First time poster in the Amtrak forum. I'm looking at taking a trip from SEA-CHI solo should I find work in Toronto. Amtrak appears to be a cheap and appealing way to get me and a lot of stuff across the country without driving. I have a question though: How easy is it to get baggage around in either station? I might have a helping hand in Seattle, but I'd definitely be on my own in Chicago. The station information says "Help with baggage during station hours". Does that mean baggage carts or a porter service I'd have to tip? Also in Chicago I'm picking up a rental car at ORD, is there any way to store bags at Union Station and/or pick them up later after I arrive? Thanks in advance for your help.
jackal
Sep 4, 09, 9:26 am
Hi all,
First time poster in the Amtrak forum. I'm looking at taking a trip from SEA-CHI solo should I find work in Toronto. Amtrak appears to be a cheap and appealing way to get me and a lot of stuff across the country without driving. I have a question though: How easy is it to get baggage around in either station? I might have a helping hand in Seattle, but I'd definitely be on my own in Chicago. The station information says "Help with baggage during station hours". Does that mean baggage carts or a porter service I'd have to tip? Also in Chicago I'm picking up a rental car at ORD, is there any way to store bags at Union Station and/or pick them up later after I arrive? Thanks in advance for your help.
Welcome to the Amtrak forum! :)
Checked luggage would be the way to go, so you don't have to mess with getting it on and off the train. You can check three bags of up to 50 pounds for free and up to three more for $10 apiece. (300 pounds for $30 is a LOT better than any airline!) Above that, you can basically pay for checked luggage using Amtrak's paid shipping service, Amtrak Express, at rates competitive with ground services from the USPS, UPS, and FedEx.
You can also (unofficially) carry on more or less as much baggage as you can handle yourself without assistance (especially assistance from Amtrak staff). There's plenty of storage room on the lower level of the Superliner bi-level coaches used on the SEA-CHI (Empire Builder) run.
SEA's baggage check office is just inside the main doors and to the left, so getting your stuff there shouldn't be an issue. If you're going to do any heavy lifting with your carry-ons, be aware that depending on who's running things that day, they may be checking tickets before you go out on the platform and so your friend may not be able to accompany you all the way to the train.
Not as familiar with CHI, but it seemed like a long way from the trains to the doors, so hauling luggage around the station might not be fun. I believe I've read that the baggage office (where you'd pick up your luggage if you've checked it) is closer to the doors.
Amtrak Red Caps (what the website is referring to) are porters that operate on tips. They often drive little carts around that can speed you around the station. There aren't any airport-style baggage carts (for free or for rental) at any Amtrak stations that I've ever seen.
Will let someone else comment on storing bags at CHI. Can't remember the answer to that one off-hand.
If you take the train all the way to TWO (Toronto), you should be able to check your stuff all the way through, saving the mess of connecting with them there. You may also be able to use Amtrak's paid Amtrak Express shipping service and ship your stuff all the way to TWO and have it waiting there when you get there.
Also, I'm sure you've done your homework on this ;), but have you looked at picking up a rental car closer to Union Station? I believe there's a Hertz right at CHI--if Hertz fits in your plans. (I'm SURE you're aware of this, but if you're planning on one-waying a car from ORD to YYZ, be aware that Canadian border patrol won't let a Canadian national into Canada with a U.S. rental vehicle...)
fairviewroad
Sep 4, 09, 10:30 am
be aware that Canadian border patrol won't let a Canadian national into Canada with a U.S. rental vehicle...)
:confused:
I guess I'd be veering off-topic by asking this, but what's the story behind this policy? I've never heard of it. (Probably since I'm not a Canadian national)
guv1976
Sep 4, 09, 12:03 pm
If you take the train all the way to TWO (Toronto), you should be able to check your stuff all the way through, saving the mess of connecting with them there. You may also be able to use Amtrak's paid Amtrak Express shipping service and ship your stuff all the way to TWO and have it waiting there when you get there.
Unfortunately, no. The only Amtrak train that serves Toronto is the Maple Leaf (from NYC), which does not offer checked-baggage service. However, Amtrak does offer checked-baggage service on the Lake Shore Limited which serves Chicago and Buffalo/Depew station, so bags could be checked through to Buffalo, and the OP could pick up a rental car there for the drive to Toronto.
In terms of bag storage, a bag that is checked on Amtrak can be picked up a day or two after arrival with no storage fee. I believe that storage fees start to kick in on the third day after arrival. I don't know if short-term parcel checking is available in Chicago for hand baggage, but I'm sure someone will chime in on that shortly.
trainman74
Sep 4, 09, 2:34 pm
I don't know if short-term parcel checking is available in Chicago for hand baggage, but I'm sure someone will chime in on that shortly.
