How to train?
December 2, 2014 8:37 PM Subscribe
Houston to NYC, but more importantly, NYC back to Houston... by train? Hopefully without it taking 2-6 days?
So, conference in NYC in July, 20th-25th I believe. We live in Houston. Flying is (sadly) out of the question. Taking a train sounds wonderful, and fun. We have ways to park n ride in Houston, San Antonio, and Longview, but anything else will be taking buses/trains. On the way up, a stop in Charlotte, NC is possible and even desirable, but getting home after the con is more urgent than the journey up there. Amtrak seems to think it will involve going to Chicago from NYC, then back down to Texas, taking at minimum 2-3 days. Uhh... any other options? Other companies? I've never trained.
I think driving is our only efficient option at this point, which is... not fun. Please tell me there's some other option? (No, not a 25-28 hour bus ride. no. )
Thanks!
So, conference in NYC in July, 20th-25th I believe. We live in Houston. Flying is (sadly) out of the question. Taking a train sounds wonderful, and fun. We have ways to park n ride in Houston, San Antonio, and Longview, but anything else will be taking buses/trains. On the way up, a stop in Charlotte, NC is possible and even desirable, but getting home after the con is more urgent than the journey up there. Amtrak seems to think it will involve going to Chicago from NYC, then back down to Texas, taking at minimum 2-3 days. Uhh... any other options? Other companies? I've never trained.
I think driving is our only efficient option at this point, which is... not fun. Please tell me there's some other option? (No, not a 25-28 hour bus ride. no. )
Thanks!
NYC to Chicago alone is 36- to 48-hours (despite what the schedule says) because of freight priority on shared rails. Houston to NYC by Amtrak qualifies as an epic journey.
posted by boots at 8:54 PM on December 2, 2014
posted by boots at 8:54 PM on December 2, 2014
Yes, this is going to take at minimum two days.
You could skip going through Chicago and go through New Orleans instead, but either way, yeah, you're looking at minimally two 18-hour plus train journeys. Not to mention leaving plenty of padding time in your layover, because inevitably your first train will run behind. And, of course, your second train will also run behind. Not to mention the fact that, with only one departure per day (and often not well timed to be compatible with transfers), you might find yourself stuck on an even longer layover just because of the timing of the thing.
I mean, keep in mind, America is a big place. 48 hours from New York to Houston, with only one layover in between in an actual logical midpoint, is fucking amazing.
Tip: it's often useful to search a few days before and after your travel dates, because not all routes travel on all days. Which is something else that may affect your travel time.
posted by Sara C. at 8:57 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
You could skip going through Chicago and go through New Orleans instead, but either way, yeah, you're looking at minimally two 18-hour plus train journeys. Not to mention leaving plenty of padding time in your layover, because inevitably your first train will run behind. And, of course, your second train will also run behind. Not to mention the fact that, with only one departure per day (and often not well timed to be compatible with transfers), you might find yourself stuck on an even longer layover just because of the timing of the thing.
I mean, keep in mind, America is a big place. 48 hours from New York to Houston, with only one layover in between in an actual logical midpoint, is fucking amazing.
Tip: it's often useful to search a few days before and after your travel dates, because not all routes travel on all days. Which is something else that may affect your travel time.
posted by Sara C. at 8:57 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
You can go from Houston to New York via New Orleans and Washington, DC (take a look at the Amtrak system map here, in PDF). It's a more direct route, but it's not going to be faster. I'm not sure why it's not showing up when I search for fares, but you can always call and talk to an agent directly at 1-800-USA-RAIL. When the automated system picks up, just say "agent" until it connects you to a live human, who will be super helpful, and will have good statistics on typical trip times, and will walk you through all your options. The bad news is that nothing on Amtrak is going to be faster than 2+ days for that distance, and it's because passenger rail service in the US has been systemically gutted since the beginnings of the federal highway system. Amtrak itself was founded as a temporary replacement to the many smaller regional rail systems and the larger freight rail companies we all know today, which used to be required to provide passenger service under common carrier laws (there's a great and genuinely engaging book about passenger rail service in the US called Waiting On A Train by James McCommons, just in case you're interested!), and was established with the expectations it would fail by the end of the 1970s. It didn't, but it's still very poorly funded in comparison to roads/highways, and outside of the Northeast corridor it doesn't have dedicated tracks of its own, which means that in places with heavy freight traffic Amtrak loses a lot of time, even though passenger trains in theory have the right of way. I'll quit rambling, but none of this is the fault of Amtrak itself, it's the fault of our government and freight rail industry dismantling an already extant passenger- and commuter rail system that was excellent for its time.
