Some of you were asking how my Amtrak trip in the US went. So here's a summary from someone who loves trains, takes trains wherever possible and is willing to spend a lot of time on board, calling it fun 😄
I booked the day-time Palmetto from NYP to CHS ($80) and night-time Silver Meteor back to NYP ($110). The journey takes around 14 hours in each direction.
The Palmetto to Charleston started exactly on time in New York. Seats in the coach class are huge, especially compared to airplanes. There are many Amtrak employees in train stations and on the train. Everything well organized, clean, comfortable, safe, usable - wifi, restrooms, power sockets, board restaurant (with vegan food!), coffee, water.... You don't need any reservation, a seat will be given to you by a train attendant. They even ask for pairs and groups, so you'll be seated conveniently together.
The ride itself is nice as well. Starting in the morning from the Moynihan hall, seeing sunrise over Philadelphia and Washington, then small cities, rural parts of the country, wild animals, forests, swamps, fields, villages... There is always something interesting going on, even if it's not especially spectacular or breathtaking. Unlike airplane , you can walk around, stretch your legs, get decent food and coffee, talk to your fellow travellers. The whole setup is pretty relaxed. Nobody is really hurrying anywhere. On the first part of the ride, the train is running on ⚡ and reaches 200km/h. From Washington down it's ⛽ with 125km/h. Still decent speed, even compared to central Europe.
During these 14 hours, we accumulated around 30 minutes of delay, which I consider absolutely OK. Arriving at 8pm to Charleston train station, not far away from the airport, just in time for a local bus running to the city center. For $2 this buss will bring you to the city, without any need for a taxi or uber. There is an actual sidewalk to the bus stop, so I couldn't practice walking on a highway. Yes, tourists probably don't take this bus, but all went fine and felt relatively safe, including an unexpected money exchange in the bus - who'd guess that you need $1 bills to pay?! The bus driver is screaming "does anybody have change for 20?" and somebody from the bus indeed changed me enough dollars to pay for my ride. Have no ticket though, so I can't really expensify it 😄
My journey back to New York started on Friday evening. Again a bus from Charleston to the train station, around 8pm. This time I was prepared, having enough real money to pay for the bus. It was a bit chaotic and the bus broke down in the middle of the ride, but has been promptly replaced by a next one. Getting on time to the train station to discover that the train is delayed by 2h30m. No big deal, the train station is clean, well lit, warm, safe and comfortable. I had no flight scheduled after the train, so a few hours of delay doesn't really matter much.
Around the midnight the train rolled into the station. We got two big comfortable seats to New York for me and my wife, our tickets have been checked and I am almost immediately sleeping. The seat can be tilted back, there is a big leg rest, everything quite comfortable for a good 6-hour sleep. I had absolutely no worries about security in these open-plan coaches. In that regard, old austrian night trains with their 6-seat compartments feel way less secure, being trapped in, behind a door with just a handful of strangers.
Woke up in Washington, where we again changed from diesel to electric engine. Got a few cups of free coffee (because of the delay?) and then it's fast and smooth rolling all the way to our final station. We shaved off some minutes from the initial delay and arrived just before the check-in time of my hotel in New York. Well rested, directly in Manhattan, just a short walk to the hotel.
Would I ride the Amtrak again? Absolutely! Not just for ecological reasons. Trains are comfortable, bring you closer to your actual destination, let you see so much of the country, nobody forces you to remove your shoes, belt and content of your pockets... Yes, it takes some time. But it's time well spent. Time for you, with your book, nice, ever changing view and a cup of coffee. A different, slower way of travelling.