the auto train in August (out of Lorton Va) which is a 17.5 hour train ride. I took Amtrak last summer from NYC (24 hours). I booked coach seats only and had no problem sleeping and was never uncomfortable (except that it got really cold with the AC on).

It's much cheaper with the train only if you're not getting the bedrooms - maybe you could consider that? But definitely check out the amtrack thread here and amtrack's website to get an idea of how big the seats are. There's also a few you tube videos that show the bedroom sizes (very small!!!)

 

[ncmickeyluvr]

We took Amtrack for a high school band trip in 1988.....from Providence, RI. It took right at 24 hours. I still feel bad for those poor people who were trapped on that train with us. Can you imagine???

 

[MickeyMomOfThree]

I am on Amtrack right now! My first trip. It will be a short 7 hours. I can't sleep but it is because of nerves (going to be with my grandma at the hospital she is having surgery in a few hours.) But the seats are pretty comfortable and there is a ton of leg room. (I am 6' tall.) 30 hours? I could do it, especially if I wasn't alone like I am. For the right prize at the end (and Disney is!) I say sure. I don't know anything about the sleeping rooms, sorry.

Side story, when I was in HS I wanted to go visit my boyfriends (now my DH.) He was in the Army in Arizona and I was in Michigan. My grandparents (who raised me) did not fly so they drove me. It was awful. We only had a week plus the extra weekend, we drov like crazy, stayed with him for 2 days and had awful car trouble from the heat on they way home. (Had to get rid of the car it was such a mess after that.) Next time I wanted to visit my grandma agreed to go with me on Greyhound. It was 59 hours, it was frightening the "adventures" that took place including a man with a gun on the bus threatening the driver and our bus being surronded by cops. It was scary (thankfully though none of it was pleasent that happened on the ride home.) So, the next time I wanated to go they bought me a plane ticket and told me to be a very good girl, but they were done going! Ahhh, those were fun times. They are great people you can see why I am headed to be with them.

Again, prize at the end, you'll do just ab out anything. We drive to Disney from upstate NY with 3 kids. People say we are nuts but it's the only way we can afford to go, so we do it, and you know what? We always have a great time! You will too...

 

[puffkin]

Co-workers of mine went to Disney on their honeymoon. Took Amtrak from Philadelphia. Got to Florida and new wife REFUSED to get back on the train to come home. They ended up eating the cost of the Amtrak fare and bought RT plane tickets (this was before all the airlines would did one ways...back then it was usually cheaper to book a RT than a one-way). I think it ended up costing them an extra $1,000 to fly home, but they both agreed it was money well spent.

I have no first hand experience, but these are nice, normal people and I value their opinion.

 

[Hillbeans]

My BIL, SIL, 4 kids and MIL came to WDW on the Amtrak from Altoona in 2008which is pretty close to your neck of the woods. I think the layover in Philadelphia was close to 3 hours. MIL had tried to upgrade to a sleeper after just the leg from Altoona but no luck.

The trip took a long time and while I think they had some fun, the time it took to get there was just not worth it, plus, they barely slept because of the # of stops along the way and people around them were up talking most of the night. We had to go pick them up and it was a good 30 minute ride from WDW, and they were not looking forward to getting back on the train after the vacation was over.

 

[cmaee]

We had coach seats and it was incredibly cheaper for us. As a family of 5, flying is almost always out of the question due to price and it would have cost us around the same amount to drive it, but thought we would rather take the train. We took Amtrak from Raleigh to Orlando last spring break...actually left on Good Friday night. Our train was supposed to leave Raleigh around 9:30 and we didn't leave Raleigh until almost midnight! We got into Orlando a few hours after we were supposed to, but I knew that delays are usually a given when riding the train.

I am not normally a germaphobe, but lets just say I am aware of my surroundings and I like my surroundings to be clean. I don't think there is enough Lysol in the world to santize the train we were on....it was DISGUSTING! I was appalled at the conditions of the train going down, but that train paled in comparison to the one coming home. If you have young children, be prepared to be separated. When we went, our kids were 6, 5, and 2. When we boarded on the way home, they told us that we were going to be in 3 different areas....um, no. I told them they had better come up with a different plan, because there was no way I was letting my 6 yr old kid sit in another area with a complete stranger. They finally worked out a solution, but it took a few stops before they rearranged single riders to make it work. We told them that we would be happy to squeeze three in one row so that they only had to find two seats side by side. They ended up doing that, but not without grumbling about it the whole time.

If we were to ever do Amtrak again, it would be just for a short trip to DC or we would get the bedrooms. By the time you paid for the bedrooms though, it would probably cost less to fly.

 

[shaylahc1]

We took Amtrak from Charlotte, NC to Washington DC and back again....and it stunk Sometimes literally They couldn't control the temperature on the train (the steward told me the temperature control is UNDER the train, and that they couldn't get to it....). It was sooooooooooooooooo hot. Unbearably hot. It stunk like a barnyard in there because everyone was sweaty. Also due to "unforseen delays" the train is almost never on time. On our way up the train ride that was supposed to be 9 hours was almost 12. On the way down we were 1.5 hours behind schedule. It was miserable.

My own opinion about Amtrak is that anything longer than 5 hours is just too long. It's not that much cheaper than a plane ticket but will be 10 times as miserable. JMHO.

