Riding the Maple Leaf train

[bryan123]

Okay, so i got a ticket for the maple leaf train. Im going to Niagara falls canada with a friend in july. We both got business class seats. We are coming from New York Penn Station going to Niagara Falls Ontario Canada station and so we will be crossing the border.

I never rode with amtrak before. I did some research but i have unanswered question that i thought i might ask here.

1. Is there an observation car?

2. How do i figure out for me and my friend to have seats next to each other? Will we have to go to the train extremly early?

3. How does the baggage checking process work? Whats the procedure?

4. If i bring snacks and drinks is that considered a baggage kind of thing?

5. Any one been on this train wanna share their experience/opinion?

Thanks!!

 

[Bob Dylan]

The Biz Class/ Cafe Car has the nice 2x1 Seating on this train, with only 18 seats you will be able to sit together if you choose the Double seats. . There is no observation car

per se on this route.

There is no checked baggage on this route since you will cross an International border. You must carry on your luggage and Customs and Immigration will occur inside the VIA Station once you get to Niagara Falls, Ontario. ( upon return it will be in the Niagara Falls, New York Station by US Officials.) You may want to use a Red Cap to board @ NYP, they will get you right to your car and board you before General Boarding.

You can take your ownfood and drink ( non-alcoholic) aboard but the Cafe car does sell standard Amtrak Cafe items. ( once you reach the Canadian side this train becomes a VIA Train to Toronto with a Canadian Crew and Canadian Food and Drink sold in the Cafe.)With a Biz Class ticket you will receive non-Alcohol drinks gratis. You must pay for any snacks consumed. ( they are nothing special @ High Prices!)

Don't forget your Passport or Enhanced Drivers License, you need it to book this trip and return to the US!

 

[bryan123]

Thank you.

Since being booked business class am i getting drinks free? or did i read what you said wrong? (the receiving non alcohol drinks gratis part)....

I have the enchanced id and all. How much is red cap? How does it work? Do you think we should use it so we get a seat together?

And does this train do any stops or does it go straight to niagara falls ontario with the exception of stopping at the border crossing?

 

[Bob Dylan]

Unless it's recently changed due to the current bean counter cuts, you'll receive unlimited coffee and water refills along with One soda ( Pepsi products) or bottled juice or tea.

Redcaps are Amtrak employees that appreciate tips. ($5 should be adequate) They will board you down an escalator or elevator before General boarding. Worth it in my opinion.

The Maple Leaf is a Single Level Train that makes several stops between NYP and the Border including the Major Stops @ Albany, Schectandy,Utica, Syracuse, Rochester and Buffalo.

 

[zephyr17]

You get one non-alcoholic drink for free. I got a bottled water myself on my recent ride on the Maple Leaf.

The Red Cap is tipped, at NYP at least $5. You ask for a Red Cap at the Red Cap desk inside the Amtrak waiting area (the round room that you have to show your ticket to get into). The Red Cap will walk you down to the train just before general boarding. You won't have a problem getting seats together in Business Class even if you don't use a Red Cap.

There is a special check-in podium for passengers bound for Canada. Make sure and do this pretty much as soon as you get to the station. This is before the actual boarding and not part of it. But they won't let you board if you haven't checked in and gotten the cross-border luggage tag.

The train stops a lot, it makes all the regular Empire Service stops like Yonkers, Croton-Harmon, Poughkeepsie, Albany, etc, etc.

The border formalities are AT Niagara Falls, ON. You will get off the train, go through Canadian customs and not get back on.

 

[PVD]

Remember, when the previous poster refers to "enhanced drivers license" he refers to one issued by a small group of states that are enhanced with info to allow border crossing (land and sea, not air) and are issued only to citizens with a higher standard of id needed to obtain. . There is something else called enhanced drivers license by the TSA which is a reference to the id process used to obtain it, and the newr anti counterfeiting standards. poor choice of phrases by the government folks

 

[daybeers]

You can also get water for free from a spigot next to the bathrooms in each car.

