Silver Star or Silver Meteor

[thetraveler]

Fellow travelers:

As a first time rider I have a couple of questions that I hope you can answer. I'm sure they have been asked before here goes anyway.

1. Other than departure and arrival time, any difference in Silver Meteor vs. Silver Star?

2. Any difference in number of passengers?

3. Coach vs. roomette? I know this is more personal preference but since this is new to me any info would be appreciated.

We are leaving Rocky Mount, NC for Kissimmee 10/25 at 7:29 (Thursday) and returning 11/2 at 6:40 (Friday). Just not sure what to expect. Have 2 children (16 &10) traveling with us.

Thanks for any info you can pass along.

 

[thetraveler]

Sorry...forgot one question.

4. I assume that as a group of 4 we will be seated together...correct?

 

[AlanB]

1. Other than departure and arrival time, any difference in Silver Meteor vs. Silver Star?

No difference in the types of equipment used, but they take different routes south after making that stop in Rocky Mount. The Star goes more inland via Raleigh, while the Star runs closer to the coast. The resume running the same route at Savannah, GA. And if you're going south of Kissemmee, Fl, just past Orlando, again the Star takes a detour to Tampa, while the Meteor takes a more direct route to Miami.

2. Any difference in number of passengers?

The Meteor probably gets a bit more traffic.

3. Coach vs. roomette? I know this is more personal preference but since this is new to me any info would be appreciated.

I'd go for rooms, but again that is my preference. One thing to keep in mind is that when you book rooms, your meals are included as part of the package. You must take those meals in the dining car, food from the cafe car must be paid for. Rooms give you a bed, are much darker, and tend to be quieter than coach.

4. I assume that as a group of 4 we will be seated together...correct?

If you go coach, they will try to seat you all together. But if the train is near sold out, or close to it, then by the time it gets to Rocky Mount it is possible that you won't be all together.

 

[TML]

I don't know how well you can tolerate sleeping in a seated position - when I tried that with an overnight bus on Greyhound, I certainly did not feel well-rested at all, which means that on Amtrak, I will certainly book a sleeper if my trip involves overnight travel.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Fellow travelers:

As a first time rider I have a couple of questions that I hope you can answer. I'm sure they have been asked before here goes anyway.

1. Other than departure and arrival time, any difference in Silver Meteor vs. Silver Star?

2. Any difference in number of passengers?

3. Coach vs. roomette? I know this is more personal preference but since this is new to me any info would be appreciated.

We are leaving Rocky Mount, NC for Kissimmee 10/25 at 7:29 (Thursday) and returning 11/2 at 6:40 (Friday). Just not sure what to expect. Have 2 children (16 &10) traveling with us.

Thanks for any info you can pass along.

1. Silver Star takes a different route. Silver Star has a different consist.

2. Silver Star has less on a section, but sometimes carries more overall.

3. Roomette, no brainer. Coach overnight? Well, I might as well take a daytime Greyhound 102DL3, Greyhound usually has day buses where there are only night trains. Coach is fine during the day, though.

4. For Amtrak, there's constantly too much demand, too little capacity. You'd be locky to get Coach seats together, but your time isn't high season, either.

 

[xyzzy]

Silver Star is usually crowded north of Raleigh and in Florida, but there are fewer passengers in between. Silver Meteor has a more consistent load throughout its route. For 100 miles either side of the NC-SC border, the route of the Silver Meteor has smoother track than the route of the Silver Star. Some people find it hard to sleep on the Silver Star while it transits this segment; other don't. Recently the northbound Silver Meteor has been encountering delays in Florida, but the northbound Silver Star has been less affected. Silver Star has one fewer sleeper, but otherwise the equipment is similar.

I once took the train from Seattle to LA, then New Orleans -- three nights, all in coach. Slept fine. "Your mileage may vary".

 

[thetraveler]

Thanks for all the replies. I'm relatively certain that my crew and I would weather coach just fine. I am concerned, however, that we will not be able to sit together. I may just book the roomettes...I wanted to anyway but my better half decided for us that it wasn't necessary.

Silver Star is usually crowded north of Raleigh and in Florida, but there are fewer passengers in between. Silver Meteor has a more consistent load throughout its route. For 100 miles either side of the NC-SC border, the route of the Silver Meteor has smoother track than the route of the Silver Star. Some people find it hard to sleep on the Silver Star while it transits this segment; other don't. Recently the northbound Silver Meteor has been encountering delays in Florida, but the northbound Silver Star has been less affected. Silver Star has one fewer sleeper, but otherwise the equipment is similar.



I once took the train from Seattle to LA, then New Orleans -- three nights, all in coach. Slept fine. "Your mileage may vary".

 

[xyzzy]

There can be no guarantees, but mid-week in the off-season there is high likelihood that on the southbound Silver Star you'll be able to get two sets of two adjacent seats, at least south of Raleigh. Getting all four in one place might not happen.

 

[TimePeace]

I don't know how well you can tolerate sleeping in a seated position - when I tried that with an overnight bus on Greyhound, I certainly did not feel well-rested at all, which means that on Amtrak, I will certainly book a sleeper if my trip involves overnight travel.

