CHI to San Diego via CZ?

[Paul CHI]

I'd like to combine a trip to San Diego with the wonderful scenery on the CZ, but can't find that combo on the Amtrak website.

Is there a way to do this without spending a night in a hotel?

Wondering about CZ > Coast Starlight > Surfliner but not sure where to change trains.

 

[TiBike]

The only alternative to staying in a hotel involves a thruway, overnight from Oakland or San Jose to SLO or Santa Barbara. Or via the San Joaquin from Sacramento, but it's overnight too, and it's all buses south of Bakersfield. There's only one train that connects northern and southern California, and that's the Coast Starlight. The CZ gets into Sacramento around 2pm and Oakland around 4pm, while the CS leaves Sacramento around 6:30am and Oakland around 8:30am.

 

[Skyline]

Nope. The times at Oakland, Emeryville etc just do not match up for a CZ>CS connection, or vice versa as back in the day. You'd have to overnight in the Bay Area. There are worse predicaments than spending the night in San Francisco, but if you have budget or time restraints then it's a big deal.

 

[Ronbo]

Seems to me that with your proposed itinerary, that you would probably enjoy a little time off the train! I know that I would! If I were taking this trip, I probably would stay overnight in Davis, CA and another overnight in either San Luis Obispo or Santa Barbara. A sleeper for sure on the CZ, possibly a Roomete on the CS, or at least Business Class. And BC on the Pacific Surfliner.

 

[ParanoidAndroid]

I'd recommend business class on the Surfliner, you get an extra box of snacks that are good, and the box has a nice Surfliner design on it.

I'd personally be OK with coach on the CS. Not sure what is offered on BC besides the water and $6 voucher (and the relative quiet).

Also, you'll be arriving in San Diego past 1am unless you stay overnight again somewhere along the Surfliner route... I'd recommend Santa Barbara, it's a pleasant city along the coast.

 

[chakk]

If it were me, I would take the CZ to Sacramento and connect to the San Joaquin train around 5 PM to Bakersfield. Overnight at the Best Western Plus Hill House, which is a 2-minute walk north of the Bakersfield station. Then the next day, take the Amtrak bus to LA to connect to an Amtrak surfliner train to San Diego.

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[BCL]

It's not practical because the schedules don't line up conveniently.

If the concern is about the cost of staying overnight, there are stations where the CZ/CS meet up where there are less expensive places to stay. Around Emeryville is going to be pretty expensive, unless you're willing to sacrifice your own personal safety and stay in a iffy area.

Martinez is a bit cheaper, but all those places are a good two miles from the train station. Not sure about Davis.

 

[Ronbo]

Martinez is a bit cheaper, but all those places are a good two miles from the train station. Not sure about Davis.

The Hallmark Inn is about a block or two from the Amtrak station, very convenient for an overnight in Davis.

 

[the_traveler]

If you want the CS along the coastline, and want to take the CZ westbound, you may want to switch between them and stay overnight in either Davis or Sacramento. The CS arrives at LAX at 9 pm (if on time) and there is a later train to SAN that arrives about 1 am. If the CS arrives LAX very late, there is a very late/early Thruway to SAN. Either way, that connection is guaranteed one way or the other.

If you have any choice of direction, I would recommend the CS northbound! From LAX, it is mid-morning and thus daylight. Southbound, the coastline sections are late afternoon/evening and may be in darkness.

 

[BCL]

Martinez is a bit cheaper, but all those places are a good two miles from the train station. Not sure about Davis.

The Hallmark Inn is about a block or two from the Amtrak station, very convenient for an overnight in Davis.

I know there are plenty of places to stay in Davis within walking distance of the station. I wasn't sure about the prices though.

 

[niemi24s]

It's a 300 yard walk in Sacramento from the platform to the station, and another 250 yards to the closest Hotel - the Vagabond. Stayed there this Spring to catch the CS to LAX and it's OK by my standards. I scouted all the possible places between SAC and EMY using TripAdvisor and chose SAC over Davis, Martinez and Emeryville for these reasons:

• Earliest time getting off the CZ

• Proximity of hotel to station

• Proximity of the California State Railroad Museum

 

[Lonestar648]

Having gone both directions on the CS, the northbound was the better to see the Pacific Coastline, We were late last year, so we saw the coastline at sunset which was great, but totally different from the late morning trip.

 

[KmH]

Yep.

Works better going the other way.

If you were planning on flying back to your starting point consider flying to San Diego and returning Surfliner, CS, CZ though you'll still need to stay a night somewhere along the route both the CS and CZ use.

I recommend the HI Sacramento Hostel at H & 10th. A private room for 1 is about $65 a night including taxes and a $3 a day hostel membership fee.

I think they only have 1 private room for 1 though. They have 2 person rooms for a bit more $$s.

I'm booked there for 2 nights next March.

I've also stayed at the Econo Lodge on 16th between G & H streets for about the same cost.

I catch the 34 bus at H & 8th and get off/on at F & 16th.

www.sacrt.com

Bus fare for age 62 and over is $1.35.

 

[Bob Dylan]

If you can't book the SAC Hostel, consider the Vagabond Inn across from Union Station and next to the Rail Museum.

Or even better, stay in Davis, one of the nicest little towns in California and an easy commute to SAC or the Bay Area via Rail.

I agree with flying West and Training East!

 

[Steve4031]

The Emeryville hilton garden inn can have competitive rates. On week days there is a shuttle to the station.

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[Paul CHI]

Thanks to all for the very helpful info. I'll check into flying out and training back, though that will involve a whole extra half hour stuck in the aluminum jail because of prevailing westerly winds.

 

[Paul CHI]

I checked the north/east routing. Can be done with one overnight. The CS arrives at EMY/Davis/Sac about an hour after the CZ leaves...

Some enjoy San Francisco, but I don't.

 

[TiBike]

I think you're getting AM and PM mixed up -- it's not that close

. But yeah, either way you miss it.

One other option, FWIW: transfer to the Capitol Corridor and stay in Suisun City (which is where the Fairfield station is actually located). Nice little oasis on Suisun Bay. There's a Hampton Inn there that sometimes has very good rates.

I checked the north/east routing. Can be done with one overnight. The CS arrives at EMY/Davis/Sac about an hour after the CZ leaves...

Some enjoy San Francisco, but I don't.

 

[niemi24s]

I think you're getting AM and PM mixed up. . .

. . .and that's easy to do in this only (I think) nation on the globe that persists in publishing timetables/schedules using a 12 hour clock with the necessary AM and PM modifiers. Other countries use a 24 hour clock for their schedules - eliminating that cause of error. A 24 hour clock has no numerals duplicated during the day and no need for an AM or PM. <end mini rant>

 

[Paul CHI]

AM/PM, oh, well. Thanks for the correction.

 

[greatcats]

My overnight on the Coast Starlight Portland-San Luis Obispo in Business clsss was fairly pleasant.

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[user 6862]

Agree with greatcats, nothing to dislike in SLO. In fact we are making that our transfer point and getting to spend a few hours there before getting on the afternoon the Pacific Surfliner, one of favourite train of all time.

 

[GBNorman]

Mr. Paul, if you don't mind spending overnight on a bus, you could avoid the overnight hotel stay with this itinerary:

5-SAC-3718-SKN-718-BFD-5818-SAN

There should be "adequate cushion" at SAC for a late #5; the other connections "down the Valley" are all coordinated train/Thruway Bus.