I've taken the Auto Train, both directions, over a dozen times in the last 10 years. Love it. Pop into the sleeper, turn on hot spot, open a bottle, work a little bit, have meals delivered to my room, watch a movie, sleep...Totally left alone for the entire journey. Heaven.
Hello, As a Amtrak auto-train OBS attendant, I want to say thank you for a well documented of Amtrak's auto-train. Of course during the covid 19 pandemic, our southbound trips were not as full but thanks to you and our family of yearly riders, we are surviving this pandemic period.
Booking a sleeper, even a roomette, is a luxury I choose to afford as I can NOT sleep in a coach seat well. For those who can, great, you dropped your fare a lot.
@@ronclark9724 you're scaring me. We booked last weekend and there was only 3 Coach left(booked roomette for return journey). We must drive from Cincy to Lorton so I'm going to be tired then driving to Miami from Sanford. I think I was born an insomniac but I do like naps, can't go too many hours without sleep to drive. Always wanted to do this auto train just wish we were closer to boarding station. We're not really saving much because of our driving distance.
I can't say enough how much I appreciate the pacing and variety of services you review in your videos. It's such a different and more pedestrian take on travel review videos, which with the folks who do airline review products seem to be about the opulence and luxury of air travel. There's something satisfyingly egalitarian about the products you review.
Nice part 2 of this trip report showing a tour of the passengers coaches despite COVID I give credit to amtrak and every other train operator for continuing to run services during this time and hopefully gets better as some countries start to recover and ease lockdown like USA, some European and Asian nations new Zealand etc and sooner or later back to normal within a few years
5:01 If you are in one of the sleeping cars towards the back of the train, they will always take your dinner reservations last. Usually this means that only 5:30 is available. However, this can also mean that you can go to the Sightseer Lounge car and enjoy the sunset while most people are eating dinner 5:49: I don't believe that this stop was for a crew change, probably just a signal. The area around Richmond VA is notorious for its low speed limits. As far as I know the Auto Train's one and only crew stop is at Florence, South Carolina in the middle of the night. Here, the engines are refueled and the crews are changed. However, you can't get off the train 10:10 I believe you were in a Pacific Parlour car on the Coast Starlight. These are ex-Santa Fe Railroad Hi-Level cars (the predecessors to the Superliners) that Amtrak repurposed into luxury lounges. However, they were retired in early 2018 because of cost cutting measures
No, he is right, the majority of Lounge cars of Amtrak (California Zephyr, Empire Builder etc.) have different layout with turning and longitudinal seats.
I remember hearing for Auto Train since the smoking lounges were eliminated for that train in 2013, that they now allow passengers to smoke/stretch in Florence, SC. It's a smoke/stretch stop that happens late at night around 11pm-12:30am, so keep that in mind.
@@BoratWanksta It was around 2 am when we rolled into Florence, SC for crew change(not all crew changed over since shortage mostly employees that refused vaccine). 1 door unlocked for us to get out and smoke. I really enjoyed our trip. Food was better than expected, bottle of wine was good. We learned not to have Jeep in 1st car, took forever to get it unloaded last at Sanford station. The other thing was AMTRAK emailed us at 9:30 pm before our departure no train, all were stuck in snow in VA. Good thing we had our Jeep to get home.
I don’t know what country you traveled in Europe but my experiences with trains in Germany, Austria, Italy,Switzerland and France were fabulous. Trains were luxurious, spacious, high speed and superb service. I enjoyed your video.
14:50 - I would LOVE to hang in that place, drinking Jack, on an rainy night! In my next visit to the US, I'll definitely do some travel by train!!! =D
The lounge on the coast starlight was more than likely the pacific parlor car. Those were a special type of lounge for business and sleeper passengers only on the coast starlight. What you saw was a normal sightseer lounge, which all Amtrak long distance trains (with super liners) have.
I had no idea the music knob actually worked on Auto Train! On pretty much every Superliner train if you move it away from channel 1, nothing plays and also you don't hear the train announcements. I thought it was a long-defunct feature.
It's funny that you liked the meal because that is the new " flexible" dining meal, closer to airline food really. When we had regular dining on the trains it was so much better! Perfectly cooked steaks, beautiful salads and pastas and the best breakfasts cooked right there. The stuff you got is microwaved believe it or not.. I hope someday when things get back to normal if they ever do oh, that you have a chance to taste food from the real dining menu on Amtrak.
The lounge car has a different layout because you were probably in one of the now retired Pacific Parlour cars on the west coast trip. They were not Superliners but ex Santa Fe railway Hi Level cars from the 50s. I remember being in one on the Empire Builder back in 1992.
Loved seeing you go past the James River near Richmond, waving from my home. Thanks for reviewing Amtrak. I rode the Acela DC-NYC in September and enjoyed the round trip immensely. Sanitary conditions of the train and great attitudes from all.
9:54 The lounge you mentioned was the Pacific Parlor Car, which was exclusively used on the Coast Starlight. Those cars were rebuilt Budd Hi-Level cars that were originally built for the ATSF in the 1950s. Sadly, those cars were retired in 2018 and are most likely going to be scrapped. The lounge you are in on this train is one of the standard Superliner lounges, which are still in service today.
I did the southbound once, and my wife did it twice. The roomette suits me and my wife just fine... i recommend a power strip for all of your electrical items. overall, best train experience for me by far. now wanting to do the Southwest Chief or Sunset Limited to LAX.
