Amtrak Auto Train About This Page:

[DaBlueys]

Last year it was silver service, and coach... Not bad, but far from good.. I had a theory that the worst part of the train wasn't the service, the bathrooms, or the lack of sleeping.. but the kids being in coach. So my question is this, for 165 dollars more than the cost of flights for the 4 of us, and a car rental; we can book the family bedroom on the auto train down and 2 roomettes on the trip back, and have our own car in WDW (NOT a rental) and be somewhat free to travel around the area (HArry Potter) without the worry of a strange car, or the hassle of Magical Express to the parks...

Has anyone taken the auto train? do you want to share your story?

[emtpej]

Darlene and her family has taken the Auto Train several times and always speaks highly of it:
Our Penny Pressing Plans - the Photo Finish

We also considered it for our trip home last year, but had to cancel.

We have kicked it around a lot here:
Considering Auto Train...

Calling all auto train experts

and elsewhere...

[TinkWink57]

We continue to consider it given the sad state of affairs of the airline industry. However, fares for flights out of PHL continue to be very competitive; it would cost us considerably more to take the Auto Train. I know cost is not everything, but right now I'm afraid it trumps everything else.

[mistygapa]

We took the auto train once a few years back - can't remember if it was 2002 or 2003. It wouldn't be my first choice and actually, I'd only ever consider it again if I had a sleeper car (we were in regular coach when we went). It was nice to have our own vehicle once we got to FL, but the trip is long and quite jerky/bumpy. If you have trouble sleeping it makes it more difficult with the constant movement and noise. Our car was also very hot which made it hard to get comfortable for sleep too.

It was neat seeing the different towns we passed, but I'd far prefer to fly just to have the extra vacation time to spend at WDW and to be able to relax in a comfy, temperature controlled resort room Plus it took me a good half a day each way to get my "land legs" back once we got off the train - LOL.

[DISNEY03]

We took the autotrain last november and i was PLEASANTLY suprised at how nice it was. We were in coach and it was myself, Dh and our children 3&4 at the time. We usually drive down but my DH said it is becoming a little too much and I agree. He wanted to try the autotrain but I was very hesitant because of sharing bathrooms with 2 potty trained kids and a long ride.
Soooooooo to make a very long story short, I will say the bathrooms (there were 5 to choose from, plus one bathroom with a vanity in it!) and they were always suprisingly clean. We were on the top level with what seem liked ALL Disney families and the ride was mostly smooth, once on the way home for a little while it was a little rocky but it was such a relaxing ride, we were sooo relaxed by the time got there which was early and we barely waited for our van when we got there and when we got home.
The food was nothing to speak of and the wait to get on the train was a little long, especially with the kids(you have to be there by 1-1:30) the train doesn't leave until 4pm.
Good luck with you decision, I have to say I would definitly recommend it and we planning on bookin for our WDW vacation, next Oct.
BTW When we got on the train my DH went to the bar car and got us both a cocktail (which helped with the relaxation process) and they had chex mix too! I thought that was a nice little way to start out our trip!!!
Again, good luck any other questions please ask!

[DaBlueys]

Thanks for the feedback. I think the issue with long distance trains is NOT having a sleeper. that rings pretty true on here and with my FB friends. Granted it is quicker to fly down and rent a car, but maybe some of you can vouch for this, but I don't like driving borrowed vehicles. Always feel like I'm going to crash it or something. Add to that the cost (estimate) that I took from Southwest.com of the flight and the rental car was about 1300 and the train with a sleeper both ways was 1400 so for 100 bucks more I have my own car...

[finallygoing]

Our family, parents and two boys (now 12 and 14), have taken the Autotrain to FL every Feb. for the last five years. We have always gotten the family room, so I don't have anything to compare it with, but we love it. Your kids look small, so the kids will have plenty of room to move around. The thing you may like the best about the famliy room is the quietness of the lower car where they are located. Besides your family,thereis only a maximum 10 other people (5 roomettes) who could be staying in the car, plus two people more people if the handicap room is taken. The sixth roomette in the lower level is used by the attendant who sleeps in it from midight to 6 am. Usually there is only adults, or older kids using the roomettes, so your kids will probably be the only ones down there. If your family travels during a non peak vacation time, there will probably be even less people staying down there, since people seem to request upper level roomettes more. There are 3 toilets in the lower level, so there is never a wait and there is also a shower, which is twice the size of the toilets...I use it everytime I go. People who have been in both upper and lower levels say the lower levels are nosier for sleeping at night because you hear the train on the rails more. This may be the case, but like i said ,we have always traveled the lower level so we have nothing to compare it with. My family has never had a problem sleeping, especially the kids. I am the only one who can't...but I have never been able to sleep in moving vehicles of any kind.

