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I'm back from my trip to Music City, with stops in Washington DC and Atlanta. The train part was GREAT! The Greyhound part: not so great! I have since discovered I could have used something called Groome Transportation to get from Atlanta to Nashville; sorry I didn't do that.
The nitty gritty: Deciding I would split my ticket and get some time in Washington DC, I took a very early Empire Service to NYC and was planning on taking a REgional to DC, but the Regional broke, so I wound up on my first ACELA. It was great!
In DC I had lunch and a lovely walkabout, plus stops at the National Gallery to see the Turner and Hopper exhibits. These were fantastic; if you are an art lover, I cannot recommend them enough.
I then caught the Crescent to Atlanta. I was glad to have a sleeper because the coach was pretty crowded! The dinner was rather good--much better than the diner lite I'd had on the Lakeshore Ltd recently. Staff were excellent, especially in the diner. Breakfast was also fine--it was nice to see the strawberry topping available for the French toast.
I made it to Atlanta pretty much on time and caught a cab to my hotel, where I was able to check in early, which was great. I then walked from Midtown to Downtown, stopping at the World of Coca Cola (not my cuppa cola; I should have gone to the aquarium) before getting to the capitol, where I had a very nice tour. I walked back up town through Centennial Park again . . . I needed the exercise after all that Amtrak food! And more food was to come, as my friend now met me (she'd been at work) and we went out to dinner. She also took me to see that new Atlantic complex, which was something else.
Next morning, I caught an early cab to the Greyhound to Nashville. The Greyhound westbound wasn't really that bad; the station was somewhat chaotic, but I had a seat to myself and that was nice. The bus was about 1/2 hour late. My friends who had flown to Nashville met me, and we lunched and visited the capitol and Tennessee State Museum, which was quite cool (Davey Crockett's this, Daniel Boone's that. . . . ). We then checked into our hotel, the Union Station--exquisite lobby from the old train station, though just a little sad for me too.
That night we went to a fried catfish & chicken place for dinner and then went to a fine bluegrass venue. Next day I walked down by the river and saw the old fort and the Music City trainstop; visited the Country Music Hall of Fame, Ryman, and Studio B; had great BBQ on Broadway; took a cab up to Centennial Park and saw the Parthenon; walked through Vanderbilt Campus back down to Music Row; and went into some of the bars with great music before meeting my friends for a fantastic dinner. We then went to the Bluebird, which I found a little cramped but the music pretty good.
The next day I took the Gray Line tour to the Hermitage and Belle Meade. Then I met my friends at one of the downtown bars with great music (and no cover, btw). Then we went for another great dinne--this time in Germantown, which was a nice area--and on to the Grand Ole Opry at the Ryman (it is held there in the winter months), which was a thrill.
The next morning I briefly visited Bicentennial Park and the Farmer's Market before catching my bus back to Atlanta. This was pretty awful--the station was a zoo, and the bus was incredibly crowded. Greyhound has this thing where they cannot guarantee you will get on the bus you paid for and they tell you to get there early, but then they added another bus for Atlanta--really, it was quite chaotic. I sat next to the skinniest person I could find and zoned out with music to drown out the babies crying. I was SO glad to get to the Atlanta Amtrak station, you have no idea. My trip north was simply excellent--three good meals (lunch, which is usually bad, was quite tasty, the pizza nicely doctored up) and I slept like a baby. I went straight through to NYC and since the train stops only to let people off from DC north, we arrived quite early!!! I then caught an Empire Service back, enjoying the foliage along the Hudson.
All in all, an excellent trip, except for the eastbound Greyhound.
Oh, and I wish I could have fit a trip on the Music City lightrail train in, but it did not run frequently enough to do so.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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Great report, sojourner---thanks for posting it!
I'm glad that the train rides worked out well for you, with good food, decent crewmembers, and no unpleasant passengers. It's too bad that the bus ride back to Atlanta was a bad one, though.
FWIW, IMO, you indeed missed a treat by not going to the Georgia Aquarium. Hopefully you'll get a chance to tour it the next time you're in Atlanta.