My sister and I once chose the auto train years ago to reduce the driving from Boston to the Tampa area. The roomette was snug for two to sit in, and I wasn't looking forward to climbing to the upper bunk, but in a stroke of luck the roomette just opposite was vacant, so we commandeered it and no one questioned our occupancy. To show how long ago this was, the train had a smoking room! The dinner was quite good, but as far as sleeping was concerned the train lurched so much neither of us slept much. Hopefully the railbed has been improved since then. As I recall it, the train was clean and the staff was helpful. My impression at the time was that the average age of the passengers was about 80. ;-), and though it was New Years Eve everyone was in bed before 8:00PM. Because most of the trip was at night, the view out the window (one of the benefits of train travel) was limited. We didn't use the auto train again. While it did save us the cost of one night in a motel, It didn't spare us the most difficult part of the driving from Boston to Washington. I-95 from Washington to Florida may be boring but it's much easier to drive, and we still faced the drive (after little sleep) from Sanford to the Tampa area. It also seemed to be rather expensive. The Autotrain was an interesting experience, but for us it was not cost-effective.
Interesting and true about drive to Lorton, VA to board then drive after getting vehicle back in Sanford to your destination. Florida isn't a small State(I-4 is a nightmare drive)it's very overpopulated with some of the worst drivers. Miami is so dangerous, going to be so tired after arrival on New Years Eve. This may be a one and done for auto train because it's not really saving us money or driving time.
The hall getting to that room is tight, but once you are inside there is no need to leave the handicap room. That sleeper's steward will bring you anything you need with the call button...
Well I tried the night train service from Brussels to Vienna. It was my first sleeper train experience and i really loved it. It was absolutelt great. Nice wallpaper!
10:05 The coast starlight actually ran two lounge cars, and the one with a different layout is the Pacific Parlour Car, though now retired, they ran on the coast starlight in 2015
4:40 WiFi is available on most, but not all of Amtrak’s trains. All of the long distance trains (except Auto Train) do not have WiFi, so it’s best to prepare yourself for hours or days without internet, since cell service can be spotty, especially out west 5:50 Just reiterating what someone else said, but the crew change occurs at Florence, SC, not in Richmond. The train was probably holding for a signal 6:22 The crew usually have their own sleeping section, which is at the front of the train. It’s possible that on this consist, it’s at the back
I have had wifi sometimes on the Coast Starlight. It was always provided by a typical consumer portable hotspot running on Verizon, consequently coverage through the car was pretty bad, and overall performance was obviously only as good as Verizon service in the area.
I worked for Amtrak (Onboard Services) From October 1997 Through November 2002. From October 97-April 98 I worked on AutoTrain then transferred to Washington DC
Salutations d'un cheminot suisse. Merci pour tes vidéos, je suis entrain de regarder ton trip et je suis jaloux, je rêve de parcourir une fois une grande distance sur plusieurs jours en train aux States, un jour peut-être.
I am taking this train home to Virginia next week to say hi to family before departing for my trip to London and Paris (my first time to France) so I found it kinda funny/ironic that you're discovering my home state and I'm discovering your home country lol. Great video!
Fun fact about the chess board: the colours are inverted. The square on the bottom left should always be black, so if you were to use this, you'd either have to play against the window, or invert the colours in your mind.
Great review of this unique train! I live in Richmond and that bridge over the James River is the CSX A-Line bridge, it's a beautiful Art Deco arch bridge worth seeing from outside the train sometime.
Hey! I really appreciate you making this video, This is my first time traveling by Train in the US and I'm really excited to not have to drive all. the. way. to Florida :)
This is the first time I've ever seen the music in the rooms work. In every other video I've seen, nothing has happened, or they assume it's to control the volume of the announcements. I'm curious to see if mine will work when I take the empire builder next spring.
When the superliners were introduced they had various music tracks from an onboard multitrack tape player. These things wore out and were never replaced, so now only announcements go through it. I have no idea how this one actually had music -- mine have never had music on any route I have taken for well over a decade.
They have a smoke stop on the Empire Builder in Havre MT for about 20 minutes. You should get off at there and check the front of the train is you're headed westbound. where they have a Great Northern S-2 Class Locomotive on display, this is always my favorite part of the trip.
(15:57) Your bed reminds me to old German Express couches where two opposing compartment seats could be pulled out and formed a common lying area. - Heinz
I went cross country and back 7 or 8 on amtrak. All but 1 day was all nights on the train in January 2020. Was a great trip. Very comfortable and cool to meet people. Was from DC to Chicago to San Francisco to seattle(overnight) then back to Chicago and DC. Was great. The food on board is pretty dang good also. And taking a shower on a moving train will always be fun/interesting as u don't want to fall lol.
Everything looks super clean. Loose towels in the shower room gave me the creeps though. Not too CVID safe. I still would like to try this on the way to Florida. Very tempting.
Good thing CoVid isn't spread through contact. This train has an excellent air filtration system. And masks are required to stop the spread.I will know for sure after my trip on 30 December, it's fully booked. 650 people is bit scary for me but staying optimistic for a new experience. Merry Christmas!
It is a bit amazing to me that this service still exists--it's obviously mostly going to be leisure travel from the Washington, DC area and environs to the resorts and theme parks of central Florida, and the demand for that remains huge (or was before COVID-19), but the whole pace of it is very different from what people expect on a modern vacation. Very cool, though.
Really liked your video.....at 6:13 you showed cars 39002 and 32105 after you talked about separation between coach and sleeper. 39002 is a Trans Dorm....crew car but also does sale additional roomette to paying passengers or is used for bad working order sleepers like 32105 if it was to break.. City New Orleans, Sunset Limited and Texas Eagle do use these for overflow because they carry only one sleeper. I had to move to the Trans Dorm on train 28 Empire Builder years ago because our sleeper had to be sent out in Spokane because of bad order. Though Amtrak because service level wasn't as good for sleeping cart passengers, they gave 10,000 points through Guest Rewards
Outstanding video bruv. Nothing like the train man I really hate flying if we had a modern dam rail system like France or German I would be on one each weekend. Nice content bro. Tim from brooklyn yerrrr
I have to add an addendum to my recent comment. We recently took the Sleeper Car to Santa Barbara and your meals looked even better than ours.. and I read that the Auto Train is getting the upgraded meal service. But still not as good as it used to be. We got basically 1960s TV dinner Style meals and they were pretty awful because they were microwaved
Currently all Amtrak's long distance dining is using Flexible Dinning until September due to covid with the exception of the Auto Train. The Traditional Dining should return to the western routes after that.
