Anyone ever ridden Amtrak?
 

What's it like? Would you go on a long trip with it? Are the seats like first-class aircraft seats or coach, or something completely different? Is it worth the large extra charge to get the sleeper car? Is it more like the luxury train cars of yore with good food and china and table linens in the dining car, or is it Greyhound on rails?

No but I knew a girl in high school,Lori Jones....We called her Amtrak.

Shit. Let me repeat that - shit. You'll wish you'd taken the bus.

Old crappy cars, old crappy tracks, trains fighting for track time with freights that have priority. About the best you can hope for is that your train will only be moderately late.

My best friend was on a train that derailed in Ft. Madison. They basically put the passengers off the train and told them they were on their own.

I can't speak for the quality of the sleeper accomodations or high level food service, but when you consider how bad everything else is, well....

Took one once from California to KC and made a big mistake not getting a sleeper car although I have trouble sleeping in any kind of moving vehicle.

The expierence was decent in that when going thru New Mexico they had a tour guide in the observation car pointing out Indian battlegrounds and other history tidbits.

No way in hell I'd ever take another 2+ day trip on one though.

Had a buddy that bout got creamed by a Amtrak train .. he was drunk pissin' on the tracks at the time ....

Had a great ride from STL to Chicago.... It was nice that there where plug ins in every row so you could keep charge on your electronics.

I've taken Amtrak from L.A. (Union Station) down to San Diego. We upgraded our seats and really enjoyed it...but wouldn't want to ride much longer than that. Of course, the views are amazing on that one too.

One of my friends' grandfather is retired from Union Pacific, and he has always emphasized to the rest of the family to NEVER use passenger rail. The tracks simply aren't maintained well enough for it to be safe.

I took the Amtrak to New Orleans last year, runs from Chicago down there. I caught it here in Kentucky. New Orleans was about 9 hours from here on the train. But it comes through here at 2am. So got a sleeper car, caught some shut eye and woke early enough to shower (in my private car), and got breakfast that was included in the fare.
I was around $325 round trip. Little on the expensive side but, was a new experience, and service, faculties were top notch. I'm glad I was sleeping the majority of the trip, you could bore easy on one of those things past the meal and viewing cars.

We went from Kansas City to Chicago. Wonderul trip. Plenty of bathrooms, food was good comfortable seating. Nothing like flying, which in my opinion is pricing themselves right out of some business.

I rode it from Newton, KS to LA when i was like 15. took about 24 hrs. It wasnt bad at all. The observation car was cool. Windows all around and they played a movie at night. i think it was fairly cheap too.

took amtrak w/my family from baltimore up to somewhere in conneticut. went through philly and nyc...places i'd never drive myself.

overall, it was pretty nice. only thing was on the way back, we sat in the very last car. i didn't notice, but the wife gets motion sickness pretty easy, and got a little pukey feeling. beer was kinda high priced, but i noticed a few people pulling 40's out of their bags, and drinking.

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I like Amtrack, but i've never taken a long tip on one. About an hour is the longest I've ever been.

The seats were plush and cushy, well ventilated. My experience differs from others I'd assume, since our Amtrak travels up the coastline and the cars are in good shape. The one I use to take was a double-decker. I enjoyed it. Shrug.

I have taken Amtrak from San Diego to Irvine (Orange County) and back a couple of times. It goes along the coast so the view is pretty assume.

I have never ridden on one but my folks are going from Austin to Seattle next month and then back. I can get you a good report around the end of next month if that helps. ;)