Posts: 100 | From: Kernersville, NC | Registered: Oct 2007
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Thanks, Tarheelman. I do intend to go; it's just that I was in the Field Aquarium in Chicago a few weeks ago, so I opted for the World of Coca Cola, a mistake (though kids might enjoy it).
On my last trip to Atlanta I saw the High Museum, Atlanta Botanical Garden and Piedmont Park, Martin Luther King site, Little Five Points, Georgia Tech Campus, and the Margaret Mitchell home, all enjoyable, plus drove through the Carter Center and some nice old neighborhoods (Inman Park was one), had great pulled pork at a place called Fat Something, visited some Bucktown shopping malls (I'm not sure why, but my friend wanted to go) and saw Centennial Park at night all duded out for Christmas. This time the park was a little weird, everything so dry and brown, though the weather was excellent from a tourist viewpoint.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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You are one fortunate person in my estimation. you seem to have friends all over the country with whom you can "hook up " on your trips. With your obvious enthusiasm it is appparent why. I thought we accomplished a lot on our travels but you surely have us beaten. I did enjoy this report as I do your others.
Posts: 1577 | From: virginia | Registered: Jun 2005
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Oh, Train Lady, I think you've accomplished plenty! A lot of times I am severely limited by lack of car, too. I do have lots of friends and acquaintances, although in Nashville it was not friends who lived there but just ones who flew in for vacation too. I know quite a few people in Atlanta, though; I actually would have seen more had I been there longer.
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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Your trip report was great, as usual. Glad you enjoyed your trip to Nashville. Wife and I spent 25th anniversary touring Tennessee a few years back and really liked the time we spent there. Three days in Nashville exploring those places you mentioned and another couple in Chattanooga-Lookout Mt. the famous Ruby Falls and Rock City and the Chattanooga Choo Choo Hotel complex. Too bad Amtrak doesnt run through those cities. They would bring in a lot of tourist traffic (without those Grayhound Buses. Thanks again for all your advice. Railroad and Mrs. Bill Posts: 87 | From: Ohio | Registered: Apr 2007
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Sojourner- Loved your report. It is amazing how much you pack into a short visit. Glad you enjoyed Nashville. You know another idea we have thought about is to take a river cruise down the Cumberland. I believe the outfit that operates the Delta Queen and her sister ships has trips that call at Nashville. It might not be as good as the Pan American but sure beats Greyhound.
Posts: 2397 | From: Camden, SC | Registered: Mar 2006
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As usual another great trip report. I'm also amazed at how much 'bang' you get for your buck.
I'm curious whether you considered leaving Nashville continuing westward to Memphis and catching the 'City of New Orleans' northward from there?
That would have meant a shorter bus ride and an extra night on the train......plus a day in Chicago. A double-bonus time permitting!
Thanks for posting and keeping us updated as to how things are looking out there.
-------------------- David Pressley
Advocating for passenger trains since 1973!
Climbing toward 5,000 posts like the Southwest Chief ascending Raton Pass. Cautiously, not nearly as fast as in the old days, and hoping to avoid premature reroutes. Posts: 4203 | From: Western North Carolina | Registered: Feb 2004
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I did consider it, David, and in fact we chatted here about some of the neat things to do in Memphis. Problem is, when I checked, it was impossible to find a hotel room in downtown Memphis; there was a big religious convention there. And it ran for quite some time, because I also tried booking in Memphis first (and coming back thru Atlanta), but I could not get a room then either.
And the Nashville dates were fixed because I was meeting friends whose trip was long planned and based on their vacation days from work. So I decided to see Memphis another time, hopefully in conjunction with a New Orleans (and maybe Jackson and Baton Rouge?) trip. The CONO is the only major l-d train I've never been on, and I really have to take it soon!
Posts: 2642 | From: upstate New York | Registered: Mar 2004
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Groome Transportation (they have a website) is a very slick operation that runs vans in all directions from Atlanta airport. I have taken them many times to Columbus GA - they run every half hour for $54 r/t last time I took it in March. The airlines cannot possibly compete. They run on time and guarantee to take you even as a walkup. I think Greyhound's attitude toward their customers is pathetic and degrading.
Posts: 326 | From: San Antonio Texas USA | Registered: Dec 2003
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