New York to Washington questions

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

I'm so excited to find out many of you have done the NY to DC train trip. It is something we would like to do on our next trip.

It seems a few of you travelled over Christmas which again would fit in with what I would like to do. With this in mind I have a few questions:-

1. Did you spend Christmas in New York and then head to other destinations?

2. Did you leave from Grand Central Station or somewhere else?

3. Did you book your tickets before leaving Australia, if so how did you go about this?

4. What is the approx. cost of the train?

5. Was there a problem with snow at this time of year with any of your flights, trains, bus trips?

6. Do you advise reserving seats when travelling by train and if so does that cost more?

7. Approx. how long is the train trip from NY to DC?

8. Has anyone travelled from NY to another destination other than DC?

Sorry for all the questions guys, just excited that there are people on here with experience on this subject.

 

[Luisa]

3. Did you book your tickets before leaving Australia, if so how did you go about this?

8. Has anyone travelled from NY to another destination other than DC?

I haven't done the NY to DC train, but I have booked tickets online before leaving for other Amtrak trips - it made it a lot easier (I've done NY to Chicago overnight).

I don't know if anyone else has tried them, but I did NY - DC on the Bolt Bus on my last trip. It was REALLY cheap - $20 - and they have free wifi on the bus. It doesn't take much longer than the train, admittedly it might not be as scenic as the train but it was still a great way to travel.

 

[ehsmum]

We haven't done it yet, so I can't give a review, but we've booked Amtrak for NY to DC in June.

As far as I can tell, the trains leave from NY Penn Station, not Grand Central. I never saw an option to leave from Grand Central. It cost us US$252 for 5 of us. I don't have a breakdown but I think it was around $70 per adult and $35 ish per child. We leave NY at 8.10am and arrive Union Station DC at 11.25am, so 3hrs and 15 mins. There were express trains but they didn't allow kids on them, I guess they are exclusively for business travellers.

It was very easy to book online at http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Amtrak/HomePage. I've prepaid in full and just have to scan my printout at the station to get our tickets. I wasn't given an option to reserve seats.

It was so much cheaper then 5 of us flying and it will be a different experience for us. I'm looking forward to it!

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Thanks guys. I just had a look at the Amtrak website briefly and I'm sure I could navigate it okay when the time comes.

Ehsmum, thanks for the pricing and info. That's really helpful. The length of the trip sounds perfect.

 

[shushh]

ehsmum, will be eagerly awaiting your report as we're planning on doing the same thing but in Dec 2010. When you booked, did you get any more info on whether or not checked luggage was available from NY to DC?

 

[can84]

Hi NYer here, and have taken the train to DC a few times. I'll try and give you some answers!

I'm so excited to find out many of you have done the NY to DC train trip. It is something we would like to do on our next trip.

It seems a few of you travelled over Christmas which again would fit in with what I would like to do. With this in mind I have a few questions:-

1. Did you spend Christmas in New York and then head to other destinations? From NY, so can't really answer that, except to say Christmas here is great

2. Did you leave from Grand Central Station or somewhere else? It leaves from Penn Station, which is 34th St. and 7th Ave. Macy's is right across the street, if that helps

3. Did you book your tickets before leaving Australia, if so how did you go about this? Went to Australia years ago and loved it

4. What is the approx. cost of the train? It depends on time and type of train. The Accela is a business express train. It's a lot more, and takes about 30 minutes less. Seating is Business Class or First Class. The regular train is fine too. The Coach seating is comfortable and there is decent leg room. I've seen the regular train as low as $49 each way, and Accela cheapest I think was $133 or so each way. That's for off-peak times.

5. Was there a problem with snow at this time of year with any of your flights, trains, bus trips? It's hit or miss--it was a really snowy winter and it started kind of early. Each year is different.

6. Do you advise reserving seats when travelling by train and if so does that cost more? I didn't know you can reserve seats You may want to check into this. I never reserved any time I took it.

7. Approx. how long is the train trip from NY to DC? Should be 3 hours on express and 3.5 regular, but it can run late.

8. Has anyone travelled from NY to another destination other than DC?On Amtrak? Just to Boston, and that was on the Accela Express. I think it took about as long as the trip from NY to DC

Sorry for all the questions guys, just excited that there are people on here with experience on this subject.

