Having said that, I enjoyed flying more. The train seemed too slow for really long distances.
I don’t mean to sound harsh, but why don’t you both either move out to CA temporarily if her time is short or make plans for her to join the both of you?
I think it is very important that you must make choices when it comes to the generation that raised you and your spouse. They certainly made choices that brought the two of you together.
I don’t like the way that our people put their parents in homes. I think the Japanese have it right. I saw both of my grandparents pass a long time ago, but I know that they were as well off as possible since they spent their last days in my parent’s home surrounded by the people that loved them rather than trying to make friends with the hospital staff.
It is important when a person passes that they have the ability to say the things that are important to them. Somehow emailing your last wishes and your life’s regrets just doesn’t seem the same.
you can never know when that time is. If gas vs train is an issue, then maybe you aren’t giving up as much in your business as you think. Maybe you are giving up more than you think by not making a way to be with family.
Two cents please.
Having said that, I enjoyed flying more. The train seemed too slow for really long distances.
Give it a try! We traveled to San Diego that way and had a wonderful time. The only downside is the time involved. The sleeper cars were worth the money and the food was surprisingly good. Folks were friendly and attendants were helpful for the most part. As for car rental, find a company like Enterprise who will pick you up. We are planning another West Coast trip this Fall.
I haven’t been on that route, but I did travel on Amtrak from Mineola, Tx to Alpine, Tx in 2008.
It took about 24 hours. The same route could be driven in around 10 hours. The accomodations were fine. But just being on the train for so long left me feeling tired. The views of the country side were great. There was even a seperate “viewing” car that you could go and sit in and watch the scenery go by.
The people on the train were friendly. There were lots of opportunities to chat with people throughout the whole trip. The conversations that I had with various passengers made the trip enjoyable for me.
The food was expensive. And you had to order your meals at particular times. It seemed that they weren’t set up to actually feed everybody on the train. On my trip, we were suppose to arrive in San Antonio around 10:00 p.m. and depart again at 5:00 a.m. I figured that I would be able to get a decent meal when we stopped. Big mistake. The train was delayed for several hours on the side of the track, and we pulled into S.A. about 4:00 a.m. Most of the passengers scrambled over to a Denny’s and wolfed down a quick meal.
If your going to ride the train, make sure you allow for extra time because I’ve heard of lots of stories about delays. Plan on bringing some food/snacks as a backup.
Don’t do it!
My in-laws just did a group sightseeing trip out of Chicago heading West. I think they were on the Empire Builder, looking at the AMTRAK site. They said it was a disaster - always behind schedule, slow, uncomfortable. They’ll never do another train trip, at least on AMTRAK.
For that distance, if your time is worth anything, you must fly. A commuter flight will fill the gap. It’s expensive, but so is your time.
I would look into video conferencing as an additional way of being with your mom. It has gotten as cheap as a laptop and a high speed connection. “Get with the times”. If the home your mom is in is any good, they’ll help you with this. If they don’t have a suitable network, then there is something wrong. If they don’t have a suitable laptop, one of the employees certainly does. If you need help setting it up, look around for the youngest person you can find.
The one good thing is that, unlike air travel, you don't have to go through all that god-awful security, at least not yet. I could also take my bag on board without a check-in fee. And employees were very helpful, particularly since I had trouble getting on and off (I have a disability). Our train had a really nice lounge area with these huge windows, perfect to take in the sights. The seats were comfortable, not cramped like an airplane. I was also able to snooze during parts of both trips. Noise and vibrations didn't bother me.
Unless you get falsely accused of murder... ;)
"That man's dead... And you killed him!"
fwiw, my nephew traveled from Cleveland Ohio to San Fran by train, and thoroughly enjoyed. and he’s kinda high maintenance.
I have talked with several people that have taken them in the recent past.
They said as long as you can handle the delays, timewise, it's better than air travel.
The seats are comfortable, but not sleeping seats unless you pay a little extra. The food is, at least, adequate and sometimes you get a good cook and it's great. The rails were not a problem, for the most part. And the scenery was fantastic.
I agree with the person that said if you get a car at the end call Enterprise. I rented a vehicle for work extensively. Went with Enterprise and was, almost, never disappointed.
Best views of the “real” country you can get. Almost always late...I would say based on my observation, avoid the Charolette, NC Amtrak Station...:)) Last time I was there this distressed young lady was sharing her plight in life...just didn’t have enough income..her solution: have another baby...doesn’t it feel good that a hardworking business owner like you are forking over many dollars for such drivel?
Fly.. It is faster, plus the taxpayers will not have to pay for your travel if you take Amtrack..
You will like it! You should do it at least once. Get a roomette, then you get all kinds of privileges such as getting your bags checked for you. This will happen in the big Chicago Amtrack hub when you get there.
Also, with a roomette ticket, you get to hang out in the nice Amtrack lounge there in the Chicago hub, free snacks and cold drinks.
You’ll have newspapers and free coffee every morning. Remember to pack slippers. Also take your own booze if you drink and a flashlight.
the trains west of the Mississippi are better than the east. Western trains are newer and have double deckers with the great viewing car, but not in the east because of the old tunnels.
I think you’ll enjoy it. Anyway, try it at least once.
Have done the trip from Chicago to LA on several occasions. No real specific problems. I would highly suggest you get a sleeper instead of simply going coach. The sleepers are comfortable and the meals are included in the pricing. Non-alcoholic beverages are available at no charge also. The food is OK but nothing like it was when the foods were prepared on-board.
They do have “red caps” to assist you at the stations with baggage and porters to provide assistance while on board. And “yes” you can check your baggage for the distance. You can get meals service in your cabin if desired.
Delays...you can expect delays. I’ve experienced minor delays (15-30 minutes) and a couple of long delays...once in Nebraska (snow storm) and once in Colorado (forest fires).
My only suggestion would be bring your own snacks, your laptop or CD player and some good reading material.
Enjoy the scenery and have a stress-free trip.
I have made the trip from L.A. to Chicago about 5 times on the Southwest Chief and also went from Portland, Oregon to Chicago 3 times on the Empire Builder. The Portland to Chicago trip (Empire Builder) was the most scenic because it passes through Glacier National Park where I saw Elk and Moose. Really a great ride all the way and the section that runs along the banks of the Columbia River for about a hundred miles was unbelievable.My trips were always west to east so I don’t know what you will see on an east to west trip.
The trip is tiring because it takes about 40 hours or more but my trains were never late at the final destination. Maybe I was just lucky.
The roomette will add about 661 dollars to the cost of the trip in addition to the original fare of 156.00 on a hypothetical one way trip on Oct. 16th to L.A. It is way too pricey for me at 817.00 but as you said the meals are included. I slept fine in the oversize seat and actually had to apologize to the people around for my loud snoring.
Either trip is a lot of fun and I wish I had some excuse to make the trip again. I couldn’t leave before today.
Well, I’ve traveled from Seattle to Dallas by train once. Won’t do it again. Here’s the lesson, though: only travel in this way if you have your own sleeper car for the duration, and I can’t emphasize that enough. You do not want to be mingling with the dregs you will encounter should you take that ride. It’s more of an ordeal than it is an adventure. Trust me on this. I’d stick with the flying knowing what I do about that.