Traveling with toddler

[Greg]

I'm planning on traveling from NY to FT Worth this winter with my wife and 15 mo old daughter.

I'm looking for any suggestions and travel tips.

The family rooms are all booked. Does anyone think a roomette will work?

Has anyone done this recently?

Should she sleep in her car seat so as not to get bounced around?

Thank you,

Greg

 

[jccollins]

The deluxe bedroom would probably work best for you since it includes an in-room sink, shower, and toilet. The lower bunk in a deluxe room is a bit wider than the other bunks (both the ones in a roomette and the top bunk in a deluxe room) and the room includes a larger area of private space in which to store luggage or to allow your daughter to sleep in her car seat in if you so desire. If you choose a roomette you should be cautioned that there isn't any floor space available once the beds are in their nighttime sleeping position so your daughter would have to sleep in her car seat sitting and taking up space on one of your beds or in one of the beds and her car seat would need to be stored in a downstairs luggage rack. If you can afford it, the deluxe room will be much more comfortable for you and your family.

 

[IceColdMintJulep]

She probably would fit just fine sleeping with your wife in a roomette. Obviously it wouldn't be as comfortable, but if cost is a major issue, it's worth the minor inconvenience. My wife had our 1 1/2 year old sleeping next to her one night this summer in a roomette and it didn't seem to bother her. She is a side sleeper though, so that helps. We have never put our kids in a car seat on the train. Since there are no seatbelts, I would be more concerned having a kid in a carseat, as it might fall over if it did get too bumpy or bumped by somebody

 

[Chatter163]

The roomette is REEEEEEEEAAAAAALLLLLY small, smaller than most walk-in closets. Most people are taken aback by its small size when they first encounter one, especially with two people. I have seen people's astonishment literally scores of times. To add a toddler to the mix just seems to be cramming even more in there.

 

[IceColdMintJulep]

I forgot to include this in my last post. If you go to the amtrak website, you can get the dimensions of the beds in the sleeper. Use a tape measure and mark these off somewhere in your house (the bed is the best to use) and then simulate sleeping in that space. You will then have a good idea of how tight it will be. Here is the link to the sleepers page: Roomette sleeper

to save you some time, the lower berth is 2feet 4inches wide by 6feet 6inches long, the upper berth is 2feet wide and 6foot 2inches long