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With all this negative talk about Amtrak and its future, I ve still decided to book my annual summer train vacation..hey you never know if it could be your last.
I always try to find the maximum rail travel for the minimum price and I think I did ok here..using the one region Explore America fare in June with a AAA discount,it comes to about $269 and I will be hitting portions of every Amtrak western route. Las Vegas,NV-Raton(SW Chief) bus to Denver, Denver-Reno(Zephyr) Reno-Emeryville, Emeryville-Portland(Starlight) Portland to Whitefish(Empire Builder) Whitefish-San Diego, back to LA and LA to Tucson(Sunset Limited) with overnight stays in Raton, Denver,Reno,Whitefish and LA.
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Sounds like a good trip! I hope it is not the last... The trip I'm planning is similar to the first leg of your trip. I haven't purchased tickets yet, but I'm hoping it'll work out: I'll start in Flagstaff, AZ and take the 'SW Chief' to Raton, NM. Then I'll bus to Denver, CO. I'll catch the 'Zephyr' to Salt Lake City, UT and then through to Emeryville, CA. I'll then take the 'Starlight' from Emeryville to LA. And then I'll hop a 'Surfliner' to San Diego. Maybe I can fit the 'Sunset' in there if I can get back up to LA, and then take the 'Sunset' to Maricopa, AZ. I wish it covered the entire Amtrak system (I've never been on any Eastern trains), but I hope this won't be my last trip... I'm taking a shorter trip on the SW Chief tomorrow and Sunday. I'll go to Albuquerque, spend the day there, and then come back to Flag on Sunday. I took advantage of Amtrak's "buy one, get one free." So I'll let you guys know how it went when I get back on Monday! Eric
Posts: 553 | From: Flagstaff, AZ USA | Registered: Apr 2001
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Hi guys, My trip to ABQ was very good. Excellent food (God I love the french toast!), and the crew members were courteous and helpful. There were quite a few passengers on board. The microphone wasn't working for the Native American Guide heading East, so we didn't get to hear that. We got to see a sunrise as we departed Flagstaff, and the landscape turned pink and yellow. The scenery was great for the whole trip. Departing on #3 out of ABQ, the cars lurched forward, and the lady accross the aisle from me said, "the engineer isn't working the clutch too well." For those of you who are interested in the consists, here they are. I didn't write down the numbers of the cars, but I wrote down what we had: Heading East, we had 4 Genesis units (161, 128, 171, 198), Baggage, Trans. Sleeper, 2 Sleepers, Diner, Sightseer Lounge, 2 Coaches, 21 Mail/Express. Heading West, we had 4 Genesis units (157, 182, 51, 22), Bag, Trans. Slpr, 2 Slprs, Diner, SS Lounge, 2 Coaches, 17 Mail/Express. Overall it was a great trip, and I hope I can do it again!
Posts: 553 | From: Flagstaff, AZ USA | Registered: Apr 2001
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