Will take CZ in April; spend one night in Sacramento; catch CS next morning to Salinas where we'll rent a car. Plan to stay in Carmel (maybe Carmel Resort Inn) April 13 - 17 and visit friends nearby. Would appeciated suggestions of nearby attractions to visit.
On return, will take bus from Salinas to San Jose, then Corridor train to Sacramento for another night. Then CZ back home. Doing CZ both ways on purpose, as we've been recently on EB and SC.
Posted by Kiernan (Member # 3828) on :
You probably know, but the easiest place to stay in Sacramento is the Vagabond Inn across the street from the station. It is, of course, walking distance to Old Sacramento and the railroad museum.
Posted by notelvis (Member # 3071) on :
quote:Originally posted by Kiernan: You probably know, but the easiest place to stay in Sacramento is the Vagabond Inn across the street from the station. It is, of course, walking distance to Old Sacramento and the railroad museum.
Second that. The Vagabond Inn is my favorite place to stay on the west coast.
It's your typical US motor hotel but the rooms are clean and it is, as Kiernan points out, literally across the street from the Amtrak station. If you go online looking, the Vagabond Inns are a regional chain. The cheaper one in Sacramento is way out on the edge of town by the interstate and that's not the one you're looking for. Instead you want the 'Executive Old Town' location.
The rates are as reasonable as anything you will find 'in town' in California. They include breakfast (DIY waffles) with the room but there is a Denny's right next door if you require an ocean of coffee and table service.
Most folks, myself included, will recommend that if you are going to walk it, exit the front of the train station, turn left and walk to the intersection at the end of the block, cross the street with the light, and then turn right to walk back to the hotel which will be on your left. The street between the station and the hotel is four or five lanes wide and in the process of becoming a freeway onramp. Most of the traffic is really booking as it zooms by the Amtrak station.
On the return corridor train, try to get into Sacramento by early afternoon so you will have a couple or three hours to spend at the railroad museum. I wouldn't count on getting there before closing time coming off the westbound Zephyr!
Posted by sbalax (Member # 2801) on :
Mr. Toy, are you there??
Mr. Toy can probably give you lots of insights on what to see and do in the Monterey/Carmel area since he lives there.
I second the votes for the Vagabond and for spending some time (as much as you can) at the Railroad Museum.
Frank in sunny but cool SBA
Posted by Bob from MA (Member # 4686) on :
Thanks for the above messages. I had already planned to stay at the Vagabond Inn. We stayed there briefly on two other occasions. My wife does not want to walk too far with baggage, but I believe they have a van that will pick us up. Last time, the manager herself drove it over. Wouldn't accept a tip in that she was the manager and not just an employee.
We visited the railroad museum on another visit, so may not go there this time. We will walk around at the Old Sacramento shops though.
I made my Amtrak reservation today, so I'm in that happy period of anticipation between booking a long trip and actually taking it! My method is to work it out on line, then call Amtrak using the special Guest Rewards Select reservation number. I get a real person right away. By that method I can check the sleeper numbers. On a trip in December on the SC, we got stuck in Superliner room #14 downstairs. We prefer the upper level.
The Amtrak lady quoted me a price about $300 more than the computer had shown less than an hour earlier. When I pointed that out, she said "Well, I did the Explore America" fare, but I'll try it as just a regular round trip. After a minute she came back with the price the computer had shown. Strange? I thought they always came up with the lowest possible fare.
I'm getting a roomette on the CS between Sacramento and Salinas just so we can spend a few hours in the Pacific Parlour Car (IF that trainset has one). Also can get breakfast.
I am now looking over the AAA tourbook for places to stay in Carmel. We're visiting friends there but it will not be convenient to stay at their house. We'll have time to drive to places of interest on the peninsula. Made the 12-mile drive (or whatever miles it is) several years ago, but didn't really stop anywhere except at the golf course. Our friends mentioned an aquarium as worth a visit. I'm open to suggestions.
Just read Mr. Toy's trip report, so I presume he will have some comments soon.
Posted by mr williams (Member # 1928) on :
When in Monterey you MUST visit the Aquarium, it's out of this world. You could spend a whole day there and the attractions will please all ages. Monterey is spectacular and I'll definitely go back and see more of it one day - I only had time to pay a flying visit last October but I got to meet the legendary Mr Toy in person (yes, he really does exist!).
Posted by 20th Century (Member # 2196) on :
I also suggest you visit the Aquarium in Monterey. My visit was some time ago, but it was a memorable one!