Arabella

My 80+ parents, accompanied by me, would like to take Amtrak on a 10-hour, overnight trip from the Carolinas to DC. I'm not so sure. Does Amtrak offer a clean and enjoyable experience?

Daniel_Williams

Hi Arabella

Yes, I've taken that train 3x. With a roommette, I've really enjoyed it; don't be surprised if things run an hour or two late. The scenery in the morning in the foothills of Virginia is really quite lovely and conversations in the dining car (meals come with the price of the roommette) have added to the journey.

Not everyone enjoys this sort of thing though... the roomettes may not be up to your cleanliness standards... depends on how well the cleaners did their job the night before in New Orleans. I did a quick clean once with a washcloth, which made the roomette quite nice!

Enjoy whatever you decide! Daniel

Dukey

If you do this with TWO other adults I suggest you try to get one of the Viewliner combined rooms which would hgold four people or at least put the two older folks into a bedroom and perhaps you take a roomette.

starrs

I went with my grandmother about 30 years ago. We didn't get a roomette and I've spent some time looking at the visuals of those options on the Amtrak website. Take a look and see what you think.

We had regular seats and both of us were very good travelers. For us, it was a less than wonderful experience because the train seemed to stop, or almost stop, all night long. We'd almost fall asleep and then...another stop.

I checked the timetable to see if I was remembering this right - there's a link to the pdf timetable here -
http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/Conten.../1237405732511

But, it was safe and I'm glad I did it. If you don't get a roomette, etc. I'm not sure how comfortable they will be. There's not much to see at night. One reason to get a roomette = private bathroom.

bardo1

A 10 hour trip will be more than 10 hours - count on it. How much longer is a roll of the dice.

Long distance AMTRAK can be nice, provided you get private room(s). You don't take AMTRAK to save money but for the experience. It also helps if you are able to "go with the flow" - not recommended for Type 'A" personalities.

So, if you have both time (and don't have to arrive at a certain time) and money and want to do it, go ahead.

Arabella

All of your experiences seem positive, except for delays and frequent stops, so we'll give it a go. Thanks!!

boom_boom

I did that trip out of Atlanta a couple of years ago. We were 2 hours late leaving Atlanta, but it never got any worse all the way to DC. Loved the early morning views.