Getting to Disney by train with your car!

[alohamom]

I am not sure I would do this but I follow an Ontario Disney travel agent on Insta (claire_magicaldreamjourneys) and she has posted the idea of taking the train to Sanford (departure location is far from SW Ontario-see @Donald - my hero post below) and then driving her car the 30 minutes to WDW. I don't know how much this costs compared to driving yourself or flying but it is interesting option that I had never considered.

 

[Donald - my hero]

we've looked at it a few times but it's never hit the top of the list! The station is actually just south of Washington DC so that's adding a long drive from SW Ontario

AMTRAK CAR TRAIN

 

[NYCgrrl]

The Autotrain begins outside of DC, in VA, and ends in Florida, an easy commute to WDW. Perhaps there is a simple connection with the Buffalo route.

 

[alohamom]

Thanks - edited my original post to reflect this.

 

[bluezy]

I am not sure I would do this but I follow an Ontario Disney travel agent on Insta (claire_magicaldreamjourneys) and she has posted the idea of taking the train to Sanford from Buffalo and then driving her car the 30 minutes to WDW. I don't know how much this costs compared to driving yourself or flying but it is interesting option that I had never considered.

The Auto Train only runs from Lorton, VA to Sanford, FL., so you (that's a general "you") would have to drive from Buffalo to Lorton to get on the train. We live near Philadelphia and know a lot of families who have taken the Auto Train to FL and love it. Our family is not one of them. We have 5 kids -- all adults now -- but when they were younger, it was way more expensive to take the Auto Train than to drive the entire way. The cost just for 6 or 7 seats (depending on how many of us were traveling to Disney) on the train plus the cost for the vehicle was over $1,200. If we wanted a room with beds, it was significantly more expensive. Our gas, food, and hotel rooms were closer to $800 roundtrip. The train leaves Lorton at 5:00 p.m., but check-in is 12:30-3:00 p.m. Arrival in Sanford is around 10:00 a.m. but you still have to wait for the cars to be unloaded before you can start the drive to Disney World.

I've often compared our "average" driving trip (we've driven 10 times) with our friends "average" trip on the AutoTrain (they've done it 4 times). We live 2 miles apart from each other at home, so distance wise, everything is the same (it's a little more than a 1,000 mile drive). We would leave our house at 5:00 a.m. to start the drive to Disney. We'd stop for lunch and several bathroom/stretch breaks along the way. We'd stop at hotel for the night by about 7:00 p.m. and get dinner close by. We'd shower and get a good night's sleep and hit the road by about 8:00 the next morning. We'd be at Disney and in our room before noon (usually earlier). Our friends would leave their house by about 9:00 (it's a 3.5 hour drive to the train station). They'd check in as soon as they arrived and then walk somewhere to have lunch. After lunch they'd have 3 hours to waste before boarding the train. The train would depart at 5:00 and arrive in Sanford around 10:00 (they've gotten in as early as 9:30 and as late as 11:00). They spend the night sleeping in their reclining seats. Once their car is unloaded (one time it was the very last car unloaded) they have about a 1 hour drive to Disney World arriving around noon.

So, to compare, they leave the house about 4 hours after we do but arrive at Disney at about the same time. The *big* difference for us is that we slept 8 hours in a nice comfy bed (not a train seat) and had a nice hot shower. We arrive at Disney well rested, refreshed, and ready to go. They've often arrived at Disney and immediately taken a nap because they didn't sleep well on the train. They've also had disappointing food and issues with the bathrooms on some trips. The other big thing for us is that the drive from our house to Lorton, VA is the absolute worst part of the drive due to traffic. After Lorton, we need to get through Richmond, VA and then it's clear sailing and an easy drive (no cities to get through or around -- just a straight highway) until we get to Jacksonville, FL.

I know a lot of people swear by the Auto Train because they don't like to do all that driving. The Auto Train is a great option for people in that situation. While we know plenty of people who love the Auto Train, we also know a few who had such a bad experience on it that they will never use it again. My husband doesn't mind doing the drive, so we probably won't ever take the Auto Train though I won't rule it out for when we're older or if I had to do the driving myself. It just won't ever be our preferred method of travel.

 

[bluezy]

Thanks - edited my original post to reflect this.

So does she plan to use the Auto Train (thus having her car to drive when she arrives in FL) or just taking a standard Amtrak train and needing to rent a car or Uber/Taxi to the resort? Since there is no Auto Train in Buffalo, she would have to drive her car to Lorton, VA.

My daughter and her boyfriend are taking standard Amtrak from Philadelphia to Orlando in June. The tickets were less expensive than flying (they only booked standard seats on the train -- not a sleeper room) and had a generous luggage allowance (I think it was 2 checked bags, a carryon, and a personal item all included with the ticket price). She and her boyfriend can sleep anywhere, so they think they'll be fine with just regular seats. We'll see how it goes...

