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View Full Version : Travel on Amtrak?



loewymartin
10-01-2002, 12:08 PM
Hello all!

We are thinking about taking Amtrak from NY Penn Station to Charleston, SC to visit my inlaws for Thanksgiving.
-Has anyone taken a train with an infant (Alia will be just over 6 months at Thanksgiving)?
-Did you choose the sleeper car? We were planning on leaving on the evening train and arriving the next morning, so all the travel would be at night.
-If you chose a sleeper car, which one? The price difference was big ($462 vs $992 for plain old sleeper to sleeper with chair!) As opposed to the plain rail fare which is $394 for the 3 of us.
-Any discounts you know of? I've heard that AAA has a 10% discount, so it would cost me $50 to join AAA and I would get an ~$80 discount.

Thanks for any tips, suggestions etc. that you can provide.

Michelle - Alia's Mom
Michelle - Alia's Mom

starrynight
10-01-2002, 12:27 PM
We took an 8 hour train trip when ds was 8 months old. We went during the day so I don't know about the sleeper car but I did see people napping on the train. I took ds carseat with me and he napped in that. The biggest pain was when I had to switch trains and I had stuff to carry. But I was told they will *check* up to 2 bags for you so you dont have to carry as much. Ask about that. Also if anyone you are traveling with is in the military you get a discount, they have to show their id when purchesing the tix. Happy trip!

ct
10-01-2002, 02:13 PM
I've never traveled via train with baby, but the AAA card is definitely worth it - not only good for emergency road service, but the discounts totally make it worth it - Amtrack, zoos, stores (regular and outlet), video rentals, etc. I have rarely used the ERS (couple times over 10 years ago for friends who locked their keys in their cars), but use the discounts all the time. Have a great trip!!

ct