I took Amtrak, and you should too
Amtrak is one of the best ways to travel, and with gas above $4.50 a gallon, it’s much cheaper than driving.
Recently I took an Amtrak from Hollywood, FL, to Tampa, FL. While you won’t find the glamor that you might have seen in old black and white movies from the 1940s, Amtrak is a civilized, carefree, and fun way to travel our nation. Our ride took about five and a half hours. That’s about an hour or so more than driving, but less expensive and far more relaxing. It’s also quicker than flying, and no security lines either.
The seats are wider and more comfortable than an airplane. And the views are amazing. I could have just stared out the window for the whole trip. But I took advantage of the wi-fi and got some work done. But the wi-fi wasn’t perfect, and when we were outside of metro areas, the internet speed was too slow to be useful.
With our coach seats, meals are not included. The café car was available, and the pricing wasn’t bad at all. I’m not going to put it at a ‘fine-dining’ level, but we were happy with our meal. Bring an extra sweater or sweatshirt. For some reason Amtrak keeps their train cars cold. I mean like hospital cold. But at least it’s fresh air.
You can order tickets on their website and easily put your tickets in your apple wallet or go old-school and print them out. So, skip the plane and take the train.
Photo credit: Me
