All about the Autotrain

I have taken the AT a lot and watched fares for 10 years. The lowest price used to be when they 1st came out--but no more. A default higher price will be loaded for a few months. The low fares are not sold out--they have not been loaded yet, trust me, no one has bought all the nov 25 or dec 5 low fares this far out. Sold out means there are no more to sell--because there were never any at this point.
For ex, april 7, 2017, friday before spring break, had only the higher fares until summer 2016. low fare was "sold out"--then in june/july, it opened up--and still has the low fare available 3 mths out.
Sometimes high season dates never get a low fare, but early Dec should have one. I have seen this over the past 2 years, when I was looking to book. The $95 sale would not offer for Dec until about sept of next year, but sometimes you an get a similar price even without a sale.
For the low price, you need to be in seats, not a sleeper car. The fare is still higher than a few years ago--we did a family of 5 for about $500 many times. Choose lower level seats for less people and a quieter night. Good luck. No need to be up at 7am booking. It does not sell out like a cheap plane fare. Check every few weeks, but don't expect any discounts to show for a few months, and no sale until Aug/Sept.
 
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I agree that Amtrak is full of you know what with their advertisement of $95 fares. We have to take the silver meteor this year due to the exorbitant price son the AT. Even with renting a car, it still comes out way cheaper.

It used to be advisable to book far out but no longer. You just have to keep checking. I saw saver fares up until June 2017 when I checked a week ago.
 
I checked today and noticed that August fare have finally come down. Still high compared to last year, though.
 


Hi All,
My family of 5 from NJ will be taking a one way trip to Disney on the AT for the first time this August. We need to take 2 cars (DD accepted into the DCP) and therefore we will be sitting in coach (firm on this for medical reasons). We will be driving back to NJ.
I'm trying to decide if it's better to book upper or lower. Since it's coach I know it will be somewhat noisy, but the lower level only has room for 12 seats vs upper with approx. 60 seats. Lower seating is next to a luggage area, but also has the bathrooms down there which is actually a plus because of someone in our party not having to use the stairs.
I'm curious if anyone else has stayed down there. Stupid question - can you see out the windows?
I know August is a ways off, but I would like to book by the end of this month. DD has to be there on a certain date.
 
We rode in coach on the upper level. We were a family of 6 (4 adults and 2 children ages 1 and 2). We were seated with other families with small children so there was noise. Once most people fell asleep the noise came from the train itself. The shifting of the cars and the opening and closing of the doors. We definitely didn't get the best nights sleep but we also didn't expect to. It didn't stop us from booking our next trip in September . Sorry I can't help with the lower level.
 
Hi All,
My family of 5 from NJ will be taking a one way trip to Disney on the AT for the first time this August. We need to take 2 cars (DD accepted into the DCP) and therefore we will be sitting in coach (firm on this for medical reasons). We will be driving back to NJ.
I'm trying to decide if it's better to book upper or lower. Since it's coach I know it will be somewhat noisy, but the lower level only has room for 12 seats vs upper with approx. 60 seats. Lower seating is next to a luggage area, but also has the bathrooms down there which is actually a plus because of someone in our party not having to use the stairs.
I'm curious if anyone else has stayed down there. Stupid question - can you see out the windows?
I know August is a ways off, but I would like to book by the end of this month. DD has to be there on a certain date.


There are actually quite a few positives to riding in the lower level:

1) Yes, you have windows just like upstairs,
2) you are lower to the tracks so you won't sway as much (it might be a tad louder, but take some ear plugs for sleeping)
3) there won't be passengers walking through the compartment all night long to get to the snack bar
4) less people around to wake you up from their loud snoring, and
5) if you're lucky like we have been a couple of times (as it is summer and snowbirds won't be heading south), you might just get the lower level compartment all to yourselves!

I've been in both upper and lower levels several times. Both have positives and negatives, but in any event, you should not hesitate to book the lower level. In fact, I will be in the lower level on July 29th.

Enjoy your trip!
 


There are actually quite a few positives to riding in the lower level:

1) Yes, you have windows just like upstairs,
2) you are lower to the tracks so you won't sway as much (it might be a tad louder, but take some ear plugs for sleeping)
3) there won't be passengers walking through the compartment all night long to get to the snack bar
4) less people around to wake you up from their loud snoring, and
5) if you're lucky like we have been a couple of times (as it is summer and snowbirds won't be heading south), you might just get the lower level compartment all to yourselves!

I've been in both upper and lower levels several times. Both have positives and negatives, but in any event, you should not hesitate to book the lower level. In fact, I will be in the lower level on July 29th.

Enjoy your trip!
Thank you SO much! I will be booking this week & we are also leaving July 29th!
 
Hello I take the auto train every year and although they offer free wifio_O, It barely works. Can anybody suggest a hotspot that I can buy and use for the train ride? Sprint used to let me use my phone as a hot spot for an extra fee for the months that I had it but they no longer do that so I need another alternative. Thanks
 
Hello I take the auto train every year and although they offer free wifio_O, It barely works. Can anybody suggest a hotspot that I can buy and use for the train ride? Sprint used to let me use my phone as a hot spot for an extra fee for the months that I had it but they no longer do that so I need another alternative. Thanks

I have a T-Mobile hotspot that works well enough that I'm using it for my primary internet source at the moment. It's a prepaid hotspot, and I have the choice of a one week or one month plan, and a choice of three different sizes of data package for the one month plan. You don't have to have an active plan on it all the time. I think they give you a year or so of no use before they inactivate it. I've taken it with me on trips and used it in the car (as a passenger, lol!) and it worked fine, so I would assume it would work well on a train also if you are traveling through an area with decent coverage.
 
Hello I take the auto train every year and although they offer free wifio_O, It barely works. Can anybody suggest a hotspot that I can buy and use for the train ride? Sprint used to let me use my phone as a hot spot for an extra fee for the months that I had it but they no longer do that so I need another alternative. Thanks

The reason it "hardly works" is two fold. One, there isn't great cell coverage along the entire route (which is what it operates off of) and two, it's not for streaming of any kind. I use it to check email, read websites, etc. It also has restrictions in place to prevent individual people from using all the band width and preventing others from even being able to get on. As well as to prevent people viewing sites that shouldn't be visible in public. We used to ride the train before internet and we survived. We brought our lap tops and dvd's and watched a movie. A hot spot might not work as well as you'd like since as I said, there are areas where there is little to no cell coverage, although not huge parts of the trip, they do exist. The route is pretty rural once you get south of NC.
 
Just read through the last 30+ pages of this thread to see if it was ever asked or answered (it hasn't). Lots of good tips here so I'm hoping people can help.

We are booked one-way from VA to FL on the auto train this December for the Christmas holidays. What is it like on the train in the early winter? We are driving from Toronto and going through Buffalo. Thinking about leaving at 4pm the day before we leave on the train, driving to Pittsburgh, staying overnight east of Pittsburgh, then off to Lorton the next day. Is this reasonable to think we can do this in winter? I mean, we get snow up here, but I've been told it's much worse south of the snow belt.
 
Just read through the last 30+ pages of this thread to see if it was ever asked or answered (it hasn't). Lots of good tips here so I'm hoping people can help.

We are booked one-way from VA to FL on the auto train this December for the Christmas holidays. What is it like on the train in the early winter? We are driving from Toronto and going through Buffalo. Thinking about leaving at 4pm the day before we leave on the train, driving to Pittsburgh, staying overnight east of Pittsburgh, then off to Lorton the next day. Is this reasonable to think we can do this in winter? I mean, we get snow up here, but I've been told it's much worse south of the snow belt.

The problem that I've experienced is that folks in the DC area really do not know how to handle driving in snow. Last time I was there, a 45 minute drive took 3 hours because an inch of snow had fallen. (In their defense, it was icy-ish snow)

Personally, I would not leave later than the morning before, though you could watch the weather reports closer in to see what things are going to look like.
 
The problem that I've experienced is that folks in the DC area really do not know how to handle driving in snow. Last time I was there, a 45 minute drive took 3 hours because an inch of snow had fallen. (In their defense, it was icy-ish snow)

Hmmm good point, thanks. We will have our winter tires on so for us we'll be fine. It's all the others who aren't used to driving in this weather that we need to watch out for.

Does anyone know how much it snows mid-December in the Pittsburgh and Lorton areas?

Another question: I know they cancel trains because of inclement weather like tropical storms and hurricanes. Do they cancel trains for snow?
 
Hmmm good point, thanks. We will have our winter tires on so for us we'll be fine. It's all the others who aren't used to driving in this weather that we need to watch out for.

