Daniel, thanks for the roomette encouragement. I think we'd be fine.

Delta King sounds like fun - we'll have small and lightweight lightweight wheel bags, so I think we can manage the walk.

I haven't had a chance to talk to my my wife about all this yet, but we'll be in the car for a couple hours today. I'll bring this up with her to get her thoughts on it.

The cheapest of the OldSac hotels is the Vagabond Inn.
http://www.vagabondinn.com/vagabond-...mento-old-town
Booking directly with them is $88 plus taxes.
The Delta King rooms tend to be from $148 on up to about $650 per night.
I go about 6 blocks east on H Street to the HI hostel.
They do have some private rooms for less than $90.
I did once rent the River City Suite which has a handicapped bathroom. (Check prices and availability).

Thanks Tom, Vagabond Inn looks like a good deal. Will keep it in mind for sure. Location is certainly great.

We may want to save a bit on Sacramento hotels because we are now thinking we'll splurge and get a bedroom on the train. If a bedroom is not available, then at least the roomette will seem like a deal!

Two train questions, maybe the answer to both is "it doesn't matter", but here goes:

1) Is it better to sit facing north or south while on the train? I'm thinking face north so that the sun should be behind you slightly more often, so you are not looking into it.

2) We'll take the train one way and fly the other. We'd prefer going DEN-SAC on the train. But, is there any reason why going the other way could be better, like passing through good scenery during daylight hours?

Thanks!

If you can find a Groupon or TravelZoo special for the Delta King it wouldn't cost but maybe $10 more than the Vagabond.


Atmosphere at the Delta King - about an 8.5 . . . Atmosphere at the Vagabond Inn - about a 2.5 (and that is for the garden courtyard). But w/o a discount deal for the DK, yes the vagabond is really convenient to the station.

If you don't like the view from your sleeper car window, head for the Sightseer lounge to get the view from either side.
You won't know which side your view will be from the sleeper car because they can be put into the consist in either direction.
The best scenery on the CZ is west of Denver and most of the way through Colorado and into the Ruby Canyon leading to Green River Utah.
The westbound CZ usually meets the eastbound CZ about 30 minutes east of the Glenwood Canyon which is the best daytime scenery on any Amtrak long distance route IMO.
The meeting happens about 1:30 to 2PM when both trains are on time.
You also have some good scenery between Reno and Roseville California going either way.
When I used to sleep in coach seats (CHI-SAC), I/we used to get off for 24 hours in Glenwood Springs and stay at a not so good hostel (not HI).
If you have a good SCA you will have coffee and probably some fruit in the sleeper car at the head of the stairs before you would go to the dining car for breakfast.

Thanks very much for info guys, really appreciate it. Tom what is an SCA? But based on what you said we'll just plan for the westbound train.

Janis, I haven't used Groupon or TravleZoo, but will start keeping an eye on them.

We'll try to make the travel reservations within the next few days.

I 'think' SCA means sleeping car attendant . . .

Yes tip your sleeping car attendant if s/he gave good service.
The SCA's room is always roomette #1 next to the upstairs bathroom.

Well, this is the most expensive toilet we have ever paid to use, but we booked a Superliner bedroom for the westbound leg of our trip!

We'll have time for a couple nights in Sacramento before moving on towards Yosemite. Then several days to spend in a Gold Rush town during the return to Sacramento and our flight home, which is also booked.

Should be a good trip. Thanks everyone for the helpful information.

Sounds like so much fun! You and your wife sound like (a little younger) me and my husband!

Thanks Surfergirl, we are looking forward to it! We're excited about taking the train, something different, and glad we decided to spring for the bedroom.

Now ironing out some fine details, like should we spend two, or maybe three nights in Sacramento at the start of the trip?

We might be younger than you, but are now at the age where the warranty on our parts is starting to run out (mid-late 60's).