 

[bryan123]

I have to go to a special podium at Amtrak in penn station? They give me a special cross border luggage tag from there?

And with the stops... is this like regular trains where we have to stay on the train while its stopped at a major station? or is this means like get out and stretch legs and stuff? Little confused. Like I said I never been on Amtrak trains before so I don't know the experience.

If red cap is kind of free and they want a $5 tip .. will a lot of people be using it? Like if we use it... we will be first ones on the train?

And how is the wifi service on the maple leaf train?

 

[andersone]

use the red cap, its' worth five bucks

She Who Must Be Obeyed and i have passport cards from the State Department. I think they are only good for Canada.

I don't know the route well enough, but on the other LD trains I have been on there are "extended stops" where you can get out strtch your legs (and smoke)

the thing is to kick back and relax

 

[niemi24s]

On the bold assumption (probably false) that you don't have a copy of the schedule/timetable for the Maple leaf, here's a pdf version: https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/1001/975/Maple-Leaf-Schedule-011116.pdf And because you're new to Amtrak, here's a pdf version of the System Timetable which is packed with lots of addidional information: https://www.amtrak.com/ccurl/294/1015/Amtrak-System-Timetable-Winter-Spring-2016-rev.pdf Printed copies of both should be available at the station.

 

[niemi24s]

... is this like regular trains where we have to stay on the train while its stopped at a major station? or is this means like get out and stretch legs and stuff? Little confused.

Don't be confused. Simply don't get off the train unless there's a PA announcement saying you can - usually called a "smoke break". Otherwise, you run the risk of getting left at the station. The train will NOT wait for you. And if you're a smoker, don't chance doing so on the train. If caught, I hear they call the cops of put you off at the next convenient grade crossing where the cops will be waiting - maybe not even at a station!

 

[PVD]

A passport card is WHTI compliant for land and sea entry (not air) to Mexico, Bermuda, and some other Caribbean nations in addition to Canada.

 

[zephyr17]

Yes, there is a special podium they put out at Penn Station to check-in passengers bound for Canada on the Maple Leaf and the Adirondack. They check that you have the proper ID and you get the cross-border tags. It isn't a big deal. When I used it, it was set up toward the 31st St (south) side of the Amtrak area, not too far from the baggage room.

There will probably be at least a few people who want Red Caps. You should go up to the desk and arrange for one as one of the first things you do when you get to the station after checking in at the cross-border podium. They'll call for you or come for you when they are ready to take you. You will be among the first to board, and will be taken down before the regular boarding call. Remember that they really only open trains for general boarding at Penn about 10 minutes before departure and the Red Cap will be taking you down only a couple of minutes before that, so if the time seems to be getting short, don't panic. Track space is at a premium at Penn and they don't spot the trains very early. And yes, the Red Cap service is nominally "free" but a tip is customary and very much expected.

The Maple Leaf is a regular train and makes regular stops. Only a few of them will "fresh air" breaks where you can get off and walk around on the platform, do not leave trainside. Those stops will be announced. The only one I know for sure will be Albany.

There is wifi, but it is slow. I had much better luck just using my phone's network.

An Enhanced Driver's License is good for land crossings to/from Canada, as are Passport Cards, Nexus Cards, and, of course, Passports. Just make sure you carry the id that you use for the reservation, otherwise you might have problems. i.e. don't use your passport number on reservation, then present your EDL to Canadian Border Services.

 

[bryan123]

Okay thanks!...

So is there is there a dining car on this train or is just the cafe car that does snacks and stuff?

And just to make sure... me and my friend will use red cap... so we will be able to have a seat together right?

And has anyone ridden on the maple leaf? How is it? Should i sit on the left or right side of the train to see good scenery?