It is for arriving or departing sleeping car passengers (or those with Select Plus status), via a guarded storage room in the Metropolitan Lounge. Not sure if there is a facility available for others.
Jalinth
Sep 4, 09, 3:09 pm
I guess I'd be veering off-topic by asking this, but what's the story behind this policy? I've never heard of it. (Probably since I'm not a Canadian national)
Because generally US cars are much less expensive than Canadian, trying to bring a US plated car back into Canada without going through the formal import process (which means major taxes) is not fun. http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/pub/bsf5048-eng.html
Applies to all vehicles.
jackal
Sep 4, 09, 8:05 pm
Unfortunately, no. The only Amtrak train that serves Toronto is the Maple Leaf (from NYC), which does not offer checked-baggage service. However, Amtrak does offer checked-baggage service on the Lake Shore Limited which serves Chicago and Buffalo/Depew station, so bags could be checked through to Buffalo, and the OP could pick up a rental car there for the drive to Toronto.
I didn't check the Maple Leaf, but I did check the TWO station information and they list checked baggage hours, so I assumed they did have checked baggage service. If not, I wonder why they list checked baggage hours! Surely Amtrak wouldn't care about VIA services' checked baggage!
My bad, though. Should have checked deeper.
OP can't drive a car from BUF to TWO/YYZ, though--see below:
Because generally US cars are much less expensive than Canadian, trying to bring a US plated car back into Canada without going through the formal import process (which means major taxes) is not fun. http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/publications/pub/bsf5048-eng.html
Applies to all vehicles.
That was my assumption, so thanks for confirming it.
Any normal for-profit corporation in this position would simply have to compete on price--they'd have to find a way to reduce costs to lower their fees. Not so for a government: they can simply make procuring from a competitor illegal! :rolleyes: Must be nice...
Does the prohibition against Canadian nationals driving a U.S.-plated car into Canada apply to cars rented in the U.S. and scheduled to be returned to the U.S., or does the prohibition only apply to one-way rentals? And if the prohibition does not apply to Canadian-plated vehicles, do the car rental companies in border towns like Buffalo and Detroit typically have Canadian-plated vehicles available for one-way rentals to Canada?
If the OP will not be able to drive a rental car into Canada, I suppose another option is to take Via's Canadian from Vancouver to Toronto. I have no idea how the cost compares to the cost of taking Amtrak.
Tuneman1984
Sep 5, 09, 12:00 am
Thanks for all the replies everyone! I was going to quote replies but there's a bunch of them, so I'll try to address everyone who responded.
I'm only planning to take a small duffel bag and my laptop as carry-on. Everything else will be checked. If the baggage office is easy to access then I'll probably just go down myself. Saves the hassle of having to find a friend who actually has a passport, and then getting them back to Victoria. In Chicago unfortunately I have to go with National at ORD as I can use one of my earned free days on a one-way rental to Toronto. I tried the Lasalle Ave. office and they couldn't give me a one-way rate. Since I don't have to claim my bags right away, the easiest option would probably be to take transit to ORD with my hand baggage, and then come back with the rental car to claim luggage.
The other option is to get the red caps to help me to a taxi and take a cab to ORD. I understand the fare is around $35-40? It might be easier than having to venture back into Chicago in the early evening hours, and could save me from having to find a hotel en route and just b-line straight to Toronto (mom's a night owl fortunately). Either that or if Hertz at CHI has a cheap rate I could just rent something to get to ORD.
As far as the customs rules, I've been well aware of them for some time and I do thank everyone for bringing it up. As long as the car is Canadian-plated, I CAN drive it across the border as a Canadian citizen. Not if it is a US-plated vehicle. National allows one-way rentals from YYZ to ORD so there's a good chance of there being a vehicle there. It might not be in the class I booked, but I'm using a free day anyways so as long as it's not a 2-door Accent with no room for bags then I'm fine. guv1976, the only company policy I've seen on rentals going from and coming back to a US location is with Hertz. They've said in their Terms and Conditions that you must obtain clearance from a Canadian Customs agent and then exchange the US-plated car for a Canadian-plated car within 24 hours. So if I had a Chevy Malibu with Illinois plates and was returning to ORD, I'd have to go to Pearson Airport and exchange it for a Chevy Malibu with Ontario plates, and then that would be my car for the remainder of the trip.
I seem to remember a reason why taking the train right to Buffalo wouldn't work, but I'll look at it again to see how it works. I remember looking at Detroit and it didn't work for cost or time as I recall...
Oh, and I did look at taking Via from Vancouver-Toronto. Total cost was around $520, plus with them it's $20/excess bag vs. $10. Amtrak was $148 US ai from Seattle to Chicago.
