Taking Amtrak From Ohio to Orlando?

[Napoleon Dynamite]

My sister lives in MI, and will be driving to Toledo to take the train to Orlando. She has two kids, ages 8 and 11. Has anyone done this recently? Any tips I can give her? I rented a car for her through Hertz at the Orlando station.

 

[Woodview]

Please check ( Before a mistake is made )

Is it Orlando Station ?

Is it Kissimmee Station ?

 

[Napoleon Dynamite]

Orlando. I booked it for her

 

[NotUrsula]

If possible, add on the short ride from Orlando to the Kissimmee station on the train; it's one more stop. That station is MUCH closer to the theme parks, and not in the iffy neighborhood that the Orlando station is.

That train route is a heck of a long ride with kids in tow: a full 33 hours on trains each way, IF it is on time, which is a rather big if. The service is pretty reliable on the Eastern seaboard (after the DC transfer) but may run late getting into DC. She should try to be prepared for the possibility of significant delays. The trains may run right on schedule, or even a bit early, but it's better not to expect that they will, so that you don't get frustrated if they don't. Long-distance train travel in the US is not for people who rely on tightly-scheduled itineraries.

I will admit that I've personally never attempted a US train trip that long: I've tried AMTRAK in the midwest, and it wasn't a good experience (no express trains, and though the seats were pretty comfortable, we found it impossible to sleep due to the constant horn blowing at every at-grade crossing. The horn was used pretty much continuously for our 6 hour trip, and my DD got pretty cranky from lack of sleep, because we'd had to get to the station at 4:30 am to board.) I love train travel outside the US, but from the Midwest to Florida I find it much better to drive if I can't manage to find an acceptable flight.

 

[Napoleon Dynamite]

Unfortunately changing it will not work, as there is no rental car company at the Kissimmee station, and confusion sets in VERY easily for her. I was trying to make everything as seamless as possible for her. She is not going to Disney. Just the Orlando area. You couldn't pay me to ride the train that long with kids, but she has no choice unfortunately. Thanks for your response!!

 

[Cloudy]

I recently took an Amtrack from Toledo, Oh to Chicago with teenagers. We did have rooms and it was only a 6 hour ride, that being said we loved it. Now 30+ hours on a train is a lot different. We looked in the coach section and the seats were big recliner like things and looked so comfy with tons of space compared to an airplane seat. Coach seats looked comfy enough to sleep in although I am sure it is not the same as sleeping in a bed. Food was included in our room, but we saw people in coach carrying on tons of food for the long hauls. I was actually surprised at how much food people had. I know rooms had access to showers but I think coach had shower access as well (although you need to check). For me 8 and 12 are old enough for the train adventure. Good luck.

 

[NotUrsula]

The reason that people carry on food is that on many trains, the only food service is a snack bar (Cafe service, as it is known), with the only hot food zapped in a microwave. It also tends to be kind of pricey for the quality, and they run out of popular items quickly. People with kids often really want to avoid letting them go near that car, because there is so much pricey candy prominently displayed. Depending on which train the OP's sister is taking from DC to Florida, this might be the case for her; the Meteor has a full dining car (https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/638/11/Silver-Meteor-Dining-Car-0916.pdf), but the Star does not. This is the Star's cafe menu: https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/295/142/Silver-Star-Cafe-Menu-0406.pdf In many cases, younger folks who are willing to spend 72 hours riding in a coach seat for a vacation are going to be traveling as frugally as possible. In such cases, bringing your own food (or, especially, drinks) is a major money-saver. Also, eating is something to do when one gets bored (though we all know it's a bad idea, it's common, especially when kids are involved.)

There are no shower facilities for coach passengers on any Amtrak trains, best you can do is a sort of sponge bath in the toilet stall, if you carry your own soap and a washcloth. Roomettes have access to communal showers, and the "Bedrooms" have compact showers in each room.

OP, they should bring their own pillows and blankets if they are going coach; Amtrak doesn't supply them for free there. (They do for people who get a roomette or bedroom) A small power strip is also a good idea; there are normally two regular outlets per facing seat pair, so if everyone brings electronics, it's useful to have one. While there is WiFi on the trains, they should not depend on it for entertainment, because it isn't very good, and not usually up to streaming video. Before leaving home, download any movies you want to watch.

