Railroad Honeymoon
If you're interested in seeing the
world, but hate the thought of all that time behind the wheel, there's
no more comfortable mode of overland travel than rail. Amtrak or other
national rail companies will take you almost anywhere you want to go,
but scores of small companies run vintage railroads that take travelers
on a journey into the past.
Amtrak offers 34 passenger train
routes. These are some of the most popular routes offered by Amtrak,
selected because of popular destinations they serve or because they
travel very long distances. Additionally, historic routes like the
Empire Builder were listed not only because of the destinations, but
also because of the legacy of these routes left on tourism in North
America.
Chicago is the long-distance rail center of America, many routes
converge on the Windy City and could require a passenger to change
trains here, when traveling cross country. However, New York is the most
popular railroad opportunity in the country, with a high commuter
ridership and its possession of the most-used Amtrak station.
-
Acela Express, [21].
The Acela Express takes you from Boston, Massachusetts to Washington,
D.C. via New
York and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
This is the only route in the country which resembles a high-speed
rail line, with a top speed of 150 mph (241 km/h). There are
multiple daily departures. Length of ride is seven hours. Amtrak
Cascades, [22].
The Amtrak Cascades takes you from Eugene,Oregon to Vancouver, British
Columbiavia Portland, Oregon and Seattle,Washington.
This route uses a distinctive Talgo trainset in lieu of the
Superliner consist. There are multiple daily departures. As of
August 2009, there are now two trains running between Seattle and
Vancouver; one ends in Seattle, the other continues on to Portland.
The direct Vancouver/Portland train is a trial, and may or may not
be continued after the Vancouver Olympics in February 2010.
California
Zephyr, [23].
Amtrak's California Zephyr travels from Chicago, Illinois to Emeryville/San
Francisco (San Francisco is a short bus ride from Emeryville)
via Omaha, Nebraska; Denver, Colorado;Salt
Lake City, Utah;
and Reno, Nevada.
Service is daily and takes 51 1/2 hours to complete. Capitol
Limited, [24].
Runs from Chicago to Washington,
D.C. via Cleveland, Ohio and Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania.
Service is daily and takes 18 hours to complete. Cardinal, [25].
The Cardinal connects New
York City with Chicago;
via Washington,
D.C. andCincinnati, Ohio.
The train operates three days a week and is a 26 1/2 hours trip.
Recently, Amtrak has upgraded the food service available on this
train with a "Diner-Lounge" car. "Diner-Lounge" cars are being tried
by Amtrak owing to US Congressional mandates to reduce the losses
incurred by providing food service on intercity passenger trains.
Carolinian, [26].
Travels from New
York City to Charlotte, North
Carolina; via Philadelphia,Pennsylvania and Washington,
D.C.. Service is daily and takes 13 1/2 hours to complete. City
of New Orleans, [27].
This route takes you from Chicago, Illinois to
the "Birthplace of Jazz" —New
Orleans, Louisiana;
via Memphis, Tennessee.
The ride is 19 hours long and operates daily. Coast Starlight, [28].
Runs from Los Angeles, California to Seattle, Washington via Santa
Barbara,California; San
Jose, California; Emeryville, California (a
short Amtrak bus ride from San
Francisco);Sacramento, California;
and Portland, Oregon.
Although the moniker is "Coast Starlight", the coast is visible for
only a short while between Los Angeles and San
Luis Obispo. Service is daily and takes 35 hours to complete.
Crescent, [29].
The Crescent runs from New
York City to New
Orleans, Louisiana;
via Philadelphia,Pennsylvania, Washington,
D.C., Charlotte, North
Carolina, and Atlanta, Georgia.
Service is daily and takes 30 hours to complete.
The
Empire Builder stops at Glacier
National Park
Empire Builder, [30].
The Empire Builder runs from Chicago to
eitherPortland, Oregon;
or Seattle,Washington via Milwaukee, Wisconsin,Minneapolis, Minnesota,
and Glacier
National Park. This route operates daily and is a 46 hour ride.
The Empire Builder was the single most-ridden Amtrak train in 2004,
2005, 2006, and 2007. Over 503,000 people rode this train in FY2007,
which ended September 30, 2007. Lake Shore Limited, [31].
Runs from Chicago to
either Boston,
Massachusetts or New
York, viaCleveland,
Ohio and Buffalo,
New York. Runs daily and takes 19 1/2 hours (Chicago-New York)
or 22 hours (Chicago-Boston). Pacific Surfliner, [32].
Runs from San
Luis Obispo, California to San
Diego, via Los
Angeles andOrange
County. A perfect way to beat the Southern California traffic.
Also great for visiting Disneyland.
There are multiple departures every day and it takes about 6 hours
to complete the trip. Palmetto / Silver Meteor / Silver Star [33].
Three different trains which travel from New
York down the eastern coast. The Palmetto travels from New York
City to Savannah, Georgia,
via Charleston, South
Carolina. The Silver Meteor travels from New York City to Miami, Florida;
via Charleston, Savannah, andOrlando, Florida.
The Silver Star follows essentially the same route as the Silver
Meteor, except it takes a different route through the Carolinas and
makes a detour to Tampa, Florida.
All three trains run daily, and the length of the trip is up to 28
hours. Southwest Chief, [34].
The Southwest Chief travels from Chicago, Illinois to Los
Angeles, California;
via Kansas
City, Missouri and Albuquerque, New
Mexico. Service on the 40-hour route is daily. Sunset Limited, [35].
Travels from New
Orleans, Louisiana to Los
Angeles, California via San
Antonio,Texas.
Service is three times a week and is 48 hours from start to end.
Texas Eagle, [36].
Travels from Chicago, Illinois to San
Antonio, Texas;
via St. Louis, Missouri,
andDallas, Texas.
Service is daily and takes 32 1/2 hours to complete.
Your honeymoon story
Have you done this trip (whether on
your honeymoon or other travel)? We'd love to hear about your experience
so we can share it with others . . . just
drop us a line.
Last Updated:
June 14, 2004 |