 

[momma2minnie]

My Dh and I took Amtrak from Lafayette, La for our honeymoon. I had some romantic idea about a train ride. Romantic it was not!!!
We did "1st class" there and it was not a treat. I didn't realize that there were different "classes" (for lack of a better term) in 1st class. We were in a closet type of room facing each other with our knees touching. My husband took the pull down bed and said his nose was just about touching the roof! just too close for comfort even for newlyweds! We did coach on the way back and that was a nightmare! Frequent stops made rest difficult. As did the delightful child who was traveling to Alabama with his MeeMaw. His name is forever etched in my memory Tyler Dakota Thompson. He would be about 14 by now bless his heart. Oh, and don't forget the angel who threatened to pee on my seat if I got up!
DH and I decided that Amtrak should consider adding a car for those traveling without children. This was before we had a child and understood the ways of children!
Also there were problems with the tracks on the way down so we had to transfer to a bus in Tallahassee for the remainder of the trip.

 

[persimmondeb]

I like Amtrak, and will cheerfully sign up for it over flying anytime (the seats are much bigger, you can move around, they don't make you sit still with your seatbelt on for extended periods of time, and they have a dining car-especially since it's not like planes are immune from strange odors, screaming children, or weird temperature variants), but some people hate it. I like a roomette for periods over about 8 hours, and don't find them uncomfortably cramped, but I'm only a little over 5 feet tall and I grew up in NYC, so my requirements for personal space may be less than those of most.

I will say that it might not be wise to sign up for 30 hours for your very first Amtrak trip, since opinions vary so wildly, and you might be one of the people who finds it torturous.

 

[loveysbydesign]

Here ya go...a trip report from a family who has done it a few times from NY state!
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2386340

 

[persimmondeb]

What a great report!

 

[parkers218]

We are looking at Pittsburgh to Florida which is quite long(30 hours). Pricing the bedroom brought it up to almost the same cost as the week in Disney. Would appreciate any advice

We have taken it from FL to Lorton and it was ok but Looooong especially with kids. We live in MD and have 3 kids. If you are doing a room it is not worth it--in my opnion-- just fly. I know you said it was expensive but I checked inot the room thing last summer and it was wayyyy more than flying and I tried it with AAA discounts and discounts offered at work. I thimk if yyou can price out your tix far enough ahead it would work out better and shorter to fly. It might be worth it (since you were gonna drive to Lorton anyway) to look at airports not in PA? We live closer to BWI but flew out of Dulles in VA cause the flights were cheaper there. We left our car in long term parking (it was fine) and had it to drive back when we got home (it came to about $75 for 7 days). We left Dulles on Southwest and returned on JetBlue and paid $785 ROUND TRIP for all 5 of us. You cando it and I would take 2 hours over 17 anyday

 

[RangerPooh]

We have considered taking it from DC to Orlando but have yet to do so. A few years ago I took it from Spokane, WA to Chicago, (a nice 40 hour trip after delays) with a 1 year old and 3 year old; just me as we were meeting up with DH...cross country move. We had coach seats and it was ok. The seats are roomy, much wider than airplane seats. My only complaint was the small restrooms and not having a decent space to change diapers. Ok, the counter service food was a bit icky too but I've heard that the dining car resturnat food was better. I would definately consider taking Amtrack again as long as I ahve DH with me, the scenery was nice, and it was fairly relaxing. If anything we're considering driving to WDW and then taking the autotrain home.

 

[kristinw3girls]

My best friend and her family did it once. ONCE ONLY!! She hated it. They had the sleeper car, but still didn't help any. She ended up flying back with the kids and her DH drove byhimself. You could give me free tickets, and I still would NEVER use them. I'd rather wait a year to save the extra $ and fly.

 

[disneydreamersx4]

We took the Autotrain from Lorton, VA to Sanford, FL in 2007 and then it was $685 AAA rate for 2 adults and 2 children with a Honda Civic. The seats were very comfortable and the food was decent. They have a movie car and coffee/tea/hot chocolate station. Would do it again.

 

[mykidslovesdisney]

I would have to say check out the autotrain. I have done the reg train from New Haven Ct to Orlando w/ 5 kids in tow (1,4,5,13,16). never would I do it again. We do however do the autotrain. We are returning in Aug for out 6th trip to WDW. The autotrain is a much better train to travel on. I like that we have our car w/ us. The trip is 17 hrs. Train leaves by 4 pm -- dinner at 5 or 7 (not sure if they still doing the 9 pm). Kids go to sleep by 9 and we hang out for a few hours. We usually get up around 630 to see where we are. If we are almost to Sanford we go grab breakfast. Then pack up our stuff. I like it bc the time is broken up. DC 2,6,9 and11 all love the train too - it is part of the adventure.


DH works for amtrak so we do travel for free which is a huge plus for us. I still wouldn't step foot on the reg train w/ the kids again. Your meals with the autotrain are included in the fare. The seats are good sized. We have traveled both coach and in sleepers. I find both are easy to sleep. The train does not make any stops along the way to pick up passengers - just to change out the engine. You can expect delays -- we have been 4hrs late or an hr early. We also have had our return train cancelled due to tropical storm fay. We opted to stay at WDW than drive home.

The further out you book ur trip the cheaper it is. definitely check out the amtrak website and plug in your dates to see the cost. If we had to pay it would abe about $900 for us w/ the vehicle RT incl meals for 6 of us. That is much cheaper than airfare esp since u have to pay for luggage/airport parking etc. DS11 just found out that we can be at WDW in just over 2 hr if we flew. I told him someday, someday we will fly but right now it is the train and they do truely enjoy the experience.

If you have any ?'s I'd be happy to help u

good luck w/ your decision.

 

[Loritlc3]

Diane
Why would you never do the regular train again?
I really don't want to drive at all so we don't need a car and i don't really want to even drive to Virginia(we live near Pittsburgh). The auto train sounds like such a better deal though. I am taking my kids and going with another single mom and neither of us have a vehicle to fit us all.

Just wondering why you disliked the regular train so much?

Thanks
Lori