My wife and I will be taking the Silver Star from New York to Tampa in early February. I'd like to ask if anyone has any experience on this train or any suggestions in general about long distance Amtrak travel. We will have a Viewliner Roomette, which if I recall from previous travels, is a bit small for two persons. Any comments about boarding, timeliness, dining and comfort of the sleeper. Thank you.

Because you are staying in a roomette you classify as "first class" passengers so you will have access to the "CLUB ACELA" at New York Penn Station, its a nicer place to wait then in the other areas of the Station.

Once you get outside the Northeast Corridor (NEC, Bos-Was) timeliness all depends on how generous the frieght railroads are (since south of Washington, DC all amtrak trains travel on frieght owned tracks). Last figure I saw was that the SilverService had a 22.5% on time performance, not so great, so if time is not an issue, I would also give some extra time padding for your Tampa arrival.

I hope this information is helpful, i'm sure others might be more insightful, and that you have an enjoyable trip.

I�ve ridden this route several times over the years, but I haven�t been on this train since the new schedule that includes stopping at Tampa.

First, as Railroadtycoon mentioned, be sure to take advantage of NY�s Club Acela. These lounges are a nice quiet refuge in the often-bustling train station. They have nice plush chairs, conference rooms, computer terminals, newspapers, TV's, free soft drinks, juices, coffee, tea and clean safe bathrooms.

The lounge in NY can be found to the far left of the NJ Transit ticket windows as you face them. Walk past the West Gate for tracks 7 & 8 on the left side of the escalator and you will see a sign on the corner of the wall. There is a doorbell to the left of two gold doors. Ring the bell and wait for the click to open the door, then show your tickets to the employee at the desk and you are in. Note: In NY there is no pre-boarding ahead of the regular passengers, but they usually do announce your train in the lounge before they announce it in the main station. This means if you don�t dilly-dally, you can generally be near the head of the line at the escalator. This also assumes that you aren�t using the services of a Redcap.

The roomette can be a bit small for two people, but IMHO the bigger issue is the fact that the toilet is not in a separate closet or room. Therefore one person may need to step out into the hall while the other person uses the facilities. During the day you should have plenty of room. At night, once the beds are down, things can get a bit tighter.

I would highly recommend checking at least one suitcase if not more. Then bring a smaller overnight bag onboard with the clothes and needed bathroom essentials. Under no circumstances should you try to carry on more than two medium sized suitcases, as there will be no room for anything beyond that.

All of your meals are included with the sleeper, assuming that you take them in the dining car. Alcohol is extra however. If you head to the lounge car for something, then you will have to pay for it. In the dining car most people tip a buck per person for breakfast & lunch, while leaving 2 bucks per person for dinner. If you order alcohol, then I would increase those amounts.

The food is still cooked to order, but just like any good restaurant, everything depends on the chef. Most are good, but here and there you can find one who just doesn�t seem to care. You can order anything you like off of the menu. Expect to have to sign the guest check, as proof that you received the meal. Also bring along your ticket stubs, as many crews are now asking to see them to prove that you are entitled to the free meal.

The sleeping car attendant, assuming that they provided decent service, usually gets $5 per night per person. Again alter that depending on the level of service provided. At a minimum you should be greeted, given a tour of your room (including light switches and such), have your beds taken down and put up on request, find coffee, water, and juice available, and get a wake up call if requested.

Finally, you might wish to check out these hints and tips from On Track On Line. They cover many things about traveling by train on Amtrak.

Thank you for a most comprehensive report and information on long-distance travel aboard Amtrak. I have made several trips on Amtrak, but this time I will be better prepared. I have been monitoring the on-time performance, which is not that great, so I am prepared for late boarding and arrival.

Thanks! Taking my first overnight trip - Crescent from DC to Atlanta for V-day weekend.

Lawgirl,

If you're in a sleeper on the Crescent, then you too are entitled to use the Club Acela in DC. Here's where to find it in Union Station:

In DC the Club Acela Lounge is located behind the information kiosk, which is in the center of the waiting areas between gates D & E. There are two large wooden doors there, ring the bell to the right of the right door and the attendant will let you in. Show your tickets and you�re in. They will escort you to your train when it�s time.

Just a quick note to thank AlanB and Railroadtycoon for their info. We arrived Tampa this afternoon, about 2 1/2 hours behind schedule. We were one hour delayed in NYP due to a mechanical problem. The trip was very good. I had forgotten that the roomette's were small, but we managed fine. I was impressed with the courtesy and helpfulness of the train staff both in the sleeper car and in the dining car. Most of the compartments were occupied. The ride was smooth, except from Jacksonville, FL to Orlando. We will return on the Silver Star in two weeks.

Glad to hear things went well.

I hope sometime in the future Florida would actually approve their high speed rail system (not likely) but better tracks down there would improve the ride and on time performance.

Have a fun trip back.

Glad your trip is going well so far! It's always nice to hear of good experiences amidst the doom and gloom coming from DC.

AlanB covered most bases very well. For future reference, you may want to bookmark RAILtravelling.com, which is TrainWeb.com's rail travel section.

Enjoy the return trip!