posted by tapir-whorf at 9:00 PM on December 2, 2014 [4 favorites]
posted by tapir-whorf at 9:00 PM on December 2, 2014 [4 favorites]
Sunset Limited from Houston to New Orleans, departs 1210 arrives 2140 same day. The Crescent departs 0700 from New Orleans, arrives 1346 PM next day in NYC. So a solid 48 hrs, and overnight in NO - if the schedules don't change, if you leave Houston on a Tuesday, Friday or Sunday, and if they run on time.
posted by the man of twists and turns at 9:02 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by the man of twists and turns at 9:02 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
How about taking a bus part of the way? Buses run pretty frequently, so you could time your bus so that it arrived a couple of hours before the train departure. Say if you did the NYC-Chicago portion of the trip by bus. This might shorten the travel time if any significant portion of that travel time is layover in Chicago.
I have no idea how much this train trip is going to cost you, but you might consider (especially if there is more than one person going) the possibility of somehow hiring a driver, either formally or by offering to pay a friend and pay their expenses/lodging etc. to provide a car, come long and do most of the driving. Unlike a train which costs more (total) the more people are going, a driver would cost the same and then be less per person if you split the costs.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 9:15 PM on December 2, 2014
I have no idea how much this train trip is going to cost you, but you might consider (especially if there is more than one person going) the possibility of somehow hiring a driver, either formally or by offering to pay a friend and pay their expenses/lodging etc. to provide a car, come long and do most of the driving. Unlike a train which costs more (total) the more people are going, a driver would cost the same and then be less per person if you split the costs.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 9:15 PM on December 2, 2014
From Houston to NYC is at least 24 hours of driving. Sure, it is technically possible for two adults to drive in shifts for over 24 hours straight without stopping for a real sleep...and then go straight to a conference, but...egads, why why why?
If you can afford to take Amtrak -- and especially since it appeals to you to take the train -- I'd say to absolutely do it. It's not actually adding THAT much time to the journey. (A cursory Google confirms that taking Amtrak via the Louisiana route is a far better, more straightforward option than the Chicago route.)
posted by desuetude at 9:24 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
If you can afford to take Amtrak -- and especially since it appeals to you to take the train -- I'd say to absolutely do it. It's not actually adding THAT much time to the journey. (A cursory Google confirms that taking Amtrak via the Louisiana route is a far better, more straightforward option than the Chicago route.)
posted by desuetude at 9:24 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
Keep in mind that it's about 1400 miles in a straight line from Houston to NYC. Even if they built track directly on that route and the train maintained an average of 60 miles an hour factoring in stops, other trains, mountains, curves, etc..., it would take around 24 hours. It's a long way; there's no way a route like that could be remotely time-competitive with flying even if they spent billions and billions of dollars on dedicated infrastructure.
And I hate to break it to you, but it's probably more than a 25 hour bus ride too. Google Maps puts the trip at 24 hours of driving, without stops. There's unlikely to be a bus service that happens to go directly between NYC and Houston without transfers and even more unlikely to be one that drives for 24 hours without stopping at all. A quick look on the Greyhound website shows it to be at least a 39 hour trip with 1-3 transfers. The cost will be fairly similar to flying as well (I realize you have reasons for avoiding flying, which is fine, but I wanted to throw that out there for comparison).
posted by zachlipton at 9:30 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
And I hate to break it to you, but it's probably more than a 25 hour bus ride too. Google Maps puts the trip at 24 hours of driving, without stops. There's unlikely to be a bus service that happens to go directly between NYC and Houston without transfers and even more unlikely to be one that drives for 24 hours without stopping at all. A quick look on the Greyhound website shows it to be at least a 39 hour trip with 1-3 transfers. The cost will be fairly similar to flying as well (I realize you have reasons for avoiding flying, which is fine, but I wanted to throw that out there for comparison).
posted by zachlipton at 9:30 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
I have done San Antonio to NYC and back via Chicago. If both travelers are adventurous, it is fun. If not, then drive, really. It was about 53 hours, as I recall, with most of a day in Chicago.
The cabins are prohibitively expensive. I would skip the cabin for NYC-Chicago unless money is no object.
posted by 8603 at 10:12 PM on December 2, 2014
The cabins are prohibitively expensive. I would skip the cabin for NYC-Chicago unless money is no object.
posted by 8603 at 10:12 PM on December 2, 2014
Skip the NYC-Chicago cabin, I mean, because it's really narrow and the trip is short. The cabin on the southern leg was an absolute necessity.
posted by 8603 at 10:16 PM on December 2, 2014
posted by 8603 at 10:16 PM on December 2, 2014
Dude. It's just over 1600 miles. That's going to take over 24 hours no matter what.
To reduce wait time, especially on the way back, this is what I'd do. Drive to New Orleans, and park there to avoid the rail transfer. Take the Amtrak Crescent to NYC. With luck, you could do that in just about 36 hours.
Fewer transfers = better.
posted by mercredi at 10:42 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
To reduce wait time, especially on the way back, this is what I'd do. Drive to New Orleans, and park there to avoid the rail transfer. Take the Amtrak Crescent to NYC. With luck, you could do that in just about 36 hours.
Fewer transfers = better.
posted by mercredi at 10:42 PM on December 2, 2014 [1 favorite]
Oh, and having had more than a typical number of long-distance-relationships back when I didn't own a car, I will say from experience that you do NOT want to take a bus rather than a train for a journey of this length. I take buses for shorter journeys (several hours) on a regular basis, which is totally fine and worth the savings in cost. But halfway across the country...HELL NO. Certainly you can get saddled with boorish people anywhere, but a train, even with a regular ol' coach seat, is more spacious, less claustrophobic, greater opportunity for peace and quiet, more amenities, and it is not affected by traffic snarls.
posted by desuetude at 11:20 PM on December 2, 2014 [3 favorites]
posted by desuetude at 11:20 PM on December 2, 2014 [3 favorites]
Take it from someone who's been there--taking a train across America is not that nice.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 4:56 AM on December 3, 2014 [1 favorite]
posted by Potomac Avenue at 4:56 AM on December 3, 2014 [1 favorite]
You think the train sounds fun? It's not.
I took Auto-Train from VA to FL, twice. It leaves at 4:00 PM and arrives....sometime the following day. Ostensibly around 10:00 AM, but...it's Amtrak.
I had a private compartment, and while it's an efficient way to get an auto from the northeast to central Florida, it's not fun or pleasant. The view from the train...is not that great. There are smells. The food on the train is gross. And the biggest nerve of it all is that it's more expensive than air travel.
If you drive (and you should) then take a scenic tour, incorporate it into your vacation. Hit some nice travel spots, limit the number of miles you travel per day so you don't burn out.
But man, if this is just for a Con...screw that, not flying is expensive and time consuming.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 5:04 AM on December 3, 2014
I took Auto-Train from VA to FL, twice. It leaves at 4:00 PM and arrives....sometime the following day. Ostensibly around 10:00 AM, but...it's Amtrak.
I had a private compartment, and while it's an efficient way to get an auto from the northeast to central Florida, it's not fun or pleasant. The view from the train...is not that great. There are smells. The food on the train is gross. And the biggest nerve of it all is that it's more expensive than air travel.
If you drive (and you should) then take a scenic tour, incorporate it into your vacation. Hit some nice travel spots, limit the number of miles you travel per day so you don't burn out.
But man, if this is just for a Con...screw that, not flying is expensive and time consuming.
posted by Ruthless Bunny at 5:04 AM on December 3, 2014
As a brief comment on the driving thing, never believe anything google says about a drive that takes more than 60 minutes. Seriously, i have no idea how they generate that info but they are fullllll of shit. Repeatedly.
I've done what they claimed was a ~14 hour drive with 3 drivers in an rv with beds and shit so there was always someone up and ready to go. We were adamant about basically not stopping. It took like 23+ hours on our better stretch of it. And there were plenty of stretches of it where we were speeding. Even if only by a little bit.
If i absolutely had to do this without flying, i'd try and schedule it so that i was not in some huge rush to get back and do a couple of one way RV rentals. Ditch the RV somewhere outside of NYC at a drop off point for cruise america or whatever, hop a train/bus in to town, then do the reverse when you leave.
I've done the sleep in a walmart parking lot thing and it works great.
My formula would be something like pick what google maps says it'll take, add two hours if you're not going to stop, then add 2-3 hours a day for when you do. Then also add all the time you'll realistically be asleep and you have the real travel time.
I'd do some real hard math to figure out if it was faster or cheaper to drive. I kinda bet it wont be. RVs get terrible gas mileage. You'll need food the whole time, etc.
I also wouldn't do this drive in a regular car unless it was some kind of performance art stunt i was getting paid for, even if it was a really comfortable car. Just no. 1600+ miles, con, then 1600 more to get back? i'd be fucked up for at least a week just from like fatigue and shit, and i'm pretty young and healthy.
One of the few things that might improve the driving plan, assuming you go the rv route, is finding some like minded people who want to go and setting up a schedule so you're literally driving 24/7, using the bathroom in the RV, and just never stop either direction. This is sort of insane, and it's what i attempted, but if you can pull it off it works ok.
i'll never forget waking up to the fucking thing sliding off the road in to the side of a mountain because the dude driving wasn't fucking paying attention though, and thinking 'wow, what a lameass way to die'
posted by emptythought at 5:17 AM on December 3, 2014
I've done what they claimed was a ~14 hour drive with 3 drivers in an rv with beds and shit so there was always someone up and ready to go. We were adamant about basically not stopping. It took like 23+ hours on our better stretch of it. And there were plenty of stretches of it where we were speeding. Even if only by a little bit.
If i absolutely had to do this without flying, i'd try and schedule it so that i was not in some huge rush to get back and do a couple of one way RV rentals. Ditch the RV somewhere outside of NYC at a drop off point for cruise america or whatever, hop a train/bus in to town, then do the reverse when you leave.
I've done the sleep in a walmart parking lot thing and it works great.
My formula would be something like pick what google maps says it'll take, add two hours if you're not going to stop, then add 2-3 hours a day for when you do. Then also add all the time you'll realistically be asleep and you have the real travel time.
I'd do some real hard math to figure out if it was faster or cheaper to drive. I kinda bet it wont be. RVs get terrible gas mileage. You'll need food the whole time, etc.
I also wouldn't do this drive in a regular car unless it was some kind of performance art stunt i was getting paid for, even if it was a really comfortable car. Just no. 1600+ miles, con, then 1600 more to get back? i'd be fucked up for at least a week just from like fatigue and shit, and i'm pretty young and healthy.
One of the few things that might improve the driving plan, assuming you go the rv route, is finding some like minded people who want to go and setting up a schedule so you're literally driving 24/7, using the bathroom in the RV, and just never stop either direction. This is sort of insane, and it's what i attempted, but if you can pull it off it works ok.
i'll never forget waking up to the fucking thing sliding off the road in to the side of a mountain because the dude driving wasn't fucking paying attention though, and thinking 'wow, what a lameass way to die'
posted by emptythought at 5:17 AM on December 3, 2014
I guess I'm an outlier, but I loved taking a long train ride. We had a private room where we read, listened to music, and drank whiskey. It was awesome.
I think everyone should try it at least once. If you do, though, get a room.
posted by girlmightlive at 5:20 AM on December 3, 2014 [1 favorite]
I think everyone should try it at least once. If you do, though, get a room.
posted by girlmightlive at 5:20 AM on December 3, 2014 [1 favorite]
I have been told that the price shown for a sleeping compartment is for the whole compartment, not per person, which made the cost sound more reasonable to me if you have two people.
posted by sepviva at 6:09 AM on December 3, 2014
posted by sepviva at 6:09 AM on December 3, 2014
I've taken the train cross-country a few different times, and frankly, I love it. So I wouldn't discount doing this just out of some nebulous idea that it will be sucky. If you have time to burn, traveling by train beats the hell out of flying. Also, I have to say, a train is the best possible setting to get some serious reading done.
But, yeah, you have to have time to burn, and you have to be OK with the hours just ticking away and you're still somewhere in Ohio and nothing is really happening at all except you slowly working your way through Ulysses or whatever. If you are in any kind of rush or working with any kind of schedule, you will be miserable. And late.
posted by Sara C. at 7:19 AM on December 3, 2014 [1 favorite]
But, yeah, you have to have time to burn, and you have to be OK with the hours just ticking away and you're still somewhere in Ohio and nothing is really happening at all except you slowly working your way through Ulysses or whatever. If you are in any kind of rush or working with any kind of schedule, you will be miserable. And late.
posted by Sara C. at 7:19 AM on December 3, 2014 [1 favorite]
> I had a private compartment, and while it's an efficient way to get an auto from the northeast to central Florida, it's not fun or pleasant. The view from the train...is not that great. There are smells. The food on the train is gross. And the biggest nerve of it all is that it's more expensive than air travel.
If you drive (and you should) then take a scenic tour, incorporate it into your vacation. Hit some nice travel spots, limit the number of miles you travel per day so you don't burn out.
