WashCI

I've just booked coach on the CL from DC to CHI and never travelled on a train before (thought I'd try something new since I have time to spare). I'm 6'4" and about 320 lbs, what suggestions do you expericenced train users have (besides exercise of course)?

Thanks

the_traveler

First, welcome to FT WashCI!

Second, the train is the Capitol (not Capital) Limited.

The CL operates with Superliner equipment - which is bi-level. Most of the seats are on the top level, although there are some seating on the bottom level. All of the restrooms are on the lower level. The only access while the train is in motion between cars is via the upper level.

IMHO, the ride and views are much better on the upper level.

You should at least once visit the Sightseer Lounge (car) during the trip. The view is through (almost) floor to ceiling windows. ^

Also, take at least one meal in the Dining Car. Even though the food is not like what it was 30-40-50 years ago, eating in the Dining Car is one of the pleasures of train travel! ^

Although many people on this forum would disagree, I find coach seating very acceptable - both during the day and overnight. If you can sleep in a recliner at home watching TV, you can sleep in a coach seat on the CL! (Although not the same, you have the room and pitch as in Business Class on an aircraft.)

I'm sure others will pipe in with advice also.

Enjoy your trip! ^

fairviewroad

A key difference is that when you are in the recliner at home, you can control the noise level around you to a far greater degree than you can on a train. Overnight trains can be a mixed bag in terms of noise. Sometimes your fellow passengers will be quiet and respectful...other nights you'll get yakkers. The worst are the cell phone talkers. Some train crews are agressive about enforcing a quiet environment...others don't seem to care.
So you might want to think about bringing a pair of ear plugs just in case.

However, the seats are very comfortable...though a small travel pillow helps.

jackal

I've only done one overnight round trip and found it to be a quiet, peaceful, easy-to-sleep-in environment (they kill the lights at night). However, this was years ago on the Coast Starlight and in the days before cell phones. Yakkers should go to the Observation Lounge car...although I seem to recall people snoozing on the benches in there, too. (Maybe people should just sleep at night...or talkers can be relegated to the rear car or something...)

I did take a late-night run on the Pacific Surfliner from SAN to LAX and found it to be quiet and easy to sleep on, too, although that wasn't strictly an overnight train.

I'll be taking the Cardinal and the Capitol Limited in August (both ways in coach, unless a cheap on-board roomette upgrade is available) overnight, so we'll see how that turns out.

Although I tend to be too much of a railfan and wanderluster to actually sleep on trains (or planes, for that matter--traveling simply excites me, no matter where it's to or what it's on), I'll echo the_traveler's assessment that if you can sleep in a recliner, you can sleep in Amtrak coach. While the chairs may not be quite as plush or recline as far as your favorite La-Z-Boy, they're much, much, much more generous than coach class on any airline.

But the best part of traveling by train isn't sleeping--it's the daytime experience of meeting other people and enjoying the scenery at a leisurely pace. People are much more friendly and talkative on trains than they are in planes (in a good way, not like the annoying plane seat-mate who insists on telling you his life story for three hours solid). And spend a good amount of your time in the Observation Lounge car, because both the scenery and the people experiences are even better there. And the best part of the dining car (I'll second the_traveler's recommendations here, too) is sitting at a table with other people and meeting them, too. There's a real sense of community, of a we're-in-this-together attitude (again, in a good way), kind of like how you meet people on a cruise or a tour group or something.

I'm certainly looking forward to my trip and hope you are, too!

fairviewroad

It is true that even the cell phone yakkers are usually quiet after midnight. Unless you know people overseas, there's probably not too many people to call at 3 in the morning. For me, the worst times are the transitional times....like between 10 and midnight, when some people want to sleep but others are still going strong.