Orlando is one of the two Amtrak stops (Kissimmee is the other stop) that serve tourists going to Disney World.
The Orlando station is located a couple of miles south of downtown near Orlando Regional Medical Center. The area around the station is fairly industrial, but there are a few places to eat across the street. There is usually a hot dog vendor right outside the station and there are vending machines inside the station.
The station is airconditioned (a necessity in Florida) and is fairly comfortable. I have never been there and not been able to find a seat. Since a lot of the passengers travel with children, the noise level is usually pretty high and it can be a bit chaotic.
There are bus stops in front of the train station. To get to downtown Orlando, one should take the bus that stops across the street from the station. It runs once an hour. The final stop on that northbound route is the bus terminal. One can transfer to another bus to get to Disney, Sea World and surrounding hotels (or many other places in the area).
There are usually plenty of taxis and vans at the station. There is also a Hertz counter inside the station, but I believe arrangements must be made in advance for rental cars. There is an Enterprise agency in downtown Orlando on East Colonial Drive (walking distance from my condo) that is open Monday through Friday. I have heard that they will pick passengers up at the train station and drive them to the downtown office to pick up the cars.
Four trains come through Orlando daily, the southbound Silver Star (91) before noon, the southbound Silver Meteor (97) a little after noon; the nortbound Silver Meteor (98) around 1:45pm; and the northbound Silver Star (92) around 7pm. If the trains are running on time, sleeping car passengers will get lunch on 97 and 98 and dinner on 92.
I am pretty sure most people know about the tourist attactions in Orlando: Disney World, Sea World, Universal Studios, Wet and Wild, Kennedy Space Center (an hour away). Legoland is expected to open later this year in Winter Haven, the former location of Cypress Gardens. There are a slew of outlet malls in Orlando also.
There is a zoo in Sanford (home of the southern terminus of the Auto Train). There is a science museum and an art museum in Orlando and there are museums in Winter Park.
There are plenty of state parks around Orlando. Also, there are other activities in the general area: riding on an airboat; skydiving in DeLand; St. Johns River Boat Cruise; Daytona Beach; Silver Springs near Ocala
The Orlando station is located a couple of miles south of downtown near Orlando Regional Medical Center. The area around the station is fairly industrial, but there are a few places to eat across the street. There is usually a hot dog vendor right outside the station and there are vending machines inside the station.
The station is airconditioned (a necessity in Florida) and is fairly comfortable. I have never been there and not been able to find a seat. Since a lot of the passengers travel with children, the noise level is usually pretty high and it can be a bit chaotic.
There are bus stops in front of the train station. To get to downtown Orlando, one should take the bus that stops across the street from the station. It runs once an hour. The final stop on that northbound route is the bus terminal. One can transfer to another bus to get to Disney, Sea World and surrounding hotels (or many other places in the area).
There are usually plenty of taxis and vans at the station. There is also a Hertz counter inside the station, but I believe arrangements must be made in advance for rental cars. There is an Enterprise agency in downtown Orlando on East Colonial Drive (walking distance from my condo) that is open Monday through Friday. I have heard that they will pick passengers up at the train station and drive them to the downtown office to pick up the cars.
Four trains come through Orlando daily, the southbound Silver Star (91) before noon, the southbound Silver Meteor (97) a little after noon; the nortbound Silver Meteor (98) around 1:45pm; and the northbound Silver Star (92) around 7pm. If the trains are running on time, sleeping car passengers will get lunch on 97 and 98 and dinner on 92.
I am pretty sure most people know about the tourist attactions in Orlando: Disney World, Sea World, Universal Studios, Wet and Wild, Kennedy Space Center (an hour away). Legoland is expected to open later this year in Winter Haven, the former location of Cypress Gardens. There are a slew of outlet malls in Orlando also.
There is a zoo in Sanford (home of the southern terminus of the Auto Train). There is a science museum and an art museum in Orlando and there are museums in Winter Park.
There are plenty of state parks around Orlando. Also, there are other activities in the general area: riding on an airboat; skydiving in DeLand; St. Johns River Boat Cruise; Daytona Beach; Silver Springs near Ocala
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