Travelling by Train from Chicago (Geneva, Washington: rental car, rental, buy)

[The_OkGatsby]

Hey everyone!

You may remember I posted a thread about a month ago saying how I am coming to visit on a J1 visa etc.

Well it looks like at the end of my stay I'm going to have a couple of weeks to travel with a friend. We're looking at getting a train somewhere but aren't sure where?

Over in Europe we have this thing called Interrailing. You buy a ticket that's valid for 3 weeks and it allows you to travel anywhere in Europe by train, getting off when and where you choose. It also gives you great discounts on hostels etc. It's a great way to see Europe.

Is there something similar in America? I would absolutely love to see the "real" America, I think there's so much more to your country than the big cities. Failing that, where would you recommend we travel to? Also, if I buy a ticket to New York from Chicago, for example, does the train go direct to NY or could I get off at a small town somewhere and then hop back onto the train maybe a day later?

Thanks for any help and if there's a more suitable forum then please, move this thread!!

Thanks, Luke

[ProgMichael]

Gotta be honest with you, Gatsby. I'm as big an advocate of rail transit as you will find. Unless you're taking about a 2-3 hour trip, taking Amtrak (America's city-to-city rail transportation system) is a nightmare to/from Chicago. Since Chicago is a major rail hub, freight trains and Amtrak share the same tracks for much of the time. I recently took a train back from Rochester, New York (probably 7-8 hours west of New York City). The train departed an hour and a half late, and arrived in Chicago 2 1/2 hours late. Unless you get a sleeper car, the seats on Amtrak do not recline very far, and are difficult to sleep in.

Europe's train system is wonderful. I've taken a train from Paris to Rome. That's because there are so many closely connected cities, and people are used to taking public transportation. Here in the United States, most people are accustomed to auto or air transit. Amtrak is a HUGE money loser for the nation, although we're TRYING to create high-speed rail here (which in its present proposal is something of joke).

Sorry to go on and on. I know you want to see the country and I hope this isn't a buzz kill for you. For a little extra money, you can rent a car to do that. Or, if you just want to get to your destination, just take an airplane. For only a little more money than Amtrak, you'll save a day or two (or more) in travel. And hey, time is money, right?

[Drover]

We don't have "interrailing" here like you describe it. We have a national passenger rail system called Amtrak, and Chicago is by far the most connected city on the Amtrak system, so there's the upside.

The downsides are as follows:

1) Amtrak trains are very slow by European/Asian standards, with speeds capped at 127kph on the vast majority of the system. There are exceptions, most notably on the corridor between Boston and Washington DC, but most of the system is sllllooooowwwww...

2) In addition to the low speed cap on most of the system, very little of the Amtrak system runs on dedicated rights-of-way. They are shared with freight lines, and freight trains get priority since the tracks are owned by the freight companies (Amtrak just leases access from them). So on top of the slow speeds, you'll often get freight delays.

3) Points one and two are exacerbated by the fact that the U.S. is a very big country with cities spread out across substantial distances, so it can take a hell of a long time to get from city to city. (It's been my experience that many Europeans vastly underestimate the size of the U.S. and how long it can take to get from one place to another until they actually come here.) If I wanted to see a substantial portion of the U.S. by train, I'd probably budget at least 3 weeks of time to do it.

4) You can't buy a ticket and use it whenever you feel like within a certain time frame; your ticket is only good for a specific destination boarding at a specific time.

In short, our passenger rail system pretty well sucks. I believe the Greyhound bus line has something where you can buy a ticket and get off anywhere before the destination and then catch another bus to your destination any time within one year of the ticket purchase. The downsides to Greyhound buses are that 1) obviously they're even slower than the trains; and 2) Greyhound buses tend to be creep shuttles.

[chirack]

Another Issue is that this country is very auto oriented. If you hop off in some small town, you will need a car or else you might not be able to get far from the station. The city of Milwaukee is doable from Chicago by train (or driving but I think you might have a bit of hassle via driving) or Bus. If you go somewhere make sure that there is public transit from the rail station.

We have a commuter rail system called Metra that could take you to a few suburban downtowns and the South Shore line could take you to part of Indiana (which some parts have issues with limited to non-excitant transport from the rails). The Indiana dunes might be accessible via the South Shore line if you like nature.

St. Louis might be doable but that trip is 5 hours by rail each way(meaning you probably want to stay somewhere overnight).

[Hawknest]

I bought a rail pass a few years ago - travelling from DC to Seattle. Because I did not get a sleeper, I was able to get off along the way and pick up the next train coming thru. That's how the tours operate.

[chicagobear]

It is really hard to travel in America by train unless you stay in the northeast (Boston to Washington). A car is far more useful.

[nana053]

I don't think Europeans have any idea of the immensity of the United States. Most of Europe can do train travel partly because the cities are close together.

You seriously cannot see the U.S. by train even if we had a high speed rail network because the distances are prohibitive. New York City to Chicago is 711 miles. London to Paris is 211 miles. Paris to Rome is 687 miles. Paris to Geneva is 334 miles.

If you wanted to go coast to coast here, you are talking about New York to LA which is 2800 miles.

Now if you are staying in NYC and want to visit places nearby - Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, then train is doable. But even on the west coast, LA to San Franciso to Portland or Seattle is pretty difficult.

[C. Maurio]

Originally Posted by The_OkGatsby

Hey everyone!

You may remember I posted a thread about a month ago saying how I am coming to visit on a J1 visa etc.

Well it looks like at the end of my stay I'm going to have a couple of weeks to travel with a friend. We're looking at getting a train somewhere but aren't sure where?

Over in Europe we have this thing called Interrailing. You buy a ticket that's valid for 3 weeks and it allows you to travel anywhere in Europe by train, getting off when and where you choose. It also gives you great discounts on hostels etc. It's a great way to see Europe.

Is there something similar in America? I would absolutely love to see the "real" America, I think there's so much more to your country than the big cities. Failing that, where would you recommend we travel to? Also, if I buy a ticket to New York from Chicago, for example, does the train go direct to NY or could I get off at a small town somewhere and then hop back onto the train maybe a day later?

Thanks for any help and if there's a more suitable forum then please, move this thread!!

Thanks, Luke

Rail in America sucks. Nobody uses it, it only lives due to massive Federal subsidies. It is not as bad as Greyhound but it is trying hard! Fly or drive. You will find the experience much more rewarding!

[matzoman]

I second renting a cheap budget rental car. Get one with unlimited miles, 50 dollars a day. Make sure to get a four cylinder engine so when you fill up with gas it is not expensive. See America and take route 66 if you can, you will not regret it, the smaller country highways through America are the most fun.

[C. Maurio]

Originally Posted by nana053

I don't think Europeans have any idea of the immensity of the United States. Most of Europe can do train travel partly because the cities are close together.

You seriously cannot see the U.S. by train even if we had a high speed rail network because the distances are prohibitive. New York City to Chicago is 711 miles. London to Paris is 211 miles. Paris to Rome is 687 miles. Paris to Geneva is 334 miles.

If you wanted to go coast to coast here, you are talking about New York to LA which is 2800 miles.

Now if you are staying in NYC and want to visit places nearby - Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, then train is doable. But even on the west coast, LA to San Franciso to Portland or Seattle is pretty difficult.

I agree. Washington to Boston is good for trains. And Chicago to New Orleans is OK if you want to see the south. But all else sucks.