Advice/tips on month long trip

After some research and reading USA by Rail I've decided to take a month to travel the US by Amtrak. As a citizen it seems that my best/only bet is the US/CAN rail pass. The time I have off to take the trip will likely be Aug/Sept, so on-peak pricing will unfortunately apply. I will likely be starting in Atlanta and am interested in stopping in the following cities (though not all) for a day or two, depending on the accommodations I line up:

NOLA

Tuscon

LA

Portland

Seattle

Glacier Park

Milwaukee

Chicago

Montreal

I laid out the names in that order as the overall route I think I'd like to take. And then from Montreal down to NYC for that trip, which I hear is great. I'm looking for any tips, suggestions, places off the path that might be good replacement stops, that anyone has to make this trip even better. I've never ridden Amtrak before but I feel that I have a good idea of what to expect as far as delays/comfort.. what I don't know much about is what to look for on certain routes, how to go about reserving/not reserving tickets if I have the N. Amer rail pass, and good places to stash a backpack while walking around the cities. Any suggestions and tips would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Paul

In Seattle I stored my suitcases behind the counter. There is a clerk there who took care of them for me. In Chicago, there are lockers.

Sounds like a great trip. I hope someday I'll be able to do that.

Hope you are prepared to buy sleepers for some nights, or sleep in coach every time and spend some nights in hotels with showers.

Altho it certainly isn't publicized, Amtrak still offers the one-, two-, and three-zone "Explore America" fares.

In the peak season May 25th thru Sept. 4th, the three-zone fare is $579. After that, it drops to $498 until Dec. 13th when peak kicks in again.

Restrictions include a limit of three stopovers and no travel over the same route more than twice. You can get more stopovers by scheduling yourself for a "forced" stopover, such as traveling Atlanta to New Orleans to connect to the Sunset. Waiting for the Sunset's next departure day doesn't count against your three stopovers. Same would be true with the Cardinal at Chicago or Washington, as both are tri-weekly trains.

That $579 is quite a savings over the North America Railpass. "Explore America" can't be booked online, but the Amtrak res agent I spoke with was quite knowledgable about it, and I assume travel agents who handle Amtrak can book it as well.

I would encourage you to take a "daytrip" somewhere and see if you really like ridin' the rails. Going all over the US sounds like fun but I wouldn't want to do it in coach for the whole thing. Coach isn't bad, I just want a bed sometimes.

Not sure about LA with your time table. Many of the other cities you mention Chicago, Seattle, Portland, Milwaukee are more compact with their "downtowns". The stations are right in the city, so you could techmically walk to your lodging or take a cab inexpensively. LA is notorious for being spread out. The downtown is not that interesting and all the other "to see" places are difficult to get to without a car and I don't think you would want to spend your limited time stuck on one of their many road ways.

San Francisco, would be a better bet. Though the train comes into Emmeryville, they do have shuttle bus service across the bridge to San Fran. Or going Northbound from LA, Santa Barbara (about 2 1/2 hours) is an exceptionally beautiful town right on the Pacific. If you want a bit of respite from the hustle & bustle of the city, this place can rejuvinate your soul. It is pricey.

Remember too you will need a passport for Canada. Sometimes the wait on the border can be long, especially if they find anything or anyone suspicious. Last time we went, they took about 5 people off the train. One young couple didn't declare enough cash to be going to Canada. They said they will be staying on a farm with friends for a couple of months. Apparently that didn't sit well with the agents and they probably thought that they were going to work illegaly to sustain themselves. Off they went!

if you do the north american rail pass, i suggest taking the canadian from vancouver to toronto (or vice versa). Its the best train in north america.

Guest said:

Remember too you will need a passport for Canada.

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Actually that is only true if you are flying to/from Canada. For the rest of this year at least, it is still possible to travel by land be it rail or car/bus, with nothing more than a photo ID and your birth certificate.

I imagine you will want to break up the trip with some city stays so you can have a shower and decent nights sleep. Sleeper compartments will probably be pricy for the time you'll be traveling. Instead of hotels another option to consider is an organization called hospitality club. It is a loose knit group that helps connect travelers with locals interested in helping them out. You might be able to find someone who would put you up for a night or two between routes. They have a website of the same name. Its big in Europe but there is nothing stopping an American from helping out another American Good luck with your trip.

