This following is a post by MPFJ staff writer, Jeff. Jeff writes about sustainable living and finances at his website, Sustainable Life Blog. Jeff really enjoys traveling with his wife as much as he can, to wherever he can.
While I was traveling to visit family over Christmas, my family and I were able to experience something that we’ve never been able to do before: take a train to get to our destination. My wife’s sister lives in western New York State, and we were headed out to stay with the family in the Finger Lakes region. Unfortunately, all of the flights to nearby airports were about $450 per PERSON, round trip and much more than I was willing to pay.
After talking with my wife, we decided to take a flight for $200 (going into NYC and out of Buffalo), save ourselves a ton of money and then take Amtrak from NYC to the Finger Lakes. I’d never been on a train before and was quite excited. We ended up being rather late due to track sharing & a disabled train headed the other direction that we had to pick up, but I was still impressed and left wanting more.
Travel By Train
I’ve always wanted to take the train, and when I look at the prices it makes me want to even more. At first though, I was wondering how people were able to take so much time off to take the train from point A to point B (a few days) and then spend time enjoying point B before returning home (on an airplane). The train seemed like so much fun and would be a great trip, and I mentioned that to a friend of mine who’s a huge travel guy. He said they were fun and worthwhile, but that I was thinking about them all wrong. Make the train THE trip, instead of making it a mode of transportation to where you want to go.
So for example, instead of taking the train to Chicago to see Chicago, I should take the train to see what is between here and Chicago.
Even though the train is slower, I found the travel to be much more comfortable than most of my recent plane flights. The seats are comfortable and wide, and something that I didn’t mind sitting in for 8 hours. There are enough electrical outlets on the train, as well as WiFi, so you can be productive while you ride as well. You’re able to move, and you can go get food from the cafe car on the train after it opens. It’s a much more comfortable experience than air travel, and I look forward to getting to take the train over a longer trip (2-3 days).
Cost
One nice thing about traveling by train is that it’s often fairly cheap. The ticket may seem a bit more expensive than it is to fly, but keep in mind that you’re also using this as sleeping quarters for 2-3 days as well, meaning you wont have to pay for a hotel or other place to stay while there.
The sleeper rooms, while not huge, look good enough, and they have huge windows that you’ll be able to look out of. I hear that the Amtrak Empire Builder serves up a pretty nice ride as it goes from Chicago through Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, Montana (including Glacier National Park), Idaho, and then to a final destination of Portland (OR) or Seattle (WA).
Final Thoughts
While it’s probably not the first idea you had in mind for a family vacation, I’d strongly encourage you to look at the train routes as a vacation idea next time you’re planning. You’ll have the opportunity to see some amazing parts of the country that are typically considered “flyover” and most people don’t get the chance to see. While it wont be the fastest way from point A to point B, its a good value and will provide you and your family with lasting memories for years to come.
How about you all? Do you have any plans to travel by train anywhere? Have you done it before? If so, what do you enjoy about it?
Share your experiences by commenting below!
***Photo courtesy http://www.flickr.com/photos/springfieldhomer/12580852/
