Has anyone had experiences with train travel in the U.S.?

We are thinking of taking an excursion by train to see what it is like. We have no special destination in mind. Does anyone have experiences or advice to share? (It would be out of New Orleans)

yes i used to take the "city of new orleans" to my home in illinois!!! very nice trip!!! unlike airline take my work it will arrive late!!!

. You might want to Google that. I haven't been on a US train in 40 yrs. I used a EuralRail Pass 20 yrs ago in Europe for 3 weeks, but those people are more professional than Americans.
This 'forum' should be informative
@ http://www.on-track-on-line.com/forums/index.php ; ...

Not I.

no, bren, i havent.but always wanted to.let us know how you like it and where you go.

In 1998, my mother and I went on Amtrak from Los Angeles to Denver in the month of December. We had seats only (no upper or lower berths or a "room") so sleeping for several days in seats was a little difficult, but still lots of fun and beautiful scenes of snow along the way. My mom would read a lot and I would listen to Christmas music on my CD player. Went through many towns that were so small and nice with snow covered mountains. The conductor of the train even pointed out the Bald Eagle flying around. It was all a real treat. Have a great time. I hope to do it again someday soon myself.

Years and years (1958) ago we took the City of New Orleans as part of our train trip from California to Texas and Tennessee. Lots has changed now lol ....

Our grandchildren just came down from Washington state to spend Easter with us on Amtrak. They rode the train from Olympia, WA to Portland, OR .... via train ..... (tracks are still out since the winter) they rode the bus from Portland to Sacramento - got back on the train and rode to within 5 miles of our home .... where we picked them up. They LOVED the train ride (4 hours total on train) and HATED the bus ride (19 hours on the bus) ... but we had a great time with them while they were here.

My hubby and I have gone from here to Olympia about 4 years ago on the same train route .... no bus!!!! ;-) and we LOVED IT! It was winter and the scenery looked right out of a Christmas Card.

You will love it!!! Do it!!!! :)

I have taken the train from SeattleWa to San Diego and back three times, beautiful scenes between LA and SanDiego. I was warned not to . I would never go again, awful, awful service both ways.Have also gone from west to East horrible service. Never, ever again. Have taken the capital corridor from Sacramento to the bay area 100s of times, love it, faster than the freeway.
I did get my money back on the Seattle trips in the form of more train rides which I usd on the Capital Corridor

I left out of Chicago and rode to Yuma, AZ. It was nice. You can get up and walk around and go to the dining car (very expensive I might say ) You meet people from all walks of life. I really enjoyed it. There are also beds if you pay the price for sleep and confort and privacy. With two kids, I had to go the cheap way.

My husband and I took several train trips in the 1990's, the longest to Los Angeles from Cleveland OH. It was a good experience and while it was more expensive than taking an airplane at the time, it had definite charms. Traveling by train allowed both of us to enjoy the sights, gave us time to relax and allowed us to be as sociable as we wished to be. We took a sleeping room which was tiny but perfectly adequate and we had the run of the train. We could sit in the observation car and gaze out of the large windows at the changing scene. We could shower and shave in the cars designated for that purpose though you had to get up pretty early to get a warm shower. I love to read so I spent some quality time (no phone, no cooking, no work) reading. If we wanted to talk private it was back to the sleeper room which was made up during the day as a sitting room for two. We ate our meals in the dining car and they were very good and the company was pleasant. I hope you can try and enjoy this experience.