We're taking the train to Disney!!

[Mommarella]

My husband and I have decided that with the rising cost of gas and the new airline policies regarding luggage that we are going to take the train. We are stationed at Ft Bliss in El Paso and there is a train that leaves there and will take us right into Anaheim !! I think I'm just as excited about this as I am the rest of the trip.

Has anyone else taken the train? We've taken a few overseas, but none stateside and I'm just curious about the cars, seats, etc.

p.s. I love this board, there are SO many resources here that can't be found anywhere else. AND it's a good way to meet people who are just as crazy about Disney as you are

 

[Queenbillabong]

How long does it take? We were looking into this, just for a different experience, but the Amtrak from Seattle to Anaheim is 35 hours so that is SO not going to happen!

 

[jocotter]

My coworker took her girl scout troop on the train to Disneyland last summer and they liked it. The only problem they had was that when they were sleeping in their seats, some teens were walking the aisles in the middle of the night and took some of the girl's cell phones and Ipods that they had in their back packs at their feet. Their moms woke up and caught them and the conductor checked their pockets and found the items and put them off the train in Arizona. They were not with an adult, but were riding the train from LA to Albquerque. It was in the national news, because the teens' parents were angry that they put them off the train (even though they turned them over to the Sheriff.)

But other than that, she said it was fun and they went right into Anaheim. She just said if she ever did it again, she would save more money so they could get the sleeping compartments.

 

[Disneyluvr]

We took the Amtrack from AZ to DL last year and it was ok. It was a field trip for my school so we got on the train at like 9pm and slept on the train and got to Anaheim in the morning. The seats were pretty comfy and after you got going you really couldn't feel the motion too much. It was nice to go sit in the observation car (with all the windows) in the early morning and watch the scenery.

 

[bumbershoot]

She just said if she ever did it again, she would save more money so they could get the sleeping compartments.

Also, being in a sleeping compartment makes you first class, on the routes I've seen, which means you get your meals included. Always important to note that when looking at the cost!



Queen, Seattle to San Jose is a scheduled 24 hours, and it wasn't so bad, not at all! Add on 12 scheduled hours wouldn't be awful, IMO.

Well, unless you end up with a suddenly sick kiddo who requires constant walking (he'd kept us up all night for two nights before the train home and we were zombies by then) and then a freight train is stuck in front of you...then that can be bad. But it would be bad on a plane, too (not the freight train part, that would be WEIRD).

 

[JadeDarkstar]

i thought about this but when i found one ticket as much as all three of ours on the bus i decied to stick with grayhound.

I took amtract to MI from AZ it wasnt to bad. this was right after 9/11 just have money for food and drinks

 

[prc4prc]

The best travel experience we ever had was on Amtrak from Seattle to Portland. We had a sleeper cabin. The sleeper includes bed(s) a seperate lounge chair, table, a private bathroom with shower and a big picture window to watch the world go by. It is exspensive, however, the trip becomes part of your vacation. All meals included and basically you have the run of the train (movie car).

If the cabin option is too exspensive, look at the roomettes. They are private and are basically too large club chairs facing each other. There is a door that seperates your roomette from the cars aisle, so the roomette is private. No bathroom, meals are included.

 

[Judy from Boise]

this sounds so cool! Years ago we flew into LAX and did DLR, then took the train to SanDiego for a couple of days, then flew home from there.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

We're taking the train from Buffalo to Fullerton this November.

I got my mom and dad the accessible room on the leg from Chicago to Fullerton (so they have room, beds and meals). But I stuck with just a seat for myself. I did 4 - 4 hour train trips in a two week span (back and forth from Toronto to Ottawa twice) and had no problems in my seat (plus the train from Chicago to Fullerton has a lounge, etc so I can get a break from my seat).

 

[nunzia]

My husband and I have decided that with the rising cost of gas and the new airline policies regarding luggage that we are going to take the train. We are stationed at Ft Bliss in El Paso and there is a train that leaves there and will take us right into Anaheim !! I think I'm just as excited about this as I am the rest of the trip.

Has anyone else taken the train? We've taken a few overseas, but none stateside and I'm just curious about the cars, seats, etc.

p.s. I love this board, there are SO many resources here that can't be found anywhere else. AND it's a good way to meet people who are just as crazy about Disney as you are

We take the train frequently. Although we are closer to El Paso depot, we go to Albuquerque, go into Fullerton, than take a cab. The El Paso route tends have much more frequent and worse delays. Be sure and check your train status before going to the depot.
I LOVE the train. The scenery is great..very often far away from the interstate, so much more unspoiled. The seats and leg areas are HUGE..very comfy. The sightseeing lounge is nice, the snack bar fine and the dining car OK. They will (Probably) give you little pillows at night, but occasionally run out so it doesn't hurt to get those little travel pillows. BE SURE TO BRING SOME SORT OF BLANKET FOR EACH PERSON. It can get very cold in coach at night.(ironic since the one time we paad for a roomette air conditioning was bad and we roasted). There are restrooms downstairs as well as luggage storage. We never check bags, just stuff them in the car storage and never had a problem. There is water on each car at the middle of the seats.
You will have a blast! Just be patient..trains are unpredictable. I didn't make any ADRs for arrival day 'just in case'. That said..our ABQ to FUL train arrived on the dot.
I think ART can take you to the park and hotels right from the Anaheim station.
Have fun!