There's also "hostels" for your travelling. There's two real good ones in Seattle and Chicago called the HI Hostels. Hostels you share dorms with people and pay around $30.00 a night. You can also make food in there kitchens so you don't have to eat out. They usually have discounted passes to tourist type places. I think the HI Chicago is fairly close to CUS.

One possibility for visiting an unfamiliar city is to take a bus tour. Check out grayline.com. They have tours in all major cities. You could take a cab to and from the train station and hook up with a tour.

I've taken 10 or 12 of their tours and they're always informative, relaxed, and take you some places you probably wouldn't be able to go to with limited time on your own.

One glaring error: IMHO, stay away from Los Angelos! San francisco is such a gorgeous city and there is are several good hostels there. Great city in which to walk around, streetcars, etc. Golden Gate park, the delights are endless. LA? Well, if you want a dump, go for it. Also, I'll second Alan's suggestion to do the Canadian from Vancouver to Toronto. I've done this twice and loved it! Upgrade to a berth; it shouldn't cost that much, and you get meals free + the use of TWO lounge cars. One of the great train rides in the world. Crazy not to see Canada.

Have a great trip!

This seems an overly ambitious itinerary for someone so unfamiliar with Amtrak travel.

Chatter163 said:

This seems an overly ambitious itinerary for someone so unfamiliar with Amtrak travel.

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Wish him the best but could not agree more . He needs to take a short trip first. Sir, you mention starting in Atlanta. If you live in Atlanta try riding the Crescent from ATl to Birmingham and back in a day, get the feel of it. If it is reasonalby on time you should get either breakfast or lunch both on it, and dinner coming back. The idea not being to spend as much on food as you like but just to sample that side of Amtrak--the meals. Get the feel of it first.

If you don't live in Atlanta, tell us where you do live and maybe we can suggest a similar short trip.

But then keep in mind that ATl-BHM is a slow winding trip, not nearly as exciting as some of yiour travels oculd be. So don''t be unduly turned OFF by the experience.

"There's also "hostels" for your travelling. There's two real good ones in Seattle and Chicago called the HI Hostels. Hostels you share dorms with people and pay around $30.00 a night. You can also make food in there kitchens so you don't have to eat out. They usually have discounted passes to tourist type places. I think the HI Chicago is fairly close to CUS. "

hostels are great, unfortunately the HI one in seattle closed last month. only the green tortoise is left at the moment.

A month is a long time, but it's an amazing trip. I did mine in April/May last year (wow, almost a year ago...) and blogged about it from start to finish:

http://jamesbrownontherails.blogspot.com/

You'll find some other posts by me in this forum about the trip and how to prepare for a long trip, so just search for my username and scroll back a few months.

*j* :blink:

i am leaving on my NA Rail Pass tour this evening and will be stopping in:

albuquerque

los angeles

san diego

portland

seattle

essex

chicago

ann arbor

toronto

montreal

new york

hartford

boston

portland (maine)

...then back home to kansas city

i will be in LA for three days without a car. if you're adventurous, LA is doable without one unless you can't grasp city buses. i'm not doing SF because i don't have friends there; i'll wave when i pass through.

my travelogue, inspired by james, is here: davekcmo.home

Have a great trip Dave!

And yes, I did LA without a car too last June. I did rent a car to reach Arizona, but all my LA activities centered around riding the trains. Never even stepped foot on a bus, although I did use hotel shuttle vans.

>Hope you are prepared to buy sleepers for some nights, or sleep in coach every time and spend some >nights in hotels with showers.

I am cobbling together some contacts in most some of the stops for places to crash, shower, and recharge.. I understand it won't be the most comfortable sleep, but it has to beat greyhounds.

>Altho it certainly isn't publicized, Amtrak still offers the one-, two-, and three-zone "Explore >America" fares.

Excellent.. I'll look into that, thanks!

>I would encourage you to take a "daytrip" somewhere and see if you really like ridin' the rails.

I've done some bus journeys and adjust pretty well to the lack of deep sleep, leg-room etc. One of the main reasons I want to do this (other than I've got the time in between jobs/cities) is to get away and relax a bit on the way. From everyone I've talked to, its much more relaxing than the bus, and that works for me.