The crew has always had a sleeping car. Other than sleeping car attendants who each sleep in the car they're responsible for, the rest of the crew has space to sleep. First thing in the morning, you'll see them walk towards the front of the train to their job location. Also, crew change is in Florence, SC. If the train was stopped in Richmond, it was for traffic, not crew. We've done 7 round trips and have another one this Nov/Dec. We also get a bedroom so we have our own bathroom. Also, the lounges vary. Sometimes, it's the regular lounges and sometimes it's the one like you showed with the glass everywhere. We've never had the glass dome ones.
Very interesting and well-done video. The Superliner II cars are quite intricate; and anything that runs on Amtrak, including private cars, are subject to Amtrak's very lengthy and detailed requirements. You might want to think about asking for a tour of Amtrak's Beech Grove maintenance facility near Indianapolis since I am sure you will be amazed at how very complex these cars and it's internal systems really are.
A lot of my family That live in Florida use the Auto train It is a very very popular train has been since day Perhaps the only train making a profit Back in the 80 I had a little reunion with Florida family on the train A short train 45 railcars a long train at least 55 railcars Leaves ealy most times
Dinner in North America is usually eaten around 6-7, but I think for this train they put it at 5:30 for the passengers to be able to see the Sun set in the lounge
Yes, GE... they replaced the old EMD units that WERE made by General Motors. And these GE units are being replaced by French TGV type units, although they will be mfg in the US.
You passed through some stretches of Our country's saddest moments in history. For those overseas who may not know. The American Civil was was fought from 1861-1865. When the Southern part of the United States (Texas east to the Atlantic) attempted to separate from the rest of the country. Richmond, VA was the capital of the breakaway region. The Delta of the James River (and the James Peninsula) saw an early campaign of that war. The river also saw the first clash between Ironclad warships. Petersburg was the site of a horrific siege, and up stream of the Appomattox River... The small town of Appomattox Court House saw the surrender of the South's most famous fighting force (The Army of Northern Virginia: General Robert E. Lee Commanding) to the Federal Government's Army of the Potomac (General Ulysses S Grant commanding).
Virginia is impressive in areas of improvement to leave that all behind. Richmond no longer is dominated by tobacco warehouses. Driving in the western part of VA is very beautiful in the mountains. I have seen most of those Civil War battle sites and where Lee surrendered to Grant. It's indeed some of the saddest years of US history. I live in Ohio so they used to have pride in Grant, Sherman but with relatives in Virginia, many trips have been there. Not enough learn our Nation's history so I'm thankful my father was a restless combat veteran who shared so much in our travels around the US, Canada and Mexico.
@@andreworiez8920 Honesty in all is the best way to deal with any issues our beautiful Nation and its people face. Are you a Virginia resident, my father grew up there. Have a Merry Christmas! My 1st week of the New Year includes this auto train and Miami, hoping it's wonderful. And your 2022 is wonderful too, Happy New Year.
@@christinacope562 No... I was born at Lajes Air Base Portugal... My father was US Navy. I'm a Wyoming resident now after growing up in California and overseas.
5:48 the auto train pretty impressively only has one crew change point in Florence SC its two engineers to Florence from Lorton then two engineers to Sanford from Florence
Really glad I found this channel. Its awesome and soo chill!!! Maybe you can buy a clippon wide angle lens, because some spaces you come into a very tight, a wide angle can help you showing more and a clippon is easy to remove and attatch. Keep it up!
Those smoking rooms have been converted to baggage rooms. Some of the Superliner coaches in that location have small cafes for snacks and drinks like a Sightseeing Lounge car. California Superliner trains, the Heartland Flyer, and on the Seattle service of the Empire Builder west of Spokane. Maybe a Michigan Superliner train as well...
Hi, nice videos (seen all 3 parts). I would like to know if mid-size dogs like an English Cockerspaniel are allowed on Amtrak trains? Thanks in advance for your answers.
I read on their website 20 pounds or lighter. I thought about taking my mini Eskie but she'd not be too happy with no pee stops outdoors. Unfortunately I will be boarding her for a week, going to miss her smiling face. Great choice with English Cocker, I loved mine(he lived 17 happy years).
Well done, one of these days I would love to try out the auto train and from what I’ve seen, the prices are real good. Also, I want to do the Northbound Coast Starlight from either LA or San Jose. I had a positive experience southbound. A shorter northbound trip should be fun.
Pick a day after a Northern California and Southern Oregon snowfall... You will be blissed in a winter wonderland... Bob Fosse couldn't wait perfection any better...
I live in England and I love Amtrak. I can recommend the Southwest Chief , stop over in LA to see the magnificent Union Station, with its Garden, (Get a sandwich and a beer) and take the Coast Starlight to Emeryville (For San Fran). At Seattle there is a bus waiting to take you on to Vancouver if you want to go so far North. The Roomette is Magic, and all your meals are included in the price.
@@robertcroft8241 No need to take the bus to Vancouver -- just spend a day in Portland or Seattle and then take the Cascades service into BC, thus avoiding a bus ride. =) I wish they would run the Starlight through to BC as well, but only Cascades does.
Southwest Chief is definitely better than Lakeshore Limited. Amtrak's new CEO pushed to cut costs by removing kitchen service on the eastern long-distance routes (except for AutoTrain), but you can still get a properly cooked steak on the Southwest Chief.
