Recent content by MeisterEric

My wife is claustrophobic, and she's had no problems going thru the tunnel.

A quote from the Amtrak website: An eVoucher will expire one year after issuance. A refundable amount left in an eVoucher can be refunded up to the refund expiration date on the eVoucher receipt; this date is based on when initial payment was made for the original travel and may be less than...

On the way back from Whitefish to Seattle, we were about 3 hours East of Seattle, the train was passing by some houses, with the backyards facing the tracks. One of the backyards had clotheslines, with undies and bras hanging from them......is that scenery, or what? LOL

Most of my trips have been in the Pacific NW, although i've taken one trip on the California Zephyr from Denver to Salt Lake City (that was 15 hours, if memory serves correctly) so that one was my longest trip. Taken the Empire Builder from Seattle to Whitefish - takes a little over 12 hours -...

"USA by Rail" http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170858865268&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

On the Amtrak website is this decent route guide for the Empire Builder...

I already have a train trip scheduled, and i have a 3-hour layover in Portland on Sept 2nd. The Arts & Crafts Festival will be in Portland on Labor Day weekend: http://www.artinthepearl.com/festival.php

I asked someone the same question not too long ago (regarding first class lounge), and was told that it wasn't in the plans for King Street Station. :mellow: As for Starbucks (and Tully's)...they are both right across the street (4th Ave) at street-level of International District light rail...

In chicago, yes..... and having a sleeper cabin is nice...i can't imagine going without a shower for 2-3 days. Plus, it's nice being able to actually lay down in a bed to sleep, vs in a chair, even if it does recline. And in a cabin you can strip off your clothes, unlike in Coach :)

not a problem.....i live in the area, and don't mind sharing transportation tips for the Tacoma/Seattle/Everett/Bellingham area.

on the other hand, if you're headed between downtown & the Seattle airport, then you should take light rail....direct connection, and it's a lot cheaper than a taxi.

Yes, the Amtrak station is at the south-end of downtown, but if you want to see downtown, don't take the light rail...it runs underground all the way thru downtown...and it costs money, even though it's in the current ride-free zone. You wanna get into downtown? walk up the stairs right...

At the Seattle airport, the walk from baggage claim to the Light Rail station is a bit of a hike...takes about 6 to 7 minutes of walking. Somebody out there in YouTube-land actually filmed it:

In Portland (PDX), the light rail station is about a block from the Amtrak station.....if you're taking it into downtown PDX, then you're in the ride-free zone for the light-rail.

Whatever happened to the "Pioneer Route"? (Seattle, Boise, Salt Lake City, Denver, etc)... I remember they were studying the feasibility of re-starting that route, but i never did catch what the final decision is..... On a sidenote, i think it would be awesome if Amtrak would have a train...