As far as L.A. goes - I've been to S.F. three times and while I love it- I've always been curious about this place. I have a couple friends I'm hoping to crash with and (if I can't borrow their car) I'll likely rent a car for a day there. That's probably the only place I kind of count on not being able to easily get around in. I don't expect to fall in love with it, but more to have seen what it is.

>if you do the north american rail pass, i suggest taking the canadian from vancouver to toronto (or >vice versa). Its the best train in north america.

I really would like to take that some time, and get up to Alaska by boat perhaps, but this year I want to hit Glacier Nat'l and through Toronto to Montreal sets me up for my way down the east coast- or as far as I get since I don't need to come back to Atlanta at the end. I do have a passport, though, just in case.

>Instead of hotels another option to consider is an organization called hospitality club. It is a

>loose knit group that helps connect travelers with locals interested in helping them out.

I'm definitely looking into that as well as couchsurfing.org and even hostels (where applicable). I did hear the hostel in downtown Seattle closed...a shame as it seemed perfect!

I'll take a look into a short trip.. I'm wondering what people suggested -where I get the feel of it.. anything to watch out for? Take special notice of? Maybe things to learn so I don

t look the greenhorn come game day...?

>A month is a long time, but it's an amazing trip. I did mine in April/May last year (wow, almost a >year ago...) and blogged about it from start to finish:

Great site, thanks! I kind of wish I was able to go in a non-August month.. May sounds about right.. but thems the breaks..

>i am leaving on my NA Rail Pass tour this evening and will be stopping in:

Awesome! Good luck!! Albuquerque is amazing.. take the Sandia Peak tram if you have time (and can get out there).

Thanks everyone!

Los Angeles has good public transportation - the bus, light rail, commuter rail and subways. It takes some planning to get around. There are some interesting places near the station. I've walked around the area by myself and with my wife. There isn't much to do at night so be prepared if you stay near the station.

AlanB said:

Guest said:

Remember too you will need a passport for Canada.

Click to expand...

Actually that is only true if you are flying to/from Canada. For the rest of this year at least, it is still possible to travel by land be it rail or car/bus, with nothing more than a photo ID and your birth certificate.

Click to expand...

I had dinner with a Canadian lady in the diner of the City of New Orleans last week. She was on the train because she did not have a passport. Seems that she'd applied for a passport three months ago, and Canada's external affairs department has a longer passport backlog than the US state department.

BTW Canada does NOT require a passport of US citizen seeking entry to Canada. It is the US Department of Homeland Security that requires a passport to enter the US. Soon passports will be required for all passengers entering the US, no matter what mode (except sneeking over the fence) of travel. Might as well get the passport.

Rick

Welcome to the world of rail travel, I think it’s GREAT that you have been inspired to try train travel after reading a book!

I live in England, and discovered Amtrak for myself on a family trip to Disney California.

I have since ridden about 30,000 miles on Amtrak in the last 3 years, and am still looking forward to the next trip...(asap!)

I think a lot depends on your age, and outlook, as to what you can achieve and enjoy.. I am 54, and have always taken a sleeper, but the last solo trip in Jan 2007 I rode coach almost all the way, and found it a more sociable experience. (travel reports not finished yet, but see “Old bloke/Railpass tour” parts 1 to 4 in trip reports). I guess the trains will be far more crowded at “peak times”, so it might not be easy to get a double seat to yourself, to sleep the night away!

My impression of fellow passengers was that while some were old hands, many were first timers aboard train, so apart from knowing what to expect aboard train, such as cafe or restaurant car food costs, luggage allowances, what to bring to ease your comfort, etc, you should not fear about being a “greenhorn”.

It is a great traditional American adventure you are proposing, and I wish you all the best for it.

I do agree that a short “training” (!) trip would give you an idea of current Amtrak “ambience”, and acclimatise you slightly to riding the rails.

I have only managed just about 2 weeks holiday at a time so far, but I hope later to spend a whole month as Paul Simon puts it: “looking for America”.

Ed. B)

You can find my first Amtrak trip here to get an idea of being an Amtrak Greenhorn!