LSL Seating

[Jheilman43402]

Next thursday i am taking the LSL 49 out of tol and then on to the CZ to SFC I noticed that the 449 is sold out but the 49 still has coach seats available. aren't they the same train? Also if a train is sold out How crowded will the train be will there be room for our carryons? (Guitar case, and 3 other bags) and will there be seating for both of us together. We have a roomette on the CZ so i am not too worried about that one being sold out, but the LSL has me a little worried. Never been on Amtrak before, but was able to tour the cars at TOL on national train day, so i am familiar with the layouts. Thank you for any insite

 

[Lakeshore]

Next thursday i am taking the LSL 49 out of tol and then on to the CZ to SFC I noticed that the 449 is sold out but the 49 still has coach seats available. aren't they the same train? Also if a train is sold out How crowded will the train be will there be room for our carryons? (Guitar case, and 3 other bags) and will there be seating for both of us together. We have a roomette on the CZ so i am not too worried about that one being sold out, but the LSL has me a little worried. Never been on Amtrak before, but was able to tour the cars at TOL on national train day, so i am familiar with the layouts. Thank you for any insite

As far as you are concerned, they are the same train. Going east, the train splits in Albany, NY, with the 449 section going to Boston and the 49 section going to NY City. Coming west, they join again in Albany and run as one train the rest of the way to Chicago. As far as the carry-ons, the bags should be fine. If the train is pretty full, you may have to stash the guitar at the end of the car. There may not be room overhead if there are a lot of people aboard. When you get to Chicago, be sure to use the Metropolitan Lounge. Sleeper passengers have access to a nicer place to wait, and you can leave your bags with an attendant if you want to explore the city for a few hours (most people tip a dollar a bag when you get them back). Plus you get to board early. Enjoy the trip.

 

[Jheilman43402]

Thank You for the reply that helps a lot I just hope the train is on time next Thursday. When i went by the station this morning on the way to work the train was still at TOL and this was at 745 it is supposed to leave at 615 so was really late. I saw the same thing yesterday on my way in.

 

[Lakeshore]

Well, you have a 4 hour buffer between scheduled arrival on the LSL and departure on the CZ, so you should be fine. That is one thing to remember, the train can run late sometimes. You just have to be kind of flexible. But once you get on the CZ and wake up in the morning, the views will be awesome the rest of the way.

 

[AlanB]

In addition the 4 hour layover in Chicago, there is also some "padding" as it's called in the Lake Shore's schedule. There is an extra 1/2 hour of fluff in the schedule going into Chicago. So a train that was a 1/2 hour late in Toledo, assuming no further delays, would actually arrive on time into Chicago because of that padding.

Amtrak allows 1 hour and a 1/2 going east to get from Chicago to the first stop at South Bend. Going west, Amtrak allows 2 hours in the schedule to cover that same distance. This is the 1/2 hour of padding that I speak of.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Is the Capitol Limited an option? You might want to take that train if it has more seats left.

 

[Jheilman43402]

I actually purchased the tickets last year in august. so we will have seats i was just worried about crowding, also the CL gets in very early into TOL around 5 something and my wife would not like to get up that early or myself. We are getitng dropped off by my parents so will not have to use parking. I also just checked and CL is sold out for that day as well

 

[saxman]

I actually purchased the tickets last year in august. so we will have seats i was just worried about crowding, also the CL gets in very early into TOL around 5 something and my wife would not like to get up that early or myself. We are getitng dropped off by my parents so will not have to use parking. I also just checked and CL is sold out for that day as well

With Amtrak's reservation system, train 49 and 449 are two separate trains on the computer, but in reality, they are the same. That just means the 449 section of seats has sold out, but still seats left on train 49.

As for bags, you can always check them to SFC. Sounds like you have at least 3 or more, so maybe check a couple that you won't need at all during the journey. Then you can have the others, so you have change clothes and such. I would carry on the guitar. This way, you won't have to worry about finding space for them when you board the LSL, and you won't have to bother with them during your layover in Chicago. They will be transfered for you.

You shouldn't worry about not getting seats together. Amtrak attendants try their best to keep double seats open for those passengers who get on down the line. Should you not find any, simply ask the attendant or conductor to help out and you get you together.

When I'm in a sleeper, I really enjoy a crowded train. It just seems like a big party is heading out west and you can meet lots of great people, and when you need to get away, you can escape to the privacy of your room. In the roomette, you might can keep a small bag in the room with you beside the seat or under the seats. Otherwise, there is a large luggage rack on the lower lever of the sleeping car as you board.

Hope you have a great trip!

 

[TimePeace]

Next thursday i am taking the LSL 49 out of tol and then on to the CZ to SFC I noticed that the 449 is sold out but the 49 still has coach seats available. aren't they the same train? Also if a train is sold out How crowded will the train be will there be room for our carryons? (Guitar case, and 3 other bags) and will there be seating for both of us together. We have a roomette on the CZ so i am not too worried about that one being sold out, but the LSL has me a little worried. Never been on Amtrak before, but was able to tour the cars at TOL on national train day, so i am familiar with the layouts. Thank you for any insite

If the train is pretty full, you may have to stash the guitar at the end of the car. There may not be room overhead if there are a lot of people aboard.

I have traveled Amtrak many times with a guitar (8 times on the LSL), and have always had room overhead for it.