- Joined
- Jul 31, 2014
- Messages
- 1
Riding the Silver Meteor from Florida to Philadelphia last month fulfilled a “Bucket list” desire for me. Unlike so many of the stories I’ve read here about sleeper car experiences, I was in the coach car. Many years ago as a young boy I had gone on a train ride from Indiana to Minneapolis and have fun nostalgic memories of train travel (like passing between cars with the shifting floor and whooshing sound!). Overall the trip was great! I felt well prepared by reading other trip reviews on this site.
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When I got to the Sebring, Florida station I learned that the train was running 30 minutes late. I was in Sebring to help my parents settle into a retirement village and was returning to Pennsylvania, so we had a little more time together in the air conditioned train station while waiting. Just before the train arrived I was told by the station manager where to stand to board the train. Shortly the train pulled into the station and the half dozen of us boarded. The attendant told us which car and which seat to sit in. I found the seat and realized it was not a window seat. Bummer. For my first train ride I really wanted a window seat. When the attendant came by later to see my ticket I asked if I could please move to a window seat and she graciously moved me a couple of seats back – to a seat with a partial wall but part of a window. From that point on the train just got fuller until there wasn’t an open seat at all. I heard several others asking for window seats but they were never able to get one, so I was thankful for what I had.
I was pleasantly surprised by just how much legroom I had! I am over 6 ft tall and often feel cramped on planes. The seats were comfortable and reclined easily. I was also pleasantly surprised by how much room there was for carry-ons: I had a briefcase near me and my suitcase in overhead storage. A 400-pound man came and sat in the aisle seat beside me which made my seat a little smaller, but still easier getting in and out than an airplane. Another plus – no seatbelts!
I really hoped to use the travel time to do some reading, resting, listening to podcasts, enjoying scenery out the window, and experiencing the train food – and I was able to easily do all that! When I travel by car I can’t do most of those things. I found the ride to be very smooth and quiet and relaxing. I was able to read, take a short snooze, read some more, go for a stroll through several cars, and get snacks out of my suitcase. I discovered that there is NO WIFI on this train and my 4G coverage was spotty at best – no streaming or tracking progress on Google Map!
When I boarded it was near lunch time, so I went to the snack car and ordered a cheese burger, bag of chips and an iced tea. The total was $12. Not economical, but I expected to pay higher prices. The burger was delicious until the bun cooled off – you know how rubbery bread gets after being microwaved. Next time I think I will ask for just the meat to be nuked. For supper I made reservations for the dining car and dined with a delightful older lady who travels Amtrak frequently and gave me tips about the menu and memories about other trips she has made. She loves the sleeping car and gave me a quick tour after dinner. Dinner by the way was the half chicken and was delicious and very filling! Again, I paid more for the meal and tip than I would in a restaurant but I expected that and enjoyed the experience. I understand why so many bring their own meals in their carry-ons.
After it was dark outside and getting closer to bed time I noticed that many around me had DVD players or other devices for watching videos. Most were polite enough to also use ear-phones. Each seat had an outlet for plugging in chargers, etc which was helpful! I chose to use my kindle and do more reading and found the lighting easier on my eyes than the reading light on a book.
Around 9:30 or so the main cabin lights were dimmed and everyone made preparations to sleep in their seat. I was very glad I had packed a blanket as our car was rather chilly (I thought it was refreshing compared to the hot outdoors). Also for sleeping I packed an inflatable pillow that braced my head and eye covers to block out all light. Then I turned on podcasts on my smartphone and listened with earplugs – in no time I was asleep and slept most of the night. Granted, it is not like sleeping in your own bed, but I would argue it was more comfortable than the red eye flights I have taken on planes.
I woke up around 5:30 AM and took the washcloth I had packed to the restroom. There was hot water, which was a pleasant surprise, and soap, so I was able to freshen up and felt much better! (By the way, I thought the restrooms were reasonably clean and roomier than planes.) The snack shop started serving coffee at 6AM for $2 a cup
so I went and got a cup and sat in the snack car to enjoy the early morning view out the windows on both sides.
My seatmate had an app on his phone and showed me a few times that we were travelling at 77 to 80 MPH! But other times we were side-lined while waiting for a freight train to go by. We ended up over 2 hours late getting to Philadelphia - a 24 hour in all. One delay was for “police action on the tracks” near Washington DC. My son was waiting for me at the 30th Street Station in Philadelphia and had found metered parking while he waited.