But man, if this is just for a Con...screw that, not flying is expensive and time consuming.
The OP specified that flying wasn't an option. They also mentioned time constraints that would prevent a leisurely scenic many-day vacation drive . So the view...from major interstates...also not that great.
Personally, I like taking trains. I read, I write, I listen to music, I use the somewhat-unreliable free WiFi, I nap, I sometimes have met interesting people. I don't dislike driving, but there's a lot to be said for there being no need to worry about traffic, navigation, other drivers, getting into an accident, staying alert, speed traps with expensive tickets in far-off states, finding a bathroom, paying for parking, etc.
Ruthless Bunny is right that the food on Amtrak is gross, though. It's all a la carte, and it's overpriced snack foods and prepackaged processed stuff. Bring your own food. You're totally allowed to eat your own food at your seat or in a sleeper car if you've booked one. There are more proper tables in the dining/cafe car, and while technically these days you're only supposed to use tables for food purchased on board , in practice I find that they're pretty lax about that as long as you're polite. You can buy alcohol onboard and drink it in the cafe car. If you book a sleeper car, you can bring your own booze to drink at your leisure.
You can check luggage as well as bring carry ons with no fees. (Unless you have more than two checked bags or something really odd or large.)
posted by desuetude at 11:41 AM on December 3, 2014
If you drive (and you should) then take a scenic tour, incorporate it into your vacation. Hit some nice travel spots, limit the number of miles you travel per day so you don't burn out.
But man, if this is just for a Con...screw that, not flying is expensive and time consuming.
The OP specified that flying wasn't an option. They also mentioned time constraints that would prevent a leisurely scenic many-day vacation drive . So the view...from major interstates...also not that great.
Personally, I like taking trains. I read, I write, I listen to music, I use the somewhat-unreliable free WiFi, I nap, I sometimes have met interesting people. I don't dislike driving, but there's a lot to be said for there being no need to worry about traffic, navigation, other drivers, getting into an accident, staying alert, speed traps with expensive tickets in far-off states, finding a bathroom, paying for parking, etc.
Ruthless Bunny is right that the food on Amtrak is gross, though. It's all a la carte, and it's overpriced snack foods and prepackaged processed stuff. Bring your own food. You're totally allowed to eat your own food at your seat or in a sleeper car if you've booked one. There are more proper tables in the dining/cafe car, and while technically these days you're only supposed to use tables for food purchased on board , in practice I find that they're pretty lax about that as long as you're polite. You can buy alcohol onboard and drink it in the cafe car. If you book a sleeper car, you can bring your own booze to drink at your leisure.
You can check luggage as well as bring carry ons with no fees. (Unless you have more than two checked bags or something really odd or large.)
posted by desuetude at 11:41 AM on December 3, 2014
it's overpriced snack foods and prepackaged processed stuff
FWIW, if your train has a dining car (and the Crescent definitely will), the food there is fine. I mean, it's not a culinary revelation or anything, but it's solid meals about on par quality wise with what you'd get at any chain.
Amtrak snack bar cheeseburgers are one of my junk food guilty pleasures, though, I gotta say. And, yes, bring your own food. Not so much because what's available onboard is inedible, but because you can, and because they will start to run out of things if you go all the way to the end of the line.
(It should be said that you can bring your own beer/wine/liquor on board. Wine and beer are sold in the snack car, but it won't be anything special, and they will start running out eventually.)
posted by Sara C. at 12:16 PM on December 3, 2014
FWIW, if your train has a dining car (and the Crescent definitely will), the food there is fine. I mean, it's not a culinary revelation or anything, but it's solid meals about on par quality wise with what you'd get at any chain.
Amtrak snack bar cheeseburgers are one of my junk food guilty pleasures, though, I gotta say. And, yes, bring your own food. Not so much because what's available onboard is inedible, but because you can, and because they will start to run out of things if you go all the way to the end of the line.
(It should be said that you can bring your own beer/wine/liquor on board. Wine and beer are sold in the snack car, but it won't be anything special, and they will start running out eventually.)
posted by Sara C. at 12:16 PM on December 3, 2014
Just to bring some data to this, the Crescent line has an on-time performance rating of 52.8%. I'm a big fan of train travel, but when you're crunched for time they aren't the right answer anywhere in the US other than the NE Corridor.
posted by postel's law at 1:11 PM on December 3, 2014
posted by postel's law at 1:11 PM on December 3, 2014
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