A coach seat on Amtrak is far more comfortable than one on a Greyhound: it is wider, more padded, has more legroom in front, and will recline back much further. The aisles are much wider, and you are free to walk about the train all you want.

So you can expect to be considerably more comfortable on an Amtrak coach than you would be on Greyhound.

All that said, roomettes are great if you can afford them. As noted, they include all meals in the dining car. If you book early enough, you can probably get 2 roomettes across from one another, if you ask when booking.

 

[pennyk]

I just traveled on the northbound Silver Star from ORL to PHL in a sleeper. Coach seemed to be more crowded than the sleepers. I will be returning to Orlando on the meteor. My last trip before this one, I took the Meteor northbound and Star southbound - in sleepers.

 

[ehbowen]

Coach overnight is definitely doable, and the train crew will make an honest effort to put all four of you together (especially with kids), even if they have to ask other passengers to move. An Amtrak long-distance coach seat is nothing like an airline or bus coach seat; it's much more akin to a La-Z-Boy recliner with leg rest and foot rest. Now it's not as wide as the LaZboy and doesn't recline quite as flat, but the recline is much more generous than on an airliner and the width is adequate for this 275 pounder.

That said, I would counsel purchasing roomettes if the budget will stretch. The difference between first class and coach is much, much greater in a long distance train than in an airliner. Aboard the airliner you get a slightly more comfortable seat and one decent meal; maybe they'll throw in earphones for the movie. Aboard the train you get a private compartment, a real, flat, six-foot bed with sheets, pillow and blanket, there is a shower with changing cubicle available down the hall (or downstairs on a Superliner), you get your choice of anything on the menu for three meals a day in a real sit-down restaurant with an ever-changing view out the window, there is a table and electrical outlet if you want to use a laptop computer or video player...it's really nice. I have taken many trips in coach and quite a few now in sleeper, and I can safely say that there have been many times after a coach trip when I looked back and wished I could have splurged for a sleeper. There has never yet been a time when I have looked back after a sleeper trip and wished that I had saved the money (or AGR points) and gone coach. If you want to sample both worlds (and if the budget is there), take coach on your outbound trip and take two roomettes on your trip home. I suspect that you too will become a convert.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

I don't know how well you can tolerate sleeping in a seated position - when I tried that with an overnight bus on Greyhound, I certainly did not feel well-rested at all, which means that on Amtrak, I will certainly book a sleeper if my trip involves overnight travel.

A coach seat on Amtrak is far more comfortable than one on a Greyhound: it is wider, more padded, has more legroom in front, and will recline back much further. The aisles are much wider, and you are free to walk about the train all you want.

So you can expect to be considerably more comfortable on an Amtrak coach than you would be on Greyhound.

All that said, roomettes are great if you can afford them. As noted, they include all meals in the dining car. If you book early enough, you can probably get 2 roomettes across from one another, if you ask when booking.

Yeah, I know, the problemis that if need to go from A to B, and the route only has an overnight Amtrak train, while Sleeper is too expensive, then there is a daytime Greyhound run (which there usually is/are), then I would rayther take a daytime Greyhound than an overnight Amtrak Coach.

 

[thetraveler]

Thanks again for all the information. Really helpful. We're not so concerned with all of us sitting together as long as we can sit 2 together. Don't want my 10 year old sitting beside a stranger for 15 hours...

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

Thanks again for all the information. Really helpful. We're not so concerned with all of us sitting together as long as we can sit 2 together. Don't want my 10 year old sitting beside a stranger for 15 hours...

I understand. That should be easy to get.

 

[VentureForth]

In all honesty, it is rate that a minor would have to sit by a stranger. I have seen disabled people moved (rightly, wrongly, or indifferently) to accommodate families. The conductor has the authority to relocate passengers to accommodate families.

 

[jphjaxfl]

When I was as young as 10.years old, I sat by strangers on a train even at night without any problems. My Dad or other family member was sometimes close by and we were taught that if anyone does anything inappropriate to tell one of the crew members . I was often times traveling alone as a young teenager and never had a problem. I met some very interesting people as seat mates. The more I traveled the more I wanted to travel.

 

[gatelouse]

Had a recent roundtrip on the Star, pretty much end to end. Because of the train's scheduling and shorter consist compared to the LSL or SM, I found the diner and lounge less busy than those other single-level trains. Yes, the ride in NC and SC can get a bit rough, but to me, no worse than parts of the Winter Haven to West Palm leg in Florida.

The Southbound Star might have more folks getting off at RMT (meaning more seats available for you) than the Meteor, simply due to the more reasonable arrival time. Northbound, I suspect the Meteor would have more stepping off at KIS since it's a faster ride from points south.

 

[Swadian Hardcore]

When I was as young as 10.years old, I sat by strangers on a train even at night without any problems. My Dad or other family member was sometimes close by and we were taught that if anyone does anything inappropriate to tell one of the crew members . I was often times traveling alone as a young teenager and never had a problem. I met some very interesting people as seat mates. The more I traveled the more I wanted to travel.

Too bad society's changed to the way it is now.

 

[the_traveler]

FYI: Just to note the OP thetraveler is a member and not the_traveler the moderator!

I would consider getting rooms. Note that the room accommodation price is PER ROOM and not per person, and as said includes meals in the dining car