Amtrak - Sunset Limited

Today I arrived in Houston, after being on the train for about 30 hours. This sounds like a long time but it actually flew by! I found that being on the train was kind of like suddenly having the life of a dog. You sit and stare out the window, eat, and nap. I did a lot of reading too, so this perhaps goes a little bit beyond what a dog might do. But, I'm sure most dogs would enjoy reading if they knew how.

If I could choose between train and plane, I'd choose train every time! It is inexpensive, has a very chill ticket return policy, the staff are friendly, the bathrooms are... well.... ok they're not that much better. If you use the handicapped one it is much roomier than an airplane bathroom. The rocking of the train lulls you to sleep, and the view is usually more interesting than just a sea of clouds. (Not always true in Texas.) You can walk around or go sit in the observation room or snack bar. And from what I saw, most single travelers in coach had a row to themselves. Even if you didn't have a row to yourself, the seats are more spread out than airplane seats.

Despite the overall awesomeness of the train, there were a couple things to pick on. The coffee was so-so, I'd probably give it a 2 out of 5. And although we seemed to be on time all the way to San Antonio, we still ended up being 2 hours late into Houston!

Here's my advice as a now-seasoned train rider:

1. Bring a blanket! And a pillow if you have room. They give you little airplane-type pillows but more is better I think. I didn't bring any warm clothes and ended up wearning 3 shirts and was still cold. At the very least bring a sweatshirt/jacket. Ideally bring an eye-cover too, because they leave aisle lights on at night which I found a little bit bright to fall asleep to.

2. Bring some food. Sean told me to do this and I was glad I followed his advice. For next time, I think I will plan on buying lunch and possibly breakfast on the train, as they aren't too expensive. (Dinner is kind of pricey - so i'll try to bring something for that, plus some snacks.) I talked to a woman who had a burger for lunch and she said it was pretty good. The snack bar is OK. It's like, an advanced vending machine. Some candy, some pop (but no Coke, wah), some hamburgers wrapped in plastic (?!) and that bleh coffee. I know I am a blogger and I should be braving new territory, but I just couldn't do a pre-wrapped burger. I will have to bring Sean for that purpose next time.

3. If someone is picking you up at the train station, be sure they are warned about the potential lateness of the train.

4. Bring a cell phone charger and/or other electronics. Every seat has outlets by it - hooray! I had put my phone charger in my checked bag - doh. But while we were parked at San Antonio for 2 hours, I picked up free wi-fi and did some emailing. :)

5. When I checked in, I got an Amtrak brochure. I checked out the various sleeper car configurations, and I found that for one of them, there is an in-room toilet with no door!! Gasp! It would be like being in prison (or so I've heard.) I think this is strange and to be avoided at all costs... but that is a personal opinion.


I'm about to board the train in Tucson (a little after midnight).



The observation deck. Good spot for reading or napping in the sun.