 

[joelkfla]

A small power strip is also a good idea; there are normally two regular outlets per facing seat pair, so if everyone brings electronics, it's useful to have one.

The seats in coach are all facing sets? So a lone traveler will be playing footsie with the opposing rider for the entire trip?

 

[NotUrsula]

The seats in coach are all facing sets? So a lone traveler will be playing footsie with the opposing rider for the entire trip?

Sorry, didn't mean to imply that. No, they are not; the majority are in rows like on a plane. When facing seat-groups are in place, there are only a couple of facing seat-groups per car, where the seat direction turns around (on trains, 1/2 the seats normally face front, and half face the rear of the car -- this is because train cars can be hooked up facing in either direction.) However, in a group of 3, if you get a facing seat-group the odds are high that no one will sit in the 4th seat unless the train is completely full, which gives a sense of privacy and a bit of room to spread out.

A related note: some people are more prone to motion sickness when facing away from the direction the vehicle is traveling. If that's an issue, then make it a point to board as early as possible to make sure you get seats facing the direction that the train is traveling.

 

[joelkfla]

Sorry, didn't mean to imply that. No, they are not; the majority are in rows like on a plane. When facing seat-groups are in place, there are only a couple of facing seat-groups per car, where the seat direction turns around (on trains, 1/2 the seats normally face front, and half face the rear of the car -- this is because train cars can be hooked up facing in either direction.) However, in a group of 3, if you get a facing seat-group the odds are high that no one will sit in the 4th seat unless the train is completely full, which gives a sense of privacy and a bit of room to spread out.

A related note: some people are more prone to motion sickness when facing away from the direction the vehicle is traveling. If that's an issue, then make it a point to board as early as possible to make sure you get seats facing the direction that the train is traveling.

Thanks. In the old days, seats reversed to face the direction of travel. They were called "walk-overs", because at the end of the line the conductor would walk down the aisle flipping them over as he went.

I've seen some commuter trains with permanently fixed facing seats. Glad to hear current Amtrak coaches aren't set up that way.

 

[scrapquitler]

It'a a long ride. I traveled from New York to Atlanta. It seemed like it took forever, and we ended up delayed because of a freight train that we had to wait for to pass by us. The dining car ran out of most food options by the time I got a chance to eat dinner, so I had something that a. was expensive, b. was not very good and c. was something that I would never have ordered had they not been out of almost everything else. I thought it was going to be a big adventure and a fun way to see the country. Most of what I 'saw' was darkness in the middle of the night because I couldn't sleep. It cost about the same as flying and took 24 hours instead of 2 1/2. Never again.

 

[Pooh2]

My sister lives in MI, and will be driving to Toledo to take the train to Orlando. She has two kids, ages 8 and 11. Has anyone done this recently? Any tips I can give her? I rented a car for her through Hertz at the Orlando station.

Do a search of the boards here for Amtrak threads. There used to be a really long Amtrak thread. Can't seem to locate it at the moment.
Amtrakunlimited is also a great source for Amtrak questions.

Are the tickets already booked? If their tickets are coach, meals are not included.
All bedroom accommodations include meals.

We've done a 24 hour trip in coach, did not sleep much. We prefer getting a roommette or bedroom but they can be pricey.

Coach passengers do not have access to to showers.

We've done several cross country trips (in a bedroom) and never tired of watching the countryside go by.
For us, the train ride is part of the vacation adventure.

They can bring a small soft-sided cooler for snacks/drinks. The snacks in the lounge car are over priced so bring your own soda/water/candy/chips, maybe pack some sandwiches, yogurt, cheese/crackers.

A bedroom compartment will be provided with some bottled water, towels, bed linens.
If traveling coach, bring a travel pillow and light blanket.

There is a lounge car where the kids can hang out if they want a change of scenery. There are tables there to play cards/games or enjoy their snacks.

Hope they have a wonderful trip!

 

[joelkfla]

Are the tickets already booked? If their tickets are coach, meals are not included.
All bedroom accommodations include meals.

As NotUrsula said, one of the 2 trains into Orlando does not have a dining car, and does not include meals in sleeping car fares. Of course, the sleeping car upcharge is much less on the train without meals.

This was announced as a test, but it's looking like it's permanent.