 

[PVD]

Cafe car only, since you are in b/c it is normally right behind you in the same car. Coffee/ tea//soda comped, anything else paid. Train becomes a VIA train when it crosses into Canada, they switch out café car stock. I prefer left hand side North/West right side East/South for better views of Hudson River, Mohawk, and remnants of Erie Canal, others may have their own thoughts.

 

[chakk]

Left side of train is best view for Hudson River between NYC and Albany. In fact, in pre-Amtrak days, the railroad crews on the New York Cenral were required to have the bedroom side of sleeping cars face the River.

And Roger O. Thornhill and Eve Kendall were seated in the diner of the 20th Century Limited on the river (left) side during dinner on their trip to Chicago

 

[zephyr17]

When I rode it in March, Business Class was the back half of the Cafe car itself. It is 2 + 1 seating, with the "1" on the left side, so if you want to sit together, you'll be on the right.

 

[PVD]

With Amtrak, anything is possible, but almost every time I've done B/C on an Empire Corridor train they faced the B/C part forward so that the coach passengers didn't walk through B/C to get to the cafe. But as I (and many others on this site) have mentioned over the years, consistency is not an Amtrak strong suit.

 

[bryan123]

Okay...

And how is the climate on the train? As im going during the summer? i assume they would be some sort of A/C or something? And can the windows be open or no?

 

[zephyr17]

With Amtrak, anything is possible, but almost every time I've done B/C on an Empire Corridor train they faced the B/C part forward so that the coach passengers didn't walk through B/C to get to the cafe. But as I (and many others on this site) have mentioned over the years, consistency is not an Amtrak strong suit

The cafe on the Maple Leaf in March was the very last car on the train, so the BC part was in the back, like you said, so coach pax wouldn't walk through BC to get to the cafe. Consistent orientation of the car to keep it that way was my assumption, putting the "1" side on the left. But you are right, anything can happen, so that is just strong possibility, not a certainty.

 

[zephyr17]

Okay...

And how is the climate on the train? As im going during the summer? i assume they would be some sort of A/C or something? And can the windows be open or no?

The train is air conditioned and Amtrak's tendency is to keep the A/C cranked up pretty high, so the cars tend to be on the cool side. With that said, it is Amtrak so YMMV. If you get cold easily, bring a jacket just in case.

The windows are sealed.

 

[PVD]

Which only matches the Amtrak philosophy of "it's a typical setup unless it isn't". The ones I've been on the split B/C car has been in front, which has the same result of coach passengers not walking through, it does flip the 2 side and the 1 side like you said.

 

[andersone]

Amtrak is like a hospital - they keep it cold to kill the bugs

 

[Triley]

Amtrak is like a hospital - they keep it cold to kill the bugs

Is it really necessary to make that type of joke with a first time rider?

To clarify for everyone, the systems I the Amfleet cars are ancient. There is no real temperature control accessible by the onboard staff. The cars are suppose to regulated to maintain a comfortable atmosphere based on the temp reading inside the car. If one of the doors to the vestibule is constantly in use/stuck open it will throw the temp readings off and that will affect the reaction on the system.

During the winter there are two sources of heat, both of which can not be controlled from within the car, as the control box is underneath the car, and the crew should not be going in to it anyway. Even if the car gets hot and we shut the fans off, it only cuts off the weaker heat source. The major heat source is along the floor. And if that heat is on, the AC can not come on.

During the summer if the car gets warm we can generally hit a button to turn the AC on for thirty minutes before it resumes normal operation. That's if the system is functioning properly. If it gets too cold we can shut the system off entirely, but within ten minutes the car is an oven, and the air is extremely stale, especially if in the coaches.

 

[bryan123]

Just quick question about the cafe items.... what kind of coffee they serve? folgers? Maxwell House?

This is a stupid question to ask but... im lactose so im assuming they would have half and half on board the train for coffee and tea right?

And they dont change trains or anything? its just straight through? Because i think i was watching a youtube video and it had them changing trains in i think albany or rochester because disel trains cant be in penn station. So they had to swap out for a dual mode train. But they was going towards penn.