Tuneman1984
Sep 5, 09, 12:33 am
So the train from Chicago-Detroit doesn't have checked luggage service, so that option's out. However, taking the train to Buffalo is a really good option. It gets in there around 8:30 am, and the increased ticket cost is far offset by paying less for gas, the car rental, etc. Plus it's less time having to drive too.
jackal
Sep 5, 09, 1:32 am
Oh, and I did look at taking Via from Vancouver-Toronto. Total cost was around $520, plus with them it's $20/excess bag vs. $10. Amtrak was $148 US ai from Seattle to Chicago.
If getting from Victoria to Vancouver is easier than Victoria to Seattle, you can take Amtrak from there (station code VAC) to Chicago via Seattle. The most comfortable option would be the morning Cascades train (513), departing VAC at 6:40am and arriving in SEA at 11am to connect to the EB at 4:45pm (and, as I'm sure you know, the SEA Amtrak station is in walkable/public transportable distance from downtown Seattle attractions to kill your time). The less time-consuming option would be to take the 11:30am Thruway bus, which arrives in SEA at 3:30pm (it'd be a guaranteed connection, so if the bus is caught in traffic, Amtrak would likely either catch you up to the train--not hard, since they could just let you off at the Everett station, which is on the way to SEA--or would provide you with accommodations and rebook you onto the next day's train.
VAC offers checked luggage, so your bags could be dropped off there and they'll be routed all the way to CHI (or BUF, if you decide to go there). Looks like VAC-CHI runs about $35 more than SEA-CHI.
Tuneman1984
Sep 5, 09, 3:55 am
I just came on here having looked at that very option!
While it may be somewhat easier, it does prove to be more expensive. That's mainly because Avis has one-ways to Seattle for around $70 ai right now, which is the same price as getting a car from Hertz YVR for the day and dropping at the Via Rail station. There are no baggage restrictions for walk-on ferry passengers, so rather than pay for an expensive one-way out of Victoria (either $116 through Avis or $.35 per km from National) and to take the car on the ferry, I'm planning to bring a friend to help carry bags and just drop them at the terminal. You can tag them for the buses or just leave them untagged and they are loaded on the ferry and offloaded at a baggage claim area at the Vancouver terminal I could take PCL but you're technically limited to 2 checked bags although there's no way to tell if you self-tag at the terminal. I'm guess I'm just too nice a guy to try that option. :D
Anyways, back to the train. The early morning departure means I'd have to find overnight accomodations in Vancouver, the cheapest being about $50 and that's if my dad can get a room through Worldmark at the downtown Vancouver location. Otherwise it could be more. So that being said, I think travelling alone with a bunch of suitcases will be cumbersome either in Vancouver or Seattle, so it doesn't make much of a difference.
Regarding the bus, they didn't say anything about checked luggage service on the bus, only on the train options.
jackal
Sep 5, 09, 8:52 pm
Regarding the bus, they didn't say anything about checked luggage service on the bus, only on the train options.
Thruway buses usually have checked luggage services, too.
Normally, it wouldn't really matter, since Amtrak doesn't normally bother with baggage matching (ensuring your bags are on the same train as you). If the bus couldn't take it, it'd just sit until the next train departure and go on that train.
But in this case, you'd have two problems with that: one, your bags might be delayed into CHI a full day, which doesn't make it easy to collect them and get them into a car to finish your move, and two, due to international customs regulations, Amtrak does require baggage matching when crossing the border.
Regardless, though, I'm pretty sure they do checked luggage on the Thruway buses (I know they do on the Thruway buses between Emeryville and San Francisco, CA).
Tuneman1984
Sep 6, 09, 11:46 am
Thruway buses usually have checked luggage services, too.
Normally, it wouldn't really matter, since Amtrak doesn't normally bother with baggage matching (ensuring your bags are on the same train as you). If the bus couldn't take it, it'd just sit until the next train departure and go on that train.
But in this case, you'd have two problems with that: one, your bags might be delayed into CHI a full day, which doesn't make it easy to collect them and get them into a car to finish your move, and two, due to international customs regulations, Amtrak does require baggage matching when crossing the border.
Regardless, though, I'm pretty sure they do checked luggage on the Thruway buses (I know they do on the Thruway buses between Emeryville and San Francisco, CA).
I'm not sure, but I think the "same train/bus as traveller" rule would only apply to the conveyance that crosses the border, namely the bus to Seattle. From there it would be a domestic trip so it wouldn't matter if the bags didn't make it. On that standpoint, it would be better to disembark at BUF rather than CHI, because if some of my bags don't make it, I'm only a 20hour drive away in Toronto, rather than having to find a hotel in Chicago and delay the car rental which might not be possible.