Good luck with the bedroom. I think I prefer not having a toilet and shower in my bedroom.
One night in Sacramento should be enough. The HI hostel and the Vagabond are budget friendly.
If you didn't want to rent a car in Sacramento, you can take a train or bus/train combo (San Joaquin) to Merced and take a YARTS bus into Yosemite.
There is a YARTS bus stop at the foot of the driveway of the BUG HI hostel if you can't get something in or closer to Yosemite Village.

No, one night in Sacramento won't be enough. Because of the railroad museum and the Crocker plus probably the Capitol Bldg. and a couple of nice meals -- book 2 nights. No reason for 3 nights though.

And no, you don't want anything to do w/ traipsing around Merced or taking YARTS. That would be too convoluted by half. And no, you don't want to stay at the BUG.

I should have read your profile before making assumptions. The Beatles quote should have clued me in. We are slightly younger than you. Just slightly.

Follow Janisj's advice on Sacramento. We had a GTG with Sactown peeps like her twice on our yearly trip up there. I'd walk the capitol grounds and take a tour of the inside. It's a cool place, although it might not be so exciting to you since you're not from California. However, I, for one, love having Jerry Brown as our governor. He signed my UC diploma as governor 40 years ago as our youngest governor. He signed my son's UC diploma 36 years later as our oldest governor!

And if you like pubs, check out De Vere's on L Street between 15th & 16th. The pub fixtures were actually sent from Ireland in pieces and reassembled there. Gorgeous! And the pub food is pretty good as well.

>>And if you like pubs, check out De Vere's on L Street between 15th & 16th. <<

or -- the Fox & Goose ate 10th and R streets. Both are terrific.

Thanks much for the Sacramento advice, really appreciated. The pubs look great! It actually sounds like we could enjoy three nights there, but we'll see.

Great story about Governor Brown, Surfergirl. That's cool. A capitol tour sounds good.

Is there a good botanic garden, I'm not finding one online. Is the arboretum at UC Davis worth a trip for a wife who is really into gardening?

We'll rent a car. I did book the night before we go into Yosemite at El Portal, Yosemite View Lodge. It's a weekend, so we'll have the driving out of the way on our first day.

It's my first visit to Yosemite since 1975, where I discovered I enjoyed backcountry stuff. My wife has never been there. Among other trips somehow I survived an early season solo backpack into the Clark Range, where I made every mistake a beginner could, including falling into a river.

<i>> I prefer not having a toilet and shower in my bedroom.</i>
I get your point tomfuller, makes sense. But I guess it will be <i>our</i> toilet and shower. Of course we don't have to use them, ha!

>> Is the arboretum at UC Davis worth a trip for a wife who is really into gardening? <<

Parts are great -- but it isn't a knock your socks off landscape garden. It is very large.

The rose garden on Capitol Park is lovely and will be in full bloom. There is also a terrific rose garden in McKinley park.

http://www.mckinleyparkcenter.org/mc...k-rose-garden/

janis, thanks for the info. The rose gardens are now on our list and the arboretum is off.

The demonstration gardens at Amador Flower Farm could be worth a stop on our way to Yosemite. My wife works on the demonstration gardens at Colorado State University, so will enjoy seeing those.

And it looks like it's surrounded by wineries, a win-win! Could even be worth spending the night near there.

Thanks again!

>>The demonstration gardens at Amador Flower Farm could be worth a stop<<

Absolutely!

And that area is a fabulous wine region -- sort of what Napa/Sonoma was 30 years ago. Very scenic. Almost none of the wineries charge for tasting and you will often be talking w/ the winemaker in the tasting rooms. There are a vast number of vineyards/wineries just east of Plymouth. In fact, if you want to visit the Flower Farm and do much wine tasting, I would consider staying 2 nights in Sacramento and 1 night in/near Plymouth along Hwy 49 (Plymouth/Amador City/Sutter Creek/Jackson). Several motels and B&Bs in the area.

Thanks again, that sounds like a great plan. I'll work on it:

2 nights Sacramento
1 night near Amador
1 night El Portal
4 nights Yosemite
Still have time for 4 nights in Murphys or somewhere else.

Should be about perfect.