Chicago - New York advice please

Hi

I'm planning a trip to the U.S. next year and I'd be very grateful for any advice or suggestions please about my options for travel between Chicago and New York.

• Which is the "best" direction of travel - New York/Chicago or the other way? My preference is to travel overnight, but is there any spectacular scenery I might miss?

• Which service would folk recommend?

• A couple of years ago I travelled from Orlando to Philadelphia overnight in roomette (Silver Meteor?), which was a superb experience - is there a similar service on the Chicago/NewYork route? (I thought I saw something recently saying the dining options had been changed)?

• In the absence of a roomette - how comfortable are the seats for a long journey?

• I've previously travelled on the NE Corridor Service between NY/ Washington, NY/Boston and NY/Philadelphia - are the trains the same?

Thanks in advance

Time of year (and your personal preferences) influences scenery choices between trains. 2 of the routes use Viewliners as sleepers, they would be the ones you experienced on the Orlando trip. The other uses the "Superliner" type cars, and you would switch to it either in Washington or Pittsburgh. I usually take a NE Corridor to Washington and pick up the Cap Limited there, but some folks like to leave earlier and take the Penns. to Pittsburgh to see "Horseshoe Curve" The Cardinal is the longest running time and is only 3 days a week, but some people consider it the prettiest territory.It was originating in NY but is temporarily terminating/originating in Washington due to NY Penn repairs. I like going up the Hudson and out the Mohawk/Erie Canal route through NY on the Lake Shore, it is temporarily not coming to NY because of maintenance/construction. That should be done well before your trip. Availability of space varies widely by time of year, day of the week, and also the route, which in turn influences pricing. Is it worth $100 or more extra to go on one train over another? That is a question I don't think any of us can really give a fair answer. I'm from NYC, but in June I was in Buffalo and hopped on the Lake to spend a few days in Chicago before heading to Colorado. Coming home I took the Cap Limited and a NE regional. If the Lake or Cardinal was running to NYC, I would have had to make that same choice.

PVD gave you excellent advice!

A few comments: the Lake Shore Ltd ( leaves Chicago @ 930pmish)and the Cap Ltd.( leaves CHI @ 640pm)have recently switched to what is called "Fresh and Contemporary Meals" in the Diner, which means Boxed Cold Food, but it's a New system that is evolving, so nobody is sure just what will be on offer when you ride.

The Lake Shore is usually pretty full so Prices tend to be High, the Cap ( which has Superliners equipment) less so for Roomettes.( You do have to transfer to the Pennsy in Pittsburgh or a Regional in Washington as PVD said.)

The 3 Day a week Cardinal( leaves,CHI @545PM) is a short, fun Train with Viewliner equipment.Cureently the Food is heated in a Convection oven and served in the Diner/Lounge, but this too may change once all ofthe New,Diners go into service??)

The Scenery on the Second day is outstanding through the New River Gorge and Virginia.This Train tends to run Late and it's dark up the NEC between Washington and New York.

All things considered, Id ride the Cardinal from Chicago to New,York in a Sleeper with Biz Class a better Option over Coach on this Train.

Second choice of Trains is the Cap Ltd. Chicago to Pittsburgh switching to the Pennsy to New York.( you arrive very early into PGH but as was said get to see Horseshoe Curve,Amish Country and the NEC in Daylight.

Last choice is the Lake Shore, but if you ride it be sure and book the New York Section (#48) ,not the Boston Section (#448) so you're close to the Sleeper Lounge and don't have to change cars in Albany for New York.

Bob Dylan said:

PVD gave you excellent advice!

A few comments: the Lake Shore Ltd ( leaves Chicago @ 930pmish)and the Cap Ltd.( leaves CHI @ 640pm)have recently switched to what is called "Fresh and Contemporary Meals" in the Diner, which means Boxed Cold Food, but it's a New system that is evolving, so nobody is sure just what will be on offer when you ride.

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Just to correct a bit on this: there's now a hot short rib entree available for lunch and dinner. Currently there are no hot breakfast options.

Bob Dylan said:

(Currently) the Food is heated in a Convection oven Train.

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How is that different from other trains?
With the exception of items that require a grill (such as steak or made to order eggs), ALL meals in ALL Dining Cars are pre-prepared and heated in a convection oven! That is why you can not ask for no garlic, no breading or no mushrooms to be used in your dish. (It was prepared like that before it was loaded on the train.)