All in all it was a fun experience and I would do it again! Now I want to try a westward trip! And bring a family member! And maybe even splurge and get a sleeping car J
.
When I got to the Sebring, Florida station I learned that the train was running 30 minutes late. I was in Sebring to help my parents settle into a retirement village and was returning to Pennsylvania, so we had a little more time together in the air conditioned train station while waiting. Just before the train arrived I was told by the station manager where to stand to board the train. Shortly the train pulled into the station and the half dozen of us boarded. The attendant told us which car and which seat to sit in. I found the seat and realized it was not a window seat. Bummer. For my first train ride I really wanted a window seat. When the attendant came by later to see my ticket I asked if I could please move to a window seat and she graciously moved me a couple of seats back – to a seat with a partial wall but part of a window. From that point on the train just got fuller until there wasn’t an open seat at all. I heard several others asking for window seats but they were never able to get one, so I was thankful for what I had.
I was pleasantly surprised by just how much legroom I had! I am over 6 ft tall and often feel cramped on planes. The seats were comfortable and reclined easily. I was also pleasantly surprised by how much room there was for carry-ons: I had a briefcase near me and my suitcase in overhead storage. A 400-pound man came and sat in the aisle seat beside me which made my seat a little smaller, but still easier getting in and out than an airplane. Another plus – no seatbelts!
I really hoped to use the travel time to do some reading, resting, listening to podcasts, enjoying scenery out the window, and experiencing the train food – and I was able to easily do all that! When I travel by car I can’t do most of those things. I found the ride to be very smooth and quiet and relaxing. I was able to read, take a short snooze, read some more, go for a stroll through several cars, and get snacks out of my suitcase. I discovered that there is NO WIFI on this train and my 4G coverage was spotty at best – no streaming or tracking progress on Google Map!
When I boarded it was near lunch time, so I went to the snack car and ordered a cheese burger, bag of chips and an iced tea. The total was $12. Not economical, but I expected to pay higher prices. The burger was delicious until the bun cooled off – you know how rubbery bread gets after being microwaved. Next time I think I will ask for just the meat to be nuked. For supper I made reservations for the dining car and dined with a delightful older lady who travels Amtrak frequently and gave me tips about the menu and memories about other trips she has made. She loves the sleeping car and gave me a quick tour after dinner. Dinner by the way was the half chicken and was delicious and very filling! Again, I paid more for the meal and tip than I would in a restaurant but I expected that and enjoyed the experience. I understand why so many bring their own meals in their carry-ons.
After it was dark outside and getting closer to bed time I noticed that many around me had DVD players or other devices for watching videos. Most were polite enough to also use ear-phones. Each seat had an outlet for plugging in chargers, etc which was helpful! I chose to use my kindle and do more reading and found the lighting easier on my eyes than the reading light on a book.
Around 9:30 or so the main cabin lights were dimmed and everyone made preparations to sleep in their seat. I was very glad I had packed a blanket as our car was rather chilly (I thought it was refreshing compared to the hot outdoors). Also for sleeping I packed an inflatable pillow that braced my head and eye covers to block out all light. Then I turned on podcasts on my smartphone and listened with earplugs – in no time I was asleep and slept most of the night. Granted, it is not like sleeping in your own bed, but I would argue it was more comfortable than the red eye flights I have taken on planes.
I woke up around 5:30 AM and took the washcloth I had packed to the restroom. There was hot water, which was a pleasant surprise, and soap, so I was able to freshen up and felt much better! (By the way, I thought the restrooms were reasonably clean and roomier than planes.) The snack shop started serving coffee at 6AM for $2 a cup
so I went and got a cup and sat in the snack car to enjoy the early morning view out the windows on both sides.
My seatmate had an app on his phone and showed me a few times that we were travelling at 77 to 80 MPH! But other times we were side-lined while waiting for a freight train to go by. We ended up over 2 hours late getting to Philadelphia - a 24 hour in all. One delay was for “police action on the tracks” near Washington DC. My son was waiting for me at the 30th Street Station in Philadelphia and had found metered parking while he waited.
All in all it was a fun experience and I would do it again! Now I want to try a westward trip! And bring a family member! And maybe even splurge and get a sleeping car J
