Cruise ships

[creddick]

Is Amtrak partnered with any cruise lines like the airlines are. If going on a cruise, one can usually arrange transportation to the port in a package that includes air and cruise.

 

[GregL]

Wouldn't it be great if they did! Having been on several cruises and several long Amtrak trips, that would be the best of both worlds. I have never seen a complete package offering both.

GregL

 

[daveyb99]

I do not think the timing of train arrivals or the available routes would make for a beneficial partnership between AMTRAK and the cruise lines. Plus, most would likely require an overnight stay before and after the cruise.

Maybe try to book an AMTRAK Vacation package separate from the cruise - one that includes rail + hotel.

 

[Cho Cho Charlie]

Well, possibly Amtrak should get into this. From my experiences over in the Cruise forums, the cruise lines tend to pad the costs of the air travel they included into their package deals by quite a bit. I mean, it is well know that it is far cheaper to book one's air travel separately from one's cruise.

All one gets by booking air and cruise as a package deal, is guaranteed connections. But, again, one is paying quite an extra premium for that comfort.

 

[hello]

I know that NCL has an Amtrak discount code that can be used for transportation to and from the cruise port. You need to arrive the day before embarkation ... but I believe it is for 15% off both rail and accommodation prices. It does not include transportation to/from the pier.

 

[jmbgeg]

I do not think the timing of train arrivals or the available routes would make for a beneficial partnership between AMTRAK and the cruise lines. Plus, most would likely require an overnight stay before and after the cruise.Maybe try to book an AMTRAK Vacation package separate from the cruise - one that includes rail + hotel.

Yes, most if not all cruises department greater LA, Seattle, or Vancouver on the west coast would likely require an overnight in the departure city, but I would not mind that, given the opportunity to earn AGR points on the rail, hotel and cruise components (or maybe even use AGR points for part or all of the trip).

 

[Tony]

I charge my cruises, to my AGR credit card, and get points that way.

 

[sunchaser]

Check out keyholidays.com. They offer Amtrak trips & Cruises, but they are not bundled together. Maybe give them a call & see if they can bundle them? The info is a bit old, but shows several cruises departing from San Francisco.

 

[varnish]

Hi,

The nature of both products does not make it easy to offer ''off the shelf'' packaging ; but a long distance train and a cruise are highly similar: both are '' cruises'' of sort, one on land and one on the high seas. For folks with lots of time and flexibility, both can be combined easily.

I-E: A mid-west couple can fly to Vancouver, go on a cruise,ecplore Vancouver and area for a couple of days, go back to Seattle on the evening Cascades service, spend 1-2 day in Seattle, take EB back to Chicago.

We're doing a near total circumvention of the NorthAmerican continent this september by combining Amtrak and Celebrity Cruise lines, all this without so much as touching an airport: 29 days cruise Vancouver-Alaska-SanDiego-fullPanama transit, on to Baltimore; then regional/ CL to Chicago, visit friends, then EB to Seattle and thruway bus home to Vancouver !!!!

I booked clients 3 years ago on a very similar trip: cruise to Fortlauderdale from Vancouver, SM to Washington, touring area,CL + EB to Seattle, touring arera, Cascades to Vancouver.

While impractical to ''package'', it is a very desirable way to travel.

Eastern Seaboard folks are frequent users of Amtrak// Florida originating cruises//Amtrak back home.

WestCoast people , likewise, are not infrequent users of a '' CS -cruise'' combination towards acheiving a great vacation.

Smooth rails and seas.....what a way to go !!

Cheers

claude

 

[Guest_Tracksentinel_*]

Yeah. Like I want to trust Amtrak with getting me to Miami in time for my non-refundable cruise...

 

[AlanB]

Yeah. Like I want to trust Amtrak with getting me to Miami in time for my non-refundable cruise...

I can't tell you how many people I saw on TV this year and last that missed their cruises because the airlines failed to get them there on time too. In today's world if one is smart, one spends at least one night in the departure city of one's cruise, and even that can't 100% guarantee things, but it does improve the odds.

The smart person buys insurance, that way if everything goes south with whatever travel method you choose and you miss your cruise, you'll get an insurance payout.

 

[cmthru]

I recently booked a cruise on NCL leaving out of NY. While NCL doesn't have a package plan that includes rail transport they do have a deal with Amtrak. All I needed to do was call the Amtrak group desk and tell them I had booked a NCL cruise. They knocked 25% off the lowest fare. Turned out to be cheaper than a fare I could have booked online.

 

[sunchaser]

I was just looking on the Amtrak Guest Rewards Site, & there is a company called Cruise Locators. They are offering points for cruises & there is a search function, so maybe you could try bundling that way.

 

[Tony]

I was just looking on the Amtrak Guest Rewards Site, & there is a company called Cruise Locators. They are offering points for cruises & there is a search function, so maybe you could try bundling that way.

I checked them out, with the hope that I could get even more AGR points by booking thru them, but found they were charging about $100 more per person, than booking directly on the cruise line's own site. I am not sure if their extra AGR points is worth the extra money; you're kind-of buying AGR points at that point.

 

[Guest]

I was just looking on the Amtrak Guest Rewards Site, & there is a company called Cruise Locators. They are offering points for cruises & there is a search function, so maybe you could try bundling that way.

I checked them out, with the hope that I could get even more AGR points by booking thru them, but found they were charging about $100 more per person, than booking directly on the cruise line's own site. I am not sure if their extra AGR points is worth the extra money; you're kind-of buying AGR points at that point.

Check out Continental Cruises. I have never actually booked with them, but their rates don't look marked up and you get OnePass (AGR) Miles (Points).

 

[Bootman4U]

Several years ago Carnival Cruise Lines offered what they called a "Rail and Sail" option for their cruises leaving Miami and Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale) but I don't know that they do this any longer.

 

[varnish]

Several years ago Carnival Cruise Lines offered what they called a "Rail and Sail" option for their cruises leaving Miami and Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale) but I don't know that they do this any longer.

They don't.

Cheers

Claude

 

[Tony]

Several years ago Carnival Cruise Lines offered what they called a "Rail and Sail" option for their cruises leaving Miami and Port Everglades (Fort Lauderdale) but I don't know that they do this any longer.

It seems that possibly Amtrak (or actually Amtrak Travel) offered it, not Carnival itself. However, there is now a dead link on Amtrak Travel for Cruises out of Miami.

http://www.cruisemates.com/articles/before/railorfly.cfm

http://www.amtrakvacations.com/index.php?dest_id=41 (check out "Cruise" on right side)

 

[Shanghai]

I think Holland America has some relationship with Amtrak.

We always travel (usually to Tampa or Ft Lauderdale) the day before the cruise

to be certain we don't miss the ship.

On return, we can get from the ship to the train station for the Silver Star.

 

[VentureForth]

Tampa has pretty good proximity (1 Mile, driving) and connection times with Royal Caribbean, Holland America and Carnival. The ports are only a couple miles from the train station, and departure times for the cruises are typically 4 PM (close) or 5 PM (a bit better). Coming in from the North, it's pretty safe. You arrive at 12:30 and the cruise departs at 4 or 5 PM. On the return, the ship gets in around 7 or 8 AM and the train leaves around 5 PM.

From the South, not so simple. You can get home with plenty of padding, but you arrive at 5 PM, so you have to get there the night before. Of course, if you're coming from the South, you're probably better off cruising from Miami!