What amtrak do you want to ride next and doing reviews check amtrak.com for your next incredible trip and reviews is a plus still wait for part 3 yo Just type amtrak.com and click amtrak route & destination then pick your next train trip, i mean they incredible scenery landmark or nature. Enjoy simply railway
I did some calculations. Since there are 18 passenger coaches, 33 auto carriers, and 2 locomotives, there are a total of 53 coaches in this train. Since the train is a total length of 3/4 miles, the passenger section is about a quarter mile long! That's a long walk! And the car section is just shy of half a mile long! Make sure you have enough gas to make it to the front if your car is assigned to be there.
13:09 though I can not tell from that angle, the locomotives amtrak use on the Autotrain are actually P40's, the original iteration of the Genesis locomotives
Very funny that the music control worked in your room! Typically they are disabled and it is only really used for controlling the volume of the announcements on channel 1.
13:12, believe it or not, those aren't actually P42DC units. Those are actually first generation P40DCs. They are exclusively used on Auto Train as they were replaced everywhere else by the P42DC. The reason is because of the older breaking system P40s have over P42s which works fine with passenger coaches but works especially well with the autoracks. P42s aren't as effective so they keep a small number of P40s solely for the Auto Train
First I saw Amtrak had Yuengling in glass containers. The gap between the buffer plates at 9:50 looks like a safety issue. Car 39002, the last passenger car before the auto carrier cars, is a transition car with upper level passageway at one end and lower level passageway at the other. Didn't know any would be on Auto Train. Originally built with crew members and revenue sleeper spaces but often the crew has it for themselves.
9:59 you probably rode in a Pacific Parlour car, which are now retired. They were originally built for the ATSF 10:50 I find it odd they are put on the door, but not the side of the car. 13:16 That's something I should try to do the next time I'm on Amtrak. I haven't been on one since 2007 when I was a kid. It was the Missouri River Runner and was just for fun.
Most likely your train was hauled by 2 P40DC locamotives not P42s, as auto train usualy uses P40s. If the engine number is in the 800 series its a P40 and anything 1-207 is a P42.
I've never been on a train in the USA but would love to do some of the Amtrak routes. I live in the UK. Maybe down to your audio editing but this train sounded very quiet. Probably helped by better than average track maintenance. Some videos I have seen make the trains seem like boneshakers. The review would have been more representative if there were a normal amount of people on the train. That was more like a ghost train. A chilled relaxing trip for you though.
The big problem with the Autotrain is that Amtrak has only 2 consists for this service. Two days prior to my trip south on Jan 1, 2020 a locomotive broke down and was not replaced for many hours. Two days later the train was still running 7 hours behind schedule with Amtrak not sharing this information for fear that passengers would just continue to drive to FL Once on the train the service was very good - the meal that was to be served for dinner was instead served for lunch the second day. Instead of arriving early morning we arrived around 3:30 pm
Freight trains have priority over passenger, it's a shame and puts Amtrak at a disadvantage. That horrible crash within past couple years was CSX fault.
I took this train two years ago, paid for a roomette but something was wrong with the AC on that car so they upgraded us to the deluxe bedroom for free. Spoiled for sure! But I’d have no problem using the train again with a roomette
I've taken the Auto Train, both directions, over a dozen times in the last 10 years. Love it. Pop into the sleeper, turn on hot spot, open a bottle, work a little bit, have meals delivered to my room, watch a movie, sleep...Totally left alone for the entire journey. Heaven.
Hello,
As a Amtrak auto-train OBS attendant, I want to say thank you for a well documented of Amtrak's auto-train. Of course during the covid 19 pandemic, our southbound trips were not as full but thanks to you and our family of yearly riders, we are surviving this pandemic period.
Hope alls well with you!
Stay safe and Thank you! 👍
You must be pretty senior then, to be working on the AT
oBS?
My wife and I take the train about every year when I take my vacation.we always get a sleeper. We have done this the last 30 years.
Booking a sleeper, even a roomette, is a luxury I choose to afford as I can NOT sleep in a coach seat well. For those who can, great, you dropped your fare a lot.
@@ronclark9724 you're scaring me. We booked last weekend and there was only 3 Coach left(booked roomette for return journey). We must drive from Cincy to Lorton so I'm going to be tired then driving to Miami from Sanford. I think I was born an insomniac but I do like naps, can't go too many hours without sleep to drive.
Always wanted to do this auto train just wish we were closer to boarding station. We're not really saving much because of our driving distance.
Question… I move to New York I’m going to take this train. Can I put mi package in the car? It’s a problem with that?
@@Elpanchisco should be no problem.
I love how this guy is so happy with everything.. what a great attitude
I can't say enough how much I appreciate the pacing and variety of services you review in your videos. It's such a different and more pedestrian take on travel review videos, which with the folks who do airline review products seem to be about the opulence and luxury of air travel. There's something satisfyingly egalitarian about the products you review.
Well said!
Couldn't agree more!
Ya the videos are great!
I can’t say how much I appreciate you patronizing Amtrak and the U.S. during the pandemic. Stay safe.
I thought at first it was a little pricey. But you have to factor in gas, meals, hotel, fatigue and wear and tear on your vehicle. Love your video.
Nice part 2 of this trip report showing a tour of the passengers coaches despite COVID I give credit to amtrak and every other train operator for continuing to run services during this time and hopefully gets better as some countries start to recover and ease lockdown like USA, some European and Asian nations new Zealand etc and sooner or later back to normal within a few years
5:01 If you are in one of the sleeping cars towards the back of the train, they will always take your dinner reservations last. Usually this means that only 5:30 is available. However, this can also mean that you can go to the Sightseer Lounge car and enjoy the sunset while most people are eating dinner
5:49: I don't believe that this stop was for a crew change, probably just a signal. The area around Richmond VA is notorious for its low speed limits. As far as I know the Auto Train's one and only crew stop is at Florence, South Carolina in the middle of the night. Here, the engines are refueled and the crews are changed. However, you can't get off the train
10:10 I believe you were in a Pacific Parlour car on the Coast Starlight. These are ex-Santa Fe Railroad Hi-Level cars (the predecessors to the Superliners) that Amtrak repurposed into luxury lounges. However, they were retired in early 2018 because of cost cutting measures
No, he is right, the majority of Lounge cars of Amtrak (California Zephyr, Empire Builder etc.) have different layout with turning and longitudinal seats.
