HiI am planning a trip from Chicago to LosAngeles on the Southwest Chief. I would like to hear from anyone who has already made this drip. What is the train like? What should I take along? We will be having a "Bedroom" compartment for 2 adults with bathroom/shower.
Any information would be helpful. Thanks so much!
Hi Sandra,
My wife and I took the chief from Chicago to Los Angeles last year in the same type of Bedroom and enjoyed every minute of it. I'm a rail veteran, but my wife was a rail "rookie," and I was concerned that she might find it too small, or too much motion, or whatever. But she absolutely reveled in every detail. In fact, about two days before we were due to leave our friends' place in California (where we had been visiting for a week), she said she couldn't wait to get back on the train!
For logistics, I'd recommend the following: bring lots of one-dollar bills for tips,; keep your "big luggage" in the rack downstairs in the Superliner car, and just bring an overnight-type bag to the room itself; bring travel-size toiletries (they fit better on the tiny vanity near the sink than the full-size stuff); bring sundries, like asprin/Motrin, Pepto-Bismol, Zantac, or any other thing that you might anticipate needing over the course of two and a half days; plan on "comfy" clothes for the days; books, magazines or your favorite electronic-type doo-dads, with EXTRA BATTERIES; flip-flops for the shower; if you like a nightcap, you might want to bring those small "airline-size" bottles of your favorites; I wished I had brought slippers, and plan to do so on our next trip in July.
And a note on the lively "bathroom" discussion in this thread. Maybe everyone here is just bigger than me
but my wife and I had no problems with the shower. In fact, that was one of the things my wife was happiest about: she could take a shower and get clean without having to traipse around the rest of the car.
You just have to be sure to pull the curtain all the way around in front of the door, so as to keep the water contained. It all dries up very, VERY quickly, so it's really not a big mess. There's a "lip" at the bottom of the door so that water doesn't get out, and when combined with the curtain, it keeps everything pretty well intact. And again, unless you're a larger person, it's really not too bad...it's just a stand-up shower, like any other.
Also, while the dining-car food has been brought down a notch by the budget cuts, the service and atmosphere are wonderful and special, and the staff is super-accomodating. If you have any special dietary needs or requests, CALL AMTRAK THREE DAYS AHEAD OF TIME. That gives them time to get your special food put on the train, and they're REALLY, REALLY good about it.
My last observation: retreat to your room for peace and quiet, but don't spend the whole trip in there. It's easy to do, but you'd miss out on the best part of the long-distance train experience, and that's meeting your fellow rail-riders. Everyone has a story, and everyone has plenty of time to tell it. There's a friendliness and bonhomie that's been long-gone in nearly every other arena of modern life. If you stay open-minded and drink it all in, you'll find you've given yourself plenty of material for reflection and introspection: a train journey can permanently change your point of view, if you are of a mind to experience it.
Hope this helps! Have a GREAT time!
JIM IN VIRGINIA