That's the way I thought of it, too. But it was more than just seeing cars in ditches -- the traffic was bumper to bumper, no-where-to-go, slow to a crawl. On the flip side, it was that awful because weather of that sort is very unusual to the area.

I don't think most of the December weather they see would stop the Autotrain, though.

Pittsburgh weather is nothing in particular, but the whole Buffalo region is known for its copious lake-effect snow. I did half my growing up in Erie, and I remember the snow starting well before Thanksgiving and the snow piles being big enough for really good snow-caves by Christmas. Winter meant tire-chains back then, but don't ask how long ago that was ;)

Then again, folks around Buffalo know how to drive in snow :D
 
Hi everyone...
We're driving for the first time from Canada after the crazy prices to fly for next year (from Toronto or even Buffalo).
We're driving all the way down but thinking about the autotrain on the way back. The trip is in January of next year.
I have read the last 30 pages of this thread but couldn't find a clear answer to the question below.
Do they have showers for the coach passengers or only for those with bedrooms? After a night that will likely not be VERY comfortable, I would like to take a shower (if possible) to "wake up" since I'll be driving another 9 hours back to Canada after arriving in Lorton.

Also, the general rule seems to be:
upper level -> better views but more noise, more sway
lower level -> not so good views but quieter.

Is this true? If so, I would prefer staying on the lower level to try to get a better night of sleep, especially since the trip will be in the winter, so I don't think there will be a lot of daylight anyway.

does this make sense to those that have used AutoTrain many times?

Thanks...
 
Hi everyone...
We're driving for the first time from Canada after the crazy prices to fly for next year (from Toronto or even Buffalo).
We're driving all the way down but thinking about the autotrain on the way back. The trip is in January of next year.
I have read the last 30 pages of this thread but couldn't find a clear answer to the question below.
Do they have showers for the coach passengers or only for those with bedrooms? After a night that will likely not be VERY comfortable, I would like to take a shower (if possible) to "wake up" since I'll be driving another 9 hours back to Canada after arriving in Lorton.

Also, the general rule seems to be:
upper level -> better views but more noise, more sway
lower level -> not so good views but quieter.

Is this true? If so, I would prefer staying on the lower level to try to get a better night of sleep, especially since the trip will be in the winter, so I don't think there will be a lot of daylight anyway.

does this make sense to those that have used AutoTrain many times?

Thanks...

Showers are only for those in sleeper cars - bedrooms (that have a private combo toilet/shower in the room), roomettes and family bedrooms (that have two showers and two or three toilets for the passengers in that car).

We think the sway is worse on the upper level, but make no mistake; when you're traveling at speed, you will be jostled some on the lower level. The AT travels on commercial tracks that are focused on hauling freight, not passengers.

I've been on both the upper and lower level and didn't personally notice a difference in train noise either way. Passenger noise is a different issue.

The lower level lets you see mostly trees - lots and lots of trees - plus a few roads at crossings and the occasional field, river or house. But, that's in daylight. You're correct that there won't be much daylight during the trip in January so traveling on the lower level you probably wouldn't be missing much. You will pass through the edges of maybe a handful of cities and you'll see some buildings and lights from the lower level.
 
Hi everyone...
, I would like to take a shower (if possible) to "wake up" since I'll be driving another 9 hours back to Canada after arriving in Lorton.




Thanks...
FYI -
The bathroom in the sleeper compartments give new meaning to the term "water closet". :rolleyes:
You literally need to sit on the toilet to use the shower. It was so tight, that we just skipped it all together and showered when we arrived at our hotel in Florida!
 
FYI -
The bathroom in the sleeper compartments give new meaning to the term "water closet". :rolleyes:
You literally need to sit on the toilet to use the shower. It was so tight, that we just skipped it all together and showered when we arrived at our hotel in Florida!

Indeed! My mom loves going on the train, but she is claustrophobic and despises the bedroom shower/toilet.

The communal showers shared by the roomettes and family room are not huge, but they are dedicated showers (not toilet combos) and are useably sized.
 
FYI -
The bathroom in the sleeper compartments give new meaning to the term "water closet". :rolleyes:
You literally need to sit on the toilet to use the shower. It was so tight, that we just skipped it all together and showered when we arrived at our hotel in Florida!

I used the bedroom shower and was actually glad I had to sit down - the swaying of the train made it hard to keep balance otherwise.
 

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