I remember hearing for Auto Train since the smoking lounges were eliminated for that train in 2013, that they now allow passengers to smoke/stretch in Florence, SC. It's a smoke/stretch stop that happens late at night around 11pm-12:30am, so keep that in mind.
@@BoratWanksta I do hope that's still a thing.
@@christinacope562 It is. But if you're a smoker, and have a sleeper, just get a good vape. Or so I've been told.😈
@@BoratWanksta It was around 2 am when we rolled into Florence, SC for crew change(not all crew changed over since shortage mostly employees that refused vaccine). 1 door unlocked for us to get out and smoke.
I really enjoyed our trip. Food was better than expected, bottle of wine was good. We learned not to have Jeep in 1st car, took forever to get it unloaded last at Sanford station. The other thing was AMTRAK emailed us at 9:30 pm before our departure no train, all were stuck in snow in VA. Good thing we had our Jeep to get home.
We appreciate that the Auto Train still has traditional dining even now
I love how you do the moving through the train with the map thing.
I don’t know what country you traveled in Europe but my experiences with trains in Germany, Austria, Italy,Switzerland and France were fabulous. Trains were luxurious, spacious, high speed and superb service. I enjoyed your video.
Your photography of the train's interior is the best I've seen so far!
I was shocked! Been riding Superliners since their earliest days in the 80"s. Fist time I've ever seen the sleeping car music channels work!
Watchex part one and 2 yesterday. Watching part three now. Very informative. Sent links to alot of friends and family.
14:50 - I would LOVE to hang in that place, drinking Jack, on an rainy night! In my next visit to the US, I'll definitely do some travel by train!!! =D
The lounge on the coast starlight was more than likely the pacific parlor car. Those were a special type of lounge for business and sleeper passengers only on the coast starlight. What you saw was a normal sightseer lounge, which all Amtrak long distance trains (with super liners) have.
I had no idea the music knob actually worked on Auto Train! On pretty much every Superliner train if you move it away from channel 1, nothing plays and also you don't hear the train announcements. I thought it was a long-defunct feature.
It's funny that you liked the meal because that is the new " flexible" dining meal, closer to airline food really. When we had regular dining on the trains it was so much better! Perfectly cooked steaks, beautiful salads and pastas and the best breakfasts cooked right there. The stuff you got is microwaved believe it or not.. I hope someday when things get back to normal if they ever do oh, that you have a chance to taste food from the real dining menu on Amtrak.
I'm glad you enjoyed your trip. I hope you'll get the chance to experience other Long-Distance routes in the future!
The lounge car has a different layout because you were probably in one of the now retired Pacific Parlour cars on the west coast trip. They were not Superliners but ex Santa Fe railway Hi Level cars from the 50s. I remember being in one on the Empire Builder back in 1992.
Loved seeing you go past the James River near Richmond, waving from my home. Thanks for reviewing Amtrak. I rode the Acela DC-NYC in September and enjoyed the round trip immensely. Sanitary conditions of the train and great attitudes from all.
9:54 The lounge you mentioned was the Pacific Parlor Car, which was exclusively used on the Coast Starlight. Those cars were rebuilt Budd Hi-Level cars that were originally built for the ATSF in the 1950s. Sadly, those cars were retired in 2018 and are most likely going to be scrapped. The lounge you are in on this train is one of the standard Superliner lounges, which are still in service today.
I did the southbound once, and my wife did it twice. The roomette suits me and my wife just fine... i recommend a power strip for all of your electrical items. overall, best train experience for me by far. now wanting to do the Southwest Chief or Sunset Limited to LAX.
My sister and I once chose the auto train years ago to reduce the driving from Boston to the Tampa area. The roomette was snug for two to sit in, and I wasn't looking forward to climbing to the upper bunk, but in a stroke of luck the roomette just opposite was vacant, so we commandeered it and no one questioned our occupancy. To show how long ago this was, the train had a smoking room!
The dinner was quite good, but as far as sleeping was concerned the train lurched so much neither of us slept much. Hopefully the railbed has been improved since then. As I recall it, the train was clean and the staff was helpful. My impression at the time was that the average age of the passengers was about 80. ;-), and though it was New Years Eve everyone was in bed before 8:00PM. Because most of the trip was at night, the view out the window (one of the benefits of train travel) was limited.
We didn't use the auto train again. While it did save us the cost of one night in a motel, It didn't spare us the most difficult part of the driving from Boston to Washington. I-95 from Washington to Florida may be boring but it's much easier to drive, and we still faced the drive (after little sleep) from Sanford to the Tampa area. It also seemed to be rather expensive. The Autotrain was an interesting experience, but for us it was not cost-effective.
Interesting and true about drive to Lorton, VA to board then drive after getting vehicle back in Sanford to your destination. Florida isn't a small State(I-4 is a nightmare drive)it's very overpopulated with some of the worst drivers. Miami is so dangerous, going to be so tired after arrival on New Years Eve.
This may be a one and done for auto train because it's not really saving us money or driving time.
Wow certainly a great product and service and dinner looked to be good. Great they have tea, coffee and water.
Thanks for showing the accessible facilities Thibault! First time I’ve been able to see what a wheelchair accessible room on board Amtrak is like 👍🏾
You're welcome Lizzy, I always try to shows that in my videos. I know some people need to see that.
The hall getting to that room is tight, but once you are inside there is no need to leave the handicap room. That sleeper's steward will bring you anything you need with the call button...
That train's getting better and better.
Well I tried the night train service from Brussels to Vienna. It was my first sleeper train experience and i really loved it. It was absolutelt great. Nice wallpaper!
We did the overnight from Florence to Paris; it was Great!
10:05 The coast starlight actually ran two lounge cars, and the one with a different layout is the Pacific Parlour Car, though now retired, they ran on the coast starlight in 2015
Is that the one that was scrapped? It was gorgeous.
Great video 😀👍👍
I love your videos, especially the ones on Amtrak/in America!
Keep up the great work!!😉😎👍
4:40 WiFi is available on most, but not all of Amtrak’s trains. All of the long distance trains (except Auto Train) do not have WiFi, so it’s best to prepare yourself for hours or days without internet, since cell service can be spotty, especially out west
5:50 Just reiterating what someone else said, but the crew change occurs at Florence, SC, not in Richmond. The train was probably holding for a signal
6:22 The crew usually have their own sleeping section, which is at the front of the train. It’s possible that on this consist, it’s at the back
I have had wifi sometimes on the Coast Starlight. It was always provided by a typical consumer portable hotspot running on Verizon, consequently coverage through the car was pretty bad, and overall performance was obviously only as good as Verizon service in the area.
All Viewliners and Amfleets are equipped with wifi
Oh damn, sleeping in that bed looked really nice!
Nice work. Yes, you are right ... most Superliner observation / lounge cars have some seats that face outward / the windows. 🤓
I really enjoy seeing inside these trains! Definitely can't afford it myself haha. Thanks for sharing!
A great video, so informative and I am now thinking of taking an Amtrak train
I really like the flow and content of your videos. I look forward to each one. Nice job!
I'm gonna take an Amtrak train soon, and this sums up a few questions related to the virus.
I worked for Amtrak (Onboard Services) From October 1997 Through November 2002. From October 97-April 98 I worked on AutoTrain then transferred to Washington DC
Salutations d'un cheminot suisse. Merci pour tes vidéos, je suis entrain de regarder ton trip et je suis jaloux, je rêve de parcourir une fois une grande distance sur plusieurs jours en train aux States, un jour peut-être.
I am taking this train home to Virginia next week to say hi to family before departing for my trip to London and Paris (my first time to France) so I found it kinda funny/ironic that you're discovering my home state and I'm discovering your home country lol.
Great video!
Very nice tour, thank you.
Fun fact about the chess board: the colours are inverted. The square on the bottom left should always be black, so if you were to use this, you'd either have to play against the window, or invert the colours in your mind.
Great review of this unique train! I live in Richmond and that bridge over the James River is the CSX A-Line bridge, it's a beautiful Art Deco arch bridge worth seeing from outside the train sometime.
I would love that, I will have to map that. I❤Virginia!
Hey! I really appreciate you making this video, This is my first time traveling by Train in the US and I'm really excited to not have to drive all. the. way. to Florida :)
Amtrak runs two Silver trains to Florida from New York Penn Station...
This is the first time I've ever seen the music in the rooms work. In every other video I've seen, nothing has happened, or they assume it's to control the volume of the announcements. I'm curious to see if mine will work when I take the empire builder next spring.
When the superliners were introduced they had various music tracks from an onboard multitrack tape player. These things wore out and were never replaced, so now only announcements go through it. I have no idea how this one actually had music -- mine have never had music on any route I have taken for well over a decade.
They have a smoke stop on the Empire Builder in Havre MT for about 20 minutes. You should get off at there and check the front of the train is you're headed westbound. where they have a Great Northern S-2 Class Locomotive on display, this is always my favorite part of the trip.
Amtrak hasn't lot of trains, but the few he has are really nice. Great trip report Thibault 😉.
(15:57) Your bed reminds me to old German Express couches where two opposing compartment seats could be pulled out and formed a common lying area. - Heinz
Terrific catches! Amazing trip you had to Florida again!
Excellent trip report so far ! Hope to do it some day !
Thank you for sharing !!! :):):)
I went cross country and back 7 or 8 on amtrak. All but 1 day was all nights on the train in January 2020. Was a great trip. Very comfortable and cool to meet people. Was from DC to Chicago to San Francisco to seattle(overnight) then back to Chicago and DC. Was great. The food on board is pretty dang good also. And taking a shower on a moving train will always be fun/interesting as u don't want to fall lol.
Thank you for another great video. C'etait tres bien! I really enjoyed the second part. Am looking forward to part 3! Merci beaucoup :-)
Everything looks super clean. Loose towels in the shower room gave me the creeps though. Not too CVID safe. I still would like to try this on the way to Florida. Very tempting.
Good thing CoVid isn't spread through contact.
This train has an excellent air filtration system. And masks are required to stop the spread.I will know for sure after my trip on 30 December, it's fully booked. 650 people is bit scary for me but staying optimistic for a new experience.
Merry Christmas!
The Autotrain service needs to be expanded to other long-distance routes, especially to Texas & the Southwest!
It is a bit amazing to me that this service still exists--it's obviously mostly going to be leisure travel from the Washington, DC area and environs to the resorts and theme parks of central Florida, and the demand for that remains huge (or was before COVID-19), but the whole pace of it is very different from what people expect on a modern vacation. Very cool, though.
Me encanto su vídeo voy en la segunda parte 👍✌️👍✌️🍀🍀
Really liked your video.....at 6:13 you showed cars 39002 and 32105 after you talked about separation between coach and sleeper. 39002 is a Trans Dorm....crew car but also does sale additional roomette to paying passengers or is used for bad working order sleepers like 32105 if it was to break..
City New Orleans, Sunset Limited and Texas Eagle do use these for overflow because they carry only one sleeper. I had to move to the Trans Dorm on train 28 Empire Builder years ago because our sleeper had to be sent out in Spokane because of bad order.