Tuneman1984, if you don't mind spending three nights on a train, I think Buffalo is definitely the way to go. But if you don't plan to book a sleeper, I would definitely pack a LOT of deodorant in my carry-on. :D
jackal
Sep 7, 09, 6:53 am
I'm not sure, but I think the "same train/bus as traveller" rule would only apply to the conveyance that crosses the border, namely the bus to Seattle. From there it would be a domestic trip so it wouldn't matter if the bags didn't make it. On that standpoint, it would be better to disembark at BUF rather than CHI, because if some of my bags don't make it, I'm only a 20hour drive away in Toronto, rather than having to find a hotel in Chicago and delay the car rental which might not be possible.
Right. What I was trying to say is that IF Thruway buses don't have checked baggage capabilities, you'd be up a creek without a paddle for two [completely separate] reasons: one, your bags would miss the bus and wait for the next train, thereby missing your connection to the EB and not arriving with you in CHI; and two, you may be denied checked baggage service altogether because your bags would not be able to cross the border with you. Either way, your plans would be massively disrupted.
It sounds like you've decided to go out of SEA, so this whole thing isn't an issue, but if you do decide to go out of VAC and take the bus instead of the Cascades train, I'd check with Amtrak to specifically make sure your checked bags will make it on the Thruway bus with you.
Tuneman1984
Sep 7, 09, 12:37 pm
Right. What I was trying to say is that IF Thruway buses don't have checked baggage capabilities, you'd be up a creek without a paddle for two [completely separate] reasons: one, your bags would miss the bus and wait for the next train, thereby missing your connection to the EB and not arriving with you in CHI; and two, you may be denied checked baggage service altogether because your bags would not be able to cross the border with you. Either way, your plans would be massively disrupted.
It sounds like you've decided to go out of SEA, so this whole thing isn't an issue, but if you do decide to go out of VAC and take the bus instead of the Cascades train, I'd check with Amtrak to specifically make sure your checked bags will make it on the Thruway bus with you.
I'm going to e-mail them about checked luggage service on the bus from VAC to SEA. If I can do it that way then the trip is AMAZINGLY cheap. If I have to take the early morning train instead then it's not so bad...just have to worry about getting a cab to the train station and a hotel for the night. If nothing works at all then I'll just cross the border myself and catch the train in SEA, which is still a great option cost-wise versus driving across the country.
AlanB
Sep 8, 09, 8:08 pm
Even though it may be a mute point, Chicago does offer lockers where one can pay to store one's bags. However, if you are going to check the bulk of your luggage and/or you go to Buffalo, it won't really matter. Just leave your checked bags alone when you arrive at either station and go get your car first. Then come back with the car and claim your bags and bring them to the car.
Tuneman1984
Sep 9, 09, 12:14 am
Even though it may be a mute point, Chicago does offer lockers where one can pay to store one's bags. However, if you are going to check the bulk of your luggage and/or you go to Buffalo, it won't really matter. Just leave your checked bags alone when you arrive at either station and go get your car first. Then come back with the car and claim your bags and bring them to the car.
Thanks for the advice Alan. It does look like if I'm going I'd just go right through to Buffalo. The airport is only a few miles from the train station (instead of trekking to O'Hare from Union) so I'd probably be back with the car by the time they're finishing off-loading. However, if for whatever reason I do go through Chicago, the lockers would be handy so I don't have to carry my laptop around. And yes, I'd only have a knapsack and laptop case with me, everything else would be checked.
guv1976
Sep 23, 09, 12:41 pm
Tuneman1984, I don't know if you've already booked your travel, but if not, this offer (posted today in TravelBuzz! by Canibus) might cause you to rethink your plans:
This e-coupon is valid for a 40% discount on the adult regular fare when you purchase an Economy class ticket for travel between any two stations on the VIA Rail network. Tickets must be purchased online. Travel must be completed between September 22 and October 7, 2009 (inclusive) and between October 14 and December 14, 2009 (inclusive). Other conditions apply.
Tuneman1984
Sep 25, 09, 10:33 pm
Tuneman1984, I don't know if you've already booked your travel, but if not, this offer (posted today in TravelBuzz! by Canibus) might cause you to rethink your plans:
This e-coupon is valid for a 40% discount on the adult regular fare when you purchase an Economy class ticket for travel between any two stations on the VIA Rail network. Tickets must be purchased online. Travel must be completed between September 22 and October 7, 2009 (inclusive) and between October 14 and December 14, 2009 (inclusive). Other conditions apply.
Thanks for the reply. I haven't booked anything yet as I haven't found work yet... :rolleyes: