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Excited Guest
Guest
I am taking the Empire Builder with my husband and 2-year old from Portland To Minneapolis about a week before Christmas for the holiday season (and we're taking it back home as well). I've had a lot of comments from people who think we're crazy for using that as our source of transportation. I don't fly well and have always wanted to take a train trip, and our 2-year old son loves trains so we thought he'd have a lot of fun on the trip. We have a bedroom (it will be nice to have a place to put our two year old when he needs a nap or decides to throw tantrums...he is 2) and the trip is approximately 36-40 hours (2 nights, 2 partial days, 1 full day). I think it sounds like a lot of fun and I think the views will be incredible. We won't be in a huge rush, so I'm not really concerned about the train being late...if it's later than 12 hours it might get a little frustrating, but a 4,6,8 hour delay doesn't bother me (as long as we're still able to use our room....or do they boot you out early to clean it for the next riders?).
However I've heard rumors of trains being "snow-bound" and that it happens quite regularly in the winter. Should we be prepared to stay on the train for 2 extra days (I'm sure this is extreme)? If we are snow-bound, will the train still have heat, or will we get cold? Should we bring a couple of blankets with us? Should we bring lots of extra food or will the dining car be able to continue feeding us?
We've never traveled via train before, so we're not really sure what to expect. I think it sounds like a lot of fun, but the people we've talked so have started to make me worry we're crazy for doing this. So, I thought I'd ask some experienced riders. We're not concerned with the train being late, the train travel is part of our vacation and we plan on it being very enjoyable.
One last questions...are there ice machines or places to store cold items? Our son is lactose-intolerant and I don't expect the dining car to carry lactose free milk, so we were going to bring some in a small cooler for our son.
Okay...thank you everyone!
However I've heard rumors of trains being "snow-bound" and that it happens quite regularly in the winter. Should we be prepared to stay on the train for 2 extra days (I'm sure this is extreme)? If we are snow-bound, will the train still have heat, or will we get cold? Should we bring a couple of blankets with us? Should we bring lots of extra food or will the dining car be able to continue feeding us?
We've never traveled via train before, so we're not really sure what to expect. I think it sounds like a lot of fun, but the people we've talked so have started to make me worry we're crazy for doing this. So, I thought I'd ask some experienced riders. We're not concerned with the train being late, the train travel is part of our vacation and we plan on it being very enjoyable.
One last questions...are there ice machines or places to store cold items? Our son is lactose-intolerant and I don't expect the dining car to carry lactose free milk, so we were going to bring some in a small cooler for our son.
Okay...thank you everyone!
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