Tell a friend

[Guest John]

Am taking my first LD trip in years, Memphis-Chicago-Reno, will fly Reno to Phoenix to meet up with my brothers to play some golf in mid-march.

This is a trip I am really excited about and have mentioned it to a few friends in passing with some suprising, head scratching results, at least to me. First, I enjoy very much living in the Memphis area and was delighted to see that Memphis does in fact enjoy Amtrak service north to Chicago and south to New Orleans at suprisingly convenient times.

A lot of my friends didn't know that Amtrak came thru Memphis. One friend has a child going to collegel in New Orleans and was was completely in the dark about the service. When I mentioned the good fares and timing, I had a better friend. In fact, the child just came home on Amtrak and loved it. There may be a lunch in my future!

Another friend is taking a cruise out of N.O. this summer. She was on the Amtrak web site in a heart beat. She has never been on a train and she wants to experience it with her kids. Didn't know Memphis even had a train station. I mentioned AU to her and I am sure she will check it out. There may be a lasagne, (her's is spectacular) in my future also.

A third friend was thinking about a trip out west with his wife with a roomette or bedroom, had done some very quick looking and just multiplied the trip cost with roomette cost by 2 and ruled it out as too expensive. He is going to look again now that he understands the accomodation charge and who knows, maybe another customer?

So perhaps the lesson here is, Amtrak is near and dear to us and we assume that others just choose not to partake for their own reasons.

Let's not let it be because they just don't know!

Anyone had similar experiences??

 

[Steve4031]

I'm a teacher on the south side of Chicago and my colleagues are considering taking a group of students on college tours to historically black colleges and universities. The two women started asking me about cities served by Amtrak. Having worked there for 10 years and knowing that Howard was in Washington, D.C. and several were in New Orleans I mentioned the Capitol limited and CNOL. The discussion wandered around and they eventually asked about Memphis. Of course I told them about that too. So there may be some school sponsored railroading in my future.

 

[Big Iron]

I'm a teacher on the south side of Chicago and my colleagues are considering taking a group of students on college tours to historically black colleges and universities. The two women started asking me about cities served by Amtrak. Having worked there for 10 years and knowing that Howard was in Washington, D.C. and several were in New Orleans I mentioned the Capitol limited and CNOL. The discussion wandered around and they eventually asked about Memphis. Of course I told them about that too. So there may be some school sponsored railroading in my future.

Dont forget Virginia State. Petersburg, VA.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Spreading the Amtrak Gospel and getting folks to give it a try is always fun as long as the truth is told about all aspects! Unless folks get one of those rare trips from hell that happen to all methods of transportation, the newbies

usually come home as converts to passenger rail!

I've met many folks here that didn't have a clue that Amtrak came through Austin twice a day!

Hope you get your delicious meals and enjoy your trip, Im betting you will!

Please share it with us via a trip report and consider joining AU as a member, the price is right, Free!!!

 

[Big Iron]

Am taking my first LD trip in years, Memphis-Chicago-Reno, will fly Reno to Phoenix to meet up with my brothers to play some golf in mid-march.

This is a trip I am really excited about and have mentioned it to a few friends in passing with some suprising, head scratching results, at least to me. First, I enjoy very much living in the Memphis area and was delighted to see that Memphis does in fact enjoy Amtrak service north to Chicago and south to New Orleans at suprisingly convenient times.

A lot of my friends didn't know that Amtrak came thru Memphis. One friend has a child going to collegel in New Orleans and was was completely in the dark about the service. When I mentioned the good fares and timing, I had a better friend. In fact, the child just came home on Amtrak and loved it. There may be a lunch in my future!

Another friend is taking a cruise out of N.O. this summer. She was on the Amtrak web site in a heart beat. She has never been on a train and she wants to experience it with her kids. Didn't know Memphis even had a train station. I mentioned AU to her and I am sure she will check it out. There may be a lasagne, (her's is spectacular) in my future also.

A third friend was thinking about a trip out west with his wife with a roomette or bedroom, had done some very quick looking and just multiplied the trip cost with roomette cost by 2 and ruled it out as too expensive. He is going to look again now that he understands the accomodation charge and who knows, maybe another customer?

So perhaps the lesson here is, Amtrak is near and dear to us and we assume that others just choose not to partake for their own reasons.

Let's not let it be because they just don't know!

