Taking the Parents in the Canadian

[ScottR]

I have just retired and am moving into our family’s house. My parents (both in their 80’s but mobile and healthy) want to take a trip.
I thought maybe a sunny cruise to the Caribbean but no…they want to take a train from our home station in Longview, TX to Toronto then across Canada…in the dead of winter. Logistically, I can see the schedules. The Texas Eagle to Chicago, the Lake Shore Limited to Buffalo, the Maple Leaf to Toronto, the Canadian to Vancouver, and a flight back to Dallas. Yes I know we could take the Coast Starlight back to LA, and the Eagle back to Longview, but that is too much I think. I’ll fly them first class back…whilst I sit in coach!

I’ve a lot of experience with Amtrak, so I know what to expect to get to Toronto. Flex meals, long layovers in Chicago and Buffalo. Chicago is fine, we will take a boat tour, but what does one do in Buffalo for 8 hours?

I’ll be booking roomettes and a bedroom (I’ll take top bunk…sigh) on Amtrak but how do we do this on the Canadian? When I book three seniors, it looks like I get three ”cabins for one discounted” with two the same price and one more expensive. Not sure what this configuration actually is?

We would all like a separate bed, but at the same time a common room where we can all three sit together. I know there is a Park car and a lounge car, but would be nice to have a private space. On Amtrak, I have always booked a bedroom and roomette. The three of us use the bedroom during the day and mom and dad use the two bottom beds at night while I climb into the top bunk in the bedroom. It’s actually not so bad up there.

how can I replicate this on the Canadian? I can’t afford Prestige unfortunately

Anyway it’s a fun proposition…beats a cruise any day. I’m glad they still have a sense of adventure

 

[Trollopian]

I have no advice, but when I'm in my 80s I wanna be like your parents. The heck with cruises.

 

[Urban Sky]

A Cabin for 1 is just a seat to sit (at day) and a bed to sleep (at night).
A Cabin for 2 is at day a comfortable lounge for two, but I wouldn’t know where to seat the third person.

Maybe two adjacent Cabins for 2 would be an option for you, as the dividing wall can be removed? Check out the suggestions for “4 Persons”:

https://www.viarail.ca/en/plan/cabins
Note that “Cabins for 3” exist on other services, but only in Chateau cars, which are not available for travel on the Canadian.

 

[jiml]

@ScottR since it seems there is comfort with flying as part of your itinerary, I would suggest you consider flying to Toronto after arriving in Chicago on the Eagle. Flights are plentiful, should be considerably cheaper than the skipped legs via Buffalo, and certainly much faster. The weak link in your plan - especially in winter - may be the segments on the LSL and Maple Leaf, with the added expense if accommodation is involved between Chicago and Buffalo. A flight is a little over an hour and should eliminate the long layovers you've already identified. The LSL portion will be mostly in the dark if the train runs on-time, then the wait in Buffalo for the Maple Leaf. (Check other threads where this has been discussed.) You're not really going to miss anything by flying this part.

 

[ScottR]

Mom wants to take a train to New York. It Is one of a few states she hasn’t been to, so that’s why. hmmm, what about a limo from Buffalo to Toronto? They don’t seem too pricey. They want to see Niagara Falls. I think that might be around the same price as a plane ride? It would also eliminate the wait in Buffalo. Google says it’s only a two hour drive…Any one ever done that? We don’t mind the layover in Chicago because they want to go on a Chicago river cruise. I went to Navy boot camp in Chicago, so I told them it could be snowing and the river could be frozen and they may not have any boat tours anyway…but all they said was “ I hope so…that would be neat”..I do so love these people! I’m 62, they are 85…and they are younger at heart than I am.

 

[Dakota 400]

They want to see Niagara Falls

My parents wanted to see the Falls during the Winter and made the trip by car. They thought it was beautiful and worth the trip, even when their car got stuck in snow en route to Canada.

 

[Mystic River Dragon]

I don’t have any information about the trip, but there was a similar age difference between me and my parents, and we did many things together when they were in their 80s.

It’s worth every moment—they will treasure all the memories, and so will you.

 

[jiml]

what about a limo from Buffalo to Toronto? They don’t seem too pricey. They want to see Niagara Falls. I think that might be around the same price as a plane ride? It would also eliminate the wait in Buffalo. Google says it’s only a two hour drive…Any one ever done that?

There are limo services in Buffalo that specialize in crossing the border and going to Toronto. They became very popular during the pandemic when the trains were on reduced schedules or not running. I'm sure you could build in a sightseeing stop at the Falls. It's definitely better than waiting hours in Depew.

As for the distance itself, it can easily be done in 2 hours depending on traffic. You will reach the suburbs of Toronto much sooner than 2 hours once across the border, which is the only real delay point. We drove from Buffalo a couple of months ago and it was about 45 minutes to cross. That was when things like vaccination status were being checked, so maybe some improvement depending on time of day.

