ABQFloridian
Train Attendant
- Joined
- Apr 13, 2015
- Messages
- 59
My biggest train trip yet is only a week away. By this time next week, I will be in New York, and on Tuesday the 9th, I will be boarding the Carolinian to Rocky Mount, NC, and from there on the Silver Star to TPA in a roomette. I am really excited, but have a few miscellaneous questions.
First, I am worried about the way I booked my trip. I wanted to save on a roomette by not using it all the way. However when I used the multi-city booking tool, it would not let me change from coach to sleeper on the same train, so I took the Carolinian for the coach section because it gave me the shortest layover. My worry is this: I checked amtrakdelays and over the past week, the 91 has had an hour delay into RMT every day but two, and on those days, two hours. The scheduled arrival time is 7:21, so an hour delay means I still get dinner, but not a two hour delay, and I have checked and found nothing that I can eat nearby in Rocky Mount.
My first question is, if I called Amtrak, would they be able to get me on the Silver have all the way (in coach from NYP to RMT)? That way, at least I could buy dinner if we didn't make it to RMT in time. Or is that kind if booking just not possible?
My other questions are about checked baggage. I read the thread about wanton civil asset forfeiture by the DEA and am worried I am their exact target: a 25 year old male traveling alone in a roomette with no checked baggage (my favorite thing about Amtrak is not having to check my bags). Therefore, I am going to at least check my suitcase, so I have that going for me. However,I have two questions:
First, do my bags have to follow me exactly or can I have them just leave on the Star when it leaves? The less hands it goes through, the fewer opportunities for error, right?
Second, I have learned from old threads that the baggage claim process varies by station? Does anyone know how it works in Tampa. I have never stuck around long enough after detraining to notice.
Thanks for reading, I know this was long.
First, I am worried about the way I booked my trip. I wanted to save on a roomette by not using it all the way. However when I used the multi-city booking tool, it would not let me change from coach to sleeper on the same train, so I took the Carolinian for the coach section because it gave me the shortest layover. My worry is this: I checked amtrakdelays and over the past week, the 91 has had an hour delay into RMT every day but two, and on those days, two hours. The scheduled arrival time is 7:21, so an hour delay means I still get dinner, but not a two hour delay, and I have checked and found nothing that I can eat nearby in Rocky Mount.
My first question is, if I called Amtrak, would they be able to get me on the Silver have all the way (in coach from NYP to RMT)? That way, at least I could buy dinner if we didn't make it to RMT in time. Or is that kind if booking just not possible?
My other questions are about checked baggage. I read the thread about wanton civil asset forfeiture by the DEA and am worried I am their exact target: a 25 year old male traveling alone in a roomette with no checked baggage (my favorite thing about Amtrak is not having to check my bags). Therefore, I am going to at least check my suitcase, so I have that going for me. However,I have two questions:
First, do my bags have to follow me exactly or can I have them just leave on the Star when it leaves? The less hands it goes through, the fewer opportunities for error, right?
Second, I have learned from old threads that the baggage claim process varies by station? Does anyone know how it works in Tampa. I have never stuck around long enough after detraining to notice.
Thanks for reading, I know this was long.
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