St. Cloud, MN Info

[Student]

I am thinking about taking Amtrak back home to Madison, WI. I believe that Columbus, WI is the closest train station from Madison. My questions are can I check bags in St. Cloud? Any advice to a newbie would be helpfull thanks, Dan

 

[EmpireBuilderFan]

Yes, the closest that Amtrak comes to Madison, WI is Columbus, about 30 miles. According to the Empire Builder schedule, St. Cloud, MN does not have baggage check, so you'll only be limited to two pieces of luggage -- laptop bags and anything you need on the train don't count towards this limit. Those can be fairly large pieces of luggage, often larger than what most airlines will let you carry on.

 

[saxman]

I travel that way often from Grand Forks and St Paul or Chicago by train. St. Cloud does not offer checked baggage as said before. If you do have more than 2 bags, that must go home with you, you can always drive to St. Paul and check them there. Yet that may not be worth the drive, so try your best to stick everything in two bags. They can be fairly large even. And you can also bring a backpack or a laptop bag for your personal use while on board the train. I believe the train departs St. Cloud around 5 am and arrives in Columbus around noon or so. After leaving St Paul, be sure to look out the window as you travel down the Mississippi River all the way to La Crosse. The train travels right along the banks and is the prettiest part of the ride between Chicago and Montana. Hope you enjoy it.

Chris