 

[Mommarella]

Wow !! I'm so glad to hear such positive responses about the trains !! We figured our first day would just be relaxing at the hotel so in case we had delays or anything. I'm hoping after this trip that we take a few more on the trains as well.

Thanks so much for everyone's input I appreciate it.

 

[Gisele]

I too, have looked into Amtrak, but from my town, in Sonoma County, although the timing would not be terrible, I would end up doing more traveling by their bus's, then I would by train. If I am going to be spending that many hours by bus, then Greyhound is the way to go. I have not checked it out yet, however I am assuming to make a connection from the Greyhound station in Anaheim, to the downtown area, either ARTS will be available, or another bus, or just take a cab.

 

[JadeDarkstar]

grayhound in anihime is small
you will take a cab but it was only like ten min ride i was suprised how fast we were at our hotle across from disney
it was like 7bucks then im counting on 15 this time for that ride but not cabs fault its the gas

 

[Gisele]

Thank you for letting me know, I am hoping that a friend of mine will be able to go, but if not, then I will most likely be traveling by Greyhound, one just cannot beat $74 R/T with a 7 day advance purchase, unfortunately, their bus line no longer serves my town, and so I am looking at traveling to the next largest city, for in my county, the ride would be @16 hours, however via S.F., I can leave in the morning, and the trip will be @9 hours, that I can handle.

 

[DL4my2kids]

to Anaheim?

I was considering leaving from Martinez. The train gets into the station in Anaheim a few minutes before 11:00pm. Do you know if Cabs would be available? I wouldn't mind the train if it were convenient enough to get off and taken to the hotel.

 

[Gisele]

Yellow cab runs 24/7, all cab services do in that area, I just called 24/7 Yellow Cab Service to ask, just to make sure of certain things, and the cost is $2.95 to get into the cab, then $2.65 every 1/2 mile.
Needing a cab at 11 at night, should be no problem, whatsoever. I figured it would be that way, but it does not hurt to know for sure.

1-888-247-TAXI is the phone number for the service from their website:

 

[SanFranciscan]

What a stroke of luck that I came upon this thread. My husband and I are planning to change from a trip to Disney World to a trip to Disneyland and are thinking of taking the train as well. We don't own a car so my husband was thinking of renting one; but we don't just have the cost of fuel, mileage, etc. to think about. There is the fact that we are both so out of practice at driving. That is not unusual in San Francisco. In fact, I have met adult natives of San Francisco who have never had a driver's license.

We did take Amtrak from San Francisco to San Luis Obispo years ago. I think that there was an Amtrak bus which took us to the train station in Emeryville. We watched a movie on the way down, and it was actually quite pleasant.

 

[Tink33]

I have taken Amtrak from San Francisco to San Diego. The first leg was a bus from one of the piers in SF to Oakland.

We booked two roomettes for our family of 4. The big chairs turn into a bed and there is another bed above (think bunk beds).

All of the meals were included and we had access to all of the train cars - movie, observation, meal, and the one with free wine tasting.

We all had a fun time, but my DH loved the train. He can't wait for another long trip.

 

[Gisele]

I almost cannot believe that so many people in S.F. have to pay to rent a parking space in their own building, if you are paying $2000.00 a month for a studio, for example, you should not have to pay an extra $300.00 a month, just to park your car! I know someone that does this, and frankly, I think that he is a bit nuts, to say the least!
O.K. back to the topic, sorry, I do that quite a lot, anyway, have you considered taking Greyhound instead? it would be easier for you to make it to the station, early in the morning, from my myself, for I would still be coming down from Sonoma County.
I would be more than happy to drive you and your husband around, I enjoy driving, picture it, driving in a nice convertible, yes, that is what I am talking about, very nice indeed.

 

[SanFranciscan]

I almost cannot believe that so many people in S.F. have to pay to rent a parking space in their own building, if you are paying $2000.00 a month for a studio, for example, you should not have to pay an extra $300.00 a month, just to park your car! I know someone that does this, and frankly, I think that he is a bit nuts, to say the least!
O.K. back to the topic, sorry, I do that quite a lot, anyway, have you considered taking Greyhound instead? it would be easier for you to make it to the station, early in the morning, from my myself, for I would still be coming down from Sonoma County.
I would be more than happy to drive you and your husband around, I enjoy driving, picture it, driving in a nice convertible, yes, that is what I am talking about, very nice indeed.

Be cautious about making generous offers Gisele! You have no idea how many errands we could think of for you! Hee Hee! We are actually pretty used to walking. I photograph the Giants games for my paycheck so I am on the move for five or six hours, starting before batting practice. My husband has a more sedative job at a computer software company, but he still walks quite.

It has been a long time since I have gone anywhere by Greyhound. I wasn't sure that they were even still in business. We don't hear about them in San Francisco.

As long as we are on this topic though, is there anyone here who is just enchanted by trains in general? I am. I just watched a video from Netflicks called "World Class Trains." It talks about the Royal Scotsman and a couple of the trains run by the Orient Express Company. I was just fascinated.