Whatever you decide, have a wonderful time!

 

[Ms. Shuttergirl]

Hi NYer here, and have taken the train to DC a few times. I'll try and give you some answers!



Whatever you decide, have a wonderful time!

Hey Christi, thanks so much for jumping in with so much info. I really appreciate it.

 

[ehsmum]

ehsmum, will be eagerly awaiting your report as we're planning on doing the same thing but in Dec 2010. When you booked, did you get any more info on whether or not checked luggage was available from NY to DC?

No I didn't get anything specific but I assume we can check it. Our confirmation says to arrive 30 minutes prior or earlier if we need help with baggage. The Amtrak site says you can check up to 3 bags per person on *most* services. I can imagine that probably isn't available on the Acela Express business train, but I'm sure we'll be okay on the normal service. I hope so anyway!!

 

[Kalice]

Hi, we travelled NY to DC, we did not check luggage in fact we were never given the option. There was, heaps of room on the train for our lugagge (7 people with 7 large suitecases, and several carry on size). We did however get given assistance at Penn station boarding for DC, when the porter showed us to the train he gave us business class seating which was definately a bit better. The assistance was offered as we had 4 kids with us. We also took Amtrak - Anaheim to San Diego, we were offered checked luggage here, but didn't bother as we were told there would be plenty of room for our luggage on board.

 

[ehsmum]

I'm not fussed about checking luggage as long as we can take it onboard with us. We're not planning on having too much (probably 5 suitcases and assorted hand luggage) so as long as we can have it in the carriage with us, we'll be good .

Kalice - how early did you get to Penn Station? Our train leaves at 8.10am, do you think 7.30am would be early enough?

 

[dollarmite]

Last November we travelled from NY to DC by Greyhound bus. (We actually stayed in New Jersey rather than NYC itself as it was a fraction of the cost and it was only a 15 minute train commute into Manhattan each day).

We caught the bus from Penn Station in New Jersey (it's a bus and train station) to the Greyhound bus station in DC. It took about 3 hours, including a few 5-10 minute stops along the way to pick up other passengers.

We considered getting the train but the bus worked out at a fraction of the cost. It was clean, comfortable and we saw some beautiful scenery along the way.

ETA: We booked the tickets at the bus station the day before we left NY. You can book them ahead though via their website for pick up when you arrive in the US.

 

[Kalice]

Personally I'd allow an hour, but I'm a bit of a worrywart! There are loads of food places at Penn Station. We grabbed quite a bit to eat on board, newspapers, and a nice coffee from one of the places near the 'departure lounge'.

 

[ehsmum]

I'll aim for an hour too, but it's an early start! Whereabouts is Penn Station? We're staying in Times Sq so I'm guessing we'll need to get the subway or a cab (most likely seeming as we'll have luggage) to Penn Station.

 

[PrincessInOz]

Penn station is between 31st and 33rd street; and 7th and 8th avenue. We caught a taxi from Penn station to Times Square and I know the taxi driver drove round Times Square in a figure 8 to get to our hotel. That said, the fare was about US$25-30.

 

[ehsmum]

Penn station is between 31st and 33rd street; and 7th and 8th avenue. We caught a taxi from Penn station to Times Square and I know the taxi driver drove round Times Square in a figure 8 to get to our hotel. That said, the fare was about US$25-30.

Thanks. I'll look it up and figure out how to get there seeming as it will be early Monday morning. I assume peak hour starts early in NYC?

 

[PrincessInOz]

I went out early one morning - about 7 am and caught the subway. Traffic didn't seem that bad but there were a few cars out and about. Lots of foot traffic.

 

[can84]

Times Square is one subway stop north of Penn. I know the 8th Avenue entrance to Penn leads right to the Amtrak area, otherwise you can follow the signs. Since most of the streets are one way, I believe 8th runs uptown and 7th runs downtown. Rush hour starts pretty early too.

 

[ehsmum]

Thanks for the info, PrincessinOz and can84 . I might wait and see how much luggage we have at the end of our NYC stay and decide then whether to take the subway or a cab to Penn Station!