Pretty much what everyone said:

A:

The Lakeshore Limited runs daily leaving Chicago at 9:30 PM. It uses Viewliner equipment and provides a one seat ride to NYC. It tends to be expensive though. I enjoy the ride in New York state as you can see the Erie Canal and then the Hudson River. This is my preferred Chicago-NYC train. It's also the quickest.

B:

The Capitol Limited to Washington DC. You'll have to switch to a Northeast Regional train to NYC. The Capitol uses double-decker Superliner equipment. The scenery is nice after Pittsburgh through Pennsylvania, Maryland, and West Virginia.

C:

The Capitol Limited to Pittsburgh and change to the Pennsylvanian at Pittsburgh. I don't enjoy this option. You have to get off the Capitol Limited at 5 AM, and take a very long ride in Coach or Business Class on single level cars. Horseshoe curve is the highlight, but not worth the early AM transfer.

D:

The most scenic eastern long distance train is the Cardinal. Take this if you're looking for a scenic ride. It's a long ride, but being in a sleeping car makes up for it. Normally this train runs all the way to NYC, but is being truncated in Washington for now. If you're going next year, it may be running all the way to NYC again. Either way, you get to NYC very late on this route. As mentioned, this is the only option that runs 3 days per week. The first three options run daily.

Many thanks for all the helpful replies and suggestions. Exactly the sort of info I was looking for. You've given me food for thought - I'm now considering extending my trip and adding a couple of nights in Washington before continuing to New York. BTW - when I make my trip, I will have turned 65. Am I correct in thinking that I'll qualify for reduced prices on Amtrak?

sherman said:

Many thanks for all the helpful replies and suggestions. Exactly the sort of info I was looking for. You've given me food for thought - I'm now considering extending my trip and adding a couple of nights in Washington before continuing to New York. BTW - when I make my trip, I will have turned 65. Am I correct in thinking that I'll qualify for reduced prices on Amtrak?

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You are correct. You’ll be getting 10% off the base rail fare.

saxman said:

. If you're going next year, it may be running all the way to NYC again. Either way, you get to NYC very late on this route. As mentioned, this is the only option that runs 3 days per week. The first three options run daily.

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If the booking page is to be believed, the Cardinal will be running to NYP again starting 11/14 this year.

I've never done either of the CL connection options, but I've done both the Lake Shore and the Cardinal (the Lake Shore eastbound, Cardinal westbound.) As of now I'll be taking the NER > Capitol Limited in October, but that may change if sleeper availability opens back up at a non-ridiculous amount on the Lake Shore for my trip.

That said, between those two options: The worst part, for me, about the Cardinal is its early/late calling times at NYP. I'm not a huge fan of having to be heading to the station by 5:00 - 5:30 so that I'm there by 6 or so for boarding (it's a 6:45 AM departure from NYP.) The 10 PM arrival into NYP isn't quite as bad, but if there's any delays it starts getting to be a non-ideal time really fast (especially if you're visiting, so you're still having to adjust to a new city, find your hotel, check in, etc. before being able to settle in.) Especially since I've done the Cardinal now, if the Lake Shore is roughly the same price I'll take the later wake-up/earlier settle-in time plus the extra time on at least one end (westbound extra half-day in NYC, eastbound an evening/additional connection cushion in Chicago and an evening/better settle-in times in NYC.) If the Cardinal has a better price than the Lake Shore or the Capitol + NER, I'd do the Cardinal, though.

That said, if the early wake-up time isn't an issue, the Cardinal has the best scenery, though I'm not sure it's better enough to make it worth a significant upcharge over the Lake Shore Limited. The Lake Shore Limited goes a bit faster, and upper New York state is really enjoyable as well for scenery.

The mention of the Cardinal returning to NYP in November seems possible.No-One is certain when the Trackwork in NY will finish IINM???

I just booked my Train trip home from the Gathering and the Cardinal was only offered with a Regional Connection in WAS, but the Buckets were Super High, so I'm riding the Pennsy to PGH( Biz Class),CL (Roomette) to CHI and Texas Eagle Roomette) to Austin for 19,000 AGR Points,which is Less than under AGR1.0( 20,000 for 2 Zones, but of course 2 could ride in the good old days).