Anyone had similar experiences??

I'm lucky living in RVR which has what I consider pretty darn good Amtrak options. I tell friends about the train options available and have made some converts but it does amaze me that in a City with ample Amtrak service that it is not widely recognized by those that live here. My experience has been that most people think I'm a geek for promoting trains until they get a first hand experience. Then they have that "I could have had a V8" moment.

 

[gdj]

The Virginia tour can in addition to VSU in Ettrick (it's not actually in Petersburg), but let you see Virginia Union University, Richmond; Hampton University, Hampton, and Norfolk State University, Norfolk.

 

[Big Iron]

The Virginia tour can in addition to VSU in Ettrick (it's not actually in Petersburg), but let you see Virginia Union University, Richmond; Hampton University, Hampton, and Norfolk State University, Norfolk.

True, but the Petersburg station would be the stop and the address of the University, although in Ettrick, is 1 Hayden Drive, Petersburg, VA 23806 so someone looking up the college that may not know the lay of the land would be thinking Petersburg. Just trying to keep things simple.

 

[Steve4031]

I will pass this along. If the planning gets to a more serious stage I'll give them the run down on what to excet as far as delays and obs issues. On a trip to Memphis the main thing will be making sure no one wanders too far from the train in Carbondale.

 

[SarahZ]

I've had several friends start taking the train to Chicago because they saw my posts on Facebook. A couple more have taken LD trips, and a couple others are kind-of planning LD trips (they want to do it but are planning a smaller trip first to see if they like it).

Another friend suggested the Auto Train to her parents since they are "getting too old" (their words) to drive to their winter home in Florida.

Yet another friend wants to join me on my next trip to NOL. He traveled to Seattle on the EB while in college twenty years ago but traveled in coach. He wants to try a sleeper this time.

Three friends have joined AGR.

So yeah. I'm a walking Amtrak commercial.

Here is a picture of me with my very best friend. It was her first trip on Amtrak. As you can see, she loved it:



(Sorry it's blurry. We were going 110 mph at this point.)

 

[Bus Nut]

I dragged my non-foamer wife onto Amtrak and now she loves it too.

When I rode CONO I noticed that the Memphis-NOLA market on that train was very strong.

Amtrak is doing some marketing outreach to students of HBCUs. (The internet tells me that was in 2012 and 2013--why not 2014 or 2015?!) Unfortunately some campuses have better train access than others. Hopefully they will continue to increase Amtrak thruway service in the South. This feeds students directly from their college town to the Amtrak LD service. It's the next best thing to having a rail station near campus.

I wonder if another daily RT between NOLA and Memphis would increase the market there. There is an intermediate big stop in Jackson, MS. I don't see Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee seeing the light, of course. IL is investing in the line to St Louis because of course they are. That line continues to Little Rock, Arkansas, rather than Memphis and Jackson. CONO has a great history. It runs on a vital and important NS freight trunk line, the old IC line. (Illinois Central) Now CN. The train they called the City of New Orleans actually doesn't run any more and Amtrak's City of New OrleansTM is the old Panama Limited. Amtrak switched the name for obvious reasons.

 

[iggy]

If all these people had no clue Memphis is served by Amtrak - then Amtrak isn't doing it's job very good. Then again station does get mentioned in local newspaper from time to time - so not sure how locals would miss it. Memphis station normally has a good amount of passengers waiting when I've been through there. Can get a bit crowded quickly. No lounge for sleeper ticket holders - large parking lot by police station. Station near Tunica has never gone live - although been rumored for years. Amtrak does a horrible job marketing to casino visitors in several states. Examples - Illinois, Missouri and Memphis as an Amtrak station to Tunica.

Famous Peabody Hotel easily seen from train or Amtrak parking lot in Memphis.

 

[Bus Nut]

iggy, what would be really neat would be for travel sites to show you flights and Amtrak alternatives together on the same page. Of course sometimes Amtrak leaves at funny times and costs more than the plane! But it would definitely draw more people into Amtrak on some of its overlooked city pairs.

The other thing working against Amtrak is that there's very little plane/train thru-ticketing in the US. However, I'm not sure I'd want to be thru-ticketed unless it was a line with frequent service like NEC. Like I'd trust a plane to catch a train ... not these days! I once spent so long on the tarmac at JFK that the train I wasn't taking nearly beat me home. :giggle:

 

[SarahZ]

I've seen many Amtrak billboards around Michigan. They weren't there last year. I'm glad they're doing more marketing. Previously, I'd only seen a couple in central and southern Illinois.