Though Amtrak because service level wasn't as good for sleeping cart passengers, they gave 10,000 points through Guest Rewards
Don't pay for alcohol...just bring your own. Another nice part of travelling with Amtrak.
IF you are in a sleeper.
No can do in coach.
Like your coverage. Still have to come up with a reason to go to Florida.
Outstanding video bruv. Nothing like the train man I really hate flying if we had a modern dam rail system like France or German I would be on one each weekend. Nice content bro. Tim from brooklyn yerrrr
I have to add an addendum to my recent comment. We recently took the Sleeper Car to Santa Barbara and your meals looked even better than ours.. and I read that the Auto Train is getting the upgraded meal service. But still not as good as it used to be. We got basically 1960s TV dinner Style meals and they were pretty awful because they were microwaved
Currently all Amtrak's long distance dining is using Flexible Dinning until September due to covid with the exception of the Auto Train. The Traditional Dining should return to the western routes after that.
Super wonderful! Love it!
The crew has always had a sleeping car. Other than sleeping car attendants who each sleep in the car they're responsible for, the rest of the crew has space to sleep. First thing in the morning, you'll see them walk towards the front of the train to their job location. Also, crew change is in Florence, SC. If the train was stopped in Richmond, it was for traffic, not crew. We've done 7 round trips and have another one this Nov/Dec. We also get a bedroom so we have our own bathroom. Also, the lounges vary. Sometimes, it's the regular lounges and sometimes it's the one like you showed with the glass everywhere. We've never had the glass dome ones.
Very interesting and well-done video. The Superliner II cars are quite intricate; and anything that runs on Amtrak, including private cars, are subject to Amtrak's very lengthy and detailed requirements. You might want to think about asking for a tour of Amtrak's Beech Grove maintenance facility near Indianapolis since I am sure you will be amazed at how very complex these cars and it's internal systems really are.
They've sadly stopped pulling private cars.
Décidément, j'adore ce voyage.
The auto train stops in florence South Carolina during the night for crew change
A lot of my family That live in Florida use the Auto train It is a very very popular train has been since day Perhaps the only train making a profit Back in the 80 I had a little reunion with Florida family on the train A short train 45 railcars a long train at least 55 railcars Leaves ealy most times
At 530 I am having my snack in Italy
Dinner in North America is usually eaten around 6-7, but I think for this train they put it at 5:30 for the passengers to be able to see the Sun set in the lounge
13:10 It’s General Electric, not General Motors
True. They easy get confused, though.
Whoops, I should have spotted then when checking the video 🙈🙈🙈
Yes, GE... they replaced the old EMD units that WERE made by General Motors.
And these GE units are being replaced by French TGV type units, although they will be mfg in the US.
Tee Car, I don’t think the P42s are being replaced by High-Speed trains.
@@teecar9868 The P42s are being replaced with Siemans SC-44 Chargers
Outstanding presentation. 💯
really enjoyed your video. I'd like to try the Canadian
Great video!
You passed through some stretches of Our country's saddest moments in history.
For those overseas who may not know. The American Civil was was fought from 1861-1865. When the Southern part of the United States (Texas east to the Atlantic) attempted to separate from the rest of the country.
Richmond, VA was the capital of the breakaway region.
The Delta of the James River (and the James Peninsula) saw an early campaign of that war. The river also saw the first clash between Ironclad warships.
Petersburg was the site of a horrific siege, and up stream of the Appomattox River... The small town of Appomattox Court House saw the surrender of the South's most famous fighting force (The Army of Northern Virginia: General Robert E. Lee Commanding) to the Federal Government's Army of the Potomac (General Ulysses S Grant commanding).
Virginia is impressive in areas of improvement to leave that all behind. Richmond no longer is dominated by tobacco warehouses.
Driving in the western part of VA is very beautiful in the mountains.
I have seen most of those Civil War battle sites and where Lee surrendered to Grant. It's indeed some of the saddest years of US history.
I live in Ohio so they used to have pride in Grant, Sherman but with relatives in Virginia, many trips have been there. Not enough learn our Nation's history so I'm thankful my father was a restless combat veteran who shared so much in our travels around the US, Canada and Mexico.
@@christinacope562 Good... We should face our history, the good, the bad, and the very ugly.... Better to learn then whitewash.
@@andreworiez8920 Honesty in all is the best way to deal with any issues our beautiful Nation and its people face.
Are you a Virginia resident, my father grew up there.
Have a Merry Christmas! My 1st week of the New Year includes this auto train and Miami, hoping it's wonderful. And your 2022 is wonderful too, Happy New Year.
@@christinacope562 No... I was born at Lajes Air Base Portugal... My father was US Navy.
I'm a Wyoming resident now after growing up in California and overseas.
@@christinacope562 Another great rail journey is the Alaska Rail.... Truly a throwback to when rail was ESSENTIAL.
5:48 the auto train pretty impressively only has one crew change point in Florence SC its two engineers to Florence from Lorton then two engineers to Sanford from Florence
Really glad I found this channel. Its awesome and soo chill!!! Maybe you can buy a clippon wide angle lens, because some spaces you come into a very tight, a wide angle can help you showing more and a clippon is easy to remove and attatch. Keep it up!
In the old days, they had a "smoking room" on the first floor of some of the Superliner cars.
Those smoking rooms have been converted to baggage rooms. Some of the Superliner coaches in that location have small cafes for snacks and drinks like a Sightseeing Lounge car. California Superliner trains, the Heartland Flyer, and on the Seattle service of the Empire Builder west of Spokane. Maybe a Michigan Superliner train as well...
The reason the lounge is different is that until a few months ago, the Coast Starlight used special, heritage lounges.
oh boy, i love the concept of roomettes. Here in Austria we dont have them unfortunately, but i would love to see something similar here too ^^
Canada VIA's the Canadian has a few roomettes in their Budd sleepers too.
