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I am as big a fan as anyone out there of Amtrak. I've been working outside the country for the last 3 years and not following Amtrak updates. I was thinking of booking 2 sleepers for myself and my family on the Capitol Limited. It would have been the first sleeper experience for two members...

I recently read an article about China's HSR, which is the most extensive in the world, and which has been built up insanely fast over the last decade or so. One of the points of the article is that China views HSR as part of their security, because it allows troops to be deployed anywhere in...

Is it possible to use my 1-class upgrade coupon to upgrade a trip I bought with points (acela business--first)?

I just cancelled my AGR world card because I didn't want to pay the fee for the coming year. Now I learned there is another card without an annual fee. Is there any waiting period between cancelling one card and getting another? Will they count it against me that I just cancelled the card? I...

Tomorrow I will arrive at EWR from overseas. I plan to redeem points to take the train from there to BAL. I don't have the ticket now. I need to redeem it after I land, because there is always a chance of a delay, etc. 1. Can we we still redeem points by phone or just online? 2. I don't...

We're planning a trip next month on the Cardinal from BAL to CIN. This is our first time on this route. I'm using AGR (as usual) for the trip and assumed I would get a roomette, because the difference between that and business isn't significant. But then I started reading about business and...

Any recommendations for a nice bar within walking distance (let's say half a mile or so) of Chicago Union Station? I see there's a place inside (Junction), but am wondering if there's anywhere outside that you liked. It would be nice to stretch our legs a bit and then kill some time on our...

I read part of another discussion about french toast. Why can't Amtrak have great food that is made totally fresh? I said a while back if the food trucks in Philly can make fresh food, why can't Amtrak? It's pathetic. And I say that as someone who loves trains and supports amtrak.

Getting excited as we prep for our trip in another week and a half from DEN to ATL. I was looking at the menus, and it looks like they are all exactly the same. So is there absolutely NO difference in what's being offered on the three trains we'll take? Next, what are your insider scoops for...

Hello from a ranch near the very small town of saratoga, wy. I saw in an old photo that the train used to come here at some point in the past. Amazed to think about all the thousands of small towns that used to be accessible by rail. It was like going to another planet to get here in the...

As usual, the amtrak website is not precise or clear so I turn to those of you who have begun your trip at DEN in the recent past. Question: Is there a place to store our bag(s) at Denver Union Station prior to our sleeper departure that evening? For example, we arrive at noon that day and can...

After hearing about some delays and cancellations due to extreme weather, specifically tornadoes, I was wondering how Amtrak does against these beasts, especially compared to flights. With the increase in extreme weather caused by global warming, do we foresee a future where train travel is...

I'm planning a trip from DEN to BAL at the end of Jan. or start of Feb. It will be me and one other person in the sleeper. Is it better to redeem now using the 2-zone 20,000 point system or wait for the new format?

On Monday night's Hardball on MSNBC Chris Matthews ended with a nice short segment about his recent cross-country journey on Amtrak. Very nice commentary about the real person connections you get on the train like no other form of transit. Viewable here: http://www.msnbc.com/hardball and...

There's a chance I will need to go from BAL to the middle of Missouri this summer, and that got me thinking about the kind of route(s) that used to exist that could really help the system now. I think one of these routes would be a connection from Pittsburgh to St. Louis (and continuing to...

I'm not asking this because I want anything to be cut. Quite the opposite. I want more routes! But when I look at the system map (which of course I'm doing now) I don't feel confident I can get through all the routes any time soon. So my question is which route is the most pressing to...

Before reading this, please understand the point of my post is to point out how the Quik-Trak machine SHOULD work (and by extension the online "view reservations" function, etc.), not how I can get it to work for me! I have 4 upcoming trips. When I visited the Quik-Trak machine, it only showed...

Over the weekend we drove from Baltimore to Rochester, NY. This passed a stunning (leaves this time of year) portion of route 15 in PA through Lewisburg, Williamsport, then up toward Corning. With all these gorgeous hills and the river on the side I was thinking it would make a great rail...

Is there an actual Elyria station? From an internet search and some news articles it seems there was a fire at the station, and now on the amtrak site it says "no enclosed waiting area." So it's just a place along the tracks where the train stops? Not exactly ideal for waiting for the often...

It looks like I will be going from Baltimore to Portland, OR next August. I looked up the options, and there are many routes to consider: Empire Builder, California Zephyr, Southwest Chief, and even the Sunset Limited are all options! Of those trains, I have already done CHI-Glenwood Springs...