It would be nice if other cities did the same - Memphis, for example.

 

[Ciship]

I am taking Amtrak from Chicago to New Orleans in June. Have a roomette. We are taking a cruise out of NOL. I always travel by train. LOVE IT! However, this will be the first time for hubby and others. Hubby isn't too keen on the idea. I sure hope it's a good day for Amtrak and they don't have crazy delays like they normally do!! I need this train trip to go very smoothly so he will be more opt to go again sometime.

 

[Bob Dylan]

Usually the CONO trip goes smoothly in good weather! Its really an eat dinner as you leave Chicago, go to sleep, wakeup in Memphis and eat Breakfast, cruise thru the Mississippi Delta and eat Lunch, into the Louisiana swamps, across the Lake and back into Union Station and head for your hotel!

The tracks are rough south of Illinois, especially around Memphis and into Mississippi, but baring a Hurricane ( you want to cancel a cruise if this happened) or something major happening on the tracks,should be an easy introduction to LD Train travel! Please keep us posted!

 

[Chey]

I've inspired several friends and relatives to try Amtrak - and they all liked it - but they prefer flying because they're in a rush to get 'there' (and don't get that for me the journey itself is 'there.')

 

[VentureForth]

I've seen many Amtrak billboards around Michigan. They weren't there last year. I'm glad they're doing more marketing. Previously, I'd only seen a couple in central and southern Illinois.

It would be nice if other cities did the same - Memphis, for example.

They used to advertise with a banner at the local Single-A Baseball field in Savannah's Historic Grayson Stadium. But those ads have come down a couple seasons ago. I heard an ad, once I think, last month. I get irrationally giddy when I hear an Amtrak ad. Like it was my own company or something.

 

[SarahZ]

I've seen many Amtrak billboards around Michigan. They weren't there last year. I'm glad they're doing more marketing. Previously, I'd only seen a couple in central and southern Illinois.

It would be nice if other cities did the same - Memphis, for example.

They used to advertise with a banner at the local Single-A Baseball field in Savannah's Historic Grayson Stadium. But those ads have come down a couple seasons ago. I heard an ad, once I think, last month. I get irrationally giddy when I hear an Amtrak ad. Like it was my own company or something.

Ha. I feel the same way. I kept seeing them on the way up north last month, and Brent got rather tired of me pointing to them and shrieking, "Look! Amtrak!"

 

[TraneMan]

I have a Amtrak Calendar on my wall at work (Home Depot) and I've gotten a few customer looking at it, and would ask, There's a train in the area? I would tell them yes, nearest stations are 45 min away.. (Winona, and Red Wing) and they had no clue that they were still around. I would fill them in on it.

A few years ago, I was at CUS, and was getting my Nuts on Clark popcorn for the trip home, and a couple comes up behind me and said, "Hi Jay!!!" I at first didn't know who it was, then figured they were one of my customers, and they took their first trip on the train and thanked me for the advised I told them a few months before.

I know I've had a few friends askin me about it as they see my posts on FB of our train travels.

 

[haolerider]

I've seen many Amtrak billboards around Michigan. They weren't there last year. I'm glad they're doing more marketing. Previously, I'd only seen a couple in central and southern Illinois. It would be nice if other cities did the same - Memphis, for example.

They used to advertise with a banner at the local Single-A Baseball field in Savannah's Historic Grayson Stadium. But those ads have come down a couple seasons ago. I heard an ad, once I think, last month. I get irrationally giddy when I hear an Amtrak ad. Like it was my own company or something.

I've seen many Amtrak billboards around Michigan. They weren't there last year. I'm glad they're doing more marketing. Previously, I'd only seen a couple in central and southern Illinois. It would be nice if other cities did the same - Memphis, for example.

They used to advertise with a banner at the local Single-A Baseball field in Savannah's Historic Grayson Stadium. But those ads have come down a couple seasons ago. I heard an ad, once I think, last month. I get irrationally giddy when I hear an Amtrak ad. Like it was my own company or something.

Unfortunately, a lot of advertising such as this went away when Amtrak basically did away with the field marketing and sales group year ago. Very short sighted!