Newbie with questions!

[Queen Ladybug]

My daughter and I are about to embark on our first train trip. We'll be taking the Lake Shore Ltd. from Syracuse to Chicago and then Chicago to Crawfordsville, IN on the Cardinal. We are very excited to try a mode of travel that we've wanted to try for years, but are just now getting the opportunity. (She's 12.)

We are staying in Coach and going to try to catch a little sleep there. The roomette would be $272 for us for the night and that's more than I can really justify. Do the roomettes on the Lake Shore ever drop below $150? Any chance $125-$150 would be a reasonable offer if the conductor says they have rooms available after boarding?

If we do end up in Coach for the overnight, are they any suggestions from anyone on getting better sleep?

Our layover in CHI is pretty long. I'm assuming we pick up any checked bags after we disembark from the train there and are responsible for them until we check them for our second leg of the trip? Or do they take them and put them somewhere for us, putting them on the 2nd train? We have some friends we are meeting while on our layover and we can take our bags with us, as they will have a vehicle, but I'm just wondering if we can just leave them with the baggage folks for the transition.

I've read through some of the other first time rider threads, but any other suggestions for us noobs would be fantastic! (My husband and I will likely be making the same trip in a couple months with the rest of our children. I hope we can make this a good option for some of our traveling in the future. We have 6 kids between our previous marriages and some pretty unconventional custody arrangements that have us on the road a lot between NY , IN and KY.

If only the train would drop down into Kentucky, then I'd be a super happy gal! (Yeah, I've read a little about that not happening any time in the near future!)

 

[AlanB]

Ladybug,

You don't need to worry about your checked bags, they will be transferred between trains for you. You'll only have to worry about your carryon luggage while in Chicago.

And if there is a room left, and I wouldn't bet on that, the conductor would sell it to you for less than $200. I'm not sure of the actual price, but my guess is some where in the $150 to %175 range.

If you do manage to get an onboard upgrade, then you would have access to the Metropolitan Lounge in Chicago. That would give you nice place to wait in between trains, and a place to safely leave your carryon bags for free.

 

[GG-1]

My daughter and I are about to embark on our first train trip. We'll be taking the Lake Shore Ltd. from Syracuse to Chicago and then Chicago to Crawfordsville, IN on the Cardinal. We are very excited to try a mode of travel that we've wanted to try for years, but are just now getting the opportunity. (She's 12.)

We are staying in Coach and going to try to catch a little sleep there. The roomette would be $272 for us for the night and that's more than I can really justify. Do the roomettes on the Lake Shore ever drop below $150? Any chance $125-$150 would be a reasonable offer if the conductor says they have rooms available after boarding?

If we do end up in Coach for the overnight, are they any suggestions from anyone on getting better sleep?

Aloha

Your 12 year old will love it. And unless you suffer from age issues, sleeping in a coach is OK, while sleepers are better. At 8.5 My Granddaughter had her first ride in a sleeper. Sunday she turns 9 and is talking about her next possible trip on the train in July.

I don't know your trains so I can only say if both your departing station and arriving stations have checked bags they will be checked through to your destination. Remember to calculate the cost difference between coach and sleeper include the cost of meals. The meals are included in Sleepers.
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[buck1108]

Also, if you have a roomette, you do get to take advantage of the Metro Lounge in Chicago's Union Station.

There's a guarded luggage room, free of charge, in the lounge, to those who have sleepers in or out of Chicago.

There are complimentary soft drinks and chips or pretzels, along with more comfortable seats (plush seats and sofas) in the lounge.

A food court is just upstairs from the lounge area, and I've walked to restaurants no more than a block or two from the station.

Hope this helps!

 

[Queen Ladybug]

I see the benefits of a sleeper of some sort for longer trips, but at that price, just not really cost-effective for this trip. The way the schedule works, we are only likely to be on the train for breakfast and we won't be hanging around the station long in Chicago. Our friends are picking us up to go to lunch and do some shopping, as time permits and we'll return fairly close to our departure to Indiana. A sleeper on this trip would only gain us a place to sleep a little more comfortably. I'd spend some for that, but not nearly $300 more for one night and a breakfast.

