My twin nephews have been huge train fans since they were super little. Thomas the Train was a favorite and they watched the movies, played with the train table and read books all about trains on a daily basis. As they have gotten older, their love of trains has continued and their Mom (my sister-in-law, Tess) has found some fun ways to participate in their beloved hobby.
Each year they head down to Florida for a vacation. Tess usually drives but this year, she added a special treat to their road trip: they took Amtrak's Auto Train to Florida (just outside of Orlando) from Virginia (just outside of DC). Here are some of the things that she learned on their adventure.
Having Reservations?: When making reservations I found that Amtrak runs various specials so check the website often before you make reservations to save on the expense. I was able to find discounts for AAA, and the military and children's fares are deeply discounted. When making your reservation, you have the choice of seats or sleeping accommodations. The "family bedroom" is about a $200 premium and sleeps four. "Bedrooms" can accommodate three and "Super Liner" rooms accommodate two.
The "Family Room" shares a bath room with two other rooms and worked well with for us: my husband and me and our twin five year olds. If you have more than four people traveling together I would recommend getting two bedroom cars. When booking the car you pay about $60 more dollars one way for an SUV (the Amtrak site lists the car length that qualifies for a larger vehicle) - if you can pack everything in your car or smaller vehicle, it will definitely save you money.
Getting there: The station is located in Lorton, Virginia, conveniently off of I-95. We ended up getting into the area a few hours early (since where is there no traffic on a weekday morning?!) which left us with time to kill - not easy with five year old boys!). There is a strip mall across the street but because of the location, it's not safe to walk there. However, there are many restaurants and shops in the area. Luckily, you can check in with Amtrak as early as 11:30 without giving up your car. Unfortunately for us, I didn't realize this and made the mistake of checking the car in at that time. You cannot board the train until 2:30 and other than a little train playground for kids, there is only a small cafe and gift shop at the station. Once your car is checked - you cannot access it - it is put on the train.
I mention this because it's really important to make sure that you have absolutely everything that you need before handing over your car. We had packed a portable DVD player to keep the kids occupied and unfortunately, left that on the train. We were fortunate that we had all of our other important items - medicine, snacks, etc. but the long wait would have been much more manageable with the DVD player as well!
All aboard!: Be prepared to lug all of your baggage onto the train yourself. I recommend the smallest bag you can take because not only are you carrying everything yourself (could be difficult if traveling with kids and no other adults) but also because the family car has a thin closet for hanging items but your bags will not fit inside - they will be on the floor in your car.
Once you're on the train, I recommend you head to the lounge area. They have free wine, sodas and snacks and the kids totally got a kick out of eating on the train. However, it's not that big so seating is limited.
Dinner and a Movie: One of the highlights of the train ride is, of course, eating in the Dining Car. Very exciting for young ones! There are three seatings for dinner, which begin at 5:00 and a family-friendly movie is offered as well.
For those who prefer to unwind in privacy after their meal, there are electrical outlets in the rooms so you can bring along your own laptop, CD or DVD players. A suggestion from one Mom to another - be overly prepared with entertainment for both the children and adults in your room. The view going by is fun to watch for a little while but at night you can't see what's going on outside and little minds can easily get bored.
While you are in the Dining Car, your concierge will put your beds in place. In the family car there are two that will be top bunks: In my opinion, not really for the little ones. My husband would never be able to fit up on the top bunk comfortably so he had one of the boys sleep with him on a lower bed while our other son slept on the other lower bed. Mom, of course, slept in the top bunk which was a little cramped.
The Small Details: The concierge makes available bottles of water so you do not need to bring this onboard. The air is very dry on the train so be prepared to drink a lot and bring lotion. Sleeping can be disrupted by an occasional bump or thump but overall the kids slept fine. A continental breakfast is served in the morning - you do not need reservations and it is first come first serve.
Arrival: You arrive in Sanford, FL - They will ask you to stay on board until they announce you can depart. Your concierge will bring a cart for you if you have baggage. You then wait for the car to come off. Again, this is when that entertainment that you've brought along comes in handy - we only had about a 40 minute wait but the wait for your car is often up to two hours.
Want more adventure on the rails? Check out the article about Classic Train Trips in the US, Canada and Mexico in the Wyndham Wisdom - "Plan Your Trip" section.