 

[zephyr17]

Best for everyone is to get three classic roomettes ("cabins for one" in VIA-speak). VIA prices their private sleeper accommodations per person so it Double Bedroom ("Cabin for Two") is the same price as two roomettes. I don't know why the third comes out higher, it is likely on the day you plan to travel, two exhausts the "discount" inventory and the additional one comes from the undiscounted inventory.

VIA's Double Bedrooms have individual seats rather than the bench seat more common in that accommodation type, so 3 in one room poses a seating issue. Also note that VIA's Double Bedrooms are noticeably narrower than Amtrak's (Deluxe) Bedroom.

Everyone gets lowers, and the beds in the roomettes are designed to be self service (turn a lever and pull them down out of the wall) if desired. They require a bit of muscle to overcome the strong retraction springs, so you might want the attendant to do it or do it yourself for your parents.

As noted, the Double Bedroom does not really offer comfortable space to seat three, so you aren't really losing much. To enjoy the train together, use the Canadian's lounge space, much more abundant than on Amtrak. There will be at least one Skyline dome car and a Park Car dedicated to the sleeper section of the train, depending on train length there may be two Skylines for the sleepers. Coach gets its own Skyline regardless. I seldom see anyone in downstairs lounge area of the Sleeper Skylines at all, there may be a few people playing board games in the table end. May not be, too. The Park often has people in the round end Bullet Lounge, but usually has some seats.

And, of course, there are the domes themselves...

The Skylines are convienently close to Sleeper Plus passengers. Note the Park, while worth the trip, is at least four cars away from the nearest Sleeper Plus sleeper, a Skyline, the diner, the crew car (usually an unrefurbished Chateau), and a Prestige Chateau.

I much prefer the train in the off season, the vibe is usually much more relaxed and the train is a "normal" length 10-16 cars (unlike Amtrak, VIA adjusts its consists to demand), not the crowded 26 car monster it is in the summer. Plus there is unrestricted access to Park Car, except for a couple rows of dome seats reserved for Prestige.

As to the transfer from the Lake Shore to the Maple Leaf at Buffalo/Depew, many here suggest pushing that down the line to like Rochester or Syracuse to both lessen the wait and enjoy a downtown area with more amenities than the suburban desolation around Buffalo/Depew's Amshack (type 75C ). I leave it to others to recommend a specific station, since I have only ridden by them.

@jiml's suggestion of a limo service instead of waiting for the Leaf is a good alternative, too, although likely at some expense.

 

[zephyr17]

One other thought that just occurred to me on sleeping accommodations is to book a Bedroom Suite (unlisted on the website but would be a "cabin for 4" if VIA is consistent in their cruise line derived newspeak). That is two adjacent Double Bedrooms with the partition removed, just like Superliner Bedrooms. You will pay 150% of the roomette charge for single occupancy of one of the bedrooms. You have to call an agent to set this up, you cannot do it on the website.

 

[ScottR]

thanks everyone so much. I’ve talked to Mom…and Dad, so we will look at the bedroom/roomette combo on the Eagle to Chicago, a layover in the Metropolitan lounge at Union Station, another bedroom/roomette combo on the LSL to Buffalo, then a limo or something like it to Toronto with a stop at Niagara Falls.

A night at the York, then the Canadian to Vancouver the next morning. I’ll try the “cabin for four” idea as zephyr17 suggested. if not yes three single cabins will work and we will hang out in the public cars.

An overnight in Vancouver (Fairmont again?) and a flight back to Dallas to complete the circle. Although now mom and dad are indeed debating the Coast Starlight/ Texas Eagle connection. No pressure from me…I just told them “you know…we don’t HAVE to fly…”

I’ve got a lot of pandemic travel points as I had to do business travel then, and it is not so $$$ to travel in Feb through Canada. I guess there is probably a reason for that!

It could be epic, or a disaster, but we will all be together so fun in any case.

 

[zephyr17]

I might suggest that you take the Cascades down to Seattle, lay over there and fly out of SEA if there is a time constraint. Flights will be much cheaper with more options to DFW or DAL from SEA than YVR. The connection to the 5:45 pm Cascades is pretty solid, I have done it many times, there is really no need to spend overnight for that connection.

If you decide to take the Starlight, I'd still take the Cascades and lay over in Seattle. The direct Vancouver connection to the Starlight is a 5:30 am bus. Even if the morning Vancouver train were running (it's not), it didn't connect with the Starlight.

 

[Shanson]

Reserve the VIA Rail portion over the phone, and (assuming you take Zephyr17's advice above) let the reservationist know you are booked on the Cascades as a connection; this should give you a discount on your VIA Rail fare.

 

[Mike Lyons]

Definitely call and speak to a Via agent . They are very knowledgeable and helpful .

 

[user 5784]

Reserve the VIA Rail portion over the phone, and (assuming you take Zephyr17's advice above) let the reservationist know you are booked on the Cascades as a connection; this should give you a discount on your VIA Rail fare.

i never heard of this discount on a VIA Rail fare when connecting to Amtrak (or at least the Cascades). Can you provide any more info?