Do you travel by train?

[Troublesome10]

I haven't travelled by train yet, but I plan on travelling on The Canadian from Toronto to Vancouver late summer.

Very interesting, approximately how long does such a trip take? I'm in Toronto and I feel like that could be a cool trip, but I suspect it would take at least a week, or am I over/underestimating the speed of those trains?

 

[CC's left foot]

It used to be an alternative to getting gateraped at the airport, but now I hear the TSA is doing their dirty work at the train stations too.

 

[Troublesome10]

Does anyone actually travel by train as opposed to traveling by plane in the states?

Comfort, fear of flying, scenery, airport security, even environmental reasons (I would assume it's considerably less polluting to take the train as opposed to flying). Seems like it would be less enticing the longer the trip though.

 

[Ablis89]

Very interesting, approximately how long does such a trip take? I'm in Toronto and I feel like that could be a cool trip, but I suspect it would take at least a week, or am I over/underestimating the speed of those trains?

It's around 3 and a half days.

 

[Francis Rossi]

I live in the UK, so no.

 

[Dinkin_Flicka]

I've gone from WA to ND by train twice and it's roughly 24 hours, once to visit my grandmother who had cancer and once for a family reunion on my dads side. It was cheaper then a plan ticket and I wasn't looking forward to it.

Aside from sleeping in my seat I loved taking the train. The scenery was awesome and there was a lot of time to just sit and talk with my family, read, and just enjoy the slow pace. I really enjoyed the dining car. Due to the limited space you're seated at a table that has the seating so I ended meeting a lot of interesting people.

The second trip me and my sister split the cost of a sleeper car and that was TONS better since I could stretch out to sleep, the 2 seats folded down and had a drop down bed to make a small space for bunk beds.

My sister ended up passing away the next summer and that time that I spent with her on the return trip(mom and dad stayed an extra day) is one of my most cherished memories with her. It was just me and her for 24 hours talking about anything and everything.

Looking forward to when my kids get older and taking a trip somewhere by train.

 

[Astrovik]

I traveled by train when I used to go see my father when I was younger. Wasn't bad met some fairly nice people and slept most of the way.

 

[hohner]

I usually just hop in the car and go.

 

[Stargazer Rex]

Fuck trains

 

[the ax murderer]

Yeah I've been on a train a few times, they'd be more common here because Ireland is so small, there's no point in flying between places.

 

[ralphc1]

Amtrak offers a Rail pass that lets you travel a set number of days in a set number of segments for a set price.

$439 for 8 segments in 15 days or $669 for 12 segments in 30 days or $859 for 18 segments in 45 days. I'm thinking about starting in Minneapolis, going West to Washington, South through California, East to New Orleans and North to Minneapolis. Stop and rent a car at a few places along the way.

 

[Naramie]

I wanted to try it last year during a trip to LA but when I looked into it it seemed kind of pricey at the time and not too convenient. It was like $60-70 if I recall and it wasn't very fast. It normally takes me like 6-7 hours to drive there but train would have taken like 12-13 hours. I can get there on a tank and a half easily so it wouldn't save me much money anyways.

 

[stevieJanowski]

I took a train from Sacramento to Santa Barbara once. It was a 12 hour ride, but the train traveled along the coast and it was a pretty spectacular view. It was less than half of the price of flying and I could move around, sleep, use my laptop, or get up and get a sandwich whenever I wanted. I would definitely do it again.

I took the pacific coastliner (I think thats the name) too. I only rode it from Anaheim to SD, but for a dude from GA it was incredible see the coast in that manner.

 

[Sir Galahad]

Took the Bullet Train from Tokyo to Osaka. It was awesome.

 

[rorydaboss]

I have taken the train from Toronto to NYC a few times before. It took close to twice as long as it would take to drive. I did mushrooms on the train once...that was fun. Other than that the train SUCKS.

 

[youandme]

Toronto - montreal or visa versa, the only way to go is train IMO. Way cheaper than flying, a mere 4 hour trip, comfortable, classy.

I love the choo choo.

 

[Monsolo]

It used to be an alternative to getting gateraped at the airport, but now I hear the TSA is doing their dirty work at the train stations too.

Interesting. I use the Amtrak about 4 times a year (within the past month actually) and have never been TSA-attacked--and I am usually arriving at/departing from major cities.

 

[broc5k]

I've taken the Coast Starlight on Amtrak between San Jose California and Eugene Oregon a few times, once from Eugene down to Anaheim, and I really don't understand why people don't like it. I've never had a bad experience, ticketing and boarding have always been a breeze, and the train cars were all very clean and well kept. If you have younger kids and you don't get a sleeper, I could see that being an issue maybe. I took a backpack and my guitar last time, chilled in my seat for a little while, then took my stuff to the sky cabin and spent the rest of my trip there. Couches, table booths, power if you need to charge your phone or laptop, huge windows that go into the roof, and the bar/snack cart is usually on the lower level. Plus, since I ordered my ticket ahead of time and got a sweet deal, I saved a TON of money. It ended up being maybe $20 more than Greyhound, $103 round trip if I remember right, and it kicked the SHIT out of being stuck on a bus for a day and a half, or having to deal with all the bullshit of an airport. I fucking love riding the Coast Starlight up and down the West Coast.

 

[The Clinch]

Subway is the closest I've come to train.

And in Japan no less.

 

[llperez22]

noticed a few people mentioning the coast starlight up down the calfornia coast. Ive done that a few times from oxnard to sacramento. It takes about 10-11 hours where driving would take about 6. Plane is maybe an hour of time in the air plus whatever time for boarding and searching around the airpport.

Ive also taken one longer trip from oxnard to iowa. That took for ever, but offered spectacular views of the colorado river and through the states. COmfort is far better then plane. ANd price was cheaper as well. In fact i just google searched plane vs train costs and trains are cheaper in the us so im not sure what others are referring to when they mention planes being cheaper.

With all that said, unless you really want to see the sites and lounge around, take a plane. Speed is worth the extra money and discomfort in my eyes.