I took a 20-hour train ride from Chicago to NYC for the first time. Here are 10 things that surprise
- I took a 20-hour train ride from Chicago to New York City on an Amtrak for the first time.
- The experience was more comfortable than I expected, but the train lacked some basic amenities.
- The price of my rail ticket wasn't much cheaper than a flight ticket. Next time, I'll fly.
After flying from New York to Chicago, I decided to take an Amtrak train back.
I flew two and a half hours from New York to Chicago and took an Amtrak train 20 hours back. It was my first time traveling by rail between the two cities, so I didn't know what to expect.
Amtrak's coach seats were extremely comfortable and reminded me of the first-class seats I've seen on airplanes.
I've never flown first class before, but every time I've walked onto a plane and shuffled past people drinking champagne in spacious leather seats, I couldn't help but feel jealous.
On my Amtrak trip, the coach seats looked like those coveted, seemingly unattainable first-class plane seats. There was enough legroom for a person twice my size, and the chairs even had a leg rest. Plus, they reclined almost all the way.
Traveling 20 hours is daunting, regardless of which mode of transportation you take, but Amtrak's seats made the ride as pleasant as possible.
I found it impossible to fall asleep on the train.
My train departed from Chicago at 9:30 p.m., so people got ready to sleep almost immediately. Even though the seats were comfortable, Amtrak didn't seem to do anything else to make falling asleep easier.
The car lights stayed on, and I bolted awake every time the train stopped and started. The man sitting in front of me also worked on his laptop throughout the night, so his bright screen kept me awake.
On other forms of overnight transportation, attendants typically hand out complimentary blankets, eye masks, and earplugs, but I didn't get any of those items on the Amtrak train.
Passengers in coach class didn't have access to the train's dining car, so I was limited to the café car's menu.
I wasn't expecting a five-star dining experience on Amtrak, but I didn't realize that passengers in coach only have access to food sold at the café car. My only food options included the likes of frozen pizza and Doritos.
For breakfast, I had a Jimmy Dean sausage, egg, and cheese sandwich. Later, I ordered a Hebrew National hot dog for lunch. Both of these meals were fine, but if I took this train again, I'd pack my own food. The snacks and meals at the café cart weren't worth their prices, in my opinion.
To make a reservation and eat in the Amtrak dining car, I'd have to book a private room in the sleeping car, which would cost significantly more than my coach seat.
I didn't feel claustrophobic and was able to move around the train.
I can't think of a single thing that I want to do for 20 hours straight, and that includes sitting on a train.
The idea of being in one chair, unable to move and surrounded by strangers, made me regret impulsively buying the train ticket days before the trip.
However, the reality was that I was free to walk around the train and even got off and enjoyed the fresh air at many rest stops. At one point in Rensselaer, New York, we stopped for over an hour and a half, so I was able to buy snacks and walk around.
I actually felt less anxious and stuck on the Amtrak train compared to other forms of public transportation.
The Wi-Fi was so slow that it was basically non-existent.
Amtrak advertises free Wi-Fi on many of its trains, so my original plan was to spend most of my 20 hours working a full day for my job remotely. But when I tried to connect to the onboard network, it was either not working or working so slowly that it might as well not have been non-existent.
I luckily had some work that I could do that didn't require Wi-Fi, but the lack of internet on the train definitely caused me unnecessary stress.
Plus we were going through such remote areas that I couldn't even rely on the data from my cell phone for a consistent connection.
My train ticket only cost $23 less than my flight.
The prices of my flight from New York to Chicago and my train ride back were shockingly similar. My train ticket cost $90, and my plane ticket was $113.
I'd thought taking the train would save me more money. But for that $23 difference, I definitely recommend saving hours of your time and taking the flight.
There was no security line to get on the train, and no one checked my ticket until after we left the station.
Even though the train was one of the longest forms of transportation I could take to get from Chicago to New York, it was probably one of the quickest and easiest departures I've ever experienced on public transportation.
I arrived at Union Square Station in Chicago around 30 minutes before departure and immediately walked onto the train and sat in my seat.
There were no metal detectors or security guards who asked me questions before I boarded, and no one even checked my ticket until the train had already left the station.
Traveling solo on a train wasn't ideal since I didn't have anyone to watch my bags when I got up.
Though I enjoyed the freedom of leaving my seat (and even the train at some points), I was also afraid to leave all of my belongings behind with no one looking after them.
All of the coach seats were assigned randomly, but if you're traveling with another person, Amtrak tries to seat you together.
Not only does traveling with someone else mean they can look after you, but also you can take turns switching between the aisle and window seats.
I was allowed to board the train with a lot more luggage than I previously thought.
Amtrak allows every passenger two checked bags, two carry-on bags, and two personal items — all of which are completely free. Additional checked bags are $20 each.
I only had one personal item and one carry-on for this trip, but it was nice to know that I wouldn't have to shell out hundreds of extra dollars if I was taking a trip where I needed to bring a lot more stuff.
I'd like to take a long train ride again, just not from Chicago to New York.
I didn't like certain things about the train, however, I'm rarely just sitting with myself, unplugged from the internet, for such long stretches of time.
This solitude might seem like a nightmare to some people (myself included prior to this experience), but I don't regret taking time to gaze out the window at nature and relax.
Next time I take a long-haul train, I'll choose a more scenic route, like Amtrak's California Zephyr, instead.
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