Long Amtrak Train Trip Starting 26 August!

[KAL-EL]

Have never been on Amtrak. Rode the train plenty of times in Europe. I rather enjoy train travel.

Enjoy the travels.

I envy you. The most I've ever traveled on a train was from Philly to Washington, DC

 

[Sainthood 2.0]

I am in love with train travel! I think from my very early childhood, one of my dreams was to become a train engine driver. Well, back when was about 5 year old!

twin- my first dream job og

 

[Starlord]

Had a terrible experience with Amtrak back in 2023, when i was gonna visit Pakistan, book a ticket from Tampa to Miami to catch my flight, but train got delayed 3-4 times, until I decided to rent a car and drive. But I heard they have some nice scenic routes, and i was gonna give them another chance, but i think train travels are very long, while flight can get you to your destination much quicker and you will be less tired except jet leg.

One of the vacation that i really wanna do is to fly to Seattle, then rent a car from there and drive 2300+/- miles to Anchorage AK, the views are amazing. But that whole trip will be at least 10-15 days long, and given next year will get roughly 150hrs of vacation time, I rather take 2-3 small vacation than 1 long one. Plus the Cost is also a factor, Flight from Tampa-Seattle wont be bad, but in current Gas price it will be devastating on my wallet. But I think next year I will try to take 4-5 days vacation to AK, or if i find a small trailer that is light enough for my car to tow safely then probably take a road trip to Utha or Colarado.

Also, let me know how was your exp of Amtrak, i wanna give them another chance but i am still skeptical.

 

[Meengla]

Have never been on Amtrak. Rode the train plenty of times in Europe. I rather enjoy train travel.
Enjoy the travels.

I have heard very good things about Europe's train system.

Had a terrible experience with Amtrak back in 2023, when i was gonna visit Pakistan, book a ticket from Tampa to Miami to catch my flight, but train got delayed 3-4 times, until I decided to rent a car and drive. But I heard they have some nice scenic routes, and i was gonna give them another chance, but i think train travels are very long, while flight can get you to your destination much quicker and you will be less tired except jet leg.

One of the vacation that i really wanna do is to fly to Seattle, then rent a car from there and drive 2300+/- miles to Anchorage AK, the views are amazing. But that whole trip will be at least 10-15 days long, and given next year will get roughly 150hrs of vacation time, I rather take 2-3 small vacation than 1 long one. Plus the Cost is also a factor, Flight from Tampa-Seattle wont be bad, but in current Gas price it will be devastating on my wallet. But I think next year I will try to take 4-5 days vacation to AK, or if i find a small trailer that is light enough for my car to tow safely then probably take a road trip to Utha or Colarado.

Also, let me know how was your exp of Amtrak, i wanna give them another chance but i am still skeptical.

Train travel on Amtrak is subsidized by the govt like train travel is subsidized in other countries, including Pakistan. I think the idea is to make the money from the freight. But for a mere $500, the USA Rail Pass is a great value--almost too good to be true! The 10 Segments allowed could let you travel 9000-10,000+ miles of some of the most beautiful landscape in the world! All is required is booking during the shoulder seasons and some roughing it out. And I am speaking from my own experience of having taken multiple trans-continental train trips in America and Canada. They were in the 90s but my fading memory still recalls them fondly.

 

[AZ_HighCountry]

Had a terrible experience with Amtrak back in 2023, when i was gonna visit Pakistan, book a ticket from Tampa to Miami to catch my flight, but train got delayed 3-4 times, until I decided to rent a car and drive. But I heard they have some nice scenic routes, and i was gonna give them another chance, but i think train travels are very long, while flight can get you to your destination much quicker and you will be less tired except jet leg.

One of the vacation that i really wanna do is to fly to Seattle, then rent a car from there and drive 2300+/- miles to Anchorage AK, the views are amazing. But that whole trip will be at least 10-15 days long, and given next year will get roughly 150hrs of vacation time, I rather take 2-3 small vacation than 1 long one. Plus the Cost is also a factor, Flight from Tampa-Seattle wont be bad, but in current Gas price it will be devastating on my wallet. But I think next year I will try to take 4-5 days vacation to AK, or if i find a small trailer that is light enough for my car to tow safely then probably take a road trip to Utha or Colarado.

Also, let me know how was your exp of Amtrak, i wanna give them another chance but i am still skeptical.

Check with the rental company beforehand. There may be restrictions taking a vehicle into a foreign country. And then there are the road conditions on the Alaska Highway. When we were in ANC, we had planned to drive up to FAI and maybe a little of the Dalton. The rental company was absolutely adamant regarding the Dalton: No....a HARD no.

 

[AZ_HighCountry]

I envy you. The most I've ever traveled on a train was from Philly to Washington, DC

Business travel and a few vacations. The Germans and Swiss know how to run a rail system. The Belgians not so much.

 

[KingQamaR]

Enjoy your well earned trip Bhai. What an awesome and epic journey. When you think about it, it's possibly one of the best ways to really see the country. Our longest U.K. train journey lasts for only 12 hours, roughy 500 miles …

 

[Meengla]

Enjoy your well earned trip Bhai. What an awesome and epic journey. When you think about it, it's possibly one of the best ways to really see the country. Our longest U.K. train journey lasts for only 12 hours, roughy 500 miles …

Thank you, sir. 500 miles of UK's beautiful land!! I have seen videos of UK train and one day will definitely ride end to end. Also on my Bucket List is UK's longest road trip: I think it is something like 800 miles from southwest England to northern Scotland. Beautiful landscape.

