Cardinal or Lake Shore Limited going West

[Cal]

I should wait to post this, but oh well.

I might be taking a trip in July to the east coast (if COVID cases are low and we feel safe). We will be driving there, and intend to take the train back. We will begin in NYP and end in FUL, intending to take the Chief from CHI-FUL. I do not want to take the Capitol Limited as I really want to try the Viewliner's. Taking roomettes.

So, right now I am leaning towards the Cardinal for the ride back. First of all, I would be able to experience travelling on the NEC. It looks like it's the cheaper option. It's longer. And I heard the scenery is the best for the Eastern trains.

I will have never been on the East coast before. So this will let me see more of the east coast as well.

And if one train has more of a chance of getting a Viewliner II, that would be good to know! Not a fan of the in-room toilets.


Which do you think I should take?

 

[Bob Dylan]

The Card is a good choice but you probably wont get a Viewliber II since most times the Card only has 1 Revenue Sleeper with a Seconf one one added during peak times.( Note the Cardinal is a Regularly Scheduled 3 times a week Train year round)

 

[IndyLions]

The Cardinal is my home train as it turns out – since I live in central Indiana where we barely have any trains at all – and it is a great choice for a trip that includes sightseeing. The New River Gorge is fantastic in West Virginia.

There are resources you can find online for on-time performance. Generally you are only interested in the percentage of times where the result means a missed connection in Chicago. I would check that out as due diligence.

I’ve had terrific luck with the Cardinal, with the exception of one disaster when a crew technical mistake prompted the host railroad to ground the train in place for 5 hours and caused me to miss my connection to the California Zephyr in Chicago. That forced a cancellation of my trip, which was not the result I had hoped for.

Other than checking out the statistics on connections – I wouldn’t hesitate to take that train if I were you.

 

[Ryan]

Cardinal for the reasons you specify.

 

[Cal]

The Card is a good choice but you probably wont get a Viewliber II since most times the Card only has 1 Revenue Sleeper with a Seconf one one added during peak times.( Note the Cardinal is a Regularly Scheduled 3 times a week Train year round)

Yeah, a bit sad about that. But hey, I'm sure I'll have another chance to get on one eventually

Other than checking out the statistics on connections – I wouldn’t hesitate to take that train if I were you.

Looks like it's been missed 3 times in the past year or so. I'm not that worried.

Cardinal for the reasons you specify.

Alright, well seems like Cardinal it is. Thanks

 

[niemi24s]

If a portion of your return trip is from CHI to NYP, be advised the Cardinal and LSL do have identical fare structures.

 

[Cal]

If a portion of your return trip is from CHI to NYP, be advised the Cardinal and LSL do have identical fare structures.

We are going one-way east to west.

I do know the fare buckets, however the LSL seems to be more popular due to the quicker travel time, and therefore is almost always in a more expensive bucket.

 

[IndyLions]

Be casre

We are going one-way east to west.

I do know the fare buckets, however the LSL seems to be more popular due to the quicker travel time, and therefore is almost always in a more expensive bucket.

Be careful about that. The Cardinal has far less capacity - a shorter train and only 3 days per week. Since the Cardinal is the only local train I have - I pay close attention to fares. Outside of the pandemic - it was really difficult to find low bucket. So as the numbers of vaccinations increases and more and more people get comfortable in traveling - as soon as there is an uptick in ridership the low buckets will be gone fast. Get your ticket ASAP if you can!

 

[MARC Rider]

The Lake Shore Limited has nice scenery going up the Hudson. They also have a Viewliner II dining-lounge, which might be more pleasant than the Amfleet dinette car use on the Cardinal. Of course, the food will be flex dining either way, but you can always buy additional stuff in New York before you leave.

 

[jiml]

If travelling end-to-end, the reasons for avoiding the Cardinal in the past were its food and high cost. Now that the food is all the same, it comes down to paying a bit more for excellent scenery and some rarer mileage travel. It's one of the few routes where sleeper accommodation can occasionally be cheaper in summer than the other three seasons. I have rarely seen more than one sleeper in Fall, Winter or Spring, which limits capacity. However, they'll sometimes add more during Summer, actually bringing the normal cost down. The absolute best were the Superliner years, with greater capacity in off-peak seasons.

