guv1976

I finally got over to Penn Station today for lunch, and stopped at the Baggage Office afterwards. A sign indicates that parcel checking is only available for ticketed passengers. I asked the baggage agent which tickets qualify. He said Amtrak and NJ Transit tickets only; Long Island Rail Road tickets are not acceptable. (How strictly the ticket requirement is enforced is something that I do not know.) I did not notice the rate for parcel checking, but I do not doubt that it is $5/bag/day.

FYI: NJ Transit one-way tickets are not refundable. The least expensive NJ Transit ticket is a one-way from Penn Station to Secaucus Junction. The one-way adult fare is $3.00; the one-way senior/disabled passenger fare is $1.50.

AlanB

Actually one can buy a ticket from Newark to North Elizabeth for $2, which would save a buck. I doubt that the baggage people would care or know the difference. Even if they did question you, tell them that the conductor lifted the Newark to NY ticket.

guv1976

Hey, for that matter, one can buy an adult one-way from North Elizabeth to Elizabeth for only $1.50 (or .75 for a senior/disabled passenger). I just assumed that if the Amtrak baggage clerk inspected the ticket, (s)he would insist on a ticket valid for travel out of New York. But I guess you never know.

TrishBOS

Where is the baggage office located at Penn Station?

Is it over by the 31st St/8th Avenue entrance?

Thank you!

AlanB

It's past that exit, behind the gate for tracks 1 thru 4.

wxguy

Datapoint:

I used the baggage check last week while I went to an appointment in lower Manhattan, before my NYP-BOS trip. The clerk DID ask for my Amtrak ticket. The fee is $4.50. And if you don't give the clerk a tip, you get a very dirty look!

france usa

Just to make sure, does all this still apply now ( Nov 07) ? I will need to leave two luggage next week , for a few hours ... Thanks ...

ClimbGuy

It should however, to save your self some money I would leave the bags at the New Yorker Hotel or Hotel Pennsylvania . Both are right outside of Penn Station.

france usa

I can just show at those hotels and ask for luggage storage (for 1 or 2 hours) ? Do they always accept, and what I am expected to pay ? thanks !

jonu

Used this service today (this thread saved me as I hadn't planned well enough for baggage storage and found this thread on my Treo). $4.50 for 1 bag. Was asked for a ticket, and the NJ Transit one I produced was sufficient (didn't ask about LIRR). I tipped on both ends, and they acted almost surprised, but there was a tip jar.

johnba

i am a frequent traveler to NYC since i have a gf there and go up quite often from dc and usually check out of my hotel sundays but need to spend a whole day and depart by bus from penn station at night..

i have used this service a few times and they are pretty good to store my suitcase and backpack for the day..

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johnba

The general rule is you have to be staying at the hotel to be able to check your bag there.. but sometimes the bell clerk does not ask

Paxer

How secure is the storage there? Would it be safe, or foolish, to leave a laptop in checked luggage? I'd rather not lug it around all day, but worrying about it doesn't appeal to me either!

Also, if I check it in the afternoon and my train is at night, does the luggage automatically get put on the train at the correct time or do I pick it up and transport it somewhere? I would want one bag as checked baggage and another as carry on.

guv1976

Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry8703e/4.1.0 Profile/MIDP-2.0 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/104)

If you check baggage through to your destination, it may or may not travel on your train. If there is an earlier train with checked baggage service to your destination, Amtrak may put it on the earlier train.

When you check baggage through to your destination, you do not have to do anything except pick it up at the baggage claim at your destination.

If you check a parcel just for the day, you must claim it during the hours that the Baggage Service office is open. Amtrak at Penn Station does not accept electronics for day checking. I'm not sure if they permit electronics in checked baggage. The Amtrak website might have a list of restricted articles for checked baggage.

GoAmtrak

That's pretty much a sure bet. Unlike airlines, which require you to travel with your bags on the same conveyances, Amtrak has no such requirement. They put bags on the next possible train out and, if there's a connection, on the most direct routing. I did a very circuitous cross-country trip a few years ago, one that took 7 nights (including an extra night from a missed connection) when it normally would have taken just 3. Upon checking the bag, the agent's eyes nearly glazed over at my routing, then he tagged the bag for the most direct route. When I reached my destination, I did not have to wait for my bag to be offloaded from the same train. It was waiting for me in the station and had probably been there for four days at that point!

If you've ever seen the inside of an Amtrak station baggage room or train baggage car, you wouldn't check anything valuable, especially electronics! Their facilities are not always secure (hence the long lead time Amtrak would need to securely accept firearms again), nor are they usually climate-controlled, nor do they have securements to prevent bags from getting jostled en route.