Hi, nice videos (seen all 3 parts). I would like to know if mid-size dogs like an English Cockerspaniel are allowed on Amtrak trains? Thanks in advance for your answers.
I read on their website 20 pounds or lighter. I thought about taking my mini Eskie but she'd not be too happy with no pee stops outdoors. Unfortunately I will be boarding her for a week, going to miss her smiling face.
Great choice with English Cocker, I loved mine(he lived 17 happy years).
Well done, one of these days I would love to try out the auto train and from what I’ve seen, the prices are real good. Also, I want to do the Northbound Coast Starlight from either LA or San Jose. I had a positive experience southbound. A shorter northbound trip should be fun.
Pick a day after a Northern California and Southern Oregon snowfall... You will be blissed in a winter wonderland... Bob Fosse couldn't wait perfection any better...
Parabéns pelo vídeo!
I live in the U.S. and I never have been on an amtrak :( It's my dream to ride the southwest chief or lakeshore limited.
Same. Haven't even been on the NEC regional and I live near a major stop! I want a cross-country trip on Amtrak so bad lol
I live in England and I love Amtrak. I can recommend the Southwest Chief , stop over in LA to see the magnificent Union Station, with its Garden, (Get a sandwich and a beer) and take the Coast Starlight to Emeryville (For San Fran). At Seattle there is a bus waiting to take you on to Vancouver if you want to go so far North. The Roomette is Magic, and all your meals are included in the price.
@@robertcroft8241 No need to take the bus to Vancouver -- just spend a day in Portland or Seattle and then take the Cascades service into BC, thus avoiding a bus ride. =) I wish they would run the Starlight through to BC as well, but only Cascades does.
Southwest Chief is definitely better than Lakeshore Limited. Amtrak's new CEO pushed to cut costs by removing kitchen service on the eastern long-distance routes (except for AutoTrain), but you can still get a properly cooked steak on the Southwest Chief.
Very nice 👌
A good pipe or a cigar would set it off right!
What amtrak do you want to ride next and doing reviews check amtrak.com for your next incredible trip and reviews is a plus still wait for part 3 yo
Just type amtrak.com and click amtrak route & destination then pick your next train trip, i mean they incredible scenery landmark or nature. Enjoy simply railway
I did some calculations. Since there are 18 passenger coaches, 33 auto carriers, and 2 locomotives, there are a total of 53 coaches in this train.
Since the train is a total length of 3/4 miles, the passenger section is about a quarter mile long! That's a long walk!
And the car section is just shy of half a mile long! Make sure you have enough gas to make it to the front if your car is assigned to be there.
Since you were at the second-to-last coach, you only had to walk just shy of a quarter mile all the way to the engine!
13:09 though I can not tell from that angle, the locomotives amtrak use on the Autotrain are actually P40's, the original iteration of the Genesis locomotives
Good
Very funny that the music control worked in your room! Typically they are disabled and it is only really used for controlling the volume of the announcements on channel 1.
I wouldn't like to share a roomette, the legroom seems a little cramped, but for one person it looks great and very comfortable.
13:12, believe it or not, those aren't actually P42DC units. Those are actually first generation P40DCs. They are exclusively used on Auto Train as they were replaced everywhere else by the P42DC. The reason is because of the older breaking system P40s have over P42s which works fine with passenger coaches but works especially well with the autoracks. P42s aren't as effective so they keep a small number of P40s solely for the Auto Train
Re the Coast Starlight lounge, I believe that lounge configuration is (or was) unique to the Starlight.
A correction: the P42 locomotives pulling the train were manufactured be General Electric, not General Motors.
That's correct
First I saw Amtrak had Yuengling in glass containers.
The gap between the buffer plates at 9:50 looks like a safety issue.
Car 39002, the last passenger car before the auto carrier cars, is a transition car with upper level passageway at one end and lower level passageway at the other. Didn't know any would be on Auto Train. Originally built with crew members and revenue sleeper spaces but often the crew has it for themselves.
When times are normal, the Auto Train has an on-board service crew of over 20, so yes, they have an entire sleeper for themselves.
9:59 you probably rode in a Pacific Parlour car, which are now retired. They were originally built for the ATSF
10:50 I find it odd they are put on the door, but not the side of the car.
13:16 That's something I should try to do the next time I'm on Amtrak. I haven't been on one since 2007 when I was a kid. It was the Missouri River Runner and was just for fun.
@13:15, those P42 locomotives were built by General Electric.
Most likely your train was hauled by 2 P40DC locamotives not P42s, as auto train usualy uses P40s. If the engine number is in the 800 series its a P40 and anything 1-207 is a P42.
I've never been on a train in the USA but would love to do some of the Amtrak routes. I live in the UK. Maybe down to your audio editing but this train sounded very quiet. Probably helped by better than average track maintenance. Some videos I have seen make the trains seem like boneshakers. The review would have been more representative if there were a normal amount of people on the train. That was more like a ghost train. A chilled relaxing trip for you though.
The big problem with the Autotrain is that Amtrak has only 2 consists for this service. Two days prior to my trip south on Jan 1, 2020 a locomotive broke down and was not replaced for many hours. Two days later the train was still running 7 hours behind schedule with Amtrak not sharing this information for fear that passengers would just continue to drive to FL
Once on the train the service was very good - the meal that was to be served for dinner was instead served for lunch the second day. Instead of arriving early morning we arrived around 3:30 pm
Freight trains have priority over passenger, it's a shame and puts Amtrak at a disadvantage. That horrible crash within past couple years was CSX fault.
I took this train two years ago, paid for a roomette but something was wrong with the AC on that car so they upgraded us to the deluxe bedroom for free. Spoiled for sure! But I’d have no problem using the train again with a roomette