cal zephyr on time record

[tahoejeff]

for my upcoming ski trip, the zephyr is scheduled to arrive in Reno at 9:14am. is there a place i can look up how well this train has been doing regarding the schedule? or would i have to just check the status every day to see how late it is?

my car rental office in reno closes at 12:30 pm on sundays. i'm wondering if i should rent with a different company, or change to the airport location (that would suck).

edit: i might as well tack on another question. i'm worried about the limit of 2 carryon pieces per passenger. i see the amtrak site says laptop is not included in this 2 piece limit. i have my laptop in a largish laptop bag with an extension handle and wheels. would you expect they will give me any trouble, saying this is an extra carry on? i probably won't even use the laptop on the train, but i'm carrying it to keep it intact.

 

[saxman]

They shouldn't give you trouble as long as its not too big. I've have the same type of bag and I easily fit it by my feet or up top. Reno does have checked bag service. I'm not sure where you are boarding though, and it has to have check bagged service as well.

As far as timelyness, you should check the website a few days prior and see how its doing. Just know that, one day it could be on time and the next it would be 5 hours late. Someone else will have to answer the rental car stuff.

 

[Trogdor]

Well, for what it's worth, the California Zephyr has not arrived at its end point on time since the fiscal year began on October 1.

 

[Faraz]

you can check arrival times up to 1 week in the past at amtrak.com . I have been checking the arrival to Denver from San francisco and it seems to average 3-4 hours late.

 

[benale]

I took #5 to Reno this past Saturday and it arrived close to 2PM thanks to a broken rail near Elko. Most of the times it has been in between Noon and 1, which is fine if you are renting a hotel and the check in time is close to 3PM. I would re book that rental car if you are arriving on Sunday, and maybe some arraingments can be made to pick it up if you are in past 12:30, otherwise an airport rental might have to do.

 

[tahoejeff]

I took #5 to Reno this past Saturday and it arrived close to 2PM thanks to a broken rail near Elko. Most of the times it has been in between Noon and 1, which is fine if you are renting a hotel and the check in time is close to 3PM. I would re book that rental car if you are arriving on Sunday, and maybe some arraingments can be made to pick it up if you are in past 12:30, otherwise an airport rental might have to do.

thanks everyone. i looked at a couple of days arrival times using the amtrak train status tool. i didn't realize you could look back in time several days.

i called budget rentacar, and they said just make a reservation with both locations. that way i have the airport as backup if we get in too late.

surprisingly, the airport was about $5 cheaper after all the taxes and fees, but my taxi ride will eat up those savings.