 

[NYCgrrl]

The Autotrain begins outside of DC, in VA, and ends in Florida, an easy commute to WDW. Perhaps there is a simple connection with the Buffalo route.

 

[Miffy]

The Autotrain begins outside of DC, in VA, and ends in Florida, an easy commute to WDW. Perhaps there is a simple connection with the Buffalo route.

There might be, but you wouldn't be able to bring your car on that train with you.

I've looked into the AutoTrain before and it's always been way way way too expensive. Much less expensive to fly.

The other thing to note about taking Amtrak--freight trains have the right of way on the tracks.

DH and I used to take the overnight train from NYC to Orlando, and several times we were stopped, sitting on the tracks for hours, while a freight train came and went.

Once Amtrak threatened to take everyone off the train and bus us to Orlando. We were at least 8 hours away at that point and I was not amused, to say the least. It turned out that this didn't happen, but the threat of it stayed with me. That was one of the last train trips to Orlando we took.

 

[NYCgrrl]

My daughter and her boyfriend are taking standard Amtrak from Philadelphia to Orlando in June. The tickets were less expensive than flying (they only booked standard seats on the train -- not a sleeper room) and had a generous luggage allowance (I think it was 2 checked bags, a carryon, and a personal item all included with the ticket price). She and her boyfriend can sleep anywhere, so they think they'll be fine with just regular seats. We'll see how it goes...

We’ve done both the standard and sleeper car via Amtrak NYC to Orlando, FL.

The most crowded portion of the trip will be to DC. Unless the rules have changed again only sleeper and Business class passengers can use the dining car; all others have access to the Cafe car and certain items have been know to run out. Might be wise to bring takeout sandwiches on the train. The charge plug for electric devices is only located at the window seats so a multi plug with a 6 to 9’ cord is a wise and inexpensive purchase. If they want to see a bit of DC on the train, travel on the left side going down.
There are two stops for WDW, I suggest getting off at the first one even though it’s more crowded. It’ll be easy to pickup an Uber or Lyft from there.
I’m sure they’ll have fun.

 

[LoveDaisy]

I am not sure I understand OPs post (I’m on a lot of cold meds so it could be me). Are you wondering about driving from Ontario to VA then taking the auto train to Florida? I am not sure how else you would get your car to VA. I guess if you are driving that far it would break up the trip but for the cost (it’s over $500 for the car plus about $100 a person) and how long it takes (you need to be there I think 2 hours early to load cars, then the ride, and unloading all the cars) I wouldn’t do it but if you really like trains and have lots of time it would be something different to do.

 

[NYCgrrl]

There might be, but you wouldn't be able to bring your car on that train with you.

I've looked into the AutoTrain before and it's always been way way way too expensive. Much less expensive to fly.

Thanks for the heads up about the Buffalo portion of the trip!

Amtrak is almost always more expensive in cost and time than the airlines. Still we opted in several times for the relaxation and ease of travel factor. It also worked well when we visited multi cities like NYC to Philly for 2 days then down to DC for a week and finally WDW.

Pretty much always on time with the exception of our last trip when a vehicle was hit on the track; train was 3 or 4 hours late, we received meal vouchers and played board games on the train. Better than being stuck on an plane for the same amount of time with the A/C off.

 

[bluezy]

We’ve done both the standard and sleeper car via Amtrak NYC to Orlando, FL.

The most crowded portion of the trip will be to DC. Unless the rules have changed again only sleeper and Business class passengers can use the dining car; all others have access to the Cafe car and certain items have been know to run out. Might be wise to bring takeout sandwiches on the train. The charge plug for electric devices is only located at the window seats so a multi plug with a 6 to 9’ cord is a wise and inexpensive purchase. If they want to see a bit of DC on the train, travel on the left side going down.
There are two stops for WDW, I suggest getting off at the first one even though it’s more crowded. It’ll be easy to pickup an Uber or Lyft from there.
I’m sure they’ll have fun.

Thanks for the tips. I'll pass those on to her. I know she was already planning to bring some food with them because she had read about the issues with the Cafe. They're really looking forward to the adventure. The funny thing is that they have a friend in Washington DC who is always asking them to come down and visit for a weekend. They don't want to drive in DC (or the other cities they'd have to go through to get there) so the friend suggested taking the train down. Now, one would think they'd try that short train ride to DC before attempting the one to Orlando, but they keep saying they're doing the Orlando route to see how they like the train and determine if they want to take the train to DC. They're both blondes so that might have something to do with it.

 

[mort1331]

We have looked at this option every year,,but the cost doesnt make sense to us. But for those who dont like to fly, or long drive I undersrand.