 

[Cal]

Booking literally, right now.

I would love to take the LSL! But, I want to experience travelling on the NEC, and the prices are exactly the same. I've never travelled in a viewliner before, so I want more time on the train! Also, seeing the tiny town of Thurmond, WV, is cool.

Hopefully I'll be able to take the LSL, and eventually all Amtrak routes, in the future!


And once it gets closer to the date, I'll ask more about scenic highlights, tips, and if anyone will spot my train.

 

[tricia]

Booking literally, right now.

I would love to take the LSL! But, I want to experience travelling on the NEC, and the prices are exactly the same. I've never travelled in a viewliner before, so I want more time on the train! Also, seeing the tiny town of Thurmond, WV, is cool.

Hopefully I'll be able to take the LSL, and eventually all Amtrak routes, in the future!


And once it gets closer to the date, I'll ask more about scenic highlights, tips, and if anyone will spot my train.

Look for bald eagles along the river through WV.

 

[Cal]

Look for bald eagles along the river through WV.

Will do!

 

[n714da]

We're booked on the eastbound Cardinal in mid-April – a bedroom and a roomette for our family of three. Am I correct in assuming the consist will likely be one Viewliner sleeper, an Amfleet cafe (also serving Flex meals to sleeping car passengers) and two or three Amfleet coaches? Thanks!

 

[OBS]

We're booked on the eastbound Cardinal in mid-April – a bedroom and a roomette for our family of three. Am I correct in assuming the consist will likely be one Viewliner sleeper, an Amfleet cafe (also serving Flex meals to sleeping car passengers) and two or three Amfleet coaches? Thanks!

yes

 

[Cal]

By the way, about where will it become dark and light in July/August?

 

[AmtrakBlue]

By the way, about where will it become dark and light in July/August?

I've used this, with a trains timetable to determine what I might miss due to darkness
https://www.sunrisesunset.com/

 

[Cal]

I've used this, with a trains timetable to determine what I might miss due to darkness
https://www.sunrisesunset.com/

Thanks!

 

[PaTrainFan]

I have a great app on my smartphone called Sundroid. You can get amazing information on sunrise/sunsets and other celetial events for anywhere in the world on any date.

 

[Cal]

I have a great app on my smartphone called Sundroid. You can get amazing information on sunrise/sunsets and other celetial events for anywhere in the world on any date.

Okay, I'll check it out

 

[Shortline]

A few weeks ago, the consist was a bag dorm, sleeper, cafe, and 3 coaches. Will be on it again, a week from now, will see, but I think the bag/dorm, is a normal thing now,

 

[jruff001]

Booking literally, right now.

I would love to take the LSL! But, I want to experience travelling on the NEC, and the prices are exactly the same. I've never travelled in a viewliner before, so I want more time on the train! Also, seeing the tiny town of Thurmond, WV, is cool.

Hopefully I'll be able to take the LSL, and eventually all Amtrak routes, in the future!


And once it gets closer to the date, I'll ask more about scenic highlights, tips, and if anyone will spot my train.

I think you made the right choice with the Cardinal. Aside from the amazing WV scenery, if you have never been on the NEC you should definitely experience that - so different from the rest of the Amtrak network.

Plus I always think if they start cutting routes permanently, the 3x/week ones will be the first to go, so the Cardinal is one of those trains I always think one should take while one can. (Of course I think that about the whole LD network, but ESPECIALLY the Cardinal.)

 

[Cal]

I think you made the right choice with the Cardinal. Aside from the amazing WV scenery, if you have never been on the NEC you should definitely experience that - so different from the rest of the Amtrak network.

Plus I always think if they start cutting routes permanently, the 3x/week ones will be the first to go, so the Cardinal is one of those trains I always think one should take while one can. (Of course I think that about the whole LD network, but ESPECIALLY the Cardinal.)

Yea, that was also a small factor as well

 

[Cal]

I have a great app on my smartphone called Sundroid. You can get amazing information on sunrise/sunsets and other celetial events for anywhere in the world on any date.

Hmm, I have an iPhone, seems that it might only be for Android. :/

 

[Ryan]

iOS: Ten bucks, but it's awesome: Photo Ephemeris for iOS

(web part has a free version to get you hooked)