The big reason we take the Autotrain is because we want to take the car. I don't think it's the driving a rental we care about...it's everything we TAKE with us in the car. I think it actually saves money because we take non perisable food, beach chairs, first aid items etc. These are things we would have to pay more for, or rent while on vacation. Also we do like to travel around FL...there's so much more than Orlando to see.

If you have any particular questions to ask feel free to post. I just discovered this site and this is my first posting, but i will check back to see if you have questions. This Feb will be the first time we will use the roomettes coming back. The autotrain has become so popular we were not able to get reservations for the family room both ways

[disneygal]

We have taken the autotrain a few times for trips to Disney and Longboat Key. We have stayed in the family bedroom and have stayed in a deluxe bedroom suite which is really 2 bedrooms with the divider open between the two. We chose to drive down to Disney this trip and take the train home. We are doing it this way to save some money. Our one way trip is costing us a little over $1300. We are going to have the bedroom suite again, which I like better than the family bedroom since there are bathrooms in the regular rooms and not any in the family rooms. With the suite we will actually have 2 bathrooms, which is good for us since we have three children and would need to go to the bathroom almost constantly.

[Timothy Mouse]

We had thought about the autotrain but decided against it because there would need to be a lot of entertaining our four-year old for the duration of the train ride.

[finallygoing]

Tim Mouse,
I always felt the trip goes very fast because you spend most of the time sleeping. The train leaves at 4 in the afternoon. There is complimentary snacks/soft drinks/wine in the lounge at this time, then dinner sittings are at 5 or 7 ( 9 if the train is full, but they make sure families with kids eat at 5 or 7). So once you are done with dinner, you don't have too much time before bed. You also must remember that you and your 4 year old have several options of places to go play on the train. There is an upstairs lounge and a downstair one. If you travel during the school holidays the train will have many kids on it and the lounges will sometimes look like preschools until night time. In the morning, you have breakfast to keep you busy, then the train gets into Sanford around 9:30 - 10:00. There have been problems with the train getting in later in the past. But I think Amtrak is doing better with this and the last two years we have gotten into Sanford on time.

[jenjen1127]

We took the auto train roundtrip once. Not a pleasant experience. We were in coach so I can only comment on that. It was noisy, bathrooms were dirty and very uncomfortable. We didn't get any sleep that night and were totally exhausted the day we arrived in WDW. Maybe getting an upgrade is better but I personally would never take Amtrack or the Auto Train again.

[Cap'n Phil]

Does anyone know what was on the menu for October 2009. My wife is fairly finicky and its been a while since I took the Autotrain. Is there an rider accessible microwave on board.

[finallygoing]

The menu has been basically the same throughout all the years I have taken it. There is a steak entree, a fish entree ( usually salmon), a chicken entree ( baked or roasted, never fried) and a vegetarian entree ( usually a pasta/lasagna type with vegetables). They also always have chicken fingers for the kids, but anyone can order it. The starch is usually baked potato or rice (can't remember ever seeing mashed potatoes ) and the vegetables are usually a mixed medley or string beans. You also get a salad and dessert with the meal and free wine if you want. I have always found the food to be good on the Autotrain. It's not the poor quality you get on the regular Amtrak service.

They do have microwaves in thekitchen area. I've never asked to use them, so I don't know whether a passenger can bring their own food and reheat it, but they are pretty accommendating on the train, so I would have to guess that they would.

[DISNEY03]

We went last nov. and that was exactly the menu, honestly i think the food would be the ONLY thing that wasn't great on our trip, but I really didn't expect it to be so i wasn't really dissapointed. Bring snacks!!!!