With the Lake Shore, how good is the electrical outlet access in Coach?

 

[Tracktwentynine]

I just took a look at AmSnag, a non-Amtrak-affiliated site that you can use to find the lowest fares. The cheapest Syracuse to Chicago roomette I found was for $165 (in addition to the coach fare). The coach fare is $68, so the total cost of the roomette for 2 people would be $301, if my math is correct ($68 + $68 + $165). That doesn't count the Chicago - Crawfordsville leg of your trip.

The roomette fee would mean meals are included, as is access to the Met Lounge in Chicago.

 

[coachseats]

According to amtrak.com Crawfordsville, IN does not have checked baggage. It is actually just a platform with a shelter, not a station. So you will need to either just carry on your luggage on both trains or check it from Syracuse to Chicago and then claim it in Chicago and carry it on to the second train. You may be able to wait to claim the luggage until later so you don't have to take it out and about with you, but I haven't ever checked luggage to Chicago so someone else might have more detailed info. on that. Have a good trip!

 

[the_traveler]

A tip to sleeping in coach (which is very doable on this short 1 night trip), is to bring eyeshades for sleeping. They do dim the lights in the coach, but for safety reasons, there are still some lights on. Also a rolled up coat or sweater makes a good pillow. And for the 2nd person on the aisle, if the person in the window seat reclines his/her seat one or two clicks less than the maximum, the person in the aisle seat has a "ledge" for his/her head!

(And the person in the window seat may not even notice any difference.)

 

[dlagrua]

If coach is right for your budget; overnight from Syracuse to Chicago shouldn't be that bad. Its not that long of a trip. I do recommmend that you take a Coleman Camping pillow with you. Its an inexpensive light small but efficient memory foam pillow that stuffs in a very small cover/stuff sack. Some passengers take along blankets and hang them for a curtain to achieve privacy but that's your call.

Roomettes and Bedrooms tend to boost Amtrak ticket prices significantly. Some consider them a frivilous luxury and others wouldn't travel without one. If is any consolation to you most passengers travel in coach and get to their desination fine.

 

[eagle628]

Agree with those who say coach is fine; I've done nearly the same trip (Albany to Chicago) in coach, and it was fine. So fine that I'm going all the way to Florida in coach this spring. My biggest problem was it was harder to see out the window at night in the coach compared to the sleeper, since there are always a couple lights on in coach. :help: WRT electrical outlets, I didn't have a problem with them, there's one for each seat, and they generally work. No guarantees, but I've never encountered a dead one. If you have several electronics, it might be a good idea to bring a power strip with you. If you really don't like the lights in coach (IIRC, there was one at each end of the car), the same sweatshirt or coach that was suggested for a pillow can be put over your eyes.

 

[the_traveler]

If you really don't like the lights in coach (IIRC, there was one at each end of the car), the same sweatshirt or coach that was suggested for a pillow can be put over your eyes.

Besides the ones at the ends of the cars, there is also every 2nd light on the ceiling that stays on (although dimmed).

 

[dlynbid]

According to amtrak.com Crawfordsville, IN does not have checked baggage. It is actually just a platform with a shelter, not a station. So you will need to either just carry on your luggage on both trains or check it from Syracuse to Chicago and then claim it in Chicago and carry it on to the second train. You may be able to wait to claim the luggage until later so you don't have to take it out and about with you, but I haven't ever checked luggage to Chicago so someone else might have more detailed info. on that. Have a good trip!

Correct, Crawfordsville is a SHORT stop just outside Indianapolis, no baggage service, I do INDY to CHI frequently and it is not too bad in coach. Most people just sleep. You will have to collect your bags in CHI and take them onboard, but there is plenty of room overheard to store your bags.