Showing posts with label Rail Travel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Rail Travel. Show all posts

Wednesday, April 17, 2013

Amtraking America

Welcome to Amtrak

~ During my 2010 American trip, I travelled via Greyhound Bus from New York City to New Orleans (with stopovers in Philadelphia, PA and Raleigh, NC). I have written an extensive six part road trip report of that journey beginning here…

That trip went so well, that I was keen to repeat the experience―albeit along a different route―during my 2012 visit to America. To that end, following my three week stay in New York City, I caught the first of what I thought would be many Greyhound Buses, to Lancaster, PA.

During my stay in Lancaster, someone suggested I use Amtrak to get to my next destination―Harrisburg, PA., a short leg by any standards. Since Greyhound Buses shared facilities with Amtrak, it was easy enough to do―so I did. That was it. I was immediately smitten. Seduced by the comfort; the leg room; the ability to get up and walk the length of the train; the large windows; the smooth, traffic free flow of the carriages; and more. The run from Lancaster to Harrisburg was over in under an hour, but I was hooked. I decided that if the opportunity arose to travel by train again, I would seize it.

Washington, DC to Savannah, GA
When I left Harrisburg, it was by bus for Washington, DC. But when I left America’s national capital, for Savannah, Georgia, it was on the Amtrak Atlantic Coast Service that takes in New York - Washington, DC - Charleston - Savannah - Jacksonville - Orlando - Tampa/Miami. There was no turning back after that. Given a choice between spending nearly eleven hours on a train or a bus, there is only one choice, and that of course is the train.

Atlantic Coast Service route guide
In researching current prices for this entry, I was able to confirm what I already knew, that depending on how and when you choose to travel, it can be cheaper to take a train than it is to take a bus. For example, current prices (as of Sunday, 14 April 2013), for the Washington-Savannah run are US$101.00 for the morning and afternoon trains, and US$173.00 for the evening train. The same route by Greyhound Bus ranges from $85.00 (advance purchase) to $159.00 (refundable ticket). The Standard Fare is $142.00.

Using the example above, the bus is cheaper than the train service. However, even though I was initially looking for the cheapest tickets available, I did not hesitate to spend the extra $16.00 for the space and luxury of the train. Oh, and it helps that some of the Amtrak services include WiFi as well. And did I mention the restaurant car? And the observation carriage with its comfortable seating that allows you to sit back, stretch your legs, and enjoy panoramic views of the passing countryside? All in all, the experience is better; the ride much smoother; and the journey certainly seems to pass much quicker.

After the Richmond stop I walked up to the restaurant car for a coffee and Panini. It occurred to me that a coach paying passenger could spend most of their trip here in relative comfort. In fact, it was a whole lot easier to use my iPad there where I could rest the device on a table and type, than to balance it in my lap, or hold it for extended periods.

Also in the restaurant car one has an opportunity to take part in conversations with a number of other passengers, rather than sit alone or converse with the person in the seat next to you in your designated carriage―assuming they want to talk in the first place.

New Orleans, LA to Tucson, AZ
Alpine, Texas
From Savannah, I rode a Greyhound to New Orleans, and after a five night stay there, I boarded Amtrak’s Sunset Limited service for Tucson, Arizona.

For the record, current prices on the New Orleans-Tucson run are $143 (Amtrak), and $188 (web only) to $232 (refundable) for the Greyhound Bus. That’s a difference of $45 assuming you buy the cheapest tickets, or a difference of $89 (if you purchase a refundable Greyhound ticket) in favour of Amtrak. As the saying has it: It’s a no brainer.

I have taken to referring to Amtrak as one of America’s best kept secrets. Almost everyone I spoke to about my train travel was amazed at the prices I paid, and my glowing recommendations. Most assumed that travelling by train would be far more expensive than by bus, and had therefore never considered the Amtrak service.

If there is a downside to using the rail network, it is that compared to the Greyhound Bus network, passengers have many more choices available to them when travelling by bus. The American rail network is a pale shadow of what it used to be, which is a great pity. Never the less, what remains covers all the main urban centres and for my money, it just can’t be beaten. At the very least, take time to compare prices between the Greyhound Bus and Amtrak services. Like me you may become a convert to the joys of rail travel.

More Information

Saturday, September 17, 2011

The Reading List 3

Welcome to my weekly roundup of the some of the more interesting discoveries I’ve made as I wander the digital highways and byways of the Internet. This week we’re examining great train journeys.

The longest rail journey I’ve ever made took place back in the early 1970s when I travelled from Greece to London. To be quite honest, I don’t remember much of the journey now, but when I read Top 10 European Train Trips by Randall H. Duckett on the National Geographic Traveler website, it did trigger some long lost memories of that ride

National Geographic don’t mention rail travel from Athens to London in this feature (I don’t know if it is even possible to take a train from Athens to London anymore), but among their ten suggestions they list Switzerland’s Chocolate Train, the Trans-Siberian Railway (Moscow to Vladivostok), the Orient Express (London to Venice), and the Danube Express (London to Istanbul).

Much of European train travel is about efficiency and comfort—punctually leaving and arriving and having a cozy seat or sleeper compartment in which to devour the latest issue of the Economist. But rail travel in the United Kingdom and on the Continent is also about experience: gaping out the window at Alpine glaciers, savoring gourmet cuisine in a restored last-century dining car. Accordingly, our ten favorite European trains don’t necessarily offer the fastest journeys—just the most memorable. All aboard!

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12 of the Most Scenic Train Rides in the World
Not to be out done by National Geographic Traveler, the Boots n All website have coincidentally compiled their own list of the 12 of the Most Scenic Train Rides in the World.

In her article, Zoë Smith mentions Norway’s Flåm Railway, whose “…20km descent is amongst the steepest in the world, twisting through yawning ravines, cascading waterfalls, remote Nordic farmhouses and snow-dusted mountain peaks.”

While this 20km trip last barely an hour, Russia’s Trans-Siberian, journey takes a good week to traverse the 9,000km (6,000 miles) of track that snakes its way from Moscow to Vladivostok. And that’s without getting out along the route to explore some of the cities the Trans-Siberian passes through.

Like the Trans-Siberian, Norway’s Flåm Railway also gets a gong in the National Geographic roundup of great journeys.

Other rail journeys that rate a mention in Zoë Smith’s piece include the Canadian Rockies Railway, the Cusco to Machu Picchu (Peru), The Palace on Wheels (India), and The Ghan (Australia), which departs from my home town, Adelaide. If you are considering a train journey, both these articles are a great place to begin your researches.

More Information
National Geographic Traveler: Top 10 European Train Trips…

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Maeklong Market, Bangkok
Here’s one train journey that has to be seen to be believed, as a train passes through Bangkok’s Maeklong Market. On the surface this seems like a rather unremarkable event until you actually see how the stall holders and the train have found a way to coexist together.


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