Amtrak Vacations

[supergrandmother]

I've been looking at the Eastern Seaboard and French Connection by Rail trip for next June. Anyone ever use take this trip?

I'm also looking at the Southern Heritage by Rail for me and two of my grandchildren during Fall Break in October. I would really appreciate anyone's thoughts on these two trips.

 

[RailFanLNK]

I don't know if these are actual Amtrak Vacations that you are discussing but everytime I have looked at Amtrak Vacations they seem way overpriced. I can usually do it myself and save moocho buckos. Thats not saying they are a ripoff, but if you look at what they are pricing and then price it yourself, there's usually a savings involved.

 

[OlympianHiawatha]

While package tours including the Amtrak Vacations are good for those who don't have the time or desire to work up their own itinerary, I find half the fun of taking a trip is building it up and customizing to what I want to do. That gives you the chance to really research your destination and the ways to get there and get the best value for your dollars.

 

[jmbgeg]

I've been looking at the Eastern Seaboard and French Connection by Rail trip for next June. Anyone ever use take this trip? I'm also looking at the Southern Heritage by Rail for me and two of my grandchildren during Fall Break in October. I would really appreciate anyone's thoughts on these two trips.

I don't know about Amtrak vacations but a word of caution learned from buying airline based vacation packages. Many if not all of the airline packages are non-changeable, non-refundable. You are set in stone once you book. You can buy trip cancellation insurance, but not for the purpose of discretionary changes. Shop Amtrak for the best possible train fare(s). Buy rail passes if those fit your plans. As for hotels, look at the usual sites: Orbitz, Travelocity, Expedia, Hotels.com, Priceline, etc. for bargains. Many of those have car rental bargains too.

 

[Green Maned Lion]

You know, I managed to book myself, spending some AGR points I admit, on a one week vacation for two including 6 nights of sleeping accommodations and 6 days of meals, for a total of $610 or $305 a person.

 

[jmbgeg]

You know, I managed to book myself, spending some AGR points I admit, on a one week vacation for two including 6 nights of sleeping accommodations and 6 days of meals, for a total of $610 or $305 a person.

Part of it comes down to whether someone is willing to take the time to research the alternatives, and obviously you did. If someone wants a simple, quick way of assemling a vacation, indeed, the vacation packages serve that purpose.