 

[Starlord]

Check with the rental company beforehand. There may be restrictions taking a vehicle into a foreign country. And then there are the road conditions on the Alaska Highway. When we were in ANC, we had planned to drive up to FAI and maybe a little of the Dalton. The rental company was absolutely adamant regarding the Dalton: No....a HARD no.

Oh thats a good point, thanks.. haven't thought about it that it could be a issue to take a rent car from US to Canada then back in USA. But yeah i will check it for sure, but given the gas price and me still been single i dont think i will do the road trip, I would probably stick with my original plan, fly to Anchorage, and take a rent a car there to do some sight seeing.

 

[Starlord]

I have heard very good things about Europe's train system.



Train travel on Amtrak is subsidized by the govt like train travel is subsidized in other countries, including Pakistan. I think the idea is to make the money from the freight. But for a mere $500, the USA Rail Pass is a great value--almost too good to be true! The 10 Segments allowed could let you travel 9000-10,000+ miles of some of the most beautiful landscape in the world! All is required is booking during the shoulder seasons and some roughing it out. And I am speaking from my own experience of having taken multiple trans-continental train trips in America and Canada. They were in the 90s but my fading memory still recalls them fondly.

yeah i saw some of their routes, specially the one you will be taking, you will be seeing some breath-taking views. Hope you have a good camera, but like i said i will give Amtrak another try but not sure when. For now i am too focus on Alaska, and if not Alaska then i will probably go to Spain. I have seen some good packages for 4-5 days, but only problem can be that I still have my Pakistani passport so i have apply for visa, and I may not even get the EU visa

 

[Meengla]

Oh thats a good point, thanks.. haven't thought about it that it could be a issue to take a rent car from US to Canada then back in USA. But yeah i will check it for sure, but given the gas price and me still been single i dont think i will do the road trip, I would probably stick with my original plan, fly to Anchorage, and take a rent a car there to do some sight seeing.

I rented a car for 10 days from South Carolina to northern Maine and crossed into Canada and back twice. I didn't see anywhere in the rental agreement to not take outside of America--or maybe I missed some fine prints. Haha!
It was a smooth experience except a little funny encounter once: In one return trip, as the US border agents checked our (wifey with me) passports and asked basic simple questions, they asked me to open the trunk. I am not used to fancy cars and didn't know I could open the trunk from inside. LOL. I don't know what button or something I pressed, the car lurched forward. The agents startled and said 'Whoa! Stop'. I slammed the brakes. They showed me how to open the trunk and then laughed and said 'I see, it is a rental and that's why you don't know!'. Laughter all around. I was so embarrsed.
BTW, I have always found the American border agents more friendly than the Canadian ones--whether by bus, or by air, or by car.

 

[Starlord]

I rented a car for 10 days from South Carolina to northern Maine and crossed into Canada and back twice. I didn't see anywhere in the rental agreement to not take outside of America--or maybe I missed some fine prints. Haha!
It was a smooth experience except a little funny encounter once: In one return trip, as the US border agents checked our (wifey with me) passports and asked basic simple questions, they asked me to open the trunk. I am not used to fancy cars and didn't know I could open the trunk from inside. LOL. I don't know what button or something I pressed, the car lurched forward. The agents startled and said 'Whoa! Stop'. I slammed the brakes. They showed me how to open the trunk and then laughed and said 'I see, it is a rental and that's why you don't know!'. Laughter all around. I was so embarrsed.
BTW, I have always found the American border agents more friendly than the Canadian ones--whether by bus, or by air, or by car.

I haven't had any experience with border agents yet, but will look forward for it. Honestly i haven't taken rented cars, I have only used Turu once when my car got flooded back in 2024, so I had to rent a car for 1 week.
Well now modern cars are simple but also complicated, lots of fancy stuff and options are included, I mean God bless the guy who invented cruise/adaptive cruise control haha

 

[Ali_Baba]

Thank you, sir. 500 miles of UK's beautiful land!! I have seen videos of UK train and one day will definitely ride end to end. Also on my Bucket List is UK's longest road trip: I think it is something like 800 miles from southwest England to northern Scotland. Beautiful landscape.

You will have to start saving now, the UK is a very very expensive place, esp for tourists who are out of place to know the best way to travel cheaply etc. The UK is a tourist trap for the unwary.

 

[Meengla]

yeah i saw some of their routes, specially the one you will be taking, you will be seeing some breath-taking views. Hope you have a good camera, but like i said i will give Amtrak another try but not sure when. For now i am too focus on Alaska, and if not Alaska then i will probably go to Spain. I have seen some good packages for 4-5 days, but only problem can be that I still have my Pakistani passport so i have apply for visa, and I may not even get the EU visa

With your Green Card, I see no issues you going to Spain or any other European country. They know you already have the options for a decent life in America and wouldn't abuse your visit to Europe.
As for a road trip to Alaska, that's very a ambitious one!! The ALCAN highway maybe much better now but it still is a long journey and challenging. Try something within America itself: Maybe from Miami to Seattle, going diagonally northwest? Beautiful scenery!!

 

[Meengla]

You will have to start saving now, the UK is a very very expensive place, esp for tourists who are out of place to know the best way to travel cheaply etc. The UK is a tourist trap for the unwary.

Except for gasoline (petrol) prices, the UK seems significantly cheaper than America to me. I have been fascinated by the UK and seen some everyday life and travel videos and marvel at that. Here in America, unless you want a dirty, smelly 'cockroach motel', it is rare to find any accommodation below $120. In my upcoming trip, even in mid week, my hotel in NYC is costing me $130 and it is a very basic hotel with a charitable 3 star ranking.