Dont know what to do

My daughters fathet spur of the moment bought hs tickets to indiana i have no id because that and my social security card were stolen but what i do have are my birth certificate a photo copy of my id my national grid bill and a police report of my missing id

Explain to the conductor that you don't have your ticket, and give them your name, they should be able to use your name and ID to find your ticket on their manifest.

No i have my tickets no actual id

You should be fine, if the conductor asks for one, just explain what happened, everyone has times like that, so they should be able to make something work.

I hope so do you use amtrak frequently

I personally have been working in more Amtrak travel, and I still want to ease your mind, so while you're here do you have any more questions for me or the forum?

Yes actually ive never traveled by train or with a child before and now im doing both with my one year old do i still get to bring a bag on with me with diapers etc and how big of one can i bring on with me

This whole no id thing has me so worried

I've never been asked for I'd in the train, but just in case you are asked, I'd think what you have would be fine.

You'll be fine with the diaper bag in addition to any other bags you have as long as you can carry it all onto the train.

I have never had to show my ID for any Amtrak trip... New Haven, Springfield, MA, Seattle, Portland OR, NY Penn... Never once have they asked for my ID, even in sleeper class (and the Chicago first class lounge for that matter). A ticket was always enough to get by.

I believe that conductors request IDs on a random basis. I would be prepared to present whatever identification you have - just in case.

I have been asked to show identification several times while traveling in sleepers.

Savannah is where your boarding isn't a crew change so I strongly doubt they are checking id there. Just because it would be a logistical nightmare. And it would really slow the process down.

In Washington they could but I would say very very unlikely. I've traveled on Amtrak since 1994 and I've only ever had my ID checked once in Portland, OR and that was this month out of 60,000 Amtrak miles. And I'm actually an east coaster and I can tell you they generally don't care on the Florida trains when I've ridden them which is most of my mileage.

I travel a lot on Amtrak and they only time they asked for id was to verify I qualified for senior discount. Now that I am 75 they never ask anymore.

In all my years traveling on Amtrak, I've only been asked for ID twice. Both times were when boarding in New Orleans - the beginning of the route.

I had lived for many years on the Northeast Corridor, and I was never asked. Even if I used a AAA discount, I wasn't asked for ID.

Even if you hope to travel on Amtrak frequently, I would recommend that you join Amtrak Guest Rewards (AGR)! (A separate account for each person traveling.) You earn points for each travel, which can add up to free travel! There are many other ways to earn points in AGR too.

Bring the police report and so forth. The conductors rarely ask for ID. If they do ask, they'll be perfectly satisfied with the police report, they're reasonable and nice people.

Baggage rules:

https://www.amtrak.com/carry-on-baggage

"Each passenger may bring two personal items, 25 lbs. (12 kg) and 14 x 11 x 7 inches each, and two carry-on items, 50 lbs. (23 kg) and 28 x 22 x 14 inches each, onboard. Make sure you have a tag with your name and address on the outside of all your bags."

("Personal items" means purse, laptop bag, etc.)

"Passengers traveling with infants under the age of two may bring an additional infant item onboard (strollers, diaper bags), which does not count towards the carry-on baggage or personal item limit."

In addition, you can typically bring a pillow and a blanket (intended to be used on the train) . Amtrak is very reasonable about this.

However, you DO have to be able to carry *everything* yourself. Unless you're disabled, they don't have to assist you with your luggage.

Thank you all so much these answers were really helpful and i appreciate it so much

The only time I was asked to show ID was when I went to the ticket counter to pick up a prepaid ticket. I did see a Conductor ask for ID when the person across me in a roomette had someone say she was in their room. It turned out the person was traveling on the wrong day after the conductor checked their records. Otherwise never see anyone ask for ID.

Lonestar648 said:

It turned out the person was traveling on the wrong day after the conductor checked their records.

Click to expand...

Doh!

All dressed up with nowhere to go.