Williamsburg VA via Amtrak

[sueb]

Thinking of a summer (June or July) trip to Williamsburg from PA. Decent daylight (about 8 hrs) connections via the NE Regional but these are all coach trains. Any way to do this on a train with dining car and roomettes? I'd consider doing this as an AGR trip if so. Also anyone have advice on hotels convenient to the Williamsburg Amtrak Station? Do any have courtesy shuttles? Anyone who has done this I would appreciate hearing from you.

 

[Ryan]

Nope - only the regionals go there, so no dining care (there is a cafe) and no sleepers.

My soon-to-be mother-in-law (that's a mouthful) works at CW, I'll see what she recommends.

 

[Zevzec]

The Williamsburg Woodlands is less than a mile from the station. It is one of the hotels owned by Colonial Williamsburg. When we have gone there we have just taken a taxi to the hotel. The last time we were there, when we checked out, they offered us complimentary van service to the station, so I assume they would be willing to pick us up there as well (it had not crossed my mind to ask about it until then). In any case, taxi fare for the ride was cheap.

The Williamsburg Woodlands is at the same location as the CW Visitor Center. We usually stay in the older section of the Woodlands, which is also known as the Cascades Motel.

 

[rrdude]

The Williamsburg Woodlands is less than a mile from the station. It is one of the hotels owned by Colonial Williamsburg. When we have gone there we have just taken a taxi to the hotel. The last time we were there, when we checked out, they offered us complimentary van service to the station, so I assume they would be willing to pick us up there as well (it had not crossed my mind to ask about it until then). In any case, taxi fare for the ride was cheap.
The Williamsburg Woodlands is at the same location as the CW Visitor Center. We usually stay in the older section of the Woodlands, which is also known as the Cascades Motel.

Williamsburg has a TON of local and chain hotels, and deals are super-abundant. Many are very close to the Amtrak station. With some advance planning, you will be happy with your results. Many are on or near the tracks that lead into downtown.

Get on Google Maps, you'll see what I mean......

 

[the_traveler]

There are no trains to Williamsburg that offer sleepers or dining cars. There are some to Richmond (heading to Florida), but between Richmond and Williamsburg, there are only Regionals.

 

[sueb]

There are no trains to Williamsburg that offer sleepers or dining cars. There are some to Richmond (heading to Florida), but between Richmond and Williamsburg, there are only Regionals.

I looked at taking the Silver Star to Richmond or Petersburg. Either one is about an hour's drive to/from Williamsburg. But since we'd only be on the train about 5 hrs I guess we can handle coach. Perhaps upgrade to bus class to get better access to the snack car. With the station so convenient to attractions at WBG, it seems silly to use a less convenient station.

 

[Green Maned Lion]

It is. If you want more convienent access to the snack car, though, Sue, you'd find it in your best interest to use coach, and pick a coach near the snack car. The Business class car is one of the furthest from the snack car on the train.

 

[Ryan]

Unless you take 66/67 where business class is in the same car.

 

[sueb]

Didn't realize there are different layouts for bus class vs. snack/cafe cars. The ones I am used to on the Pennsylvanian all always have the bus class and snack service in the same car. How can we tell which kind of layout a specific train will have for bus class?

 

[the_traveler]

All Regionals - except #66 and #67 - have the cafe car in the middle of the train. That means that it will be at least 2 cars back from business class. Only 66/67 have a full time BC/Cafe car assigned to them. (Some others may on occasion also - I found my 1st and only one on Christmas day!)

 

[Heading North]

The Hospitality House Hotel is in downtown Williamsburg and is maybe a 10-minute walk from the station, if I recall correctly. The rooms are reasonable--I spent the night there a couple years ago.

Trains 66/67 tend to be pretty reliable, but the two southbound trips I've taken in the afternoon/evening (I forget the train numbers, but they probably leave PHL around 2 or 3 PM?) have run pretty late, partly due to CSX delays south of Washington. Especially once you leave Staples Mill Road, it can be a slow ride across Richmond and over to Williamsburg, and all single-track, so one CSX problem can hold you up for a long time. If it hadn't happened to me twice, I wouldn't bring it up.

 

[Mrs moton]

** Please note that the bulk of this topic is more than 2 years old. **

Me and my boyfriend are coming to Williamsburg. A for a week I'm also looking for a hotel that has shuttle or at least find a car rental place to take us to and from Busch gardens any ideas anyone and I'm coming from new york